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Rhode Island – General

Peter Harrison, Newport’s Master Colonial Architect
9 years ago

Peter Harrison, Newport’s Master Colonial Architect

Born in Yorkshire, England in 1716 (some sources say 14 June, others say 27 July), Peter Harrison was placed at age twelve in an apprenticeship to architect/builder William Etty. He …
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Rhode Island Advertising Currency
10 years ago

Rhode Island Advertising Currency

The use of facsimile currency for advertising purposes was not unusual during the nineteenth century, and such ephemeral items are known to exist from all areas of the country. One …
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The Merci Train Visits Woonsocket: A French Connection
10 years ago

The Merci Train Visits Woonsocket: A French Connection

The United States and France have enjoyed a long and eventful relationship. We are grateful for the Comte de Rochambeau, the Marquis de Lafayette, and the Statue of Liberty given …
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Pookie the Dog: A Life of Leisure and Regality
10 years ago

Pookie the Dog: A Life of Leisure and Regality

Nobody seemed to know exactly where and when she died, but on a chilly Saturday, April 12, 1952, a day before Easter Sunday, the death was officially announced by the …
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July 19, the Real Rhode Island Independence Day
10 years ago

July 19, the Real Rhode Island Independence Day

From 1974 to mid-1977 when I served as volunteer chairman of the Rhode Island commission to celebrate American independence (ri 76) one thorny issue involved the correction of the long-held …
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Early Accounts of Kent County by Travelers Near and from Afar
10 years ago

Early Accounts of Kent County by Travelers Near and from Afar

Early accounts of travel in what would become Kent County attest to the wildness of the areas in the colony away from the water, where the economy was centered. While …
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A Colonial-Era Masterwork by Peter Harrison in Newport: The Touro Synagogue
10 years ago

A Colonial-Era Masterwork by Peter Harrison in Newport: The Touro Synagogue

Newport, Rhode Island, is graced with some of the finest works of America architecture, from the colonial period to the spectacular Gilded Age. Among the jewels of eighteenth-century architecture in …
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Captain Daniel Fones, Colonial Naval Hero
10 years ago

Captain Daniel Fones, Colonial Naval Hero

The name of North Kingstown’s own Captain Daniel Fones might be spoken in the same breath with as Thomas Tew, William Kidd, and Blackbeard. Fones’s skills as a sailor, his …
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Newport Woman Fills Important Role in the Civil War
10 years ago

Newport Woman Fills Important Role in the Civil War

Katharine (also spelled Katherine) Prescott Wormeley of Newport took an active role in public affairs throughout her life, founding the Girls Industrial School in Newport before the Civil War, and …
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Roger Williams: A Rhode Island and American Founder
10 years ago

Roger Williams: A Rhode Island and American Founder

Roger Williams stepped on the shores of New England for the first time in February of 1631. He had escaped from England, where English governmental authorities were attempting to eliminate …
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