There are long stretches of our lives when it seems that nothing will ever change, and then, in a moment, everything is changing. As we live through this time, with disease, economic uncertainty, and social unrest, history can help us with empathy and understanding. ‘Know Your History’ will now be a web presence and a focus for NHS. Here, we will try to connect our audiences with historical information that is relevant to the moment and what is happening in the world. Direct parallels to the past are not the point; rather we hope to address questions like “how did we get here?” while we struggle to answer “and what are we going to do now?” For the moment, this page will offer resources on Newport and Rhode Island’s history relative to people of African descent, Native Americans, and on the history of protest and suffrage. The resources displayed here will change as we develop and discover new ones. Look here, too, when new controversies and events begin to unfold. We will continue to try to provide useful data from the past.

The first European settlers on Aquidneck Island purchased the right to settle here from the native inhabitants in 1638, with Newport being founded the following year. Despite an agreement stipulating that those first residents would vacate the island, there is evidence in the historical record that that native peoples continued to actively engage – socially and economically – with the new European settlers. This digital exhibit highlights some of this evidence in the historical record, including documents and objects.

This hour-long tour touches on Newport’s 18^th century economy, practice of religious toleration, politics and the city’s diverse population – enslaved and free, during Newport’s colonial period. Click the link below to download a free PDF, which includes a map of the tour route.

This social history mapping project focuses on Newport’s mid-to-late nineteenth century African American community, using data compiled from from local church records, census documents, and maps from the NHS collection. Click the link below to explore the project.