Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay approximately 33 miles (53 km) southeast of Providence, 20 miles (32 km) south of Fall River, Massachusetts, 74 miles (119 km) south of Boston, and 180 miles (290 km) northeast of New York City. It is known as a New England summer resort and is famous for its historic mansions and its rich sailing history. It was the location of the first U.S. Open tournaments in both tennis and golf, as well as every challenge to the America's Cup between 1930 and 1983. It is also the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport, which houses the United States Naval War College, the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, and an important Navy training center. It was a major 18th-century port city and also contains a high number of buildings from the Colonial era.
The First Baptist Church in America is the First Baptist Church of Providence, Rhode Island, also known as the First Baptist Meetinghouse. It is the oldest Baptist church congregation in the United States, founded in 1638 by Roger Williams in Providence, Rhode Island. The present church building was erected in 1774–75 and held its first meetings in May 1775. It is located at 75 North Main Street in Providence's College Hill neighborhood. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960.
Malbone is the oldest mansion in Newport, Rhode Island. The original mid-18th century estate was the country residence of Col. Godfrey Malbone of Virginia and Connecticut. The main house burned down during a dinner party in 1766 and the remaining structure sat dormant for many years until New York lawyer Jonathan Prescott Hall built a new roughly 5,800 sq ft (540 m2) castellated residence directly on top of the old ivy-covered ruins.
Nicholas Cooke was a governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations during the American Revolutionary War, and after Rhode Island became a state, he continued in this position to become the first Governor of the State of Rhode Island. Born in the maritime town of Providence, he early in life followed the sea, eventually becoming a Captain of ships. This occupation led him to become a slave merchant, becoming highly successful in this endeavor, and he ran a distillery and rope-making business as well. He is depicted as one of the affluent merchants in John Greenwood's satirical painting from the 1750s entitled Sea Captains Carousing in Surinam.
The Isaac Bell House is a historic house and National Historic Landmark at 70 Perry Street in Newport, Rhode Island. Also known as Edna Villa, it is one of the outstanding examples of Shingle Style architecture in the United States. It was designed by McKim, Mead, and White, and built during the Gilded Age, when Newport was the summer resort of choice for some of America's wealthiest families.
The Rhode Island Historical Society is a privately endowed membership organization, founded in 1822, dedicated to collecting, preserving, and sharing the history of Rhode Island. Its offices are located in Providence, Rhode Island.
The Redwood Library and Athenaeum is a subscription library located at 50 Bellevue Avenue, Newport, Rhode Island. Founded in 1747, it is the oldest community library still occupying its original building in the United States. The original building was designed by Peter Harrison and completed in 1750, and is a National Historic Landmark.
The Governor Henry Lippitt House is a historic house museum at 199 Hope Street on the East Side of Providence, Rhode Island. A National Historic Landmark, it is one of the finest Italianate mansion houses in the state, and considered one of the best-preserved examples of Victorian-era houses in the US. It is notable for its association with Henry Lippitt (1818–91), a wealthy textile magnate who was the 33rd Governor of Rhode Island. The house is owned by Preserve Rhode Island, and is open to the public for tours seasonally or by appointment.
Johnson Hall State Historic Site was the home of Sir William Johnson (1715–1774) an Irish pioneer who became the influential British Superintendent of Indian Affairs in the Province of New York, known for his strong relationship especially with the Mohawk and other Iroquois League nations.
Kingscote is a Gothic Revival mansion and house museum at Bowery Street and Bellevue Avenue in Newport, Rhode Island, designed by Richard Upjohn and built in 1839. It was one of the first summer "cottages" constructed in Newport, and is now a National Historic Landmark. It was remodeled and extended by George Champlin Mason and later by Stanford White. It was owned by the King family from 1863 until 1972, when it was given to the Preservation Society of Newport County.
The Wanton–Lyman–Hazard House is the oldest surviving house in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. Built c. 1697, it is also one of the oldest surviving houses in the state. It is located at the corner of Broadway and Stone Street, in the downtown section of the city in the Newport Historic District.
The Old Colony House, also known as Old State House or Newport Colony House, is located at the east end of Washington Square in the city of Newport, Rhode Island, United States. It is a brick Georgian-style building completed in 1741, and was the meeting place for the colonial legislature. From independence in 1776 to the early 20th century the state legislature alternated its sessions between here and the Rhode Island State House in Providence.
Joseph Wanton Sr. was a merchant and governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations from 1769 to 1775. Not wanting to go to war with Britain, he has been branded as a Loyalist, but he remained neutral during the war, and he and his property were not disturbed.
Joseph Wanton Jr. (1730–1780) was a Loyalist, merchant, Deputy Governor of Rhode Island in 1764 and 1767 and owner of Hunter House in Newport, Rhode Island.
The Newport Historic District is a historic district that covers 250 acres in the center of Newport in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. It was designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL) in 1968 due to its extensive and well-preserved assortment of intact colonial buildings dating from the early and mid-18th century. Six of those buildings are themselves NHLs in their own right, including the city's oldest house and the former meeting place of the colonial and state legislatures. Newer and modern buildings coexist with the historic structures.
The Old State House on College Hill in Providence, Rhode Island, known also as Providence Sixth District Court House,Providence Colony House, Providence County House, or Rhode Island State House is located on 150 Benefit Street. It is a brick Georgian-style building completed largely in 1762. It was used as the meeting place for the colonial and state legislatures for 149 years.
Ralph Emerson Carpenter Jr. was a conservationist, Colonial furniture expert and author. A descendant of the noted Carpenter founding family of colonial Rhode Island, for more than a half century, he was actively involved in the restoration of some of Newport, Rhode Island's defining structures.
William Wanton was a governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, serving a short term prior to his death. He spent most of his adult life in the civil and military service of the colony and commanded a sloop for chasing privateers.
Jonathan Nichols Jr. was a deputy governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. He was the son of former Deputy Governor Jonathan Nichols Sr. and Elizabeth Lawton. Nichols became Deputy Governor in November 1753 when his predecessor, Joseph Whipple III, resigned amid the collapse of his personal fortune, and Nichols completed his term. In 1755 Nichols was again selected as Deputy Governor, completing his first one-year term, then dying during his second year in office.
Darius Sessions was a deputy governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations during the buildup to the American Revolutionary War. He was heavily involved in moderating the effects of the Gaspee affair, and was instrumental in keeping the perpetrators from being identified.
