Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for rhode island
The Rock in Newport
By Linda Tancs
Once called “The Rock on Which the Storm Shall Beat,” the fortress at Fort Adams State Park is located at a strategic defensive position at the entrance to Narragansett Bay in Newport, Rhode Island. The fort is named in honor of President John Adams and was dedicated during his tenure on July 4, 1799. Its current structure was built in 1824 under the Third System model of coastal fortification, which provided more durability in construction. This year marks the 200th anniversary of the current fortification. Self-guided tours are available daily to explore areas above ground. On a guided tour, you’ll also delve into the underground tunnels and the quarters where officers and their families lived.
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The History of Tennis
By Linda Tancs
The International Tennis Hall of Fame preserves and promotes the history of tennis and celebrates its champions. The museum displays over 2,000 items from its vast collection, including items associated with each hall of famer. The facility also features The Hall of Fame Tennis Club, which is open to the public daily for court time, lessons and clinics. One of the most interesting exhibits at the museum is the hologram of tennis great Roger Federer, giving visitors the experience of a one-on-one encounter. The museum is on the second floor of the historic Newport Casino Building in Newport, Rhode Island.
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Newport’s First Palatial Residence
By Linda Tancs
Until the appearance of the Vanderbilt houses in the 1890s, Chateau-sur-Mer was the most palatial residence in Newport, Rhode Island. Built in 1852 as an Italianate-style villa for China trade merchant William Shepard Wetmore, it was the site of elaborate parties, including a country picnic for more than 2,000 guests and the debutante ball for Miss Edith Wetmore in 1889. The mansion ushered in the Gilded Age, a period characterized by extreme wealth among America’s leading industrialists. William’s son George (later Governor of Rhode Island and a United States senator) remodeled the house during the 1870s in the Second Empire French style, details of which are evident throughout the home. The mansion is open daily from July to October.
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A Birthplace of Industry
By Linda Tancs
Often described as the Birthplace of the American Industrial Revolution, Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park runs from Worcester, Massachusetts, to Providence, Rhode Island. Several textile mills along the river sparked the transition from farm to factory, but it was the success of Samuel Slater’s cotton spinning mill in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, that transformed American industry. Visitors to the park can explore it at their own pace through walking tours of company towns and planned mill villages like Whitinsville and Slatersville. You can also take a ranger-led tour of Old Slater Mill, paddle along the river and bike through the soon-to-be completed Blackstone River Bikeway from Massachusetts to Rhode Island.
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Surf City in Rhode Island
By Linda Tancs
Surfers flock to the tony enclave of Point Judith in Narragansett, Rhode Island, a place with reputedly the best waves in New England. The lighthouse there (operated by the Coast Guard and closed to the public) was constructed to guide mariners past the rocky shoals that claimed many a ship, a consideration no less relevant to wave riders. In fact, the south side of the point is best navigated only on really big swells. Onlookers can watch the action from a park nearby the lighthouse that offers stunning coastal views.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Bristol and The Great Gatsby
By Linda Tancs
In the heart of Bristol, Rhode Island, is Linden Place, a Federal-style mansion built in 1810. Visited by four U.S. presidents, it might be better known as a film locale in 1973 for Hollywood’s “The Great Gatsby.” The mansion (now a historic house museum) is complemented by sculpture-filled gardens, an 1825 carriage barn, a 1902 ballroom and outbuildings dating from 1750. Guided tours of the house (generally available from May to October) take one hour.
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As coronavirus proceeds, it is likely that the vast majority of us will be limited in our travels. But this, too, shall pass. Our love for travel remains, so Travelrific will continue offering travel inspiration in this medium. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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America’s Oldest Synagogue
By Linda Tancs
In colonial times, Newport, Rhode Island, welcomed its first Jewish residents as early as 1658. A century later, the population had grown substantially with the rise of the mercantile trade, giving rise to the need for a place of worship that was named Congregation Jeshuat Israel (Salvation of Israel). It was later renamed Touro Synagogue after Newport natives Abraham and Judah Touro, who both provided bequests to see to the perpetual care and maintenance of the Congregation’s properties. Designated a National Historic Site in 1946, the synagogue boasts a connection to George Washington, who adopted many of the views on religious liberties and the separation of church and state that were espoused by the congregation’s president during his address to Washington at Newport. In fact, Washington’s written response to the congregation is an annual celebrated event, lauded and commemorated as possibly having the greatest impact on America and American Jewry. The next annual reading of George Washington’s historic letter “To the Hebrew Congregation at Newport” will take place on Sunday at 1 p.m.
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The First Veterans’ Monument
By Linda Tancs
The traumatic fate of nine colonists in 1676 is commemorated in a wooded area near the public library in Cumberland, Rhode Island. Known as Nine Men’s Misery, the stone memorial there is reportedly the first veterans’ monument in the United States, a tribute to nine colonial militiamen slaughtered at the site by the Narragansett tribe during King Philip’s War. The conflict, named for its Native American leader Metacomet (referred to as King Philip by the British), pitted tribes in New England against the British colonists and their allies as the Puritans increasingly encroached upon Native American settlements. Despite the colonists’ eventual victory, the war ravaged the population and economy of the region.
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Newport’s Gilded Age
By Linda Tancs
Newport, Rhode Island boasts a spectacular coast, a charming waterfront and imposing mansions from the Gilded Age. No wonder it’s widely considered to be one of New England’s greatest destinations. This episode of Travelrific Radio® highlights the sights not to miss.
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The Oldest Continuous Celebration in the US
By Linda Tancs
For 226 years, the folks of Bristol, Rhode Island have been producing a Fourth of July celebration like no other. Perhaps the most patriotic town in America, this year’s event promises to be “a unique American experience.” The Fourth of July Ball on 2 July at Mt. Hope Farm kicks off the grand celebrations, followed by a highlight of the festivities, the Drum and Bugle Corps Competition, on 3 July at 7:00 p.m. at Mt. Hope High School. Now in its 22nd year, the popular competition features top drum and bugle corps from the United States and Canada. Fireworks commence at 9:30 p.m. at Bristol Harbor on 3 July, culminating with the annual Military, Civic and Firemen’s Parade on July 4th at Hope and High streets beginning at 10:30 a.m. Best of all, you can have your own souvenir of the event by purchasing an Official Souvenir throughout the weekend, or get a limited edition coin by downloading the order form. When they’re gone, they’re gone. Better order yours now!
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