National Register of Historic Places - Rhode Island Historical ...

NI’S tIm - - OMI! N, lnn-ocna
-I M2 - -.p o-J-n4
United States Department of the Interior -
National Park Service - For UPS USG only -
National Register of Historic Places received -
ønventory-Nomination Form date-entered
- - - -
Continuatnon sheet 55 Item number 8 Page 2 -
and George Foster, Hezekiah Willcox, and Peleg Willcox in 1790. iri addition
to the residences of these men there were other houses on the various parcels,
hut the total number of dwellings was probably no more than six -or seven.
- In 1793 the customs collector of the Port of Pawcatuck first approached
the U. S. bepartment of the - Treasury concerning the estahl ishment of a light
house, preferably- at Watch Hill. The federal government purchased Watch
IIil 1 Point from George Poster in 1806 and erected a lighthouse on the site
two years later. Jonathan Nash was appointed the first keeper of the light.
Watch liii I became an important post in a growing network of Ii gift stations
intended to promote safe navigation and maritime transport along the coast.
The original lighthouse was replaced by the present structure in 1856 and
a life-saving stationwas added in 1879 supplanted by a newer -buildingin
1907-08; both now demolished, the -latter in recognition of Watch Hill’s key
position. -
The impetus for more intensive development of the Watch Hill peninsula
came from the advent and growth of tourism in the nineteenth century. The
practice of vacationing was a consequence of industrial ization and urban i za
tion and the changes they wrought in American society. The stress and hectic
pace of modern life in congested, dirty, and noisy-manufacturing cities
prompted a desire on the part of people to escape to more congenial surround
ings for relaxation and recreation, which contributed to the evolution of
resorts as places offering a respite from quotidian existence. During this
period, a break from daily routine was seen not merely as advisahle hut
imperative to the maintenance of physical and mental well being. In the
words of a Watch Hill promoti onal pamphlet, published in 1887:
Thy do we all want to leave our comfortahie homes in summer,
and what kind of change do we want? it is hardly necessary
to answer the first question, so universal is the desire for -
such a change. The busy man needs rest from the overtaxing
cares and worry of the active and often anxious commercial
demands on his physical powers during the busy season ; the -
- wife and mother rd ief from the cares of housekeeping, and
the enervating duties of her position in society; the clii Idren,
weaned of their books, need recuperation for their tired
bra ins, so overtaxed by the stuffing and cramming of our modern
- schools, and need a fresh supply of oxygen to put red blood in -
their veins, a Iiea I thy coLor i nto the I r cheeks , and a measure
of vigor into their muscles. What is wanted is freedom from
care, a complete rest, a cool, bracing atmosphere, change of
scene, and opportunities for healthful recreation.
See Continuation Sheet fl56