The Needles the Isle of Wight, often photographed by visitors, and are featured on many of the souvenirs sold throughout the island. The main tourist attractions of the headland itself are the two gun batteries, the experimental rocket testing station, and the four Coastguard cottages owned by the National Trust. A branch of the National Coastwatch Institution is also based at the Needles, sited near the New Battery and Rocket Testing Site on High Down. The Needles – Landmark Attraction (previously known as The Needles Pleasure Park) situated at the top of the cliff at Alum Bay is a small amusement park.
1st Rhode Island Battery 1st Rhode Island Battery The First Rhode Island Battery (also known as "Tompkins' Marine Artillery") was an artillery unit which served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The 1st Rhode Island Battery was organized by Colonel Samuel G. Arnold at the Benefit Street Arsenal in Providence for three months' service in April 1861. It was organized from the Providence Marine Corps of Artillery, a unit of the Rhode Island Militia. It was commanded by Captain Charles H. Tompkins. The Battery left Rhode Island for Jersey City, New Jersey on April 18, 1861, then moved to Easton, PA