[ SOUND OF OCEAN WAVES ] ♪ [ MUSIC ] ♪ >>> WATCH HILL AS WE KNOW IT LOCATED ON A NARROW PENINSULA SURROUNDED BY THREE SIDES, BY THE SEA.

IT RELATES TO THE OCEAN IN A WAY FEW MAIN LAND COMMUNITIES DO ON THE EAST AND SOUTH IT FACES BLOCK ISLAND SOUND, LOOKING TOWARD BLOCK ISLAND TO THE SOUTHEAST AND MONOTALK POINT TO THE -- MONTAUK POINT TO THE SOUTH.

THIS IS OPEN OCEAN OPEN TO SWELLS AND STORMS.

KNOWN PRIMARILY AS A SUMMER PLACE, WATCH HILL IS IN FACT A PLACE FOR ALL SEASONTHOSE FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO HAVE SPENT ALL OR PART OF THEIR LIVES HERE, THIS IS WHERE THEY ALWAYS TRULY COME HOME.

♪ [ MUSIC ] ♪ >>> ON JUNE 29th, 1660, COLONISTS FROM NEW PORT SIGNED AN AGREEMENT TO WHICH YOU ARE PACE A 20-MILE -- PURCHASE A 20- MILE LONG TRACT OF LAND KNOWN IN LAITY LANGUAGE AS LAND OF RED -- KNOWN IN THE NATIVE LANGUAGE AS LAND OF RED SEA.

IT WAS SIGNED BY A LOCAL SACHEM.

WITHIN A YEAR THE LAND GRANT WOULD BE CHALLENGED BY ANOTHER SACHEM WHO REPORTEDLY LIVED BY THE COAST IN AND AROUND WHAT IS NOW WATCH HILL.

CHAPLAIN BRADFORD BARNS AUTHOR OF THE BOOK WATCH HILL THROUGH TIME, SAYS HIS CHALLENGE WAS UNSUCCESSFUL BUT HIS TIES TO THE LAND LIVE ON MARKED TODAY BY A BRONZE STATUE ON BAY STREET.

>> THE CHIEF WAS SAID TO HAVE LIVED DIRECTLY ACROSS THE STREET FROM HERE, WHERE THE OCEAN HOUSE IS.

AND HE WAS A SACHEM AND THIS WAS HIS PARTICULAR AREA OF INFLUENCE.

AND SOME HOW THE COLONISTS PICKED UP ON THAT AND THE CHIEF HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE INDIAN PRESENCE IN WATCH HILL.

>> WHEN THE COLONISTS ARRIVED IN THE AREA IT WAS HEAVILY FORESTED.

THE NATIVE AMERICANS OR INDIANS WHO LIVED INLAND IN THE WINTER AND ALONG THE COAST IN THE SUMMER MONTHS REGULARLY BURNED THE FOREST UNDER GROWTH LEAVING LARGE TRACTS OF OPEN LAND.

>> I WOULD SAY THOSE 17th CENTURY COLONIAL ACQUISITIONS, REALLY DIDN'T HAVE VERY MUCH TO DO WITH WATCH HILL AS WATCH HILL THEY WERE OUT POSTS, SETTLERS OUT POSTS,.

>> HISTORIC DOCUMENTS SHOW FARMING DOMINATED THE LANDSCAPE WELL INTO THE 19th CENTURY ALLOWING WATCH HILL TO REMAIN A FARMING AND FISHING COMMUNITY, LARGELY DUE TO THE PROXIMITY OF THE RIVER AND ITS FERTILE SOIL.

OPEN FIELDS ALSO GAVE WAY TO OTHER BENEFITS.

>> BECAUSE LAND WAS UNFORESTED, THE VIEWS OF MOST EVERY HOUSE THAT WAS BUILT FROM 1886 INTO THE 1920s HAD A VIEW NOT ONLY OF THE OCEAN ON THIS SIDE BUT THE BAY ON THAT SIDE.

>> OPEN VIEWS OF THE LAND AND SEA WERE NOT ONLY BEAUTIFUL BUT ALSO SERVED A PURPOSE.

THE NAME WATCH HILL DERIVES FROM THE ROLE THAT THE GREAT BLUFF SOME 70 FEET ABOVE SEA LEVEL PLAYED AS A LOOKOUT OR WATCH POINT FOR THE AREA.

NATIVE AMERICANS USED THE BLUFF AS A LOOKOUT FOR HOSTILE TRIBES APPROACHING AND AS A WATCH THAT WAS FORMALLY ESTABLISHED DURING THE KING GEORGES WAR IN THE MID- 1700s.

>> WATCH HILL'S IDENTITY REALLY BEGAN WITH THE BUILDING OF THE LIGHT HOUSE, FIRST INITIAL LIGHT HOUSES IN THE LATE 18th CENTURY AND THE USE AS THE INDIANS HAD USED IT OF THE GREAT BLUFF WHICH IS JUST TO THE SOUTH OF US HERE, NOT WATCH HILL WHICH LOOKS OUT OVER THE SEA.

♪ [ MUSIC ] ♪ >>> WATCH HILL LIGHT HOUSE KEEPERS ASSOCIATION RECORDS SHOW THE FIRST BUILDING WAS A ROUND, SHINGLED, WOODEN TOWER WHOSE LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED FROM 10 WHALE OIL LAMPS.

THAT ORIGINAL STRUCTURE STOOD FOR ALMOST 50 YEARS BEFORE IT WAS DESTROYED BY GALE FORCE WINDS.

THEY PETITIONED THE GOVERNMENT FOR A REPLACEMENT IMMEDIATELY.

>> THE LIGHT HOUSE EXISTED HERE IN ITS PRESENT FORM SINCE 1856.

HOWEVER, IN 1806 CONGRESS PASSED AN ACT TO CREATE SOME SORT OF A BEACON AND NAVIGATIONAL SYSTEM HERE TO REPLACE WHAT HAD BEEN SORT OF A TEMPORARY WATCH TOWER, SLASH, WARNING BEACON.

WE DON'T KNOW HOW LONG SUCH A DEVICE EXISTED HERE BUT SINCE THE LATE 1700s.

1806 AN ORIGINAL WOODEN STRUCTURE WAS BUILT HERE THEN THIS 1856 STRUCTURE REPLACED THE WOODEN ONE THAT WAS DESTROYED WE THINK 1854, GIVE OR TAKE.

THERE HAVE BEEN WELL OVER 100 SHIPS THAT HAVE BEEN KNOWN TO CRASH OUT HERE OFF OF LIGHT HOUSE POINT.

>> MANY SHIP WRECKS STAND OUT BUT ONE IN PARTICULAR WAS THE WRECK OF THE STEAMER METIS THAT SANK AFTER COLLIDING WITH A SCHOONER IN 1872.

>> IT IS DANGEROUS WATERS RIGHT HERE.

OVER 70 PEOPLE MAY HAVE PERISHED IN THAT, MANY WERE RESCUED BECAUSE THE SHIP CRSHED IN THE EVENING HOURS AND AT DAWN QUITE A FEW PEOPLE WERE SEEN CLINGING TO THE WRECKAGE AND THE LIGHT HOUSE KEEPERS WERE INSTRUMENTAL HELPING RESCUE AT LEAST UPWARDS OF 30 OR SO OF THOSE INDIVIDUALS.

THERE WAS A LIGHT SAVING STATION BUILT AT THE DIRECTION OF THE GOVERNMENT BECAUSE THE KEEPERS WERE WITNESSING SO MANY REPEATED SHIP WRECKS, THE GOVERNMENT FELT IT WAS IMPORTANT TO HAVE A PERMANENT STRUCTURE HERE DEVOTED TO LIFE SAVING ACTIONS AND DID QUITE AN EXTENSIVE AMOUNT OF WORK UNTIL THE BUILDING WAS DESTROYED IN THE 1938 HURRICANE.

>>> HIS COURAGE, GRANITE BLOCK TOWER PLAYED AN IMPORTANT RO NOT JUST FOR THOSE AT SEA BUT ALSO MOVING WATCH HILL INTO A NEW ERA.

THAT OF A RESORTER A.

ITS PERMANENT STRUCTURE INCLUDED A HOUSE FOR THE LIGHT HOUSE KEEPER, THAT FIRST KEEPER WAS JONATHAN NASH.

>> IN THOSE DAYS THE LIGHT HOUSE KEEPER HAD THE TASK OF MAINTAINING THE LIGHT.

IT WAS THE KEEPERS JOB TO MAKE SURE THE LIGHT WAS USED AT NIGHT AND THAT IT WAS FUNCTIONAL, THE SHIPS, YOU KNOW THE NAVIGATIONAL WARNING WAS OPERATING SMOOTHLY.

>> SHORTLY AFTER THE PERMANENT STRUCTURE WAS BUILT, NASH WELCOMED PAYING GUESTS OR BOARDERS TO STAY AT THE LIGHT HOUSE.

THEIR FEE WAS USED TO AUGMENT HIS ANNUAL SALARY.

>> JONATHAN NASH WAS HERE WELL OVER 20 YEARS IN FACT I THINK CLOSE TO 30.

AND HE STARTED THE LONG STREAM OF PEOPLE LIVING HERE.

HE IS FAMOUS ALSO FOR INTRODUCING THE IDEA OF WATCH HILL AS A SUMMER COMMUNITY FOR VISITORS TO COME AND STAY.

>> THE PRACTICE WAS NOT UNCOMMON AMONG LIGHT KEEPERS BUT WAS FROWNED UPON BY GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS WHO OVER SAW THE STATIONS AND EVENTUALLY ABOLISHED IT.

DURING NASH'S TENURE AS LIGHT KEEPER HE ACQUIRED A LARGE PARCEL OF LAND ALONG EAST BEACH.

UPON HIS RETIREMENT CHOSE TO CONTINUE WHAT HE STARTED AT THE LIGHT HOUSE, BEING AN INN KEEPER.

IN 1833, HE OPENED WATCH HILL'S FIRST HOTEL, CALLED THE WATCH HILL HOUSE.

NASH'S SON, CAPTAIN GEORGE NASH WHO WAS KNOWN FOR HIS 25¢ LOBSTER DINNERS, AND DOING HIS WORK BAREFOOT, BUT NOT KNOWN FOR HIS MANAGERIAL SKILLS RAN IT.

MANY OF HIS FAMILY MEMBERS FOLLOWED SUIT, LEADING TO FIVE ADDITIONAL HOTELS BUILT IN WATCH HILL BY 1865.

>> THE ACTUAL CONCEPT OF WATCH HILL REALLY DID NOT COME INTO BEING UNTIL THERE WAS A WATCH HILL LIGHT HOUSE CALLED THAT, AND THEN THERE WAS THE BEGINNINGS OF HOTELS.

THE OCEAN HOUSE, THE WATCH HILL HOUSE, SIX OR EIGHT OTHER BIG HOTELS AND THEN PEOPLE YOU KNOW KNEW IT AS WATCH HILL AND CAME FROM SOUTH THEY CAME FROM THE MIDWEST.

A LOT OF MIDWESTERN PEOPLE CAME TO ESCAPE THE HEAT.

TO ENJOY THE COOL OF THE OCEAN HERE.

>> ANOTHER RETIRED LIGHT HOUSE KEEPER, CAPTAIN LARKEN BUILT THE LARGEST OF THE HOTELS IN 1869 CALLED LARKEN HOUSE.

IT HAD SWEEPING VIEWS OF MONTAUK AND FISHERS ISLAND, NEW YORK CONNECTICUT AND LONG ISLAND.

THEY WERE OFTEN WRITTEN UP DESCRIBING THE COOL CLIMATE AND FIRST CLASS ACCOMMODATIONS.

THOSE VISITING WERE NOT ACCUSTOMED TO DOING WITHOUT.

EVEN DURING PROHIBITION, A COCKTAIL WAS ALWAYS WITHIN REACH.

>> IT WAS NOT IMPOSSIBLE TO GET A DRINK AND THE EXTRAORDINARY THING TO ME WAS DRUGSTORES COULD SELL ALCOHOL IN WESTERLY AND YOU KNOW, THE DRUGSTORE WE HAD ON BAY STREET HAD A LIQUOR STORE IN THE BACK.

>> IT WAS A GREAT BOOTLEGGER USED TO DROP VERY GOOD BOOZE AROUND THE RIVER HERE.

THAT WAS A DEFINITE INCENTIVE FOR MY FAMILY.

NOT THAT THEY WERE ALCOHOLICS THEY LIKED COCKTAILS.

>> I DON'T THINK PEOPLE SUFFERED A GREAT DEAL.

CERTAINLY DURING PROHIBITION THERE WAS NO SHORTAGE OF ALCOHOL TO BE ENJOYED IN THIS COMMUNITY.

>> HOTELS DOTTED THE VILLAGE OF WATCH HILL AT ONE TIME, BUT ONLY A FEW OF THOSE STRUCTURES STILL EXIST.

TODAY, THE OCEAN HOUSE IS THE ONLY ONE OF THE GRAND HOTELS THAT REMAINS.

BUILT A FEW YEARS AFTER THE END OF THE CIVIL WAR IN 1868, THE LARGE WOODEN STRUCTURE, WITH THE YELLOW FACADE, BECAME A FAVORITE TO GENERATIONS OF FAMILIES WHO COULD AFFORD LUXURY SUMMER ACCOMMODATIONS.

AFTER SERVING GUESTS FOR 135 SUMMERS, IT FELL INTO DISREPAIR AND WAS CLOSED IN 2003.

BUT THE MEMORY OF THE OCEAN HOUSE WAS TOO STRONG TO LET GO OF.

THE ORIGINAL BUILDING WAS DEMOLISHED IN 2005 AND A NEW ONE WAS BUILT IN THE SAME LIKENESS OF THE VICTORIAN ERA STYLE BUILDING, INCORPORATING A NUMBER OF ACTUAL PHYSICAL ELEMENTS FROM THE ORIGINAL STRUCTURE.

THE OCEAN HOUSE REOPENED FOR BUSINESS IN 2010 AND NOW WELCOMING VISITORS ON A YEAR ROUND BASIS.

>> OCEAN HOUSE HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED AS SORT OF ICONIC, THAT ITS SYMBOL, VERY MUCH A SYMBOL OF WATCH HILL'S CHARACTER, BUT ALSO 21st CENTURY CHARACTER.

IT IS EMBLEMATIC, I GUESS YOU COULD SAY, OF A NEW ENGLAND, SEA SIDE RESORT AND I THINK WE ARE BLESSING RHODE ISLAND IN HAVING OTHER HOTELS OF THAT NATURE, BUT THEY ARE BASICALLY ON BLOCK ISLAND.

VERY FEW OF THEM ON THE MAIN LAND.

I THINK PEOPLE FEEL VERY ATTACHED TO THAT, THAT ARCHITECTURE FROM A ROMANTIC POINT OF VIEW.

SO HAVING THE BUILDING HERE AND HAVING IT FALLING INTO DISREPAIR, THEN FINALLY BECOMINGSTRUCTURALLY UNSOUND, I THINK WAS A GREAT LOSS.

IF WE CAN'T SAVE THE BUILDING, WHY NOT RECREATE IT.

BUT RECREATE IT IN A WAY THAT IT WILL FUNCTION WELL FOR THE NEXT 100 YEARS AND HAVE THE SORT OF AMENITIES THAT PEOPLE WOULD EXPECT TO SEE IN A HOTEL.

>> DINNER OR TEA AT THE OCEAN HOUSE, OR OH AS IT WAS KNOWN WAS ALWAYS A SPECIAL OCCASION.

>> MY GRANDMOTHER USED TO COME AND STAY AT THE OCEAN HOUSE FROM ST. LOUIS IN THE SUMMER FOR TWO OR THREE WEEKS AND HAD THE MOST HORRIBLE ROOM.

IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A GREAT ROOM, A CORNER ROOM LOOKING OUT BUT IT WAS JUST A DISASTER IT HAD THE PIPES RUNNING ALONG THE CEILINGS AND OPEN LIGHT BULBS HANGING DOWN.

SHE LOVED IT.

I DON'T KNOW WHY SHE LOVED IT BUT SHE LOVED IT.

SHE WOULDN'T STAY WITH MY MOTHER WOULDN'T STAY WITH HER OTHER DAUGHTER INSISTED ON OCEAN HOUSE AND WOULD ASK ME AS A CHILD TO COME UP AND HAVE DINNER WITH HER.

SO THAT WAS REALLY EXCITING TO HAVE DINNER BY MYSELF WITH MY GRANDMOTHER.

THAT IS THE ONLY HOTEL I REMEMBER AND IT WAS JUST BIG, A LARGE AND ECHOING BIG PORCHES.

I HAD NEVER BEEN IN ANYTHING QUITE LIKE IT.

I THOUGHT IT WAS FASCINATING.

THE THING I LIKED THE BEST WAS THE DINNER THE WAY THEY WOULD COME AROUND WITH THE BIG SILVER THING AND OPEN IT UP AND THERE WERE ROLLS IN THERE AND YOU COULD PICK YOUR ROLLS FROM THIS HEATED HUGE THING.

I THOUGHT THAT WAS IT.

>>> WATCH HILL ATTRACTED MANY FAMOUS PEOPLE INCLUDING THE GREAT SILENT FILM ACTORS MARY PICKFORD AND DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS.

FAIRBANKS WHO MARRIED A WATCH HILL GIRL USED THE OCEAN HOUSE AS THE BACKDROP FOR HIS 1916 MOTION PICTURE, AMERICAN ARISTOCRACY.

SUMMER GUESTS WERE NOT THE ONLY ONES WHO ENJOYED THE BEACHES, LAWNS AND SPORTING CONTESTS.

A BASEBALL FIELD ONCE ATTRACTED ON LOOKERS IT WAS A FAVORITE PLACE FOR WEEKLY COMPETITIONS BETWEEN THE STAFFS FROM OH, LARKEN HOUSE AND OTHER HOTELS.

>> THEY HAD THEIR OWN BASEBALL TEAMS AND HUGE RIVALRY.

THERE WAS A BASEBALL DIAMOND RIGHT WHERE WE ARE SEEING THE CROQUET LAWN ACROSS THE STREET AT THE OCEAN HOUSE.

IT WAS A GREAT RIVALRY.

THEY HAD OF COURSE AFRICAN AMERICAN STAFF, SO THE BASEBALL TEAM WAS IF NOT ENTIRELY, I THINK VERY MUCH SO, BASICALLY AN AFRICAN TEAM.

>> HOTELS ALSO SERVED AS A SITE FOR WORSHIP UNTIL OWNER OF THE OCEAN HOUSE GAVE VILLAGERS A PLACE TO BUILD A CHAPEL.

>>> THE OWNER OF THE OCEAN HOUSE GAVE THIS LOT TO A NEWLY FORMED CHAPEL SOCIETY IN 1875, THIS IS REALLY THE CORE OF THIS COMMUNITY.

AND IT'S THE OLDEST BUILDING TO WHICH WE COME, AND IT IS THE CENTRAL BUILDING TO WHICH WE COME AND WE COME IN SADNESS AND HAPPINESS, WEDDINGS AND FUNERALS, OR FOR A BEAUTIFUL MUSIC SERVICE.

>> I STARTED GOING TO THE CHAPEL IN 1946 BECAUSE MY FATHER CAME BACK FROM THE WAR AND HE REALLY WANTED TO GO TO CHURCH.

SO, WE CAME.

I AM JUST AWE STRUCK WHEN I WALK IN.

I AM AWE STRUCK BY THE SPACE.

IT IS REALLY THE LARGEST SPACE TO HAVE PEOPLE IN ONE ROOM IN WATCH HILL.

>> EVEN THIS CHAPEL HAD WORSHIP FOR THE AFRICAN HELP OF THE HOTEL AND PERHAPS SOME OF THE HOUSES BUT MOSTLY THE HOTEL IN ITS UNDER I DON'T HAVE THE, SUNDAY EVENING -- CROFT SUNDAY EVENING.

THE BUILDING OF THIS CHAPEL REALLY MARKED IN 1875, IT REALLY MARKED THE SENSE THAT WHAT WAS KNOWN AS WATCH HILL.

>>> THE CHAPEL WAS ENLARGED OVER THE YEARS IN 1928 IT'S EXTERIOR, REMODELED IN A COLONIAL STYLE.

>>> MUSICAL TRADITIONS CONTINUED TO EMBRACE THE NEW GENERATION.

>> I THINK IT IS THE CORD OF THE HUMAN SPIRIT.

THIS IS WHERE WE HAVE IT IN WATCH HILL.

>> WE DO HAVE A WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING SERVICE AND A BEAUTIFUL CONCERT GIVEN AT CHRISTMAS TIME BY THE OCEAN HOUSE.

IT IS REALLY LOVELY.

>> I REMEMBER AS A CHILD ON SUNDAY NIGHTS WE WERE INVITED TO ONE OF THE GREAT HOUSES IN WATCH HILL AFTER SUNDAY SUPPER.

ALWAYS A SIMPLE AFFAIR.

TO SING HYMNS AROUND THE PIANO.

I REMEMBER THINKING AS A CHILD IT WAS REALLY QUITE A WONDERFUL THING.

I SUGGESTED TO THE TRUSTEES WE MIGHT DO IT HERE AND WE DID AND IT STUCK.

>>> TODAY THE WATCH HILL CHAPEL SOCIETY DESCRIBES THE SPIRIT OF THE CHAPEL AS BEING WELL EXPRESSED IN THE MOTTOS INSCRIBED ON ITS WALLS.

ONE OF THE MOTTOS, THE CHURCH IS MANY OF THE WAYS BUT ONE AS A SEA WAS SUGGESTED BY JAMES LEE LAND HOWARD A FOUNDER OF THE CHAPEL AND ITS PRESIDENT FROM 1889 TO 1906.

DURING SUMMER SERVICES, WINDOWS AND DOORS ARE LEFT OPEN, SO THE SOUND OF THE SURF AND SMELL OF THE SEA CAN BE APPRECIATED BY THE WORSHIPERS.

>> I USED TO MAKE A POINT OF SWIMMING EVERY SUNDAY MORNING.

IF THE SURF WAS HIGH I COULD BE ON THE TOP OF A WAVE HEARING THE FIRST BELL OF THE CHAPEL AND AT THAT POINT I WOULD RIDE THE WAVE IN, RUSH TO THE SHOWER, CHANGE AND BE HERE ALL WITHIN 15 MINUTES.

>>> THE COOL, SUMMER BREEZES, BREATH TAKING VIEWS AND ACCESS TO THE OPEN OCEAN MEANT MANY SUMMER VISITORS WISHED TO EXTEND THEIR STAY HERE IN WATCH HILL AND ESTABLISH THEIR OWN HOMES.

>> SUMMER COTTAGES ARE A RESULT OF SORT OF THE REACTION TO THE HOTELS, THE GREAT HOTELS THAT WERE HERE AND ONLY A FEW EXIST NOW, SO WATCH HILL IS REALLY MORE CHARACTERIZED BY ITS SUMMER COTTAGES WHICH ARE LARGE, GENERAL SHINGLE STYLE, NEW ENGLAND ARCHITECTURE WHICH I THINK IS UBIQUITOUS ON THE NEW ENGLAND COAST BUT NOT FOUND ELSEWHERE VERY OFTEN.

>>> IN 1882, CHARLES EVERETT OF NEW JERSEY PURCHASED THE OLD FOSTER FARM ON WESTERLY ROAD.

THE YELLOW FARM HOUSE WAS REMODELED INTO A VICTORIAN STYLE COTTAGE, THE FIRST OF MANY TO BE BUILT IN THE SEA SIDE VILLAGE.

HE AND HIS FAMILY ENJOYED THE LARGE TRACT OF LAND AND COTTAGE, WHICH STILL STANDS TODAY.

EVENTUALLY THEY SOLD THE LAND TO THREE MEN FROM CINCINNATI, A SYNDICATE THAT WAS ABOUT TO CHANGE WATCH HILL.

>> AND THIS SYNDICATE AS WE CALLED IT FROM CINCINNATI, BOUGHT UP 125 LOTS AND PEOPLE STARTED AS EARLY AS 1886, ACTUALLY BUILDING WHAT THEY CALLED COTTAGES, COTTAGES IN WATCH HILL TENDED TO BE OF WOOD, RATHER THAN THE MARBLE COTTAGES IN NEW PORT THAT HAS ALWAYS BEEN A DISTINCTION AND THERE WAS NONE OF THAT COMPETITION OF 5th AVENUE, MOVING TO THE OCEAN AS IT DID IN BELLEVUE AVENUE IN NEW PORT AND YES, THERE WERE A FEW VERY GRAND HOUSES THAT HAVE BEEN BUILT OVER THE LAST 100 YEARS.

THERE IS SOMETHING THAT IS CALLED NORMAN HALL WHICH IS BUILT OF GREYSTONE AND SOME TIMES REFERRED TO AS THE CASTLE.

IT IS A RELATIVELY MODEST BUT NOT NEW ENGLAND BUILDING AND THERE ARE A FEW OF THOSE BUT BASICALLY THE LOCAL ARCHITECTURE OF 19th CENTURY MID-AMERICA.

>> CASUAL ELOQUENCE IS WHAT PEOPLE WERE LONGING FOR AND THEY FOUND IT HERE IN WATCH HILL.

VICTORIAN STYLE COTTAGES GRANTED THEM ACCESS TO BEACHES AND ACTIVITIES, YET GAVE THEM PEACE OF MIND AND CREATED A SENSE OF PLACE THAT THEY LOVED.

THAT LOVE SPANNED GENERATIONS, GENERATIONS THAT STILL CHERISH THESE HOMES TODAY.

>>> ARCHITECTURALLY THEY REPRESENT THIS MOVEMENT AT THE TURN OF THE 20th CENTURY WHERE YOU HAD YOUNG ARCHITECTS EXPERIMENTING WITH THESE STYLES.

WATCH HILL HAS A LOT OF THIS, A LOT OF HOUSES AND THEY ARE WELL PRESERVED AND WELL TAKEN CARE OF.

I THINK THAT IS WHAT MAKES IT SPECIAL.

>> LOTS OF LITTLE ROOMS.

THAT IS WHAT THEY DID IN THOSE DAYS AND SERVANTS ROOMS OF COURSE.

NOT TOO MUCH PLUMBING, SO WE EXPANDED THE MASTER BEDROOM WAS TWO ROOMS IT IS NOW ONE.

THE SECOND MASTER BEDROOM WAS TWO ROOMS IT IS NOW ONE.

OUR LIVING ROOM HAD A PORCH, WE ENCLOSED IT.

SO NOW IT IS A VERY LIVABLE, GRANDER HOUSE AND THAT IS WHAT ALMOST EVERYBODY HAS DONE.

>>> IS ANYONE WHO HAS LIVED IN THESE COTTAGES WHAT THEIR FAVORITE PART OF THE HOUSE IS AND THE ANSWER IS THE SAME, THE PORCH.

>> NOT A WHOLE LOT OF PEOPLE SIT ON THEIR PORCHES ANY MORE BUT THOSE OF US WHO DO, IT SLOWS DOWN THE PACE OF LIFE AND PEOPLE WALK BY AND WAVE TO YOU AND MAKE COMMENTS ABOUT SOMETHING, SOME ISSUE OF THE DAY AND THAT IS CHARMING, IT IS INTERRELATIONSHIP OF PEOPLE TO EACH OTHER.

I THINK THAT IS VERY LOVELY.

>>> WE USE THE PORCH CONSTANTLY AND ALWAYS HAVE.

WE EAT OUT HERE, WE SIT AROUND AND READ OUT HERE, BECAUSE YOU CAN GET AWAY FROM THE SUN IF YOU NEED TO BUT IF YOU WANT THE SUN IT CERTAINLY LIES HERE.

AS I SAID THE GREAT PART FOR US OF THIS HOUSE AND BUYING IT WAS THIS PORCH.

WE WOULD HAVE THIS JUST HANGING OUT HERE ON THE SIDE.

>>> PORCHES HAVE HAD A HAND IN SHAPING THAT SENSE OF PLACE AND CREATING CHARACTER FROM BAY STREET TO THE TOP OF THE HILL WHERE ONE OF THE THE GRANDEST PORCHES STILL SITS.

AT THE OCEAN HOUSE.

ARCHITECTURALLY, WATCH HILL HAS CHARACTER, MAINTAINS PRESERVATION PLANNER.

>>> WHEN IT IS SO SYMBIOTIC WITH THE PLACE, THAT RATES VERY HIGH IN MY OPINION.

>>> ONE OF THE HOMES THAT CREATES SOME OF THAT CHARACTER AND MYSTIQUE IS THE LARGE WHITE HOUSE ON THE HILL, FORMERLY KNOWN AS HOLIDAY HOUSE, THE HARKNESS HOUSE OR MORE RECENTLY HIGH WATCH.

>> MY GREAT GRANDMOTHER BUILT THAT HOUSE AND HARKNESS HOUSE HAS BECOME SOMEWHAT LEGENDARY TO ALL OF US WHO ARE GRANDCHILDREN AND EVEN TO THE GREAT GRANDCHILDREN NOW BECAUSE IT WAS ALWAYS A PLACE THAT WE KNEW OUR GRANDPARENTS GREW UP IN BUT NONE OF US WERE EVER ABLE TO BE IN IT.

>> HAD PARTIES WITH THE BAND, OUTSIDE LUNCH.

SHE USUALLY HAD THEM IN THE DAYTIME.

>> I REMEMBER AS A CHILD GOING WITH MY SISTERS BECAUSE THEY HAD FRIENDS AND YOU WALK IN AND THERE WAS THIS GREAT BIG RED STAIRCASE GOING STRAIGHT UP.

VERY VERY IMPRESSIVE.

I MEAN I JUST WAS IN AWE ABOUT THAT.

>> AS A HOST I THINK IT IS ALWAYS JUST HAD THIS WONDERFUL FEELING ABOUT IT.

BEAUTIFUL WHITE HOUSE SITTING UP THERE.

>>> PARTIES, DINNERS, VISITING FRIENDS, WALKS ON THE BEACH.

IT IS WHAT WATCH HILL WAS ALL ABOUT IN DAYS GONE BY.

ONE FAVORITE SPOT TO ENJOY A WALK WAS ALONG THE SANDY IT AND OF LAND CALLED NAPATREE POINT THE END OF THE PENINSULA WAS ONCE THE SITE OF A COASTAL ARTILLERY FORT, DESIGNED TO PROTECT THE ENTRANCE OF LONG ISLAND SOUND AND NEW YORK CITY.

IN 1989 IT WAS REMOVED FROM THE LIST OF ACTIVE POSTS.

SUMMER COTTAGES WITH SPECTACULAR VIEWS POPULATED THE ROAD LEADING OUT TO THE OLD FORT.

>> IF YOU TAKE THAT SAME WALK IN 1937 IT WOULD BE WALL TO WALL HOMES WHERE THE FRONT PORCH OF EVERY HOME OVERLOOKED THE BEAUTIFUL AT HAPPEN TICK OCEAN -- ATLANTIC OCEAN AND THE BACK PORCH OVERLOOKED THE BEAUTIFUL LITTLE BAY.

>>> BUT WHEN THE SKIES DARKEN AND THE WIND WHIPS, EVEN WATCH HILL TAKES ON A DIFFERENT TWIST AS IT DID IN 1938.

IT CAUGHT EVERYONE OFF GUARD CLAIMING 15 LIVES IN WATCH HILL.

AND LEAVING SURVIVORS WITH LEGENDARY TALES TO TELL.

IT ALTERED THE PHYSICAL LANDSCAPE AND CHANGED WESTERLY AND WATCH HILL FOREVER.

>>> SUDDENLY YOU HAD A VERY SUBSTANTIAL PART OF WATCH HILL ELIMINATED IN 2 HOURS, AND I THINK THE ELIMINATION OF SOMETHING LIKE THAT LEFT A GREAT SCAR ON WATCH HILL.

>> MY PARENTS RENTED A HOUSE ON NAPATREE POINT AND FORTUNATELY, WE WENT BACK HOME TO PHILADELPHIA, AFTER, YOU KNOW, LABOR DAY AND SO WE WERE NOT HERE FOR THE HURRICANE.

>> WHEN THAT HURRICANE BLEW THROUGH THE LIGHT HOUSE POINT BECAME AN ISLAND.

THE FENCING WAS DESTROYED, THE SEA WALLS WERE DESTROYED.

>> JUMPED OVER A WALL AND DIDN'T DO IT QUITE RIGHT, BROKE MY FRONT TEETH SO MY MOTHER WAS FURIOUS.

SHE WAS IN THE BATHTUB SHE WAS FURIOUS.

THAT MEANT WE HAD TO GO HOME TWO WEEKS EARLY BECAUSE THERE WASN'T A PROPER DENTIST AND SHE CARED ABOUT THE WAY I LOOKED SO WE HAD TO GO HOME.

WE MISSED IT.

I GUESS I WAS LUCKY I MEAN AFTER ALL I HAD A COUPLE FRIENDS WHO DIED.

>> BASICALLY, THE HOUSE BEGAN TO WASH AWAY UNDER US.

IN FACT IT WAS.

IT WENT OUT FROM UNDER US THERE WERE WE ON THE THIRD FLOOR WITH A LITTLE BIT OF ROOF.

I BEING THE LITTLEST WAS NEXT TO MY FATHER AND UNDER HIS COAT AND I CAN REMEMBER VERY VIVIDLY THE COUNT OF ONE, TWO, THREE, DUCK AND A WAVE WOULD BREAK OVER US.

ONE, TWO, THREE DUCK AND A WAVE WOULD BREAK OVER US.

SEEMED TO ME IT WENT ON FOREVER BUT I GUESS IT REALLY DIDN'T.

WE FLOATED ACROSS -- WELL, MY PARENTS THOUGHT WE WERE HEADED FOR BLOCK ISLAND I CAN REMEMBER THE EXITMENT WHEN THEY FOUND DEN SON ROCK A BUOY IT MEANT WE WERE IN THE BAY AND HEADED TO SHORE WE WERE NOT BEING PUSHED OUT INTO THE OCEAN.

>> WHAT A STORY OF HEROISM AND CONSTANTLY COMES BACK.

>> JUST A REAL TRAGEDY.

>>> THIS TRAGEDY HIT THE PEOPLE OF WESTERLY AND WATCH HILL WITH GREAT FORCE.

REBUILDING, STRUCTURALLY AND EMOTIONALLY, TOOK TIME.

NAPATREE POINT WAS FOREVER CHANGED.

>>> NAPATREE OF 1937 WAS QUITE BUILT UP THE NAPATREE OF 2014 IS BEAUTIFULLY PRISTINE, SO LEFT TO THE FORCES OF NATURE, AND NATURE IS RESILIENT THESE ECO SYSTEMS ARE RESILIENT IT IS A LUSH, BEAUTIFUL PLACE WITH A LOT OF BIO DIVERSITY AND A MECCA FOR SUMMER VISITORS.

>> WHICH IS WHY WE AT THECONSERVANCY SPEND A LOT OF TIME PROTECTING WITH THE DUNES AND THE FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE THE BIRDS AND ANIMALS WITH COME THERE.

>>> THOUGH THE 38 HURRICANE MAY BE THE MOST RECOUNTED, STRONG STORMS LIKE SANDY IN 2012 HAVE COME THROUGH THE AREA, AND LEFT THEIR OWN SCARS.

>> THE BUILDINGS THEMSELVES WEATHERED THE STORM BEAUTIFULLY AS THEY DID IN 38.

BUT THE PROPERTY TOOK QUITE A LARGE HIT FROM THE STORM SURGE.

AGAIN, IT WAS MADE AN ISLAND, LIGHT HOUSE POINT.

THERE ARE BOULDERS THAT ARE JUST OUT AT THE EDGE OF THE POINT THAT WERE SHIFTED IN WAYS THAT ARE QUITE DANGEROUS IN FACT.

THE ENTIRE LAWN ON WHICH WE ARE SETTING AND JUST AT THE ENTRANCE WAS LITTERED WITH BOULDERS AS IF A CHILD HAD BEEN THROWING ROCKS EVERYWHERE.

>> THERE WILL BE CHALLENGES WITH ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES SUCH AS CLIMATE CHANGE AND SEA LEVEL RISE.

I THINK THERE WILL BE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CHALLENGES TO ALLOW PEOPLE TO ENJOY THEIR PLACES NOT JUST AS A SUMMER COLONY BUT ALSO AS A MORE YEAR ROUND PLACE .

>>> IT IS JANUARY AND WATCH HILL IS A SLEEP UNDER A BLANKET OF FRESHLY FALLEN SNOW.

THE BOATS ARE ALL GONE AND SO ARE THE PEOPLE THE CHALLENGE IN THE CALENDAR MARKS A PASSAGE OF TIME BUT TIME HERE LIKE THE EBB AND FLOW OF THE TIDES, MOVES AT ITS OWN PACE.

MOST OF THE COTTAGES ARE SHUTTERED FOR THE WINTER BUT THE DAYS ARE GETTING LONGER AND SPRING IS NOT FAR AWAY.

ONCE THE NOR'EASTERS HAVE MOVED OUT AND THE SNOW HAS MELTED THE VILLAGE OF WATCH HILL BEGINS TO COME ALIVE.

YOU KNOW IT IS ABOUT TO START WHEN THE FRESHLY PAINTED HORSES REAPPEAR ON THE FAMOUS FLYING HORSE MERRY-GO-ROUND.

>>> LEGEND HAS IT IN 1879 A TRAVELLING CARNIVAL COMPANY LEFT THE CAROUSEL HERE.

>> EVERY CHILD HAS GROWN UP HERE HAS SPENT SOME TIME TRYING TO CATCH THE BRASS RING AND IT'S VERY MUCH A LOVED PART OF THE COMMUNITY.

>> IT WAS ORIGINALLY POWERED BY A HORSE WHO WALKED AROUND PROPELLING THE HORSES TO FLY AND AS THE CAROUSEL SPINS, THE HORSES FLY OUT WITH SEN ELECTRIFY CALL FORCE SO YOU SEE CHILDREN REACHING OUT AS FAR AS YOU CAN.

THE MAGIC IS WHEN YOU ARE OLD ENOUGH TO RIDE AN OUTSIDE HORSE YOU ARE OLD ENOUGH TO REACH A RING BY YOURSELF.

WHEN YOU CATCH IT, IT PROVIDES YOU WITH AN EXTRA RIDE.

IT IS A BADGE OF HONOR TO CATCH THAT.

THERE ARE STRATEGIES MANY OF US HAVE USED OVER THE YEARS TO BE SURE YOU CAN CATCH THE BRASS RING SOME OF WHICH INVOLVE ALLOWING THE PERSON IN FRONT OF YOU TO CATCH RINGS WHILE YOU SIT THERE INNOCENTLY AND GO BY BECAUSE YOU TRY THE COUNT HOW MANY RINGS THERE ARE.

>>> MEMORIES ARE MADE IN WATCH HILL.

THEY ARE PRESERVED IN PHOTOGRAPHS, OR IN THE MIND, ON THE MERRY-GO-ROUND OR AT THE BEACH.

FOR DAY TRIPPERS OR WEEKEND GUESTS, BAY STREET HAS IT ALL.

FOR THOSE HERE FOR A LONGER VISIT OR WHO SUMMER HERE, WATCH HILL MEANS FREEDOM AND IT HAS FOR GENERATIONS.

>> WE RAN OUT THE DOOR WHEN WE WERE 6 OR 7 AND FAMILY NEVER KNEW -- NEVER TRIED -- WE DIDN'T HAVE TO KEEP IN TOUCH.

WENT TO THE CLUB AND PLAYED TENNIS, RAN AROUND WITH OUR OWN LITTLE CLIQUE IT WAS JUST A LOT OF FREEDOM.

THAT IS WHAT MY CHILDREN SAID THEY LOVED THE MOST.

THEY GOT THE SAME TREATMENT.

>>> FOR US BEING ABLE TO COME HERE AND BE WITH OUR CHILDREN AND HAVE THE KIND OF FREEDOM THAT YOU CAN'T HAVE IN ANY KIND OF CITY, AT ALL, THEY USED TO BE ABLE TO GO OUT AND WALK DOWN TO THE VILLAGE BY THEMSELVES WHEN THEY WERE LIKE 6 AND 7 YEARS OLD AND GO TO THE CANDY BOX AND THE SWIMMING WHICH WE ALL LOVE WAS SO SPECTACULAR, ESPECIALLY FOR CHILDREN.

THERE WAS NOTHING LIKE IT.

>>> IT WAS COMING BACK TO THE TOWN AND WALKING IT IN THE WINTER WHICH IS SPECIAL, HAVING THE WONDERS OF NAPATREE POINT TO YOURSELF.

FOR ME THOSE ARE THE THINGS I LOOK FORWARD TO EVERY MARCH.

>>> SUMMER RESIDENTS LOOKING FOR MORE ORGANIZED ACTIVITIES, FORMED THE GOLF CLUB IN 1895.

ADDING TENNIS AND A BATHING BEACH CLUB IN LATER YEARS.

FOR THOSE WHO LOVED THE SEA THE WATCH HILL YACHT CLUB WAS ESTABLISHED 1913.

>> I REMEMBER I HAD A LITTLE SAILBOAT, A 13.5-FOOT CAT BOAT AND IT WAS CALLED EDIT'S ARK AND IT WAS KEPT IN THE COVE BEHIND THE HOUSE.

MY ACTIVITY FOR THE MORNING WAS TO GO DOWN AND HOSE IT OFF AND MAKE SURE EVERYTHING WAS READY AND THEN MAYBE IN THE AFTERNOON GO FOR A SAIL.

LIFE WAS MUCH SIMPLER WILL AND IT WAS EXTREMELY ENJOYABLE.

>> SAILING BECAME POPULAR IN WATCH HILL IN THE EARLY 1900s.

RACES WERE HELD DURING THE SUMMER AND FALL MONTHS, ATTRACTING WELL KNOWN AND NOT SO WELL KNOWN SAILORS TO THE BAY >> I SAILED WITH SIGN STEIN.

HE HAD THE FUNNIEST -- EINSTEIN.

HE HAD THE FUNNIEST LITTLE OLD BOAT AND HIS HAIR WAS ALWAYS FLYING.

WE WOULD BE OUT AT SUNSET AND HE WAS THINKING RELATIVITY.

YOU KNOW, WHILE WE WERE TALKING ABOUT HOT DOGS OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.

>> SOCIAL CIRCLES WERE CREATED BY ACTIVITIES AT THE CLUB AND IN TURN, FRIENDSHIPS WERE FORGED THAT LIVE ON TODAY.

>> I KEEP UP WITH A HANDFUL OF MY FRIENDS FROM SCHOOL AND FROM COLLEGE, BUT THE CORE PEOPLE I SEE MORE OFTEN THAN NOT ARE BASED IN THIS PLACE.

>> IT IS NOT A VERY BIG PLACE BUT WE JUST ALL HAVE THIS KIND OF CONNECTION TO WATCH HILL.

WE LOVE, LOVE SEEING EACH OTHER IN SUMMER.

>>> WATCH HILL HAS A WAY OF ENVELOPING YOU WHEN YOU COME AND YOU BECOME PART OF THE COMMUNITY.

IT IS A VERY STRONG FEELING OF STEWARDSHIP THAT IS HERE.

>> THAT SENSE OF STEWARDSHIP CAN BE SEEN TODAY IN WORK BEING DONE BY THE WATCH HILL CON CERTIFICATE VENN SEI -- CONSERVANCY AND THE WATCH HILL SOCIETY.

>> WE PROVIDE FUNDING AND CHARITABLE RESOURCES FOR MANY OF THE LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS BOTH HERE IN WATCH HILL AND TO SOME EXTENT IN THE GREATER WESTERLY AREA.

SO WE PROVIDE FOR THE CONTINUAL MAINTENANCE OF ATTRACTIONS SO BEAUTIFUL HERE IN WATCH HILL.

>> WE FORMED THE WATCH HILL CONSERVANCY WHICH WE THOUGHT OF PRIMARILY AS A LAND TRUST.

IT DOES HOLD A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF LAND BUT ALSO AS AN ORGANIZATION THAT MIGHT PROMOTE ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATION WHICH IT DOES AND PROTECT SOME OF THE NATURAL AREAS, PARTICULARLY NAPATREE POINT.

>> NAPATREE POINT IS OyքONE OF THOSE PLACES THEY WANT TO KEEP A CLOSE EYE ON.

>> WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER AND ALL LEARNING TOGETHER.

WE MAKE SURE WE COLLECT INFORMATION ON THE BREEDING BIRDS, HORSESHOE CRABS, TO MAKE SURE WE COMMUNICATE THAT SCIENTIFIC MONITORING INFORMATION TO THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE TO MAKE DECISIONS IN NAPATREE.

>>> ONE OF THE THINGS THAT IS SO IMPORTANT IS THE FACT THAT WHEN IT IS REALLY WORKING, WHEN IT IS POWERFUL YOU BECOME POSSESS SIEVE AND YOU HAVE THE INTUITION TO WANT TO FIGHT FOR THAT PLACE.

>>> WATCH HILL HAS BEEN EXTRAORDINARILY LUCKY IN THE SENSE PEOPLE IN WATCH HILL HAVE REPEATEDLY STEPPED UP TO PURCHASE PIECES OF PROPERTY THAT MIGHT BE SOLD OUTSIDE AND DEVELOPED IN A WAY THAT WOULD NOT FIT INTO WATCH HILL.

THIS IS NOT SOME EXCLUSIONARY ATTITUDE IT IS SIMPLY MEANS THAT THE COMMUNITY, PEOPLE FROM THE COMMUNITY ARE BUYING A PIECE OF PROPERTY, THE COMMUNITY WILL TRY TO SEE IT IS DEVELOPED.

IF IT IS, IF IT IS OPEN THAT'S FINE BUT IF IT IS DEVELOPED IT IS IN A COMPATIBLE WAY.

>>> PRESERVATION DOESN'T MEAN FREEZING IN TIME IT MEANS ALLOWING FOR ADAPTATION AND EVOLUTION AND NOT CREATING SOMETHING THAT DISPLACES THIS WONDERFUL COMMUNITY THAT IS HERE THAT ENJOYED WATCH HILL FOR GENERATIONS AND REALLY IS THE STEWARD OF WATCH HILL.

♪ [ MUSIC ] ♪ >>> GENERATIONS OF PEOPLE HAVE VISITED, WORKED, SUMMERED AND COME OF AGE IN THIS PICTURESQUE SEA SIDE VILLAGE.

WATCH HILL IS NOT A PLACE YOU CAN VISIT JUST ONCE.

IT BECOMES A STATE OF MIND, IT IS A PLACE THAT ENCHANTS AND INSPIRES YOU ALL YEARLONG.

IT'S BEAUTY LIVES IN YOUR MIND AND THE SMELL OF THE SEA LINGERS IN YOUR SOUL.

♪ [ MUSIC ] ♪