Watch Hill
Encyclopedia
Watch Hill is an affluent coastal village in the southwestern section of the town
of Westerly, the southwestern-most town in Washington County
and the entire U.S. state
of Rhode Island
. The village is listed as a census-designated place
. Watch Hill Historic District is a 629 acres (254.5 ha) historic district
in the village that is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
.
As a state-charted Fire District (1901), the Watch Hill area is authorized to tax residents to fund their volunteer fire department, but the bulk of property tax
es go to the town to fund municipal services and schools. The town was listed in Lisa Birnbach
's 2010 book
True Prep as an acceptable summer destination for the preppy
set.
The town is considered a more staid and family-oriented community when compared to glittering Newport
, the better-known summer getaway in Rhode Island.
Watch Hill is situated on a stubby peninsula
jutting into Block Island Sound
. It includes the westernmost point in the state known as Napatree Point
. Together they have formed Little Narragansett Bay
which has made Watch Hill a popular harbor around which a business district has grown. The community is a secluded and seasonal resort community with shopping, a golf and beach club, yacht club and public and private beaches. Once occupied by Niantic
Indians in the 17th century, European colonists used the area as an important lookout point during the French and Indian War
and the Revolutionary War
, hence the community’s name. Watch Hill is probably most noted for its expensive mansions, but other landmarks in town include the Watch Hill Lighthouse
the first of which was built in 1745, and The Flying Horse Carousel
, the oldest continuously-operated carousel in the United States
and a National Historic Landmark
.
Another point of interest in Watch Hill is Napatree Point, a 1.5 miles (2.4 km)-long sandy spit
that extends west from the Watch Hill business district. At the end of Napatree Point are the ruins of Fort Mansfield
, an old coastal artillery post which was one of a series of such forts constructed to guard the eastern entrance to Long Island Sound as part of the coastal defense network for New York City. It was in operation between 1901 and 1909. The land was sold in 1926 and all the government buildings were demolished during the winter of 1928-29 leaving the three concrete gun emplacements behind.
The Hurricane of 1938 caught Watch Hill by surprise and took a terrible toll. On Fort Road, which connected Watch Hill to the old Fort Mansfield, all the 39 houses, the Yacht and Beach Clubs, as well as the bathing pavilion were destroyed. Fifteen people were killed there alone and others survived by clinging to wreckage as they were swept across the bay to Connecticut. Several breachways were created in Napatree Point and to this day the former northern extension of Napatree remains an island, known as Sandy Point
. Google Earth now shows parts of Sandy Point as being in Connecticut. The shortened Napatree Point is now barrier beach about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long without any roads or houses. It is a public beach and offers great bird watching and surf casting. Some of the fortified gun emplacements of old Fort Mansfield have survived and while overgrown, offers adventurers tunnels and underground rooms to explore. Occasionally at low tide some of remains of the Battery Connell can be seen. As the sea and sand shift, old weapons and sometimes artifacts from the hurricane are revealed.
The Watch Hill waterfront was once lined with huge Victorian hotels. Fire and hurricanes destroyed almost all during the 20th century. The two remaining hotels The Ocean House and the Watch Hill Inn went through huge changes during the 2000s. The Ocean House was originally opened in 1868, torn down in 2005, and reopened in 2010. The Watch Hill Inn & Annex now contains modern residential condos as well.
Bay Street in Watch Hill is lined with shops, restaurants, and businesses. East Beach and Nappatree point are the main beaches in Watch Hill.
New England town
The New England town is the basic unit of local government in each of the six New England states. Without a direct counterpart in most other U.S. states, New England towns are conceptually similar to civil townships in other states, but are incorporated, possessing powers like cities in other...
of Westerly, the southwestern-most town in Washington County
Washington County, Rhode Island
Washington County, commonly known colloquially as South County, is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Washington County borders Kent County to the north, New London County in Connecticut to the west, Suffolk County in New York to the southwest, the Atlantic...
and the entire U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
. The village is listed as a census-designated place
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
. Watch Hill Historic District is a 629 acres (254.5 ha) historic district
Historic district (United States)
In the United States, a historic district is a group of buildings, properties, or sites that have been designated by one of several entities on different levels as historically or architecturally significant. Buildings, structures, objects and sites within a historic district are normally divided...
in the village that is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
As a state-charted Fire District (1901), the Watch Hill area is authorized to tax residents to fund their volunteer fire department, but the bulk of property tax
Property tax
A property tax is an ad valorem levy on the value of property that the owner is required to pay. The tax is levied by the governing authority of the jurisdiction in which the property is located; it may be paid to a national government, a federated state or a municipality...
es go to the town to fund municipal services and schools. The town was listed in Lisa Birnbach
Lisa Birnbach
Lisa R. Birnbach is an author best known for co-authoring The Official Preppy Handbook, which spent 38 weeks at number one on the New York Times bestseller list in 1980.-Career:...
's 2010 book
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
True Prep as an acceptable summer destination for the preppy
Preppy
Preppy, preppie, or prep refers to a modern, widespread United States clique, often considered a subculture...
set.
The town is considered a more staid and family-oriented community when compared to glittering Newport
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
, the better-known summer getaway in Rhode Island.
Watch Hill is situated on a stubby peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
jutting into Block Island Sound
Block Island Sound
Block Island Sound is a strait in the open Atlantic Ocean, approximately wide, separating Block Island from the coast of Rhode Island in the United States...
. It includes the westernmost point in the state known as Napatree Point
Napatree Point
Napatree Point, often referred to simply as "Napatree", is a long sandy spit created by a geologic process called longshore drift. Up until the Hurricane of 1938, Napatree was sickle-shaped and included a 1.5-mile long northern extension called Sandy Point...
. Together they have formed Little Narragansett Bay
Little Narragansett Bay
Little Narragansett Bay is an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean and an estuary of the Pawcatuck River on the Rhode Island-Connecticut state line. It is sheltered by a curving peninsula, known as Napatree Point. At the base of Napatree Point is the site of the resort village of Watch Hill, Rhode Island....
which has made Watch Hill a popular harbor around which a business district has grown. The community is a secluded and seasonal resort community with shopping, a golf and beach club, yacht club and public and private beaches. Once occupied by Niantic
Niantic (tribe)
The Niantic, or in their own language, the Nehântick or Nehantucket were a tribe of New England Native Americans, who were living in Connecticut and Rhode Island during the early colonial period. Due to intrusions of the Pequot, the Niantic were divided into an eastern and western division...
Indians in the 17th century, European colonists used the area as an important lookout point during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
and the Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, hence the community’s name. Watch Hill is probably most noted for its expensive mansions, but other landmarks in town include the Watch Hill Lighthouse
Watch Hill Lighthouse
The Watch Hill Lighthouse in Watch Hill, Rhode Island, has served as a nautical beacon for ships since 1745, when the Rhode Island colonial government erected a watchtower and beacon during the French and Indian War and Revolutionary War...
the first of which was built in 1745, and The Flying Horse Carousel
The Flying Horse Carousel
The Flying Horse Carousel in Watch Hill within the town of Westerly, Rhode Island, United States is one of two in the state designated as National Historic Landmarks, along with the Crescent Park Looff Carousel in East Providence ....
, the oldest continuously-operated carousel in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
.
Another point of interest in Watch Hill is Napatree Point, a 1.5 miles (2.4 km)-long sandy spit
Spit (landform)
A spit or sandspit is a deposition landform found off coasts. At one end, spits connect to land, and extend into the sea. A spit is a type of bar or beach that develops where a re-entrant occurs, such as at cove's headlands, by the process of longshore drift...
that extends west from the Watch Hill business district. At the end of Napatree Point are the ruins of Fort Mansfield
Fort Mansfield
Fort Mansfield was a coastal artillery installation located at the end of Napatree Point, a long barrier beach in the village of Watch Hill in Westerly, Rhode Island.- History :...
, an old coastal artillery post which was one of a series of such forts constructed to guard the eastern entrance to Long Island Sound as part of the coastal defense network for New York City. It was in operation between 1901 and 1909. The land was sold in 1926 and all the government buildings were demolished during the winter of 1928-29 leaving the three concrete gun emplacements behind.
The Hurricane of 1938 caught Watch Hill by surprise and took a terrible toll. On Fort Road, which connected Watch Hill to the old Fort Mansfield, all the 39 houses, the Yacht and Beach Clubs, as well as the bathing pavilion were destroyed. Fifteen people were killed there alone and others survived by clinging to wreckage as they were swept across the bay to Connecticut. Several breachways were created in Napatree Point and to this day the former northern extension of Napatree remains an island, known as Sandy Point
Sandy Point Island
Sandy Point Island is a 35-acre island in Little Narragansett Bay. Once an extension of Napatree Point, Sandy Point is now its own entity...
. Google Earth now shows parts of Sandy Point as being in Connecticut. The shortened Napatree Point is now barrier beach about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long without any roads or houses. It is a public beach and offers great bird watching and surf casting. Some of the fortified gun emplacements of old Fort Mansfield have survived and while overgrown, offers adventurers tunnels and underground rooms to explore. Occasionally at low tide some of remains of the Battery Connell can be seen. As the sea and sand shift, old weapons and sometimes artifacts from the hurricane are revealed.
Bay Street in Watch Hill is lined with shops, restaurants, and businesses. East Beach and Nappatree point are the main beaches in Watch Hill.