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, 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". 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 area. (Full article...)
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the U.S. state of Rhode Island have the same legal rights as non-LGBT people. Rhode Island established two types of major relationship recognition for same-sex couples, starting with civil unions on July 1, 2011, and then on August 1, 2013 with same-sex marriage. Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity is outlawed within the state namely in the areas of employment, housing, healthcare and public accommodations. In addition, conversion therapy on minors has been banned since 2017.
Rhode Island is frequently referred to as one of the United States' most LGBT-friendly states. Opinion polls have shown that a large majority of Rhode Islanders support same-sex marriage and LGBT rights. 2017 polling from the Public Religion Research Institute showed that 78% of Rhode Island respondents supported same-sex marriage. (Full article...)
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.
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.
Image 13In 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 53Downtown Providence in 2008 (from Rhode Island)
Image 54In 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)
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