Welcome to TheseUnitedStates - Rhode Island

Rhode Island was the 13th of the original 13 states to ratify the Constitution, on May 29, 1790.  The 2000 census has Rhode Island's population at 1,048,319, ranking  43rd in the US.  With a total area of  1,545 square miles, our smallest state ranks 50th  in size.  Rhode Island's capital, Providence, is also its largest city.

Useful Internet Links for Rhode Island:

Official Website of Rhode Island  

http://www.ri.gov/

Travel and Tourism Department  

http://www.visitrhodeisland.com

Call toll free 1-800-556-2484

Pick a Homepage - Rhode Island

Congress.org - Rhode Island Elected Officials

Rhode Island Weather from Weather.com

National Park Service Sites in Rhode Island

Rhode Island News from USA Today

Rhode Island fun facts:

Rhode Island State Bird:  Rhode Island red

Rhode Island State Flower:  Violet

Rhode Island State Motto:  Hope

Rhode Island State Song:  Rhode Island

Rhode Island State Tree:  Red Maple

Nickname:  Little Rhody, Ocean State

The geographic center of Rhode Island lies in Kent County, one mile SSW of Crompton.  At 812 feet, Jerimoth Hill, WSW of North Foster near the Connecticut border, is the state's highest point.  The exact origin of the name Rhode Island is unknown.  One theory notes that Giovanni de Verrazano recorded an island about the size of Rhodes in the Mediterranean in 1524, but others believe the state was named Roode Eylandt by Dutch explorer Adriaen  Block because of its red clay.

Brief History:  Narragansett, Niantic, Nipmuc and Wampanoag peoples inhabited the area when Verrazano visited in 1524.  Roger Williams, an exile from the Massachusetts Bay Colony, founded the first permanent settlement at Providence in 1636.  Anne Hutchinson, another exile, settled Portsmouth in 1638.  In the mid-17th century, Quaker and Jewish immigrants seeking freedom of worship began arriving.  The colonists broke the power of the Narragansett in the Great Swamp Fight of 1675, the decisive battle in King Philip's War.  Colonists, angered by British trade restrictions, burned the British customs vessel Gaspee in 1772.  The colony became the first to formally renounce all allegiance to King George III, on May 4, 1776.  Initially opposed to joining the Union, Rhode Island was the last of the 13 colonies to ratify the Constitution, in 1790.

Attractions drawing visitors to Little Rhody include the Newport mansions; yachting races including Newport to Bermuda; Block Island; Touro Synagogue, the oldest in the US, Newport; the first Baptist church in America, Providence; Slater Mill Historic Site, Pawtucket; and the Gilbert Stuart birthplace, Saunderstown.

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