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Portsmouth is a town in
Newport County, Rhode Island Newport County is one of five counties located in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. As of the 2020 census, the population was 85,643. It is also one of the seven regions of Rhode Island. The county was created in 1703. Like all of the counties ...
, United States. The population was 17,871 at the 2020 U.S. census. Portsmouth is the second-oldest municipality in Rhode Island, after
Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...
; it was one of the four colonies which merged to form the
Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until 1 ...
, the others being
Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...
, Newport, and
Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...
.


Geography

According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of th ...
, the town has a total area of , of which (39.14%) is land and (60.86%) is water. Most of its land area lies on
Aquidneck Island Aquidneck Island, also known as Rhode Island, is an island in Narragansett Bay in the state of Rhode Island. The total land area is , which makes it the largest island in the bay. The 2020 United States Census reported its population as 60,109. ...
, which it shares with Middletown and Newport. In addition, Portsmouth encompasses some smaller islands, including Prudence Island, Patience Island, Hope Island and Hog Island. Part of the
census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, suc ...
of Melville lies within the town boundaries.


History

Portsmouth was settled in 1638 by a group of religious dissenters from
Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around the Massachusetts Bay, the northernmost of the several colonies later reorganized as th ...
, including Dr. John Clarke, William Coddington and Anne Hutchinson. It is named after
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most d ...
, Hampshire, England.
Roger Williams Roger Williams (21 September 1603between 27 January and 15 March 1683) was an English-born New England Puritan minister, theologian, and author who founded Providence Plantations, which became the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantatio ...
convinced the settlers that they should go there instead of settling in the
Province of New Jersey The Province of New Jersey was one of the Middle Colonies of Colonial America and became the U.S. state of New Jersey in 1783. The province had originally been settled by Europeans as part of New Netherland but came under English rule after t ...
, where they had first planned on going. It was founded by the signers of the
Portsmouth Compact The Portsmouth Compact was a document signed on March 7, 1638 that established the settlement of Portsmouth, which is now a town in the state of Rhode Island. It was the first document in American history that severed both political and religious ...
. Its original Indian name was Pocasset, and it was officially named Portsmouth on May 12, 1639. It became part of the
Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until 1 ...
(see
Aquidneck Island Aquidneck Island, also known as Rhode Island, is an island in Narragansett Bay in the state of Rhode Island. The total land area is , which makes it the largest island in the bay. The 2020 United States Census reported its population as 60,109. ...
) and eventually part of the
State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but it ...
, which, as of 2020, is simply the State of Rhode Island.


Schools


Public

The Portsmouth School Department operates public schools: * Portsmouth High School * Portsmouth Middle School * Howard W. Hathaway Elementary School
Melville Elementary School
* Prudence Island School (a Charter/Co-op "Home School" as of September 2009)


Private

* Portsmouth Abbey School (9th Grade through 12th Grade) *Saint Philomena School (Pre-Kindergarten through 8th Grade)
The Pennfield School
(Nursery through 8th Grade)


Commerce

Since 1980, Portsmouth has been home t
Clements' Marketplace
a large supermarket. In addition, Portsmouth is home to the Portsmouth Business Park, as well as a few small plazas with a variety of businesses. Portsmouth is also home to the
Raytheon Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitali ...
Missiles & Defense division.


Sports

Portsmouth is the headquarters of
US Sailing The United States Sailing Association (US Sailing) is the national governing body for sailing in the United States. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Bristol, Rhode Island, US Sailing is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. US Sailing offers t ...
, the national governing body of sailing in the U.S. It is also home to the Newport International Polo Series held at Glen Farm. Portsmouth High School has very successful football, basketball, baseball and soccer teams. All four are regularly among the top five teams in the state.


Music

On September 21, 2017, a plaque was unveiled by
Roger Williams University Roger Williams University (RWU) is a private university in Bristol, Rhode Island. Founded in 1956, it was named for theologian and Rhode Island cofounder Roger Williams. The school enrolls over 5,000 students and employs over 480 academic sta ...
at the Baypoint Inn & Conference Center honoring music icons
The Beach Boys The Beach Boys are an American rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by the ...
.


Demographics


2000 U.S. Census

The 2000 U.S. Census reported that there were 17,149 people, or an increase of 1.7%, residing in the town. There were also 6,758 households, and 4,865 families recorded. The population density was . There were 7,386 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 95.82%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...
, 1.17%
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.19% Native American, 1.36% Asian, 0.03%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 0.37% from other races, and 1.05% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...
or Latino of any race were 1.45% of the population. There were 6,758 households, of which 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.1% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.0% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.00. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.2% under the age of 18, 5.0% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 26.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $88,835, and the median income for a family was $108,577. Males had a median income of $46,297 versus $31,745 for females. The per capita income for the town was $46,161. About 2.0% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.8% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over.


2010 U.S. Census

The 2010 U.S. Census reported that there were 17,349 people, or an increase of 1.15%, residing in the town. The racial makeup of the town was 94.57%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...
, 1.35%
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 1.58% Asian, 0.21% American Indian or Alaskan Native, 0.04% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 0.40% of some other race, and 1.86% of two or more races. In the town, 22.98% of the population was under the age of 18 and 16.47% were 65 years of age or older. Females made up 51.03% of the population.


Historic sites and points of interest

* Battle of Rhode Island Site * Borden Farm * Greenvale Farm (1864) * Green Animals Topiary Garden * Hog Island Shoal Lighthouse (1901) * Lawton-Almy-Hall Farm * Mount Hope Bridge (1929) * Oak Glen * Portsmouth Friends Meetinghouse Parsonage and Cemetery () * Prudence Island Lighthouse (1823) *
Union Church A united church, also called a uniting church, is a church formed from the merger or other form of church union of two or more different Protestant Christian denominations. Historically, unions of Protestant churches were enforced by the state ...
(1865) * Wreck Sites of H.M.S. Cerberus and H.M.S. Lark (1778)


Notable people

*
Ade Bethune Ade Bethune (January 12, 1914 – May 1, 2002) was an American Catholic liturgical artist. She was associated with the Catholic Worker Movement, and designed an early masthead of its publication, the '' Catholic Worker'', first used in 1935. She ...
(died 2002), liturgical artist and
Catholic Worker ''Catholic Worker'' is a newspaper published seven times a year by the flagship Catholic Worker community in New York City. The newspaper was started by Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin to make people aware of church teaching on social justice. ...
* Jeremy Clarke (1605–1652), early settler of Portsmouth, served as second governor of Rhode Island colony * Mike Cloud, running back for the
Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The t ...
,
New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
, and
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisio ...
* Thomas Cornell, one of the earliest settlers of Portsmouth and progenitor of Cornell family in America *
Chris Cosentino Chris Cosentino is an American celebrity chef and reality television personality known as the winner of ''Top Chef Masters'', a competitor on ''The Next Iron Chef'' and for his appearances on ''Iron Chef America''. He is known for his haute cuisin ...
, chef and cast member of " The Next Iron Chef" * Charlie Day, American actor, screenwriter, producer, comedian, and musician * Sarah J. Eddy (1851–1945), American artist, photographer, and suffragist *
Anthony Harkness Anthony or Antony is a masculine given name, derived from the ''Antonii'', a '' gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anto ...
(1793–1858), businessman and inventor *
Julia Ward Howe Julia Ward Howe (; May 27, 1819 – October 17, 1910) was an American author and poet, known for writing the " Battle Hymn of the Republic" and the original 1870 pacifist Mother's Day Proclamation. She was also an advocate for abolitionism ...
(died 1910), author of " The Battle Hymn of the Republic" * Anne Hutchinson (died 1643), founded colony of
Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...
in 1638 * Betty Hutton (died 2007), film actress and singer * Patrick Kennedy, U.S. congressman for Rhode Island's First district (1995–2011) * Scotty Kilmer, auto mechanic educator followed by millions on Youtube * Frances Latham (1610–1677), wife of Governor Jeremy Clarke, early settler of Portsmouth, known as the "mother of governors" * Ronald Machtley, U.S. congressman, President of
Bryant University Bryant University is a private university in Smithfield, Rhode Island. It has two colleges, the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Business, and is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. History Butler ...
* Michelle McGaw, state representative from the
Rhode Island House of Representatives The Rhode Island House of Representatives is the lower house of the Rhode Island General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, the upper house being the Rhode Island Senate. It is composed of 75 members, elected ...
representing Little Compton, Tiverton, and Portsmouth * Cole Swider, professional basketball player for the
Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...
*
Ryan Westmoreland Ryan Michael Westmoreland (born April 27, 1990) is a former American professional baseball player. An outfielder, he played in minor league baseball in the Boston Red Sox organization. Westmoreland was considered one of the best prospects in baseb ...
, former baseball player, Boston Red Sox


Gallery

File:Borden Farm, Portsmouth RI crop.jpg, The Second Empire mansion at Borden Farm was built File:Friends Meetinghouse 2, Portsmouth, Rhode Island.jpg, The
Friends Meeting A Friends meeting house is a meeting house of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), where meeting for worship is usually held. Typically, Friends meeting houses are simple and resemble local residential buildings. Steeples, spires, and ...
was built File:Union Church, Portsmouth, Rhode Island.jpg, The
Union Church A united church, also called a uniting church, is a church formed from the merger or other form of church union of two or more different Protestant Christian denominations. Historically, unions of Protestant churches were enforced by the state ...
was built in 1865 Image:Portsmouth Rhode Island School House.jpg, The 1725 schoolhouse owned by the Portsmouth Historical Society is one of the oldest surviving in the U.S. File:IMG 3915 - panoramio.jpg, The Green Animals Topiary Garden Image:Mount Hope Bridge-1.jpg, The Mount Hope Bridge, connecting Portsmouth with
Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city, Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Glouces ...
, Rhode Island


References

Notes Further reading *Garman, James E. (1996). ''Traveling Around Aquidneck Island 1890–1930''. Portsmouth: Hamilton Printing. . *Pierce, John T. (1991). ''Historical Tracts of the Town of Portsmouth''. Portsmouth: Hamilton Printing. .


External links


Town of Portsmouth

Portsmouth Historical Society
{{Authority control Towns in Newport County, Rhode Island Populated coastal places in Rhode Island Providence metropolitan area 1638 establishments in Rhode Island Populated places established in 1638 Towns in Rhode Island