Watch Hill and the Flying Horse Carousel
National Historic Landmark · Westerly, Rhode Island
A small, wealthy summer village at the south-western tip of Rhode Island, built around a curve of Bay Street above a beach and a harbour. Its landmark is the Flying Horse Carousel, a National Historic Landmark since 1987 and the oldest operating carousel in the United States in which the horses are suspended from chains rather than fixed to the floor — so they swing outward as it turns. Sources disagree about when it was built, placing it somewhere in the 1860s or 1870s; what is agreed is that a travelling carnival left it at Watch Hill in 1879 and it never went anywhere again.
Bay Street, Westerly, Rhode Island, 02891, United States
The village, the beach and Napatree Point are free and open year round. ⚠ THE FLYING HORSE CAROUSEL RUNS SEASONALLY, ROUGHLY JUNE TO LABOR DAY ONLY, and is covered and closed outside that; it is maintained by the Watch Hill Fire District. ⚠ ONLY CHILDREN MAY RIDE IT, generally those under about twelve — adults are not permitted, and this catches out visitors who have travelled for it. Rides cost a few dollars. ⚠ PARKING IS THE PRACTICAL CONSTRAINT: a small paid lot off Bay Street plus two-hour metered spaces, with all other street parking residents-only and strictly enforced. The lots fill by mid-morning in July and August and there is no overflow — arrive before ten or after four. Much of the village closes out of season.
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