RHODE ISLAND is the smallest state
of the Union, at a mere 48 miles long by 37 miles wide, and tends
to be overlooked as a destination, even if it is home to more
than twenty percent of the nation's historical landmarks. It was
established by Roger Williams in 1635 as a "lively experiment"
in religious freedom. He had been expelled from Puritan Salem
for his radical ideas (including the notion that Indians should
be paid for their land and that there should be a complete separation
of church from state), and the Massachusetts Puritans liked to
call the state " Rogues Island ."
Despite its size, Rhode Island has over four hundred
miles of coastline, hacked out of the Narragansett Bay; it is,
in fact, made up of over thirty tiny islands, including Hope and
Despair. The " Ocean State " therefore
developed through sea trade, whaling and smuggling. Partly due
to this commercial interest, Rhode Islanders, resenting the stringent
economic pressures placed on them from England, were in the front
rank of the Revolutionary groundswell. However, no Revolutionary
battles were fought on Rhode Island soil, and unwilling at first
to abandon its new-found freedom, it turned out to be the last
state to ratify the Constitution. Between the Revolution and the
Civil War, Rhode Island shifted from a maritime economy to lead
the Industrial Revolution with Samuel Slater's
creation of the nation's first water-powered textile mill
in Pawtucket, just outside Providence. Today, although
still heavily industrialized, the state's principal destinations
are its two original ports: well-heeled Newport ,
yachting capital of the world, with good beaches and outrageously
extravagant mansions, and the colonial college town of Providence.
Block Island , about thirty miles south of Newport, has
a popular state beach, while the rest of Rhode Island is largely
made up of sleepy small towns and fishing ports.
