Rhode Island Quarters -- Narragansett Bay Immersion

With the Pell Bridge stretching across the background and a fine looking sloop cruising in the foreground, the nautical heritage of Rhode Island in general, and Narragansett Bay in particular, are front and center.

Though small in size, those who brought about this entry in the State Quarters series had many other themes available to commemorate their state. Rhode Island can claim a number of “firsts” – for example:

• Slavery was specifically prohibited by Rhode Island, before any of the other twelve colonies, on May 18, 1652.
• Rhode Islander Ann Smith Franklin became the first woman newspaper editor in America in 1792.
• America’s first Baptist church and first Jewish synagogue were founded in Rhode Island in 1638 and 1763, respectively.
• The first incident of American rebellion against the British crown occurred on June 10, 1772 on Narragansett Bay when colonists burned the revenue schooner Gaspee.
• The initial proposal for creating the Continental Congress was presented in Providence, Rhode Island in 1774.

And there are many others.

But personally, I find the sailboat-on-the-bay design very attractive. I need to plan a family vacation – Rhode Island looks like a good bet!




Quarter-dollar coin image from the United States Mint.


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