Portal:Rhode Island

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 more than 1.11 million residents as of 2025. The state's population, however, has continually recorded growth in every decennial census since 1790, and it is the second-most densely populated state after New Jersey. The state takes its name from the eponymous island, though most of its land area is on the mainland. Providence is its capital and most populous city.

Native Americans lived around Narragansett Bay 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". On November 3, 2020, the state's voters approved an amendment to the state constitution formally dropping "and Providence Plantations" from its full name. Its official nickname, found on its welcome sign, 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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Downtown Providence skyline

Providence (/ˈprɒvɪdəns/ ^ⓘ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. It is the third-most populous city in New England, with a population of 190,934 at the 2020 census. The Providence metropolitan area extends into Massachusetts and has approximately 1.7 million residents, making it the 39th-largest metropolitan area in the U.S. It is the county seat of Providence County.

Providence is one of the oldest cities in New England, founded in 1636 by Reformed Baptist theologian Roger Williams, a religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He named the area in honor of "God's merciful Providence" which he believed was responsible for revealing such a haven for him and his followers. The city developed as a busy port, as it is situated at the mouth of the Providence River at the head of Narragansett Bay. (Full article...)

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Brown University is a private Ivy League research university in the College Hill neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island, United States. The university is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. One of nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution, it was the first American college to codify that admission and instruction of students was to be equal regardless of the religious affiliation of students.

The university is home to the oldest applied mathematics program in the country and oldest engineering program in the Ivy League. It was one of the early doctoral-granting institutions in the U.S., adding masters and doctoral studies in 1887. In 1969, it adopted its Open Curriculum after student lobbying, which eliminated mandatory general education distribution requirements. In 1971, Brown's coordinate women's institution, Pembroke College, was fully merged into the university. (Full article...)

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... that a Rhode Island TV station started out by re-running an inventory of 50 hours of cartoons and 14 old movies?
... that the director of Rhode Island PBS confronted the state's governor in a sandwich shop to ask for funding?
... that the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait helped a U.S. senator win reelection?
... that a Rhode Island TV station broadcast for 14 months and then was off the air for 26 years before returning?

Quotes related to Rhode Island

To me Newport could never be a place charming by reason of its own charm. That it is a very pleasant place when it is full of people, and the people are in spirits and happy, I do not doubt. But then the visitors would bring, as far as I am concerned, the pleasantness with them.

— Anthony Trollope

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Credit: User:Marcbela

Doyle Avenue Historic District is a historic district which extends along Doyle Avenue from North Main Street to Hope Street in Providence, Rhode Island. The district features late 19th and early 20th century revivals and late-Victorian architecture, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.

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

Image 1The Rhode Island State House in Providence boasts the world's fourth largest self-supported marble dome. (from Rhode Island)
Image 2Trustom Pond, a lagoon in South Kingstown (from Rhode Island)
Image 3County results of the 2024 Presidential election. Kamala Harris (D) won every county, though she won Kent County by a narrow margin of 1.9% (from Rhode Island)
Image 4In 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 5In 1636, Roger Williams and his followers founded the settlement of Providence Plantations. (from Rhode Island)
Image 6A southbound Northeast Regional train at Kingston Station (from Rhode Island)
Image 7Ethnic origins in Rhode Island (from Rhode Island)
Image 8Interior of The Breakers, a Newport symbol of the Gilded Age (from Rhode Island)
Image 9The Towers are a Narragansett landmark. (from Rhode Island)
Image 10Map of Rhode Island, showing major cities and roads (from Rhode Island)
Image 11Ninigret Pond National Wildlife Refuge (from Rhode Island)
Image 12A southbound Northeast Regional train at Kingston Station (from Rhode Island)
Image 13Rocky shoreline in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 14In 1636, Roger Williams and his followers founded the settlement of Providence Plantations. (from Rhode Island)
Image 15Ethnic origins in Rhode Island (from Rhode Island)
Image 16Many Rhode Islanders visit Washington County for its beaches (from Rhode Island)
Image 17Rocky shoreline in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 18Many Rhode Islanders visit Washington County for its beaches (from Rhode Island)
Image 19Ninigret Pond National Wildlife Refuge (from Rhode Island)
Image 20Map of Rhode Island, showing major cities and roads (from Rhode Island)
Image 21Slater Mill in Pawtucket is cited as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in the United States.
Image 22The International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 23University Hall at Brown University is one of the oldest academic buildings in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 24The Rhode Island State House in Providence boasts the world's fourth largest self-supported marble dome. (from Rhode Island)
Image 25University of Rhode Island's Meade Stadium in Kingston (from Rhode Island)
Image 26The Towers are a Narragansett landmark. (from Rhode Island)
Image 27The United States Naval Academy was moved to Fort Adams in Newport during the Civil War. (from Rhode Island)
Image 28In 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 29The East Bay Bike Path in Riverside
Image 30A nine-pence banknote issued by Rhode Island in 1786 (from Rhode Island)
Image 31The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority operates a statewide system of bus transport. (from Rhode Island)
Image 32The Block Island Wind Farm is the first commercial offshore wind farm in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 331884 Baseball Champion Providence Grays (from Rhode Island)
Image 34County results of the 2024 Presidential election. Kamala Harris (D) won every county, though she won Kent County by a narrow margin of 1.9% (from Rhode Island)
Image 35A nine-pence banknote issued by Rhode Island in 1786 (from Rhode Island)
Image 36Rhode Island population density map (from Rhode Island)
Image 37In 1680, Newport was the third largest Anglo-American city. It remained a prosperous population center until the 1770s. (from Rhode Island)
Image 38Trustom Pond, a lagoon in South Kingstown (from Rhode Island)
Image 39The Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge (foreground) and Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge (background)
Image 40Köppen climate types of Rhode Island, using 1991–2020 climate normals (from Rhode Island)
Image 41In 1680, Newport was the third largest Anglo-American city. It remained a prosperous population center until the 1770s. (from Rhode Island)
Image 42Touro Synagogue in Newport is the oldest existing synagogue building in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 43Touro Synagogue in Newport is the oldest existing synagogue building in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 44The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority operates a statewide system of bus transport. (from Rhode Island)
Image 45University of Rhode Island's Meade Stadium in Kingston (from Rhode Island)
Image 46The Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge (foreground) and Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge (background)
Image 47The International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 48The United States Naval Academy was moved to Fort Adams in Newport during the Civil War. (from Rhode Island)
Image 49Downtown Providence in 2008 (from Rhode Island)
Image 50Köppen climate types of Rhode Island, using 1991–2020 climate normals (from Rhode Island)

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Credit: User:Meegs

A baseball game at McCoy Stadium, Pawtucket, May 7, 2002.

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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.