Providence Rhode Island History

In 1636, after being exiled from Massachusetts, Roger Williams founded a refuge for persecuted religious dissenters. He named his settlement Providence in honor his beliefs in the “merciful providence of God.” Unfortunately, soon after being settled, most of Providence was burned in King Philip’s War in 1675-76 and the city was slow to rebuild. Life was hard and farming, the primary occupation, was difficult due to the rocky forested terrain. There were constant fights over land titles, religion and politics. Farming gave way to fishing and maritime trade by the mid-1770s. When the British Sugar Act levied heavy taxes on sugar and molasses, impacting Providence’s distilleries, rum and slave trade and the Rhode Island played a leading role in seeking independence from Great Britain. The resulting American Revolutionary War brought troops to the area and created more trade interruptions.

Following the war, Samuel Slater is credited with shifting the economy focus of Providence from maritime to manufacturing and for the next 100+ years the city prospered in textile and jewelry manufacturing.

In 1900, Providence became the capital of Rhode Island, but the Great Depression brought more misfortune and economic decline to the area. Then as life seemed to be improving, The New England Hurricane of 1938 flooded most of the downtown area. Even as rebuilding was in process, organized crime gained a strong hold in Providence. From the 1950s well into the 1970s, Providence was known as the center of the New England Mafia. The positive turnaround for Providence came between 1975 and 1982, when millions community development dollars poured into the area. Today, Providence continues to be a city on the move and takes pride in being recognized as one of the most progressive cities in the northeastern United States.