BIOGRAPHY: A watchtower and a simple beacon were first established at Watch Hill by the Rhode Island colonial government around 1745, giving the area its name, and earlier the point may have been used as a lookout by the Narragansett Indians. The watchtower and beacon were destroyed in a 1781 storm. Discussion of a lighthouse to mark the eastern entrance to Fishers Island Sound, and to warn mariners of a dangerous reef southwest of Watch Hill, began in 1793.

BIOGRAPHY: An act to build the lighthouse was signed in 1806 by President Thomas Jefferson. The government purchased four acres of land for $500 from George and Thankful Foster, and the lighthouse, Rhode Island's second after Beavertail, was erected in 1807.

BIOGRAPHY: There are Revolutionary War records for a George Foster of Westerly, Rhode Island. He was 82 in 1833. As a Private in the war, he served as a guard and quartered at Jonathan Foster's home. Watch Hill is also mentioned as the site of an encounter with British ships. No wife is listed on his paperwork.