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Frequently Asked Questions

How did Rhode Island get its name? I Rhode Island History I Principal Indian Tribes of Rhode Island I Roger Williams Root I Rhode Island and the Slave Trade I Brown Family I What Were Freemen?  I Gaspee I Providence Liberty Tree I First Rhode Island Regiment I Five State Houses I Seven Hills of Providence I How did Federal Hill get its name? I Betty the Learned Elephant I Rhode Island Capitol Dome I Independent Man I Quonset Huts I Oldest Buildings/Sites in Rhode Island I Rhode Island Firsts I Famous Rhode Islanders I Famous Rhode Island Businesses/Companies

 How did Rhode Island get its name?

The naming of the state has been the subject of debate. 

In 1524, Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazano described the islands off the coast of present day Rhode Island as reminiscent of Isle of Rhodes in the Mediterranean. 

When Dutch explorer, Adriaen Block came upon the same islands in 1614 he named it “Roode Eyland” because of the reddish rock ledges of the area now designated Aquidneck Island.

Regardless of which explorer actually coined the name, the site was known as “Rode Island” when Roger Williams arrived.  The charter from Great Britain designated the land “The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.” The official name of the nation’s smallest state is now “The State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.” 

Rhode Island History

The website for the State of Rhode Island General Assembly has a section which gives an overview of the history of Rhode Island to the present day.  Included are such topics as Native Americans and Explorers, Colonial Times, the American Revolution, Dorr’s Rebellion, the Industrial Revolution and the Gilded Age.

  http://www.rilin.state.ri.us/RhodeIslandHistory/

Principal Indian Tribes of Rhode Island

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    Roger Williams Root

     The story of the Roger Williams Root remains one of the great Rhode Island myths, a blend of fact and fiction that has further perpetuated the legend of the founder of Rhode Island.  Roger Williams died sometime in 1683 and was buried on his property.  His original home has since disappeared from the land, replaced by the Sullivan Dorr Mansion at the corner of Benefit and Bowen Streets.  In 1860, a group of citizens led by a descendent of Williams sought to move the body to a new burial site.  In the spot where he was thought to be buried was a root from a nearby apple tree in a shape resembling that of a human body.  Whether or not this root was formed around Williams’ body is the subject of debate.  Some remaining bone fragments were taken by the group and moved to the North Burial Ground.  They remained there until 1939, when they were interred in the Roger Williams Memorial, where they are to this day.  As for the root, it is part of the permanent collection of the Rhode Island Historical Society.

Rhode Island and the Slave Trade

     Rhode Island established the first law regulating slavery on May 18, 1652 as part of the Acts and Orders of the General Court of Warwick.  It stated the blacks or whites forced to serve another must be freed after 10 years upon arrival in Rhode Island.  The fine for noncompliance was 40 pounds.

     The first act for the Non-Importation of Slaves was passed by the Rhode Island General Assembly on June 13, 1774.  It stated that “no Negro or mulatto slave shall be brought in to this colony, and in case any slave shall be brought in, he or she shall be…immediately free, so far as respects personal freedom, and the enjoyment of private property.”

     The Providence Journal has produced a website, The Unrighteous Traffick, dedicated to outlining the history of the slave trade in Rhode Island:

 http://www.projo.com/extra/2006/slavery/nav.htm

Brown Family

      There are numerous materials related to the Brown Family in the collection of the Rhode Island Historical Society including manuscripts, graphic materials and, of course, the John Brown House Museum.  Some additional sources of Brown Family information are:

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What were Freemen?

     During colonial times, the term freemen described persons who were not indebted to the service of another, such as a slave or indentured servant.  Usually all freemen were required to take an oath not to conspire against the laws of the colony.  In Rhode Island, an act was passed by the General Assembly in 1746 requiring all freemen to take an oath against bribery and corruption.  1,867 freemen took the first oath the following year.

     Only freemen were entitled to vote in Rhode Island, but being a freeman did not automatically grant that right.  A freeman’s property had to be worth $134.00 for the man and his eldest son to qualify to vote.  These rules remained in place until Dorr’s Rebellion (see Rhode Island History for link on information to Dorr’s Rebellion and the subsequent changes to voting rights in Rhode Island).

Gaspee

     The first open act of aggression toward Great Britain leading up to the American Revolution took place in Warwick on June 10, 1772.  The British revenue schooner, the Gaspee, ran aground in Narragansett Bay.  Before the ship could be set afloat, it was boarded by a battalion of men, led by Samuel Whipple and John Brown, and burned. For more information, see  http://gaspee.org/.

  Providence Liberty Tree

     Liberty Trees were sites in the original colonies where individuals would meet to discuss or to plot independence from Great Britain.  The original Providence Liberty Tree was dedicated by the Sons of Liberty on July 25, 1768.  It was located on Olney Street in front of a public house owned by Joseph Olney.  Silas Downer delivered the oration.  The tradition continues as the current liberty tree was planted at the Roger Williams National Memorial on April 27, 2007.  The tree was propagated from the original liberty tree in Boston.

First Rhode Island Regiment

     The first black army unit was formed in Rhode Island in the Spring of 1778 to fight in the Revolutionary War.  A history of the First Rhode Island Regiment and commentary of the service of former slaves during the war can be found at http://revolution.h-net.msu.edu/essays/adams2.html.

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Five State Houses

    Beginning in 1681 and continuing until 1854, Rhode Island government rotated among the state’s five counties.  Each county had its own seat of government and state house where the executive, legislative and judicial branches would meet.  In 1854, the rotation was then divided between Newport and Providence until 1901 when Providence was named the sole capital of Rhode Island.  The five main state houses from that period remain standing today: Newport Colony House (1743), Old State House - Providence (1762), King’s County Courthouse – now the Kingston Free Library (1776), Kent County Courthouse – East Greenwich (1805) and Bristol County Courthouse – Bristol (1817).  The current seat of state government, The Rhode Island State House, was built in Providence in 1901. 

Seven Hills of Providence

     The seven hills of Providence are evocative of the Seven Hills of Rome. 

How did Federal Hill get its name?

     According to The Streets of the City by Florence Parker Simister (F89 .P0 S52, v.1, p. 127-128), Federal Hill was named for the Federal Constitution.  An ox roast was planned to take place on a site known as Federal Plain, which was below the hill, on July 4, 1789 to celebrate the ratification of the Constitution by New Hampshire.  An armed group of 1,000 men protested the picnic because many people in Rhode Island objected to the adoption of the Constitution. The organizers of the picnic agreed to hold the celebration simply in honor of Independence Day and not to toast the Constitution. In the end, 5 – 6,000 people peacefully attended the Independence Day picnic on Federal Plain. The hill above the plain was subsequently called Federal Hill.

Betty the Learned Elephant 

Betty the Learned Elephant was owned by Hakaliah Bailey, the forefather of the Bailey circus family.  Bailey and Betty traveled from town to town in New England where locals would be amazed at the spectacle of the exotic Indian Elephant.  Her first visit to the town of Chepachet in 1822 was a huge success.  When visiting the town again in 1826, tragedy struck.  As Betty was crossing the wooden bridge spanning the Chepachet River, shots rang out and Betty was killed.  Five boys were apprehended behind a gristmill and admitted the crime.  Bailey’s own promotion of Betty ultimately led to her demise.  He had declared her tough hide impenetrable to bullets, and the boys wanted to find out if it was true.  Four years later, the guilty parties paid $1,500 in damages and were released from responsibility in the crime. 

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Rhode Island Capitol Dome 

The Dome atop the Rhode Island State House is one of only four domes in the world made of marble.  The other three are St. Peter’s Basilica, the Minnesota State Capitol and the Taj Mahal.  It is the second largest unsupported dome in the world, superceded only by St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

Independent Man 

Independent Man has stood atop the Rhode Island State House since 1899.  He was originally named “Hope”, also the state’s motto, by the artist George T. Brewster.  The statue stands 11 feet tall and weighs over 500 pounds.    Independent Man was cast from bronze from a statue of Simon Bolivar, which formerly stood New York’s Central Park. 

Quonset Huts 

Quonset huts are steel framed structures covered by corrugated and curved sheet metal.  They were designed to be lightweight, easily shipped and able to be erected without the need of skilled labor during World War II.  The buildings were first manufactured at the Quonset Point Naval Air Station, which is where it derived its name.  

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Oldest Buildings/Sites in Rhode Island:

 

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Rhode Island Firsts: 

   

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Famous Rhode Islanders:

 

Famous Rhode Island Businesses/Companies

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