Portal:Rhode Island

Portal topics: Activities; Culture; Geography; Health; History; Mathematics; Nature; People; Philosophy; Religion; Society; Technology; Random portal

The Rhode Island Portal

Rhode Island (/ˌroʊd-/ ^ⓘ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It 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 Rhode Island 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. Rhode Island 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. 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, which it did in 1774, and the first to renounce its allegiance to the British Crown, which it did 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, which it did 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 did ratify 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 total area. (Full article...)

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Recognized content - show another

Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards.

Surface weather analysis of Carol on August 31

Hurricane Carol was among the worst tropical cyclones on record to affect the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island in the United States. It developed from a tropical wave near the Bahamas on August 25, 1954, and slowly strengthened as it moved northwestward. On August 27, Carol intensified to reach winds of 105 mph (169 km/h), but weakened as its motion turned to a northwest drift. A strong trough of low pressure turned the hurricane northeastward, and Carol later intensified into a major hurricane. While paralleling the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, the storm produced strong winds and rough seas that caused minor coastal flooding and slight damage to houses in North Carolina, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Delaware, and New Jersey. The well-organized hurricane accelerated north-northeastward and made landfall on eastern Long Island, New York, and then over eastern Connecticut on August 31 with sustained winds estimated at 110-mph and a barometric pressure near 956 mb. Carol later transitioned into an extratropical cyclone over New Hampshire, on August 31, 1954.

In New York, strong winds on Long Island damaged about 1,000 houses, left 275,000 people without electricity, downed many trees, and resulted in heavy crop losses. Storm surge flooded LaGuardia Airport and inundated the Montauk Highway, which left the eastern portion of Long Island isolated. Carol also brought strong winds and rough seas to coastal Connecticut, Rhode Island, and southeastern Massachusetts. Throughout the region, about 150,000 people were left without electricity and telephone service. 1,545 houses were destroyed and another 9,720 were damaged. Approximately 3,500 cars and 3,000 boats were destroyed. There were 65 deaths and 1,000 injuries in New England. The storm caused an additional $1 million in damage in Canada as well as two deaths. Overall, Carol caused 72 fatalities and damage totaled $462 million (1954 USD), making it the costliest hurricane in the history of the United States, at the time. Following the storm, the name "Carol" was used once more for a 1965 hurricane that remained far out in the Atlantic, then was permanently retired. (Full article...)

List of recognized articles

Selected article - show another

This is a list of colleges and universities in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. There are currently 13 accredited, degree-granting institutions operating in the state, including two research universities, a community college, and a school of art.

Two of the state's public institutions are administered by the Rhode Island Board of Education. The other, the University of Rhode Island, is overseen by its own board of trustees. The state operates two public universities, the University of Rhode Island and Rhode Island College, as well as the Community College of Rhode Island, which offers degrees at six locations. The Naval War College, operated by the federal United States Navy, is located in Newport. The oldest school in the state is Brown University, a member of the Ivy League and the only Rhode Island institution founded before the American Revolution. The newest college is College Unbound, a degree completion school in Providence. Enrollment sizes range from College Unbound at 208 students to the University of Rhode Island, the state's flagship public university, with 20,720 students. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

Did you know?

... 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 Sabina Matos, Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island, did not speak English when she immigrated to the United States at age 20?
... that radio station WADK debuted its first talk show after a local businessman told the owner that "the great pastime of Rhode Island ... is talking politics"?
... that three decades after chasing away surveyors for a previous railroad with guns, residents of Wickford, Rhode Island, built their own railroad?

Quotes related to Rhode Island

The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown.

— H. P. Lovecraft

More selected quotes

Related portals

edit

Selected picture

Credit: User:Loodog

Waterplace Park is an urban park situated in downtown Providence, Rhode Island, finished in 1994. It is connected to 3/4 miles of cobblestone-paved pedestrian walkways along the waterfront known as Riverwalk.

More selected pictures

General images

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

Image 1In 1680, Newport was the third largest Anglo-American city. It remained a prosperous population center until the 1770s. (from Rhode Island)
Image 2A southbound Northeast Regional train at Kingston Station (from Rhode Island)
Image 3Topographic map of Rhode Island (from Rhode Island)
Image 4Topographic map of Rhode Island (from Rhode Island)
Image 5Slater Mill in Pawtucket is cited as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in the United States.
Image 6In 1680, Newport was the third largest Anglo-American city. It remained a prosperous population center until the 1770s. (from Rhode Island)
Image 7The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority operates a statewide system of bus transport. (from Rhode Island)
Image 8Interior of The Breakers, a Newport symbol of the Gilded Age (from Rhode Island)
Image 9Providence Revolutionaries burned HMS Gaspee in Warwick in protest of British customs laws. (from Rhode Island)
Image 10The East Bay Bike Path in Riverside
Image 11The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority operates a statewide system of bus transport. (from Rhode Island)
Image 121884 Baseball Champion Providence Grays (from Rhode Island)
Image 13University Hall at Brown University is one of the oldest academic buildings in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 14The United States Naval Academy was moved to Fort Adams in Newport during the Civil War. (from Rhode Island)
Image 15The United States Naval Academy was moved to Fort Adams in Newport during the Civil War. (from Rhode Island)
Image 16Providence Revolutionaries burned HMS Gaspee in Warwick in protest of British customs laws. (from Rhode Island)
Image 17Touro Synagogue in Newport is the oldest existing synagogue building in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 18A southbound Northeast Regional train at Kingston Station (from Rhode Island)
Image 19Rhode Island population density map (from Rhode Island)
Image 20Interior of The Breakers, a Newport symbol of the Gilded Age (from Rhode Island)
Image 21Ninigret Pond National Wildlife Refuge (from Rhode Island)
Image 22Downtown Providence in 2008 (from Rhode Island)
Image 23Ninigret Pond National Wildlife Refuge (from Rhode Island)
Image 24Trustom Pond, a lagoon in South Kingstown (from Rhode Island)
Image 251884 Baseball Champion Providence Grays (from Rhode Island)
Image 26Ethnic origins in Rhode Island (from Rhode Island)
Image 27Downtown Providence in 2008 (from Rhode Island)
Image 28The Block Island Wind Farm is the first commercial offshore wind farm in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 29The International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 30A nine-pence banknote issued by Rhode Island in 1786 (from Rhode Island)
Image 31The Pawtucket Red Sox played at McCoy Stadium (from Rhode Island)
Image 32University of Rhode Island's Meade Stadium in Kingston (from Rhode Island)
Image 33County results of the 2020 Presidential election. Joe Biden (D) won every county. (from Rhode Island)
Image 34Köppen climate types of Rhode Island, using 1991–2020 climate normals (from Rhode Island)
Image 35Ethnic origins in Rhode Island (from Rhode Island)
Image 36Slater Mill in Pawtucket is cited as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in the United States.
Image 37Map of Rhode Island, showing major cities and roads (from Rhode Island)
Image 38University Hall at Brown University is one of the oldest academic buildings in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 39Many Rhode Islanders visit Washington County for its beaches. (from Rhode Island)
Image 40Map of Rhode Island, showing major cities and roads (from Rhode Island)
Image 41Many Rhode Islanders visit Washington County for its beaches. (from Rhode Island)
Image 42Touro Synagogue in Newport is the oldest existing synagogue building in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 43The Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge (foreground) and Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge (background)
Image 44The Rhode Island State House in Providence boasts the world's fourth largest self-supported marble dome. (from Rhode Island)
Image 45Rocky shoreline in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 46The Towers are a Narragansett landmark. (from Rhode Island)
Image 47Köppen climate types of Rhode Island, using 1991–2020 climate normals (from Rhode Island)
Image 48The Pawtucket Red Sox played at McCoy Stadium (from Rhode Island)
Image 49The Block Island Wind Farm is the first commercial offshore wind farm in the United States. (from Rhode Island)
Image 50University of Rhode Island's Meade Stadium in Kingston (from Rhode Island)
Image 51County results of the 2020 Presidential election. Joe Biden (D) won every county. (from Rhode Island)
Image 52The Rhode Island State House in Providence boasts the world's fourth largest self-supported marble dome. (from Rhode Island)
Image 53The Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge (foreground) and Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge (background)
Image 54The Towers are a Narragansett landmark. (from Rhode Island)
Image 55Rhode Island population density map (from Rhode Island)
Image 56Forest along the Blackstone River (from Rhode Island)
Image 57The International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 58In 1636, Roger Williams and his followers founded the settlement of Providence Plantations. (from Rhode Island)
Image 59A nine-pence banknote issued by Rhode Island in 1786 (from Rhode Island)
Image 60Trustom Pond, a lagoon in South Kingstown (from Rhode Island)
Image 61Forest along the Blackstone River (from Rhode Island)
Image 62In 1636, Roger Williams and his followers founded the settlement of Providence Plantations. (from Rhode Island)
Image 63Rocky shoreline in Newport (from Rhode Island)
Image 64The East Bay Bike Path in Riverside

Topics

Selected panorama

Credit: User:Mark12211

Misquamicut State Beach in March 2007

More selected panoramas

Quality content

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.