POSTED: 11:41 a.m. EDT June 10, 2002
UPDATED: 5:40 p.m. EDT June 10, 2002

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- A national conservation group is leading an effort to purchase the landmark Rocky Point amusement park.

The Trust for Public Land made the announcement Monday at a news conference with Rep. James Langevin.

The group has submitted a proposal to a U.S. bankruptcy court trustee and the Small Business Administration to try to purchase the land where the famed park once lit up a child's imagination.

The park was shut down in 1995, after falling victim to vandals.

But in its heyday, it was an oceanfront resort for generations of New Englanders.

It also is the sight where President Rutherford Hayes placed the first presidential phone call.

Langevin and other area politicians have been seeking public-private partnerships to preserve the spot.

The plans include unrestricted public access to the shoreline and a public recreation facility.