| Thank you for your letter and interest
in our island of Jamestown. Jamestown is a small island that sits
in the middle of Narragansett Bay in the state of Rhode Island.
It is approximately 9 miles long by 1 mile wide. Our island was
originally called Conanicut Island after the chief Conanicus, a
Narragansett Indian Chief. The Narragansett Indians used Jamestown
as a sacred burial site, burying their dead on the west side of
the island facing the setting sun. The Indians sold Jamestown to
the English settlers in 1657 and they mainly grazed sheep, cattle
and horses here. It is rumored that the famous pirate, Captain Kidd
buried treasure on the island and it has yet to be found! By 1818
the population grew to 504 people, today it stands at about 6500
with a higher population during the summer months.
Jamestown became a popular tourist spot at around the turn of the
20th century. There were several large hotels and many wealthy summer
people. The major form of transportation were ferries that would
take people to and from Newport or North Kingstown. With the hurricane
of 1938, several buildings along with hotels were destroyed and
never built again. In 1940 the Jamestown Bridge was built connecting
North Kingstown with Jamestown. In 1969 the Newport Bridge was opened
connecting Jamestown with Newport. The ferries were phased out and
became a thing of the past. In 1992 the new Jamestown Bridge was
opened and the old bridge still stands next to the new one, the
State has yet to dismantle it! The ferries started to make a come
back in 1999 and now people have the choice of taking the ferry
or driving to Newport.
Jamestown, today, has several restaurants, an elementary and middle
school (high school children are bused to North Kingstown High School,
approximately 8 miles away), a video store, a doctor's office, a
dentist, a vet, 3 churches, a pharmacy, a hardware store and some
gift shops. We also have several lighthouses with only one officially
working and several State parks and a campground.
Hope you learned something about Jamestown from this note. If you
need anything else, please email the Town
Clerk's Office. |
