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Rhode Island

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This article is about the U.S. state. For other uses, see Rhode Island (disambiguation).
Rhode Island and Providence Plantations
Flag of Rhode Island State seal of Rhode Island
Flag of Rhode Island Seal
Nickname(s): The Ocean State, Little Rhody
Motto(s): Hope
Map of the United States with Rhode Island highlighted
Official language(s) De jure: None
De facto: English
Demonym Rhode Islander
Capital Providence
Largest city Providence
Area  Ranked 50th in the US
 - Total 1,545 sq mi
(4,002 km²)
 - Width 37 miles (60 km)
 - Length 48 miles (77 km)
 - % water 32.4
 - Latitude 41° 09' N to 42° 01' N
 - Longitude 71° 07' W to 71° 53' W
Population  Ranked 43rd in the US
 - Total 1,050,788 (2008 est.)[1]
 - Density 1,012.3/sq mi  (390.78/km²)
Ranked 2nd in the US
Elevation  
 - Highest point Jerimoth Hill[2]
812 ft  (247 m)
 - Mean 200 ft  (60 m)
 - Lowest point Atlantic Ocean[2]
0 ft  (0 m)
Admission to Union  May 29, 1790 (13th)
Governor Donald Carcieri (R)
Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth H. Roberts (D)
U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D)
Sheldon Whitehouse (D)
Congressional Delegation List
Time zone Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Abbreviations RI US-RI
Website www.ri.gov
Footnotes: * Total area in acres
is approximately 776,957 acres (3,144 km2)

The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, [3] more commonly referred to as Rhode Island (en-us-Rhode Island.ogg /roʊd ˈaɪlɨnd/ (help·info)), is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area. Rhode Island borders Connecticut to the west, and Massachusetts to the north and east.

Despite being called Rhode Island in common usage, most of the state is on the North American continental mainland. The name "Rhode Island" derives from a colonial-era name for what is now known as Aquidneck Island (now composed of the city of Newport, and the towns of Middletown and Portsmouth) - the largest of several islands in Narragansett Bay. .[4]

Rhode Island was the first of the thirteen original American colonies to declare independence from British rule and the last to ratify the United States Constitution.

Rhode Island offical nickname is "the Ocean State", a reference to state's geography (nearly one tenth of Rhode Island's inland area is covered by salt water, and no part of the state is more than a thirty-minute drive from the water's edge) and history (Newport and Providence are among the nation's most prosperous colonial ports, and the state is still known as a summer tourist destination for boaters and beachgoers). [5]

Contents

[edit] Name origin

Verrazzano Monument, Providence, RI

In 1524, Italian navigator Giovanni da Verrazzano was the first European to visit any part of what is now Rhode Island. He came to what is now Block Island and named it "Luisa" after Louise of Savoy, Queen Mother of France. When the founders of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations surveyed the land, they thought that Aquidneck Island was the place. A mistake occurred in 1614, when Luisa was charted by the Dutch explorer Adriaen Block, after whom Luisa was renamed by the Dutch West India Company; however, their motives in doing so are unknown.[6] The official explanation by the State of Rhode Island is that Adriaen Block named the area "Roodt Eylandt" meaning "red island" in reference to the red clay that lined the shore, and that the name was later anglicized when the region came under British rule.[7].

Another hypothesis on the origin of the name is that when Verrazzano sailed into Narragansett Bay, the many islands reminded him of the Aegean Sea, and he named it for Rhodes. This is what is said on the Verrazzano Monument in downtown Providence at Monument Park near RISD.

Roger Williams was forced out of Massachusetts as he wanted religious freedom. He brought several other people and created 'Rhode Island and Providence Plantations' as a free proprietary colony.

"Rhode Island and Providence Plantations" makes it the state with the longest name, while it also holds the title of the smallest state in the United States of America.

[edit] Geography

Map of Rhode Island, showing major cities and roads
Block Island bluffs, Rhode Island
Terrain Map of Rhode Island
Further information: List of Rhode Island counties

The smallest of the 50 states, Rhode Island and Providence Plantations covers an area of approximately 1,545 square miles (4,002 km²) and is bordered on the north and east by Massachusetts, on the west by Connecticut, and on the south by Rhode Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean. It shares a narrow maritime border with New York State between Block Island and Long Island. The mean elevation of the state is 200 feet (60 m).

Nicknamed the Ocean State, Rhode Island is home to a number of oceanfront beaches. It is mostly flat with no real mountains and the states highest natural point is Jerimoth Hill, only 812 feet (247 m) above sea level.[2]

Located within the New England province of the Appalachian Region, Rhode Island has two distinct natural regions. Eastern Rhode Island contains the lowlands of the Narragansett Bay, while Western Rhode Island forms part of the New England Upland. Narragansett Bay is a major feature of the state's topography. Block Island lies approximately 12 miles (19 km) off the southern coast of the mainland. Within the Bay, there are over 30 islands. The largest is Aquidneck Island, shared by the municipalities of Newport, Middletown, and Portsmouth. The second-largest island is Conanicut; the third-largest is Prudence.

A rare type of rock called Cumberlandite, found only in Rhode Island (specifically in the town of Cumberland), is the state rock. There were initially two known deposits of the mineral, but since it is an ore of iron, one of the deposits was almost completely mined out in the American Civil War[citation needed] in order to make cannons.

[edit] Climate

Rhode Island is an example of a warm summer humid continental climate with hot, rainy summers and chilly winters. The highest temperature recorded in Rhode Island was 104 °F (40 °C), recorded on August 2, 1975 in Providence. The lowest recorded temperature in Rhode Island was -23°F, on January 11, 1942 in Kingston. Monthly average temperatures range from a high of 83 °F (28 °C) to a low of 20 °F (-7 °C).[8]

City Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
RI Monthly Averages in °F 37/20 39/23 48/30 58/39 69/49 77/58 83/64 81/63 73/55 63/43 52/43 42/26
Source: US National Climatic Data Center[9]

[edit] History

Main article: History of Rhode Island

[edit] Colonial era

In 1524, Italian navigator Giovanni de Verrazzano traversed the mid-Atlantic coast of North America, searching for an all-water route through North America to China. In March of that year, he left what is now New York Harbor and headed east until he discovered what was later called Block Island. Natives guided him into what is now Newport Harbor. He remained for two weeks while his crew surveyed the bay and the surrounding mainland. In early May 1524, Verrazzano departed to renew his search for a Northwest Passage.

In 1614, the Dutch explorer Adriaen Block visited the island that is now called Block Island.

Indigenous peoples of the Americas that lived near Rhode Island were the Wampanoag, Pequots, Narragansett, and Nipmuck. The Narragansett tribe, occupying most of the area, along with the closely related Niantic tribe. Most of the Native Americans were decimated by diseases brought with the Europeans such as smallpox, and by intertribal warfare, but remnants of the Niantic merged into the Narragansett tribe, where they remain on a federally recognized reservation.

In 1636, Roger Williams, after being banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony for his religious views, settled at the tip of Narragansett Bay. He called the site Providence and declared it a place of religious freedom. It was sometimes referred to as "Rogue's Island" because of the people it attracted.[10] Soon after Providence was known as a proprietary colony, owned and ruled by a designated person.

The following year, Anne Hutchinson was banished from Massachusetts for criticizing the clergy there. She and some others, including William Coddington and John Clarke, founded the town of Portsmouth on Aquidneck Island. In 1639, Coddington left Portsmouth and founded Newport, also on Aquidneck Island.

In that same year, a formal government was established for the island. William Coddington was the first governor, and Philip Sherman was the first secretary. In 1643, Samuel Gorton founded Shawomet, which is now called Warwick. In 1644, the name of Aquidneck Island was changed to Rhode Island.

John Clarke was granted a Charter in 1663 for Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, which effectively united the two colonies into one. Under the terms of the charter, only landowners could vote. Before the Industrial Revolution, when most people were employed as farmers, this was considered democratic. The original charter was used as the state constitution until 1842.

The relationship between the New Englanders and the Native Americans was strained, and caused some bloodshed. Roger Williams had kept the powerful Narragansetts on friendly terms with local white settlers. The Narragansetts were even persuaded to form an alliance with the English in 1637, carrying out an attack that nearly extinguished the Pequots. This peace did not last long, however, and by 1670, even the friendly tribes who had greeted Williams and the Pilgrims became estranged from the colonists, and conflicts erupted.

The most important and traumatic event in 17th century Rhode Island was King Philip's War, which occurred during 1675–1676. King Philip (also known as Metacomet) was the chief of the Wampanoag tribe. The settlers of Portsmouth had purchased their land from his father, Massasoit. King Philip rebelled against the English. The first attacks were around Narrangansett Bay, but spread throughout New England. The war culminated in Rhode Island in the Great Swamp Fight, where a force of Massachusets, Connecticut and Plymouth milita under General Josiah Winslow invaded and destroyed the fortified Narragansett Indian village in the Great Swamp in southern Rhode Island, by Worden's Pond, killing at least 300 Narragansett, on December 19, 1675.[11] Metacomet himself was eventually killed in a brief battle near Bristol, RI by John Alderman an Indian Ranger working for the Plymouth Colony's Captain Benjamin Church.[12]

[edit] Revolution and industrialization: 1770–1860

Rhode Island's tradition of independence and dissent gave it a prominent role in the American Revolution. In 1772, the first bloodshed of the American Revolution took place in Rhode Island when a band of Providence residents attacked a grounded British ship for enforcing unpopular British trade regulations. This incident would come to be known as the Gaspee Affair. Keeping with its culture of defiance, Rhode Island was the first of the original thirteen colonies to declare its independence from Great Britain (May 4, 1776,[13]) and the last to ratify the Constitution, doing the latter only after being threatened with having its exports taxed as a foreign nation. During the Revolution, the British occupied Newport. A combined Franco-American force fought to drive them off of Aquidneck Island. Portsmouth was the site of the first African American military unit, the 1st Rhode Island Regiment, to fight for the U.S. in the Battle of Rhode Island August 29, 1778. The arrival of a far superior French fleet forced the British to scuttle their own ships, rather than surrender them to the French.

The Industrial Revolution began in America in 1789 when Moses Brown invested in a water-powered textile mill designed and run by Samuel Slater. As the Industrial Revolution moved large numbers of workers into the cities, a permanently landless, and therefore voteless, class developed. By 1829, 60% of the state's free white males were ineligible to vote.

Several attempts had been made to address this problem, but none were successful. In 1842, Thomas Dorr drafted a liberal constitution which was passed by popular referendum. However, the conservative sitting governor, Samuel Ward King, opposed the people's wishes, leading to the Dorr Rebellion. Although this was not a success, a modified version of the constitution was passed in November, which allowed any white male to vote if he owned land or could pay a $1 poll tax.

In addition to industrialization, Rhode Island was heavily involved in the slave trade during the post-revolution era. Slavery was extant in the state as early as 1652, and by 1774, the slave population of Rhode Island was 6.3%, nearly twice as high as any other New England colony. In the late 18th century, several Rhode Island merchant families began actively engaging in the triangle slave trade. Notable among these was brothers John and Nicholas of the Brown family, for whom Brown University is named, although some Browns, particularly Moses, became prominent abolitionists. In the years after the Revolution, Rhode Island merchants controlled between 60% and 90% of the American trade in African slaves.[14][15]

[edit] Civil War to Progressive Era: 1860–1929

During the Civil War, Rhode Island was the first Union state to send troops in response to President Lincoln's request for help from the states. Rhode Island furnished 25,236 fighting men, of whom 1,685 died. On the home front, Rhode Island, along with the other northern states, used its industrial capacity to supply the Union Army with the materials it needed to win the war. In addition, Newport was the temporary home of the United States Naval Academy during the war. Rhode Island's continued growth and modernization led to the creation of an urban mass transit system and improved health and sanitation programs. In 1866, Rhode Island abolished racial segregation throughout the state.[16]

Post-war immigration increased the population. From the 1860s to the 1880s, most immigrants were from England, Ireland, Germany, Sweden, and Quebec. Toward the end of the century, however, most immigrants were from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean.[17] At the turn of the century, Rhode Island had a booming economy, which fed the demand for immigration. In the years leading up to World War I, Rhode Island's constitution remained reactionary, in contrast to the more progressive reforms that were occurring in the rest of the country. The state never ratified the 18th Amendment establishing national prohibition of alcohol.[18] During World War I, Rhode Island furnished 28,817 troops, of whom 612 died. After the war, the state was hit hard by the Spanish Influenza.[19] In the 1920s and 1930s, rural Rhode Island saw a surge in Ku Klux Klan membership, largely in reaction to the large waves of immigrants moving to the state. The Klan is believed to be responsible for burning the Watchman Industrial School in Scituate, which was a school for African American children.[20]

[edit] Great Depression to present: 1929-

In the 20th century, the state continued to grow, though the decline in industry devastated many urban areas. These areas were impacted further, as with the rest of the country's urban areas, by construction of Interstate highways through city cores and the suburbanization caused by it and by the GI Bill.

Providence in the mid-20th century

Since the Great Depression, the Rhode Island Democratic Party has dominated local politics. The Democratic Party's core of support is in the urban areas of the state. While known for old school politics and corruption,[citation needed] Rhode Island also has comprehensive health insurance for low-income children, and a large social safety net. Despite this, many urban areas still have a high rate of children in poverty. Due to an influx of residents from Boston, increasing housing costs have resulted in more homeless in Rhode Island.[21]

The Republican Party, virtually non-existent in the state legislature, has successfully put forward occasional state-wide "good government" reform candidates who criticize the state's high taxes and the excesses of the Democratic Party. Current Governor Donald Carcieri of East Greenwich, and former Mayor Vincent A. "Buddy" Cianci of Providence (who later became an independent political boss, and was convicted on RICO charges) ran as Republican reform candidates.

Prominent Democrats include House Speaker William Murphy, Senate President Joseph Montalbano, Providence Mayor David Cicilline, Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis, General Treasurer Frank Caprio, Senate Majority Leader M. Teresa Paiva-Weed, and Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts. In recent years, former Speaker of the House John Harwood, State Senator John Celona, and State Senate President William Irons were forced to resign amid scandals.

In 2003, a nightclub fire in West Warwick claimed one hundred lives and caught national attention. The fire resulted in criminal sentences.[22]

[edit] Law and government

The capital of Rhode Island is Providence. The state's current governor is Donald L. Carcieri (R), and its United States Senators are Jack Reed (D) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D). Rhode Island's two United States Congressmen are Patrick J. Kennedy (D-1) and Jim Langevin (D-2). See congressional districts map.

Rhode Island is one of a few states that does not have an official Governor's residence. See List of Rhode Island Governors.

The state legislature is the Rhode Island General Assembly, consisting of the 75-member House of Representatives and the 38-member Senate. Both houses of the bicameral body are currently dominated by the Democratic Party.

Because Rhode Island's population barely crosses the threshold for additional votes in both the federal House and electoral college, it is well represented relative to its population, with the eighth-highest number of electoral votes and second-highest number of House Representatives per resident.

Federally, Rhode Island is one of the most reliably Democratic states during presidential elections, regularly giving the Democratic nominees one of their best showings. In 1980, Rhode Island was one of only 6 states to vote against Ronald Reagan. Reagan did carry Rhode Island in his 49-state victory in 1984, but the state was the second weakest of the states Reagan won. Rhode Island was the Democrats' leading state in 1988 and 2000, and second-best in 1996 and 2004. The state was devoted to Republicans until 1908, but has only strayed from the Democrats 7 times in the 24 elections that have followed. In 2004, Rhode Island gave John Kerry more than a 20-percentage-point margin of victory (the third-highest of any state), with 59.4% of its vote. All but three of Rhode Island's 39 cities and towns voted for the Democratic candidate. The only exceptions were East Greenwich, West Greenwich and Scituate.[23] In 2008, Rhode Island gave Barack Obama a 29-percentage-point margin of victory (the third-highest of any state), with 64% of its vote. All of Rhode Island's 39 cities and towns voted for the Democratic candidate, except for Scituate. [24]

Rhode Island has abolished capital punishment, making it one of 15 states that have done so. Rhode Island abolished the death penalty very early, just after Michigan (the first state to abolish it), and carried out its last execution in the 1840s. Rhode Island is one of two states in which prostitution is legal, provided it takes place indoors, though there have been recent efforts to change this.[25]

Rhode Island has some of the highest taxes in the country, particularly its property taxes, ranking seventh in local and state taxes, and sixth in real estate taxes.[26]

Further information: Political party strength in Rhode Island

[edit] Economy

Textron's headquarters, in the company of One Financial Plaza and the Rhode Island Hospital Trust building

The Blackstone River Valley is known as the "Birthplace of the American Industrial Revolution".[27] It was in Pawtucket that Samuel Slater set up Slater Mill in 1793,[28] using the waterpower of the Blackstone River to power his cotton mill. For a while, Rhode Island was one of the leaders in textiles. However, with the Great Depression, most textile factories relocated to the American South. The textile industry still constitutes a part of the Rhode Island economy, but does not have the same power that it once had. Other important industries in Rhode Island's past included toolmaking, costume jewelry and silverware. An interesting by-product of Rhode Island's industrial history is the amount of abandoned factories - many of them now being used for low-income or elderly housing, or converted into offices or condominiums. Today, much of the economy of state is based in services, particularly healthcare and education, and still to some extent, manufacturing.[29][30]

The headquarters of Citizens Financial Group, a 160 billion dollar banking corporation which operates in many parts of the US, is located in Providence. The Fortune 500 companies CVS and Textron are based in Woonsocket and Providence, respectively. FM Global, Hasbro, American Power Conversion, Nortek, and Amica Mutual Insurance are all Fortune 1000 companies based in Rhode Island. The GTECH Corporation is headquartered in Providence.

Rhode Island's 2000 total gross state product was $33 billion, placing it 45th in the nation. Its 2000 per capita personal income was $29,685, 16th in the nation. Rhode Island has the lowest level of energy consumption per capita of any state.[31][32][33]

Health services are Rhode Island's largest industry. Second is tourism, supporting 39,000 jobs, with tourism-related sales at $3.26 billion in the year 2000. The third-largest industry is manufacturing.[34] Its industrial outputs are fashion jewelry, fabricated metal products, electrical equipment, machinery, shipbuilding and boatbuilding. Rhode Island's agricultural outputs are nursery stock, vegetables, dairy products and eggs.

The state's taxes are appreciably higher than neighboring states.[26] Governor Carcieri has claimed that this higher tax rate has had an inhibitory effect on business growth in the state and is calling for reductions to increase the competitiveness of the state's business environment. Rhode Island's income tax is based on 25% of the payer's federal income tax payment.[35]

[edit] Demographics

Historical populations
Census Pop.  %±
1790 68,825
—
1800 69,122 0.4%
1810 76,931 11.3%
1820 83,059 8%
1830 97,199 17%
1840 108,830 12%
1850 147,545 35.6%
1860 174,620 18.4%
1870 217,353 24.5%
1880 276,531 27.2%
1890 345,506 24.9%
1900 428,556 24%
1910 542,610 26.6%
1920 604,397 11.4%
1930 687,497 13.7%
1940 713,346 3.8%
1950 791,896 11%
1960 859,488 8.5%
1970 946,725 10.1%
1980 947,154 0%
1990 1,003,464 5.9%
2000 1,048,319 4.5%
Est. 2008 1,050,788 0.2%
Demographics of Rhode Island (csv)
By race White Black AIAN* Asian NHPI*
2000 (total population) 90.96% 6.45% 1.07% 2.74% 0.19%
2000 (Hispanic only) 7.14% 1.42% 0.18% 0.08% 0.07%
2005 (total population) 90.16% 7.07% 1.09% 3.07% 0.21%
2005 (Hispanic only) 9.12% 1.49% 0.22% 0.08% 0.08%
Growth 2000–05 (total population) 1.76% 12.52% 4.91% 15.09% 9.93%
Growth 2000–05 (non-Hispanic only) -0.75% 13.80% 1.03% 15.44% 8.90%
Growth 2000–05 (Hispanic only) 31.21% 7.98% 24.03% 3.78% 11.64%
* AIAN is American Indian or Alaskan Native; NHPI is Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

The center of population of Rhode Island is located in Providence County, in the city of Cranston.[36] A corridor of population can be seen from the Providence area, stretching northwest following the Blackstone River to Woonsocket, where nineteenth-century mills drive industry and development. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2005, Rhode Island had an estimated population of 1,076,189, which is a decrease of 3,727, or 0.3%, from the prior year and an increase of 27,870, or 2.7%, since the year 2000. This includes a natural increase since the last census of 15,220 people (that is 66,973 births minus 51,753 deaths) and an increase due to net migration of 14,001 people into the state. Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 18,965 people, and migration within the country produced a net decrease of 4,964 people.

Rhode Island Population Density Map

The six largest ancestry groups in Rhode Island are: Italian (19%), Irish (19%), French Canadian (17.3%),[37] English (12%), Hispanic 11% (predominantly Puerto Rican and Dominican, with smaller Central American populations), [1] Portuguese (8.7%).

According to the 2000 U.S. Census, 8.07% of the population aged 5 and over speaks Spanish at home, while 3.80% speaks Portuguese, 1.96% French, and 1.39% Italian [2].

6.1% of Rhode Island's population were reported as under 5, 23.6% under 18, and 14.5% were 65 or older. Females made up approximately 52% of the population.

Rhode Island has a higher percentage of Americans of Portuguese ancestry (who dominate Bristol County), including Portuguese Americans and Cape Verdean Americans than any other state in the nation. French Canadians form a large part of northern Providence County whereas Irish Americans have a strong presence in Newport and Kent counties. Yankees of English ancestry still have a presence in the state as well, especially in Washington county, and are often referred to as "Swamp Yankees." African immigrants, including Liberian Americans, Nigerian Americans and Ghanaian Americans, form significant and growing communities in Rhode Island.

[edit] Religion

Mosque on Sayles Hill Road in North Smithfield

The religious affiliations of the people of Rhode Island are:[38]

The largest single Protestant denominations are the Episcopal Church with 26,756 and the American Baptist Churches USA with 20,997 adherents.[39] Rhode Island has the highest percentage of Roman Catholics[40] in the nation mainly due to large Italian, Irish, and French Canadian immigration in the past (these 3 groups form roughly 55-60% of the state population); recently, significant Portuguese (though Portuguese communities have existed since the mid 19th century) and various Hispanic communities (these 2 groups form roughly 20% of the state population) have also been established in the state. Though it has the highest overall Catholic percentage of any state, none of Rhode Island's individual counties ranks among the ten most Catholic in the United States, as Catholics are very evenly spread throughout the state.[40] Rhode Island and Utah are the only two states in which a majority of the population are members of a single religious body.

[edit] Culture

 This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2007)
The Rhode Island state quarter, depicting a vintage sailboat sailing in front of the Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge

Many Rhode Islanders speak with a non-rhotic accent that many compare to a "Brooklyn" or a cross between a New York and Boston accent ("water" becomes "wata"). Many Rhode Islanders pronounce the aw sound (IPA:ɔ) as one might hear in New Jersey; e.g., the word coffee is pronounced kaw-fee.[41]

Nicknamed "The Ocean State", the nautical nature of Rhode Island's geography pervades its culture. Newport Harbor, in particular, holds many pleasure boats. In the lobby of the state's main airport, T. F. Green, is a large lifesize sailboat,[42] and the state's license plates depict an ocean wave.[43]

Additionally, the large number of beaches in Washington County (known locally as South County) lures many Rhode Islanders south for summer vacation.[44]

The state was notorious for organized crime activity from the 1950s into the 1990s when the Patriarca crime family held sway over most of New England from its Providence headquarters. Although the power of organized crime has greatly diminished in Rhode Island over the last 20 years, its residents are still stigmatized by popular perceptions of rampant graft and corruption that have haunted the state for decades.

Rhode Islanders developed a unique style of architecture in the 17th century, called the stone-ender.[45]

Rhode Island is the only state to still celebrate Victory over Japan Day. It is known locally as "VJ Day", or simply "Victory Day".[46]

Beavertail State Park

[edit] Food and beverages

Wein-O-Rama is a popular Cranston restaurant which serves hot weiners.

Several foods and dishes are unique to Rhode Island and are hard to find outside of the state.

Hot weiners, which are sometimes called gaggers, weenies, or New York System Weiners, are smaller than a standard hot dog, served covered in a meat sauce, chopped onions, mustard, and celery salt.

Grinders are submarine sandwiches, with a popular version being the Italian grinder, which is made with cold cuts (usually ham, prosciutto, capicola, salami, and Provolone cheese). Chouriço (a spicy Portuguese sausage) and peppers, eaten with hearty bread, is also popular among the state's large Portuguese community.

Another unique popular item is pizza strips. Prepared in Italian bakeries throughout the state and sold in most supermarkets and convenience stores, they are rectangular strips of pizza without the cheese and are served cold. "Party pizza" is a box of these pizza strips.

Spinach pies, similar to a calzone but filled with seasoned spinach instead of meat, sauce and cheese. Variations can include black olives or pepperoni with the spinach, or broccoli instead of spinach.

The state is also known for its johnny cakes. As in colonial times, johnny cakes are made with corn meal and water, and then pan-fried much like pancakes.

During fairs and carnivals, Rhode Islanders enjoy dough boys, which are plate-sized disks of deep fried dough sprinkled with sugar (sometimes powdered). While these are known as zeppolas in other states, such as New York, in Rhode Island zeppolas or zeppolis are completely different. Traditionally eaten on Saint Joseph's Day (widely celebrated across the state), St. Joseph's Day zeppolis are doughnut-like pastries with exposed centers of vanilla pudding or ricotta cream, topped with a cherry.

Seafood has enjoyed a strong tradition in the Ocean State. Shellfish is extremely popular, with clams being used in multiple ways. The quahog (or quahaug, taken from the Narragansett Indian word "poquauhock" - see A Key into the Language of America by Roger Williams 1643) is a large clam usually used in a chowder. It is also ground and mixed with stuffing (and sometimes spicy minced sausage) and then baked in its shell to form a stuffie. Steamed clams are also a very popular dish.

Calamari (squid) is sliced into rings and fried and is served as an appetizer in most Italian restaurants, typically Sicilian-style, i.e. tossed with spicy peppers and with marinara sauce on the side.

Rhode Island, like the rest of New England, has a long tradition of clam chowder. While both the white New England variety and the red Manhattan variety are popular, there is also a unique clear chowder, known as Rhode Island Clam Chowder available in many restaurants.

Perhaps the most unusual culinary tradition in Rhode Island is the clam cake. The clam cake (also known as a fritter outside of Rhode Island) is a deep fried ball of buttery dough with chopped bits of clam inside. They are sold by the half-dozen or dozen in most seafood restaurants around the state. The quintessential summer meal in Rhode Island is chowder and clam cakes.

Clams Casino originated in Rhode Island after being "invented" by Julius Keller, the maitre d' in the original Casino next to the seaside Towers in Narragansett.[citation needed] Clams Casino resemble the beloved stuffed quahog but are generally made with the smaller littleneck or cherrystone clam and are unique in their use of bacon as a topping.

Rhode Island is a large per capita consumer of coffee in the United States. According to a Providence Journal article, the state features both the highest number and highest density of coffee/doughnut shops per capita in the country, with 342 coffee/doughnut shops in the state. Dunkin' Donuts alone has over 225 locations.[47] Iced coffee is popular in both summer and winter.

The official state drink of Rhode Island is coffee milk,[48] a beverage created by mixing milk with coffee syrup. This unique syrup was invented in the state and is bottled and sold in almost all Rhode Island supermarkets. Although coffee milk contains some caffeine, it is sold in school cafeterias throughout the state. Strawberry milk is also popular.

Frozen lemonade, a mixture of ice slush, lemons, and sugar is popular in the summer, especially Del's Frozen Lemonade, a company based in Cranston.

[edit] Sports

Active teams:

The Providence Grays won the first World Championship in baseball history in 1884. The team played their home games at the old Messer Street Field in Providence. The Grays played in the National League from 1878 to 1885. They defeated the New York Metropolitans of the American Association in a best of five game series at the Polo Grounds in New York. Providence won three straight games to become the first champions in major league baseball history.

Babe Ruth played for the minor league Providence Grays of 1914 and hit his only official minor league home run for that team before being recalled by the Grays parent club, the Boston Red Stockings.

A now defunct professional football team, the Providence Steam Roller won the 1928 NFL title. They used to play in a 10,000 person stadium called the Cycledrome.[49] A team by a similar name, the Providence Steamrollers, played in the Basketball Association of America, which would become the National Basketball Association.

From 1930 to 1983, America's Cup races were sailed off Newport, and the first few extreme-sport X Games and Gravity Games were hosted in the state's capital city.

[edit] Local media

Main article: Media in Rhode Island

[edit] Landmarks

See also: List of Registered Historic Places in Rhode Island
Rhode Island State House with Providence Place mall at left

The state capitol building is made of white Georgian marble. On top is the world's fourth largest self-supported marble dome.[50] It houses the Rhode Island Charter of 1663 and other state treasures.

Providence is home to the First Baptist Church in America, the oldest Baptist church in the Americas, which was founded by Roger Williams in 1638. Providence is the home of the first fully automated post office in the country. The seaside city of Newport is home to many famous mansions, including The Breakers, Marble House and Belcourt Castle. It is also home to the Touro Synagogue, dedicated on 2 December 1763, considered by locals to be the first synagogue within the United States (see below for information on New York City's contestant), and still serving. The synagogue showcases the religious freedoms that were established by Roger Williams as well as impressive architecture in a mix of the classic colonial and Sephardic style. The Newport Casino is a National Historic Landmark building complex that presently houses the International Tennis Hall of Fame and features an active grass-court tennis club.

Rhode Island is home to the famous roadside attraction Nibbles Woodaway, the Big Blue Bug, the world's largest termite.

Fort Adams, on Narragansett Bay, was the setting for the finish of Eco-Challenge 1995.

Scenic Route 1A (known locally as Ocean Road) in Narragansett is home to "The Towers", a large stone arch. It was once the entrance to the famous Narragansett casino that burned down in 1900. The towers now serve as a tourist information center and also a banquet hall for events like weddings and birthday parties.

[edit] Famous Rhode Islanders

Main article: Famous people from Rhode Island
Rhode Island State Symbols
Animate insignia
Bird Rhode Island Red Chicken
Fish Striped bass
Flower Violet
Tree Red maple
Inanimate insignia
Beverage Coffee milk
Food Rhode Island Greening Apple
Mineral Bowenite
Rock Cumberlandite
Shell Northern Quahog
Slogan(s) Unwind
Soil Narragansett
Song(s) Rhode Island,
Rhode Island, It's for Me
Tartan Rhode Island Tartan
Route marker(s)
Rhode Island Route Marker
State Quarter
Quarter of Rhode Island
Released in 2001
Lists of U.S. state insignia

[edit] Popular culture

Main article: Rhode Island in popular culture

The Farrelly brothers and Seth MacFarlane make great eforts to depict Rhode Island in popular culture, often making comedic parodies of the state. MacFarlane's television series Family Guy is based in a fictional Rhode Island city named Quahog, and notable local events and celebrities are regularly lampooned.

Rhode Island is also referred to regularly in movies, television shows, and video games. In recent years the state has also played a major role in the production of both television series and movies.

[edit] Famous firsts in Rhode Island

  • Rhode Island enacted the first law prohibiting slavery in North America on May 18, 1652.[51]
  • Slater Mill in Pawtucket was the first commercially successful cotton-spinning mill with a fully mechanized power system in America and was the birth place of the Industrial Revolution in the US.[52]
  • The oldest Fourth of July Parade in the country is still held annually in Bristol, RI.
  • The first Baptist Church in America was founded in Providence in 1638.[53]
  • Ann Smith Franklin of the Newport Mercury was the first woman newspaper editor in America (August 22, 1762). She was the editor of "The Newport Mercury" in Newport, Rhode Island.[51]
  • Touro Synagogue, the first synagogue in America, was founded in Newport in 1763.[51] Other sources say the first synagogue was the Mill Street, now South William Street, Synagogue in New York City, built by the Shearith Israel congregation in 1729 (or 1730), having earlier met in rented quarters, making Touro Synagogue the second-oldest in the United States.[54]
  • The first armed act of rebellion in America against the British Crown was the boarding and burning of the Revenue Schooner Gaspee in Narragansett Bay on June 10, 1772.
  • The idea of a Continental Congress was first proposed at a town meeting in Providence on May 17, 1774. Rhode Island elected the first delegates (Stephen Hopkins and Samuel Ward) to the Continental Congress on June 15, 1774.
  • The Rhode Island General Assembly created the first standing army in the colonies (1,500 men) on April 22, 1775.
  • On June 15, 1775, the first naval engagement of the American Revolution occurred between a Colonial Sloop commanded by Capt. Abraham Whipple and an armed tender of the British Frigate Rose. The tender was chased aground and captured. Later in June, the General Assembly created the first American Navy when it commissioned the Sloops Katy and Washington, armed with 24 guns and commanded by Abraham Whipple, who was promoted to Commodore.
  • Rhode Island was the first Colony to declare independence from Britain on May 4, 1776.[51]
  • Pelham Street in Newport was the first in America to be illuminated by gaslight in 1806.[51]
  • The first strike in the United States in which women participated occurred in Pawtucket in 1824.[51]
  • Watch Hill has the nation's oldest carousel that has been in continuous operation since 1850.[51]
  • The motion picture machine (a machine showing animated pictures) was patented in Providence on April 23, 1867.[51]
  • The first lunch wagon in America was introduced in Providence in 1872.[51]
  • The first nine hole golf course in America was completed in Newport in 1890.[51]
  • The first state health laboratory was established in Providence on September 1, 1894[51]
  • The Rhode Island State House was the first building with an all-marble dome to be built in the United States (1895–1901)[51]
  • The first automobile race on a track was held in Cranston on September 7, 1896.[51]
  • The first automobile parade was held in Newport on September 7, 1899 on the grounds of Belcourt Castle.[51]
  • The first NFL night game was held on November 6, 1929 at Providence's Kinsley Park. The Chicago (now Arizona) Cardinals defeated the Providence Steam Roller 16-0.

[edit] Cities and towns

Main article: Cities and towns in Rhode Island
See also: