Providence, Rhode Island

Coordinates: 41°49′25″N 71°25′20″W / 41.82361°N 71.42222°W / 41.82361; -71.42222
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Providence
State capital city
UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP Codes
02901–02912, 02918-02919, 02940
Area code401
FIPS code44-59000
Websitewww.providenceri.gov

Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, it is one of the oldest cities in New England,[7] founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He named the area in honor of "God's merciful Providence" which he believed was responsible for revealing such a haven for him and his followers. The city developed as a busy port, as it is situated at the mouth of the Providence River at the head of Narragansett Bay.

Providence was one of the first cities in the country to industrialize and became noted for its textile manufacturing and subsequent machine tool, jewelry, and silverware industries.[8][9] Today, the city of Providence is home to eight hospitals and eight institutions of higher learning which have shifted the city's economy into service industries, though it still retains some manufacturing activity.

At the

metro Hartford.[10][11]

History

The First Baptist Church in America is the oldest Baptist congregation in America, founded by Roger Williams in 1638. Its present meetinghouse was first occupied in 1775.

Providence was settled in June 1636 by

Puritan theologian Roger Williams and grew into one of the original Thirteen Colonies. As a minister in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Williams had advocated the separation of church and state and condemned colonists' confiscation of land from the Indians. For these and other "diverse, new, and dangerous opinions," he was convicted of sedition and heresy and banished from the colony. Williams and others established a settlement in Rumford, Rhode Island.[12][13] The group later moved down the Seekonk River, around Fox Point and up the Providence River to the confluence of the Moshassuck and Woonasquatucket Rivers. The settlement was named after "God's merciful Providence."[14]

Providence lacked a royal charter, unlike Salem and Boston. The settlers thus organized themselves, allotting tracts on the eastern side of the Providence River in 1638 allowing roughly six acres each. These home lots extended from Towne Street (now South Main Street) to Hope Street.[15] Over the following two decades, Providence Plantations grew into a self-sufficient agricultural and fishing settlement, though its lands were difficult to farm and its borders were disputed with Connecticut and Massachusetts.[12]

In 1652, Providence prohibited indentured servitude for periods of longer than 10 years. This statute constituted the first anti-slavery law in the United States, though there is no evidence the prohibition was ever enforced.[16] However, the Rhode Island General Assembly legalized African and Native American slavery throughout the colony in 1703, and Providence merchants' participation in the slave trade helped turn the city into a major port.[17]: 11–13  By 1755, enslaved people made up 8% of Providence's population, below the 10% average for colonial Rhode Island, but above the 5% average for the northern colonies.[17]: 24–25 

In March 1676, Providence Plantations was burned to the ground by the

Narragansetts during King Philip's War. Later in the year, the Rhode Island legislature formally rebuked the other colonies for provoking the war.[18] In 1770, Brown University moved to Providence from nearby Warren. At the time, the college was known as Rhode Island College and occupied a single building on College Hill. The college's choice to relocate to Providence as opposed to Newport symbolized a larger shift away from Newport's commercial and political dominance over the colony.[19][20]

In 1772, a group from Providence burned a British customs schooner south of Providence in the event known as the

United States Constitution on May 29, 1790, once assurances were made that a Bill of Rights would become part of the Constitution.[22]

Market Square was the center of civic life in the 19th Century, and Market House was home to the city council before Providence City Hall was built.[23]
Providence City Hall was built in 1878

Following the war, Providence was the nation's ninth-largest city[b] with 7,614 people. The economy shifted from maritime endeavors to manufacturing, in particular machinery, tools, silverware, jewelry, and textiles. By the start of the 20th century, Providence hosted some of the largest manufacturing plants in the country, including Brown & Sharpe, Nicholson File, and Gorham Manufacturing Company.[12] The city's industries attracted many immigrants from Ireland, Germany, Sweden, England, Italy, Portugal, Cape Verde, and French Canada. These economic and demographic shifts caused social strife.[12] Hard Scrabble and Snow Town were the sites of race riots in 1824 and 1831.[24][25]

Providence residents ratified a city charter in 1831 as the population passed 17,000.[12] The seat of city government was located in the Market House[26] in Market Square from 1832 to 1878, which was the geographic and social center of the city. The city offices soon outgrew this building, and the City Council resolved to create a permanent municipal building in 1845.[26] The city offices moved into Providence City Hall in 1878.[27]

Local politics split over slavery during the American Civil War, as many had ties to Southern cotton and the slave trade. Despite ambivalence concerning the war, the number of military volunteers routinely exceeded quota, and the city's manufacturing proved invaluable to the Union. Providence thrived after the war, and waves of immigrants brought the population from 54,595 in 1865 to 175,597 by 1900.[12]

By the early 1900s, Providence was one of the wealthiest cities in the United States.

Corliss Steam Engine Company, Babcock & Wilcox, the Grinnell Corporation, the Gorham Manufacturing Company, Nicholson File, and the Fruit of the Loom textile company.[28] The manufacturing of jewelry and costume jewelry emerged as a dominant local industry.[29][30] In the 1960s, jewelry trade magazines referred to Providence as “the jewelry capital of the world.”[30]

Aerial photograph of Downtown Providence taken in 1951

In 1922, it was affected by the 1922 New England Textile Strike, shutting down the mills in the city over an attempted wage cut and hours increase.[31][32]

The city began to see a decline by the mid-1920s as manufacturing industries began to shut down. It was deeply affected by the

New England Hurricane of 1938, which flooded downtown.[34] The hurricane was particularly destructive to the struggling textile industry, with many mills never reopening following the storm.[35] Providence's population declined from a peak of 253,504 in 1940 to only 179,213 in 1970, as the white middle class moved to the suburbs. From the 1940s to 1970s, white middle class residents vacated Providence faster than any other American city other than Detroit. The remainder of these residents were disproportionately poor and elderly.[36][37] From the 1950s to the 1980s, Providence was a notorious bastion of organized crime.[38][39]

From 1975 until 1982, $606 million of local and national community development funds were invested throughout the city. In the 1990s, the city pushed for revitalization, completing a number of major development projects. Among these were the realignment of railroad tracks; the relocation of rivers, creation of Waterplace Park, and development of a riverwalk; the construction of a Downtown ice rink;[40] and the development of Providence Place Mall.[12] In 1980, Providence's previously declining population began to grow once again.[41]

In the early 2000s, Providence developed an economic development plan that outlined a shift to a knowledge-based economy. These efforts involved the rebranding of the formerly industrial Jewelry District as a new "Knowledge District".[42] Despite new investment, approximately 21.5-percent of the city population lives below the poverty line.[43] Recent increases in real estate values have further exacerbated problems for those at marginal income levels, mirroring a statewide housing affordability crisis.[44] From 2004 to 2005, Providence saw the highest rise in median housing price of any city in the United States.[45]

Geography

The Providence city limits enclose a small geographical region with a total area of 20.5 square miles (53 km2); 18.5 square miles (48 km2) of it is land and the remaining 2.1 square miles (5.4 km2) is water (roughly 10%). Providence is located at the head of Narragansett Bay, with the Providence River running into the bay through the center of the city,[46] formed by the confluence of the Moshassuck and Woonasquatucket Rivers. The Waterplace Park amphitheater and riverwalks line the river's banks through Downtown.[47] Providence is one of many cities claimed to be founded on seven hills like Rome. [48][49]

As with many cities worldwide, the

Northeastern megacity has a large population of feral pigeons (Columba livia).[50] Although expecting Providence's population genetics to be continuous with the larger megacity, Carlen & Munshi-South 2020 find Providence and Boston share one population and the rest of the region shares another.[50] This is likely due to the intervening low urbanization zone in western Connecticut.[50]

Neighborhoods

Map of neighborhoods in Providence

Providence has 25 official neighborhoods, though these neighborhoods are often grouped together and referred to collectively:[51][52]

Cityscape

The Providence skyline as viewed from above the Providence River
Iway
project.

Geographically, Providence is compact—characteristic of eastern seaboard cities that developed prior to use of the automobile. The street layout of the city is irregular; more than one thousand streets run haphazardly, connecting and radiating from traditionally bustling places such as Market Square.[56]

Downtown Providence has numerous 19th-century mercantile buildings in the

Providence Place Mall (1999), Omni Providence Hotel (1993) and Residences Providence (2007), GTECH Corporation (2006), Waterplace Towers condominiums (2007), and Waterplace Park (1994). The area tends toward newer development, since much of it is land reclaimed in the 1970s from a mass of railroad tracks referred to colloquially as the "Chinese Wall".[58] This part of Downtown is characterized by open spaces, wide roads, and landscaping.[57]

The streetscape of much of historic downtown has retained a similar appearance since the early 20th century. Many of the state's tallest buildings are found here. At 426 feet (130 m), the city's

One Financial Plaza—which is designed in the modernist style.[60] Other core buildings of the Providence skyline are the postmodern 50 Kennedy Plaza and late modern Textron Tower. Downtown is also the home of the historic Providence Biltmore hotel and Westminster Arcade—the oldest enclosed shopping mall in the U.S.[61]

The city's southern waterfront, away from the downtown core, is the location of oil tanks, ferry and sailing docks, power plants, and nightclubs. The

  • The Shepard Company Building in Downtown Providence's compact urban center
    The Shepard Company Building in Downtown Providence's compact urban center
  • Burnside Park in Downtown Providence facing the city's primary row of high rises
    Burnside Park
    in Downtown Providence facing the city's primary row of high rises
  • The Providence Riverwalk, at the edge of downtown
    The Providence Riverwalk, at the edge of downtown

Climate

Providence
Climate chart (explanation)
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
 
 
3.9
 
 
37
21
 
 
3.3
 
 
40
24
 
 
5
 
 
48
30
 
 
4.4
 
 
59
41
 
 
3.6
 
 
68
49
 
 
3.6
 
 
78
58
 
 
3.3
 
 
83
64
 
 
3.6
 
 
81
63
 
 
3.9
 
 
74
55
 
 
3.9
 
 
63
44
 
 
4.5
 
 
53
36
 
 
4.2
 
 
42
26
Average max. and min. temperatures in °F
Precipitation totals in inches
Metric conversion
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
 
 
98
 
 
3
−6
 
 
84
 
 
5
−5
 
 
127
 
 
9
−1
 
 
111
 
 
15
5
 
 
90
 
 
20
9
 
 
92
 
 
25
15
 
 
84
 
 
28
18
 
 
91
 
 
27
17
 
 
100
 
 
23
13
 
 
100
 
 
17
7
 
 
115
 
 
12
2
 
 
107
 
 
6
−3
Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
Precipitation totals in mm

Providence has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfa) bordering a humid subtropical climate with hot summers, and cool to cold winters. The 2023 USDA places the city in hardiness zone 7a.[63] The influence of the Atlantic Ocean keeps the state of Rhode Island warmer than many inland locales in New England.[64][65][66]

July is the warmest month with a daily mean of 73.5 °F (23.1 °C) and highs rising to 90 °F (32 °C) or higher an average of 10 days per summer, January is the coldest month with a daily mean of 29.2 °F (−1.6 °C) and low temperatures dropping to 10 °F (−12 °C) or lower an average of 11 days per winter. [67] while.[67] Extremes range from −17 °F or −27.2 °C on February 9, 1934[68] to 104 °F or 40 °C on August 2, 1975;[69] the record cold daily maximum is 1 °F (−17.2 °C) on February 5, 1918, while the record warm daily minimum is 80 °F (26.7 °C) on June 6, 1925.[67] Temperature readings of 0 °F or −17.8 °C or lower are uncommon in Providence and generally occur once every several years. The year which had the most days with a temperature reading of zero degrees or lower was 2015 with eight days total—one day in January and seven days in February.[67] Conversely, temperature readings of 100 °F or 37.8 °C or higher are even rarer, and the year with the most days in this category was 1944 with three days, all of which were in August.[67]

Monthly

1938 Hurricane were particularly damaging. [70]

Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 70
(21)
72
(22)
90
(32)
98
(37)
96
(36)
98
(37)
102
(39)
104
(40)
100
(38)
88
(31)
81
(27)
77
(25)
104
(40)
Mean maximum °F (°C) 58.7
(14.8)
57.9
(14.4)
67.1
(19.5)
79.3
(26.3)
87.2
(30.7)
91.5
(33.1)
94.8
(34.9)
92.7
(33.7)
87.6
(30.9)
78.9
(26.1)
70.1
(21.2)
61.5
(16.4)
96.6
(35.9)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) 38.3
(3.5)
40.5
(4.7)
47.7
(8.7)
58.9
(14.9)
68.9
(20.5)
77.7
(25.4)
83.6
(28.7)
82.2
(27.9)
74.8
(23.8)
63.8
(17.7)
53.2
(11.8)
43.4
(6.3)
61.1
(16.2)
Daily mean °F (°C) 30.2
(−1.0)
32.0
(0.0)
38.9
(3.8)
49.3
(9.6)
59.1
(15.1)
68.2
(20.1)
74.4
(23.6)
73.0
(22.8)
65.6
(18.7)
54.4
(12.4)
44.5
(6.9)
35.5
(1.9)
52.1
(11.2)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) 22.1
(−5.5)
23.5
(−4.7)
30.2
(−1.0)
39.6
(4.2)
49.2
(9.6)
58.8
(14.9)
65.2
(18.4)
63.9
(17.7)
56.5
(13.6)
45.1
(7.3)
35.8
(2.1)
27.6
(−2.4)
43.1
(6.2)
Mean minimum °F (°C) 4.1
(−15.5)
7.4
(−13.7)
15.1
(−9.4)
28.5
(−1.9)
38.1
(3.4)
47.2
(8.4)
56.2
(13.4)
54.3
(12.4)
43.1
(6.2)
31.7
(−0.2)
21.8
(−5.7)
12.3
(−10.9)
2.0
(−16.7)
Record low °F (°C) −13
(−25)
−17
(−27)
1
(−17)
11
(−12)
29
(−2)
39
(4)
48
(9)
40
(4)
32
(0)
20
(−7)
6
(−14)
−12
(−24)
−17
(−27)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 3.96
(101)
3.44
(87)
4.90
(124)
4.29
(109)
3.37
(86)
3.81
(97)
2.91
(74)
3.59
(91)
4.17
(106)
4.18
(106)
4.27
(108)
4.65
(118)
47.54
(1,208)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 10.3
(26)
10.5
(27)
6.4
(16)
0.6
(1.5)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.0
(0.0)
0.2
(0.51)
1.0
(2.5)
7.6
(19)
36.6
(93)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) 11.2 10.3 11.6 11.7 12.2 10.8 9.3 9.1 9.1 10.2 9.6 11.9 127.0
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) 5.7 5.4 3.7 0.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.6 3.4 19.3
Average
relative humidity
(%)
63.9 63.0 62.9 61.4 66.6 70.1 71.0 72.5 73.0 70.2 68.9 67.0 67.5
Average dew point °F (°C) 16.3
(−8.7)
17.4
(−8.1)
25.0
(−3.9)
33.1
(0.6)
45.0
(7.2)
55.6
(13.1)
61.5
(16.4)
61.0
(16.1)
53.8
(12.1)
42.6
(5.9)
33.3
(0.7)
22.1
(−5.5)
38.9
(3.8)
Mean monthly sunshine hours 171.7 172.6 215.6 225.1 254.9 274.1 290.6 262.8 233.0 208.7 148.0 148.6 2,605.7
Percent possible sunshine 58 58 58 56 57 60 63 61 62 61 50 52 58
Average ultraviolet index 1 2 4 6 7 8 8 8 6 4 2 1 5
Source 1:
NOAA (relative humidity, dew point, and sun 1961–1990)[67][72][73]
Source 2: Weather Atlas [74]
Climate data for Providence
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average sea temperature °F (°C) 41.4
(5.2)
38.1
(3.4)
38.7
(3.8)
44.1
(6.7)
50.9
(10.5)
59.6
(15.3)
67.0
(19.4)
69.3
(20.7)
66.7
(19.3)
61.6
(16.4)
54.2
(12.3)
47.7
(8.8)
53.3
(11.8)
Source: Weather Atlas [74]


See or edit raw graph data.

Demographics

As of the

sixth-largest CSA in the country. In recent years, Providence has experienced a sizable growth in its under-18 population. The median age of the city was 28 years, while the largest age cohort is 20- to 24-year-olds as of 2000.[80]

Demographic profile 2020[79] 2010[81] 1990[82] 1970[82] 1950[82]
White
53.1% 49.8% 69.9% 90.0% 96.5%
 —Non-Hispanic 33.8% 37.6% 64.5% 89.5%[e] N/A
Black or African American
16.1% 16.0% 14.8% 8.9% 3.3%
Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 43.5% 38.1% 15.5% 0.8%[e] N/A
Asian
5.6% 6.4% 5.9% 0.5% 0.1%

Providence has a racially and ethnically diverse population. In 2020,

Irish immigrants have also had considerable influence on the city's history, with 8% of residents claiming Irish heritage.[85] The percentages of people claiming Irish and Italian ancestry, though high, has gone down considerably from historical highs, and is much lower than the percentages of these groups in Rhode Island as a whole. The city also has a sizable Jewish community, estimated at 10,500 in 2012, or roughly 5% of the city's population.[86]

In 2020, people of

Dominican descent. Numbering roughly 25,000 and constituting roughly half of the city's Hispanic population, Providence's Dominican community is the fifth largest in the United States.[88] Other Hispanic groups present in sizable numbers include Puerto Ricans, Guatemalans, and Colombians. Hispanics are widespread in significant numbers in most of Providence, but most concentrated in the neighborhoods of Elmwood, the West End, and Upper and Lower South Providence.[89]

Koreans (0.6%). Another 6% of the city has multiracial ancestry. American Indians and Pacific Islanders make up the remaining 0.9%.[91]

Providence has a considerable community of immigrants from various

Cape Verdeans compose 2% of the city's population.[83]

The

poverty line. Of residents in poverty, the largest concentrations are found in the city's Olneyville, and Upper and Lower South Providence areas.[98][99] Poverty has affected children at a disproportionately higher rate, with 40.1% of those under the age of 18 living below the poverty line. These residents are concentrated west of Downtown in the neighborhoods of Hartford, Federal Hill, and Olneyville.[99]

Economy

Distribution of Providence's economic activity

Over one third of Providence's economy is based in trade, transportation, utilities, and educational and health services.[100] As the capital of Rhode Island, the city's economy additionally consists of government services, with approximately 70,000 jobs.[100] The unemployment rate in the city is 5.0% as of August 2022, compared to a national rate of 3.8%.[100]

Prominent companies headquartered in Providence include Fortune 500 Textron, an advanced technologies industrial conglomerate; United Natural Foods, a distributor of natural and organic foods; Fortune 1000 Nortek Incorporated; Gilbane, a construction and real estate company. Other companies with headquarters in the city include Citizens Bank,[101] Virgin Pulse, Ørsted US Offshore Wind, and Providence Equity.[102] Providence is the site of a sectional center facility (SCF), a regional hub for the U.S. Postal Service.[103] Providence is also home to some of toy manufacturer Hasbro's business operations, although their headquarters are in Pawtucket.

The city is home to the

skywalk.[104]

Arts and culture

The Providence Performing Arts Center

Much of Providence culture is synonymous with the

non-rhotic accent that can be heard on local media. Providence also shares Rhode Island's affinity for coffee, with the most coffee and doughnut shops per capita of any city in the country.[105] Providence is also reputed to have the highest number of restaurants per capita of major U.S. cities.[106]

During the summer months, the city regularly hosts WaterFire, an environmental art installation that consists of about 100 bonfires which blaze just above the surface of the three rivers that pass through the middle of Downtown Providence.[107] There are multiple WaterFire events that are accompanied by various pieces of classical and world music.[108]

Providence has several ethnic neighborhoods, notably Federal Hill and the North End (Italian),[109] Fox Point (Portuguese),[110] West End (mainly Central American and Asian),[111] and Smith Hill (Irish).[112] There are also many dedicated community organizations and arts associations located in the city.[113]

The city gained the reputation as one of the most active and growing gay and lesbian communities in the Northeast.[114][115] The rate of reported gay and lesbian relationships is 75% higher than the national average.[116] Former mayor David Cicilline won his election running as an openly gay man.[117] Former Mayor Buddy Cianci instituted the position of Mayor's Liaison to the Gay and Lesbian community in the 1990s.[115] and Providence is home to the largest gay bathhouse in New England.[118]

The city is the home of the

Festival Ballet Providence. The city's underground music is centered on artist-run spaces such as the now-defunct Fort Thunder and is known in underground music circles.[120] Providence is also home to the Providence Improv Guild, an improvisational theatre that has weekly performances and offers improv and sketch comedy classes, and AS220, a long-standing non-profit arts center with exhibition, educational, and performance spaces, as well as live-work studios.[121]

Sites of interest