Get to know some of the state ’ s more unique facets and quirks .
STATE SYMBOLS
STATE MOTTO : Hope
STATE BIRD : Rhode Island Red
STATE DRINK : Coffee Milk
STATE FISH : Striped Bass
STATE FLOWER : Violet
STATE TREE : Red Maple
STATE FRUIT : Rhode Island Greening Apple
STATE ROCK : Cumberlandite
STATE SHELL : Quahog
FUN FACTS
◆ As you may have guessed , Rhode Island is neither a road nor an island . The name originated with Dutch explorer Adriaen Block who called the area “ Roodt Eylandt ” ( translation : red island ) because of the red clay that lined its shores .
◆ Rhode Island is the smallest state , hence the nickname “ Little Rhody .”
◆ Up until last year , Rhode Island laid claim to the longest state name ( we nixed “ and Providence Plantations ” in a statewide vote in 2020 ).
◆ For whatever reason , Rhode Island is the only state to still observe and celebrate Victory Day ( a . k . a . VJ Day ).
◆ Despite only sharing land borders with Connecticut and Massachusetts , Rhode Island also shares a water border with New York : the Block Island Sound is adjacent to the Long Island Sound .
◆ The first polo club in the U . S . was formed in Newport .
◆ We ’ re home to some of the oldest religious institutions in the U . S ., including Touro Synagogue in Newport and the First Baptist Church of Providence .
◆ Rhode Island is home to the second and fourth oldest libraries in the country . The Redwood Library in Newport was founded in 1747 , while the Providence Athenaeum was founded in 1753 .
◆ Rhode Island is the only state that never ratified the 18 th amendment , a . k . a . the prohibition of liquor .
◆ Host to the country ’ s longest-running Fourth of July celebration , one could argue that Bristol is the most patriotic town in the country . The Bristol Fourth of July Parade has marched on , rain or shine or pandemic , every year since 1785 .
◆ The Big Blue Bug , an iconic Rhode Island landmark that overlooks I-95 , has a name : It ’ s Nibbles Woodaway and he ’ s been sitting on top of Big Blue Bug Solutions ’ Providence location since 1980 .
◆ We ’ re also home to the nation ’ s oldest carousel , the Flying Horse carousel in Westerly .
◆ Cumberlandite , Rhode Island ’ s official state rock , was originally known as “ rhodose ,” but when folks began to search for the rock elsewhere , they soon realized it was seldom found outside the town of Cumberland .
◆ The Narragansett Tribe ’ s annual meeting is the oldest powwow in the country , going on more than 340 years . The powwow acts as both a formal gathering and a party for the
A BRIEF HISTORY
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Pre-1600 The area we know today as Rhode Island is home to several Indigenous peoples , including the Narragansett , Wampanoag , Nipmuc and Pequot . |
1636 Exiled from the Massachusetts Bay Colony for his advocacy of religious tolerance and the separation of church and state , Roger Williams founds Providence on land granted to him by the Narragansett Tribe . |
1643 – 1644 Providence , Portsmouth and Newport become “ Providence Plantations in Narragansett Bay ”; Aquidneck Island is renamed Rhode Island . |
LITTLE RHODY |
1614 Dutch Explorer Adriaen Block visits the area and dubs it “ Roodt Eylandt .” |
1639 Roger Williams founds America ’ s first Baptist church in Providence ; Ann Hutchinson is the first woman to help found a U . S . town ( Portsmouth ). |
1663 With a royal charter , King Charles II grants Rhode Islanders the freedom of religion and the right to govern themselves . |
6 RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY ’ S NEWCOMERS ’ GUIDE l 2022 |
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