Rhode island is the 8th least populated state in the country with around 1,060,000 inhabitants.
Rhode Island was the 13th to join the Union on May 29th, 1790, 189 days after North Carolina,
the 12th state, ratified the Constitution and joined the Union on November 21st, 1789.
This made Rhode Island the last of the original 13 colonies to join the Union.
Rhode Island has an area of 1,212 square miles, making it the smallest state in the country.
The state is, is directly behind Maine with around 200,000 less inhabitants, while it
is directly ahead of Montana with around 10,000 more inhabitants.
Rhode Island borders Massachusetts in the North and East, the Atlantic in the South,
and Connecticut in the West.
It’s location places it in the Eastern time zone.
The highest point in Rhode Island is the top of Jerimoth Hill at 812 feet above sea level.
This means Rhode Island has the fifth lowest highest elevation, only beaten by Mississippi,
Louisiana, Delaware, and Florida [1].
The lowest point in the state is where it meets the Atlantic in the South.
The largest city in Rhode Island is Providence, with a population of around 180,000 in the
city proper and 1.6 million in the metropolitan area.
This makes it the 137th largest city proper and the 38th largest metro area in the country.
The second largest city in Rhode Island, Warwick, has a population of 85,000 in the city proper
and is part of the Providence metropolitan area.
Rhode Island is split into just five counties, the second least counties of any state only
behind Delaware.
Providence is located in Providence county, the largest county in the state population
wise with around 630,000 inhabitants.
The second largest county in Rhode Island, Kent County, is located just South of Providence
County and has an approximate 165,000 inhabitants.
This county is the location of the second largest city, Warwick.
The least populated county in Rhode Island, Bristol County, has around 50,000 inhabitants
and is just East of Kent County.
The flag of Rhode Island consists of a golden anchor surrounded by thirteen golden stars
and a small blue ribbon bearing the word “hope”.
The flag has a golden fringe around the borders.
The colors date back to colonial times with the Providence Plantations, the first permanent
settlement in Rhode Island.
The thirteen stars surrounding the anchor represent Rhode Island’s place as one of
the original thirteen colonies.
The anchor is a symbol of hope, the state motto.
This flag was formally adopted by Rhode Island in 1897, however similar designs can be found
dating back to the 1640s.
The first European to explore Rhode Island was Giovanni da Verrazzano, entering Narragansett
Bay in 1524.
The first European settlement in Rhode Island was called the Providence Plantations, founded
in 1636 by Roger Williams.
This settlement was created to be a place of religious freedom after Williams was banished
from the Massachusetts Bay Colony for his religious views.
In the following years, new settlements would be formed surrounding this colony with the
same goal of promoting religious freedom.
The region would become the Colony of Rhode Island in 1663, when King Charles II of England
adopted a Royal Charter.
Rhode Island would declare independence from the British on May 4th, 1776, making it the
first in North America to formally declare independence.
Although no major Revolutionary War battles took place within Rhode Island, regiments
from the state would participate in countless battles across the new nation.
Several Rhode Islanders would become distinguished generals throughout the war, including General
Nathanael Greene, George Washington’s second in command and head of the Continental army
in the South, and Commodore Esek Hopkins, the only commander of the Continental Navy.
Following the war and the failure of the Articles of Confederation (which Rhode Island had ratified
and adhered to), the state became the last of the original 13 colonies to ratify the
new Constitution of the U.S.
The state was also the only to not send a delegate to the Constitutional Convention
of 1787, as it feared the new Constitution would give too much power to the federal government,
which had been limited under the Articles of Confederation.
The state did, however, ratify the Constitution on May 29th of 1790, making it the 13th state.
Despite an early law attempting to ban slavery, the state would have nearly twice as many
slaves as any other Northeastern colony.
Rhode Islanders would also become prevalent in the slave trade, controlling a large portion
of the market.
The abolitionist movement would become increasingly popular in Rhode Island in the years leading
up the Civil War.
Despite no battles occurring in the state, some 25,000 Rhode Island men fought for the
Union, 1,500 of which died.
Rhode Island, despite it’s rocky past with the Constitution, continues to play an important
role in the Union.
This is Morrethy.
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