Portal:Rhode Island

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The Rhode Island Portal

Rhode Island (/ˌroʊd-/ ^ⓘ ROHD) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Island Sound; and shares a small maritime border with New York, east of Long Island. Rhode Island is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020; but it has grown at every decennial count since 1790 and is the second-most densely populated state, after New Jersey. The state takes its name from the eponymous island, though nearly all its land area is on the mainland. Providence is its capital and most populous city.

Native Americans lived around Narragansett Bay for thousands of years before English settlers began arriving in the early 17th century. Rhode Island was unique among the Thirteen British Colonies in having been founded by a refugee, Roger Williams, who fled religious persecution in the Massachusetts Bay Colony to establish a haven for religious liberty. He founded Providence in 1636 on land purchased from local tribes, creating the first settlement in North America with an explicitly secular government. The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations subsequently became a destination for religious and political dissenters and social outcasts, earning it the moniker "Rogue's Island".

Rhode Island was the first colony to call for a Continental Congress, in 1774, and the first to renounce its allegiance to the British Crown, on May 4, 1776. After the American Revolution, during which it was heavily occupied and contested, Rhode Island became the fourth state to ratify the Articles of Confederation, on February 9, 1778. Because its citizens favored a weaker central government, it boycotted the 1787 convention that had drafted the United States Constitution, which it initially refused to ratify; it finally ratified it on May 29, 1790, the last of the original 13 states to do so.

The state was officially named the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations since the colonial era but came to be commonly known as "Rhode Island". In November 2020, the state's voters approved an amendment to the state constitution formally dropping "and Providence Plantations" from its full name. Its official nickname is the "Ocean State", a reference to its 400 mi (640 km) of coastline and the large bays and inlets that make up about 14% of its area. (Full article...)

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Governor Benedict Arnold grave medallion

Benedict Arnold (December 21, 1615 – June 19, 1678) was president and then governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, serving for a total of 11 years in these roles. He was born and raised in the town of Ilchester, Somerset, England, likely attending school in Limington nearby. In 1635 at age 19, he accompanied his parents, siblings, and other family members on a voyage from England to New England where they first settled in Hingham in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. In less than a year, they moved to Providence Plantation at the head of the Narragansett Bay at the request of Roger Williams. In about 1638, they moved once again about five miles (8 km) south to the Pawtuxet River, settling on the north side at a place commonly called Pawtuxet (now Cranston). Here they had serious disputes with their neighbors, particularly Samuel Gorton, and they put themselves and their lands under the jurisdiction of Massachusetts, a situation which lasted for 16 years.

Arnold learned the Indian languages at an early age and became one of the two leading interpreters in the Rhode Island colony (Roger Williams being the other). He was frequently called upon to interpret during negotiations with the Indians, but they accused him of misrepresentation on one occasion. (Full article...)

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Pawtucket (/pəˈtʌkɪt/ ^ⓘ pə-TUK-it) is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island. The population was 75,604 at the 2020 census, making the city the fourth-largest in the state. Pawtucket borders Providence and East Providence to the south, Central Falls and Lincoln to the north, and North Providence to the west. The city also borders the Massachusetts municipalities of Seekonk and Attleboro.

Pawtucket was an early and important center of textile manufacturing. It is home to Slater Mill, a historic textile mill recognized for helping to found the Industrial Revolution in the United States. (Full article...)

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Did you know?

... that three decades after chasing away surveyors for a previous railroad with guns, residents of Wickford, Rhode Island, built their own railroad?
... that Northup Avenue Yard in Providence, Rhode Island, was described as "the finest in the New Haven system"?
... that James Diossa rescued the only public library and post office in Central Falls, Rhode Island, when the city went into bankruptcy?
... that a Rhode Island TV station broadcast for 14 months and then was off the air for 26 years before returning?

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Texas could wear Rhode Island as a watch fob.

— Pat Neff

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Credit: User:Juni0r75

The Prudence Island Lighthouse (known locally as the Sandy Point Lighthouse) is located on Sandy Point, Prudence Island, Rhode Island and is the oldest lighthouse tower in the state. Sandy Point is nicknamed Chibacoweda, meaning "little place separated by a passage," because the location is a little more than one mile offshore.

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The following are images from various Rhode Island-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Ninigret Pond National Wildlife Refuge (from Rhode Island)
Image 2A nine-pence banknote issued by Rhode Island in 1786 (from Rhode Island)
Image 3In 1636, Roger Williams and his followers founded the settlement of Providence Plantations. (from Rhode Island)
Image 4The East Bay Bike Path in Riverside
Image 5Topographic map of Rhode Island (from Rhode Island)
Image 6County results of the 2020 Presidential election. Joe Biden (D) won every county. (from Rhode Island)
Image 7Interior of The Breakers, a Newport symbol of the Gilded Age (from Rhode Island)
Image 8County results of the 2020 Presidential election. Joe Biden (D) won every county. (from Rhode Island)
Image 9Interior of The Breakers, a Newport symbol of the Gilded Age (from Rhode Island)
Image 10The Block Island Wind Farm is the first commercial offshore wind farm in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 11Providence Revolutionaries burned HMS Gaspee in Warwick in protest of British customs laws. (from Rhode Island)
Image 12The United States Naval Academy was moved to Fort Adams in Newport during the Civil War. (from Rhode Island)
Image 131884 Baseball Champion Providence Grays (from Rhode Island)
Image 14Rhode Island population density map (from Rhode Island)
Image 15University Hall at Brown University is one of the oldest academic buildings in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 16Downtown Providence in 2008 (from Rhode Island)
Image 17The International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 18Ethnic origins in Rhode Island (from Rhode Island)
Image 19The East Bay Bike Path in Riverside
Image 20Downtown Providence in 2008 (from Rhode Island)
Image 21The Block Island Wind Farm is the first commercial offshore wind farm in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 22Rocky shoreline in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 23Map of Rhode Island, showing major cities and roads (from Rhode Island)
Image 24In 1936, on the 300th anniversary of the settlement of Rhode Island in 1636, the U.S. Post Office issued a commemorative stamp, depicting Roger Williams (from Rhode Island)
Image 25University of Rhode Island's Meade Stadium in Kingston (from Rhode Island)
Image 26The Pawtucket Red Sox played at McCoy Stadium (from Rhode Island)
Image 27The United States Naval Academy was moved to Fort Adams in Newport during the Civil War. (from Rhode Island)
Image 28Ethnic origins in Rhode Island (from Rhode Island)
Image 29Topographic map of Rhode Island (from Rhode Island)
Image 30The International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 31University Hall at Brown University is one of the oldest academic buildings in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 32Many Rhode Islanders visit Washington County for its beaches (from Rhode Island)
Image 33Slater Mill in Pawtucket is cited as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in the United States.
Image 34Trustom Pond, a lagoon in South Kingstown (from Rhode Island)
Image 35Map of Rhode Island, showing major cities and roads (from Rhode Island)
Image 36The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority operates a statewide system of bus transport. (from Rhode Island)
Image 37The Towers are a Narragansett landmark. (from Rhode Island)
Image 38The Towers are a Narragansett landmark. (from Rhode Island)
Image 39The Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge (foreground) and Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge (background)
Image 40Trustom Pond, a lagoon in South Kingstown (from Rhode Island)
Image 41Rocky shoreline in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 42Providence Revolutionaries burned HMS Gaspee in Warwick in protest of British customs laws. (from Rhode Island)
Image 43The Rhode Island State House in Providence boasts the world's fourth largest self-supported marble dome. (from Rhode Island)
Image 44Rhode Island population density map (from Rhode Island)
Image 45Many Rhode Islanders visit Washington County for its beaches (from Rhode Island)
Image 46In 1936, on the 300th anniversary of the settlement of Rhode Island in 1636, the U.S. Post Office issued a commemorative stamp, depicting Roger Williams (from Rhode Island)
Image 47In 1680, Newport was the third largest Anglo-American city. It remained a prosperous population center until the 1770s. (from Rhode Island)
Image 48Touro Synagogue in Newport is the oldest existing synagogue building in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 49The Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge (foreground) and Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge (background)
Image 50The Rhode Island State House in Providence boasts the world's fourth largest self-supported marble dome. (from Rhode Island)
Image 51A southbound Northeast Regional train at Kingston Station (from Rhode Island)
Image 52Köppen climate types of Rhode Island, using 1991–2020 climate normals (from Rhode Island)
Image 53Köppen climate types of Rhode Island, using 1991–2020 climate normals (from Rhode Island)
Image 541884 Baseball Champion Providence Grays (from Rhode Island)
Image 55In 1680, Newport was the third largest Anglo-American city. It remained a prosperous population center until the 1770s. (from Rhode Island)
Image 56In 1636, Roger Williams and his followers founded the settlement of Providence Plantations. (from Rhode Island)
Image 57Ninigret Pond National Wildlife Refuge (from Rhode Island)
Image 58University of Rhode Island's Meade Stadium in Kingston (from Rhode Island)
Image 59Touro Synagogue in Newport is the oldest existing synagogue building in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 60The Pawtucket Red Sox played at McCoy Stadium (from Rhode Island)
Image 61Slater Mill in Pawtucket is cited as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in the United States.
Image 62A southbound Northeast Regional train at Kingston Station (from Rhode Island)
Image 63The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority operates a statewide system of bus transport. (from Rhode Island)
Image 64A nine-pence banknote issued by Rhode Island in 1786 (from Rhode Island)

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Credit: Flickr user: boliyou

The skyline of Providence, Rhode Island

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This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk · contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged or categorized (e.g. Category:WikiProject Rhode Island articles) correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.