Watch Hill

城市概覽

If you're not planning on staying in Watch Hill, the district makes a perfect day trip with shopping, restaurants, beaches, and the historic carousel. Many people from Florida to North Carolina take their yacht to Watch Hill and sleep on their yacht, rather than staying in a hotel in town.

History Watch Hill sits at the southwestern point of Washington County on a peninsula that stretches out into Block Island sound. Watch Hill and Napatree Point form ‘little Narragansett Bay’. This small bay offers excellent protection from strong currents, and provides a harbor where many sailboats and yachts moor and dock. On clear days, both Fishers Island and Long Island NY, can be seen to the South of Napatree Point. Watch Hill was occupied in the 17th century by the Nianticks, a part of the Narragansett Native American tribe. Watch Hill was used as a watch point in the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War by Europeans, which is how Watch Hill got its name. Napatree Point was once used as a military installation by the U.S. military, and an abandoned cement fort can be found at the end of Napatree. In 1882 the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations purchased Watch Hill from the remaining Nianticks for $5,000. Primarily a summer vacation area, due to the pristine beaches, Watch Hill is known for its mansions. Aside from the breathtaking scenery, Watch Hill was once a hideout for Albert Einstein and Isadora Duncan.

如何抵達

By plane Westerly Airport, 56 Airport Road, +1 401 596-2357, Even though it does have its own airport code, don't expect flights to leave from this airport to leave for big cities like Las Vegas any time soon. It's more of a private airport, with scheduled trips to Block Island as well as avionic related sales and maintenance. It also has its own association which is dedicated to the preservation and development of the airport as a resource to the community as well as the region.

By train Amtrak, 14 Railroad Avenue, Westerly, +1 401 596-2335, Unfortunately for travelers, the train station is not located near any bus stops. Due to this, upon arrival one must either wait to get picked up, take a taxi to get around, or just walk to their desired location.

By boat Watch Hill Boat Yard Inc., 13 Pasadena Avenue, +1 401 348-8148 Watch Hill Municipal Docks, +1 401 596-7807

當地交通

Summer parking is a hassle in Watch Hill. There is a limited amount of two-hour parking along Bay Street, but other than that non-Rhode Island residents cannot park on any other streets; they must park in selected parking lots for a varied fee, but usually a $20 fee on the weekend and a $10 fee during the week.

必看景點

Watch Hill Light House, 14 Lighthouse Road, ☏ +1 401 596-7761. This is a beautiful place to visit! There is no parking at the light house, but there is parking in town, a 15-minute walk away. The light house is a nice place to visit in the winter, too. There is a great view of all three Watch Hill beaches and a view of the Connecticut coastline. If you don't mind breaking a few rules, you can risk driving on the private road to the light house, which passes through a small neighborhood of mansions. Drive slowly on this road, however, because it is only one lane and residents and visitors often walk here. The lighthouse in Watch Hill was built not to guide ships at sea, but to warn residents of a naval attack. The original lighthouse was operational through the French and Indian war, and it is believed that the main tower was destroyed in a storm in 1781. The 35-foot-tall light tower was rebuilt as an order of congress and its operation began again in 1808. By the 1850s much of the wooden structure of the lighthouse and innkeeper's residence were rotting away. It was decided that repairs of the old lighthouse would be too expensive, so the current lighthouse was constructed in 1856. The new structure is built of granite and brick. The light keeper’s house now contains 3 bedrooms, a sitting room, a dining room, a kitchen, a maintenance room and a cellar. The lighthouse has survived many storms including the Great New England Hurricane of September 21, 1938 where waves were breaking over the top of the tower. The lighthouse was automated in 1986 and now serves as a museum. It can be found on the National Register of Historic Places. Additional Lighthouse information: The station is open to the public year round, and offers great views of the ocean and Fishers Sound. A museum located in the fog signal building contains the fourth-order Fresnel lens used in the tower, but it is only open during the summer months.

Watch Hill Yacht Club, 1 Ford Road, ☏ +1 401 596-4986.

體驗活動

Amusement

Watch Hill Merry-Go-Round, 151 Bay Street, +1 401 348-6007. Back in the village is one of the nation’s oldest merry-go-rounds called the Flying Horse Merry-Go-Round. Around 1876, the Charles W. Dare Company, a traveling carnival, came and built the merry-go-round and left around 1879, leaving the merry-go-round as a gift to the village of Watch Hill. Over 100 years later the merry-go-round is considered a United States Historic landmark and is on the United States National historic register of historic places. The merry-go-round is on the bend of Bay Street, under a wooden gazebo that has big, stone columns. Inside of the gazebo is the merry-go-round. It is called "the flying horse" because horses are suspended by chains and not fastened to poles, so when the merry-go-round spins, it appears that the children are flying on horses through the air. There are two rows of horses; a set of smaller horses in the inside and a set of larger horses on the outside. All of the horses were carved by hand out of a single piece of wood. The horses are simple, complete with a cracked leather saddle, reins, mane and tail. Each winter the horses are stored and restored after the exposure to the summer weather. The horses’ manes were real horsehair. Legend has it that back in 1879 when it was permanently placed in Watch Hill, the horse of the caravan when he died, his mane was placed into one of the horses. The eyes of the horses are the original agate eyes from 1879. In 1993, a local woodcarver named Gary Anderson from Pawcatuck, Connecticut, cleaned the horses of fifty years worth of paint. Upon stripping the horses from the paint, he uncovered horses are actually hollow, like rocking horses. The thing that attracts many children to the horses is the brass ring game. Riding on the outside horses, youngsters can reach out and grab rings and collect them on the horse’s ears. However, there is one special ring, the brass ring, and to the person who grabs it, they get a

購物

Most of the stores in Watch Hill are in a shopping plaza called Larkin Square, comprised of Bay Street and a tiny street called Fort Road. Along with the stores listed below, there is Comina, Island Outfitters, the Sunglasses Shop, Elle Summers Shoes, Hall Marine Supply, Coppola's, Kisses, Yvonne's, J.C.'s of Watch Hill, Aqua Shop, and Seaport Nex