Jamestown (Rhode Island)
| Jamestown | |||
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Location in Rhode Island
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| Basic data | |||
| State : | United States | ||
| State : | Rhode Island | ||
| County : | Newport County | ||
| Coordinates : | 41 ° 31 ′ N , 71 ° 22 ′ W | ||
| Time zone : | Eastern ( UTC − 5 / −4 ) | ||
| Residents : | 5,405 (as of 2010) | ||
| Population density : | 215.3 inhabitants per km 2 | ||
| Area : | 91.5 km 2 (approx. 35 mi 2 ) of which 25.1 km 2 (approx. 10 mi 2 ) is land |
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| Height : | 51 m | ||
| Postal code : | 02835 | ||
| Area code : | +1 401 | ||
| FIPS : | 44-36820 | ||
| GNIS ID : | 1220061 | ||
| Website : | www.jamestownri.net | ||
Jamestown is a city in Newport County , Rhode Island in the United States . Jamestown is mostly located on Conanicut Island , the second largest island in Narragansett Bay .
geography
The local area of Jamestown is located roughly in the middle of Conanicut Island, which lies at the exit of Narragansett Bay to the Atlantic Ocean . Jamestown is connected to the mainland in the west by the Jamestown-Verrazano Bridge and to Newport in the east by the Newport Bridge. The distance to Providence , the capital of Rhode Island, and the surrounding Providence Metropolitan Area is approximately 40 kilometers.
population
At the 2000 census , Jamestown had a population of 5,622. More than 97% of them were white . The per capita income was 38,664 US dollars, just under 3% of the population lived below the poverty line .
history
The Narragansett Bay area has been inhabited for a long time. The oldest artifacts found on the island of Conanicut date back to around 3000 BC. Dated. Before white colonization, the area was inhabited by the Narraganset and Wampanoag .
Narragansett Bay was first visited in 1524 by the Italian navigator Giovanni da Verrazzano , who did not stay there for long. Around 1638 islands in the bay were used by the Dutch and English as pastures for sheep, and they paid a fee to the Narraganset for their use. The name Dutch Island goes back to the Dutch , Conanicut Island is said to be named after the Narranganset chief Canonicus. In 1657 the Narragansett sold Dutch Island, Conanicut Island and Gould Island to a group of white settlers. In 1675 ferry service to Newport began, and in 1678 Conanicut Island was declared an administrative area of the town of Jamestown, which was founded there. The name Jamestown was chosen in honor of Prince James, later King James II.
Around the year 1700 about 200 settlers lived in the rural urban area. In the years that followed, the main lines of today's road network were laid, and in 1728 a windmill was built to grind grain to make up for the lack of water power. While the surrounding towns developed into lively trading centers and maintained a large number of ships, Jamestown remained dominated by agriculture.
During the American Revolutionary War , some of Jamestown's structures were destroyed and Newport Harbor was under British occupation for a period.
At the beginning of the 19th century, the improved travel options through the introduction of steam shipping and the railroad resulted in brisk tourism, from which Newport in particular benefited. Conanicut Island became a popular destination for day trips and summer vacations after the regular steamship ferry service between Newport and Jamestown began in 1873. WH Knowles built the Bay View Hotel in 1873, and Jamestown's population tripled in the last 30 years of the 19th century. Other hotels were built, as well as numerous guest houses, summer residences and private homes.
With the advent of the automobile, the big hotels in Jamestown began to decline. In 1940 the first bridge connecting Jamestown to the mainland was built, the Jamestown Bridge. The last major hotel in Jamestown, the Bay View Hotel, closed in the 1960s. In 1969 the second bridge was built, the Newport (Pell) Bridge. With the completion of the Newport Bridge, the regular ferry service between Jamestown and Newport was given up. In 1992 the Jamestown-Verrazano Bridge was opened, which had a larger capacity than the old Jamestown Bridge. At the same time, a highway was built that crossed the island over the entire length.
Many of Jamestown's residents work outside of the country and the growth of new residential areas has increased. Nevertheless, the island has a rural character and agriculture continues to be practiced.
Web links
- A Brief History of Jamestown and Newport, Rhode Island ( Memento dated December 15, 2007 on the Internet Archive )
- Official Jamestown website ( October 16, 2013 memento on Internet Archive )