Washington County Rhode Island
Rhode Island has 5 counties.
Kingston
Kings
Town was incorporated in 1674, and included the vast area of
Narragansett County. While it encompassed the present towns of
North Kingstown and South Kingstown at that time, it was not
until 1722-23, that they were established as separate towns.
Best known as Rhode Island's sea town, North Kingstown's
contributions are as historically significant as they are
unique.
Because
of its location and natural harbor and beaches, North Kingstown
is famous as a summer resort and haven for pleasure boats. Among
its many historic sites still standing are Smith's Castle, built
in 1640, by Richard Smith as a trading post, and was used as a
rendezvous point for troops who fought in the Great Swamp Fight
in 1675. North Kingstown is also the birthplace of America's
foremost portrait painter, Gilbert Stuart. Rolling Rock and
Queens Fort, two of North Kingstown's landmarks, indicates the
strong presence and tradition of Narragansett Indians in Rhode
Island.
With
its enchanting old churches and quaint colonial shops and homes,
North Kingstown is an example of traditional life in New
England. Two examples are the Old Narragansett Church, built in
1707, the oldest Episcopal Church building north of
Philadelphia, and Wickford Village, which contains an impressive
collection of houses dating back to the late 18th and early 19th
centuries-most likely the largest concentration of colonial
houses in such a small area in the nation.
Today,
North Kingstown is in the vanguard of a trend that is marking
the future of Rhode Island's economic stability and industrial
growth. From its earliest industries such as textiles, farming,
fishing and boat building, to the designation in 1941 of Quonset
Point and Davisville as major naval installations, North
Kingstown has had a rich history of diversified economic growth
and development.
1973
brought an end to naval activities in North Kingstown, however,
the closed facility at Quonset Point provided Rhode Island with
over 750 acres of prime industrial land with ideally-suited,
in-place facilities for a major job-producing Industrial Park,
continuing North Kingstown's growth and economic development.
Exeter RI
In
the early 1600's the colonial settlements of North Kingstown and
East Greenwich referred to the area west of the Connecticut
boundary as the "Vacant Lands." This large area of
land consisted of the communities of West Greenwich, northern
parts of South Kingstown, Charlestown, Richmond, Hopkinton and
Exeter. There were no colonial settlements in this area, hence
the name "Vacant Lands." However, this tract of land
was by no means vacant, it was a stronghold of the Narragansett
Indians.
The
decline of the Narragansetts probably began with the famous
Pettaquamscutt Land Purchase in 1657. Sixty-four thousand acres
of land was purchased from the Narragansetts by land speculators
for the small sum of goods worth approximately $175.00, although
hostility still remained in the area.
After
many intense battles between the colonists and the Indians, the
Great Swamp fight broke the stronghold of the Indian Empire in
the "Vacant Lands." Indian survivors of the Great
Swamp Fight were later massacred in the Town of Natick, on the
Pawtucket River. This massacre brought an end to Indian
supremacy in this area.
From
1680 to 1725, the first permanent settlers of Exeter began to
carve homesteads and farms out of the wilderness. The town
expanded, rapidly, and by 1740, there was a grand total of
approximately one thousand people living in Exeter. By 1820, the
population had tripled, and villages grew in the lowlands where
streams were located, providing a source of power for the mills
and small factories. Grist mills, saw mills, stores, blacksmith
shops, warp factories, flannel mills and cotton mills sprang up
throughout the villages.
With
the advent of the 1900's, many of the villages began to decline.
The factories were closing, the population decreased and many
stores and shops were abandoned or converted for other uses. By
1930, this way of life was practically nonexistent.
Today,
Exeter is primarily a rural community. A distinctly elegant and
charming countryside, the wooded hills, clear streams and lakes,
plus a multitude of wild life make this a most desirable spot
for a country home site. Several old homes and farms are still
in existence in Exeter giving the town a quaintness all its own.
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