NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND - FOUNDED IN 1639

Newport, Rhode Island (estimated population 21, 815) was founded in 1639 on Aquidneck Island, which was called Rhode Island at the time. Its eight founders and first officers were Nicholas Easton, William Coddington, John Clarke, John Coggeshall, William Brenton, Jeremy Clark, Thomas Hazard, and Henry Bull.  They were a group of religious refugees from Massachusetts who had settled at the northern end of the island and founded the present town of Portsmouth. Newport, the colonial capital of Rhode Island, was the first of the thirteen colonies to declare its independence from England on May 4th, 1776 

They say Rhode Island is especially haunted because it was one of the 13 original colonies and the native American souls are still not at rest. Newport helped lead the way toward the Revolution and independence. Because the city was such a well-known hot-bed of revolutionary fervor, and because of its long history of disdain for royal and parliamentary efforts to control its trade, the British occupied Newport from 1776 to 1779, and over half of the town’s population fled. Newport’s history is remarkable in many ways, but perhaps the most unique aspect is the fact that so much of its history is still visible on the landscape in an impressive concentration of preserved architecture. 

Newport is home to the second oldest baseball park in America, Cardines Field.  Newport currently also has the highest concentration of colonial homes in the nation.  One of Newport's most famed attractions, Cliff Walk affords breathtaking scenery with 3.5 miles of rocky coastline and crashing waves on one side, and stunning Gilded Age mansions on the other. Smithsonian Magazine named Newport as one of the 15 Best Small Towns to visit in 2022.