41°37′01″N 71°18′59″W / 41.6170°N 71.3164°W / 41.6170; -71.3164
38-552: Prudence Island is the third-largest island in Narragansett Bay in the state of Rhode Island and part of the town of Portsmouth, Rhode Island , United States. It is located near the geographic center of the bay. It is defined by the United States Census Bureau as Block Group 3, Census Tract 401.03 of Newport County, Rhode Island . As of the 2010 census , the population was 278 people living on
76-488: A land area of 14.43 km (5.57 sq mi). The Narragansett name for the island was Chibachuweset (or Chibachuwese ), and the Narragansetts originally offered to gift it to John Oldham if he would settle there and set up a trading post. Oldham failed to meet the condition, so they gave the island to Roger Williams and John Winthrop in 1637, with each man retaining a one-half interest. Williams took
114-482: A large army". Dutch navigator Adriaen Block explored and mapped the bay in 1614, and nearby Block Island is named in his honor. The first permanent Colonial settlement was established in 1636 by Roger Williams , a former member of the Massachusetts Bay Colony . He was friends with Narragansett sachem Canonicus , who provided him with land on which to build Providence Plantations . Around
152-545: A new treatment that involves removal of nitrogen Narragansett Bay is the site of one of the world's longest-running plankton surveys, extending from 1957 through the present. Researchers at the University of Rhode Island ’s Graduate School of Oceanography collect samples weekly and the dataset contains 246 different species. Prudence Island 41°37′01″N 71°18′59″W / 41.6170°N 71.3164°W / 41.6170; -71.3164 Prudence Island
190-737: A seasonal variability, with the highest flow in the spring and the minimum flow in early fall. The bay is a ria estuary (a drowned river valley) which is composed of the Sakonnet River valley, the East Passage river valley, and the West Passage river valley. The bathymetry varies greatly among the three passages, with the average depths of the East, West, and Sakonnet River passages being 121 feet (37 m), 33 feet (10 m), and 25 feet (7.6 m) respectively. Narragansett Bay
228-568: A skirmish with American forces, losing approximately a dozen soldiers. In the 20th century, farming began to decline and the island began to attract summer residents. In World War II , the Navy established an ammunition depot on the southernmost 400 acres (1.6 km ) of the island. In 1972, the Navy turned the base over to the State of Rhode Island , leaving bunkers, roads, and a large deep-water pier. Several buildings and businesses that once stood on
266-462: A small archipelago. Small parts of the bay extend into Massachusetts . There are more than 30 islands in the bay; the three largest ones are Aquidneck Island , Conanicut Island , and Prudence Island . Bodies of water that are part of Narragansett Bay include the Sakonnet River , Mount Hope Bay , and the southern, tidal part of the Taunton River . The bay opens on Rhode Island Sound and
304-406: Is a ria that consists of a series of flooded river valleys formed of dropped crustal blocks in a horst and graben system that is slowly subsiding between a shifting fault system. Providence is Rhode Island 's capital and largest city and sits at the northernmost arm of the bay. Many of Providence's suburbs are also on the bay, including East Providence , Warwick and Cranston . Newport
342-472: Is highest in winter and lowest in summer, while CSOs increase dramatically following heavy rain. Water from these freshwater inputs mixes with sea water to form a salinity gradient ranging from 24 ppt at the mouth of the Providence River to 32 ppt at the mouth of the bay. Water temperatures range between -0.5 °C and 24 °C over the year. Salinity and temperature patterns measured throughout
380-571: Is located at the south end of Aquidneck Island on the ocean, and is the home of the United States Naval War College , the Naval Undersea Warfare Center , and a major United States Navy training center. The city of Fall River, Massachusetts is located at the confluence of the Taunton River and Mount Hope Bay , which form the northeasternmost part of Narragansett Bay. The southwest side of
418-548: Is operated by the Prudence Island School Foundation in cooperation with the Portsmouth school district and educates island children from kindergarten through fourth grade. The school has served the community on the island since 1896, with a six-year hiatus from 1982 to 1989. In 2019, three students were enrolled. There are several different summer colonies on the island. These are in order from
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#1732776332879456-475: Is the third-largest island in Narragansett Bay in the state of Rhode Island and part of the town of Portsmouth, Rhode Island , United States. It is located near the geographic center of the bay. It is defined by the United States Census Bureau as Block Group 3, Census Tract 401.03 of Newport County, Rhode Island . As of the 2010 census , the population was 278 people living on a land area of 14.43 km (5.57 sq mi). The Narragansett name for
494-409: The 2012 film Moonrise Kingdom were filmed on the island and nearby Jamestown . Prudence Island is the location of Rhode Island's last one-room schoolhouse. It is operated by the Prudence Island School Foundation in cooperation with the Portsmouth school district and educates island children from kindergarten through fourth grade. The school has served the community on the island since 1896, with
532-632: The Atlantic Ocean; Block Island lies less than 20 miles (32 km) southwest of its opening. "Narragansett" is derived from the southern New England Algonquian word Naiaganset meaning "(people) of the small point of land". The watershed of Narragansett Bay has seven river sub-drainage basins , including the Taunton , Pawtuxet , and Blackstone Rivers , and they provide freshwater input at approximately 2.1 million U.S. gallons (7.9 × 10 ^ L) per day. River water inflow has
570-567: The North to South nutrient concentration gradient in the bay (24). Near the Providence River, biomass levels are highest in the summer and lowest in the winter. In the east and west passages there are peaks in the spring and fall. Annual blooms have shrunk over the last decade (2006 onward) as the amount of nitrogen (an important nutrient) supply to the bay has decreased by more than 50% due to wastewater treatment facilities switching to
608-440: The bay in his ship La Dauphine in 1524 after visiting New York Bay . Verrazzano called the bay Refugio , the "Refuge". It has several entrances, however, and historians can only speculate as to the exact route of his voyage and the location where he laid anchor, along with a corresponding uncertainty over which tribe made contact with him. Verrazzano reported that he found clearings and open forests suitable for travel "even by
646-525: The bay includes the seaside tourist towns of Narragansett and Wickford . Quonset Point , south of Warwick, gives its name to the Quonset hut . Tides in the watershed are measured at Providence, Fall River, Quonset Point, Conimicut Light , Prudence Island, and Newport. In shallow water, sound waves are used to measure water height by precisely measuring their travel time. In deeper water, tides are measured with pressure-sensing tide gauges that are placed on
684-529: The bay indicate a range of mixed to stratified conditions and the amount of time it takes for the total volume of fresh water in the bay to be equaled by the fresh water input (flushing time) varies from 40 days to 10 days, depending on freshwater input. Dissolved oxygen levels in Narragansett Bay are seasonal with lower levels in the summer and higher levels in the winter. This is due to warmer temperatures and higher biological demand for oxygen in
722-532: The bay was probably in the early 16th century. At the time, the area surrounding the bay was inhabited by two different Indian tribes: the Narragansetts occupied the west side of the bay, and the Wampanoags lived on the east side, occupying the land east to Cape Cod . It is accepted by most historians that first contact by Europeans was made by Giovanni da Verrazzano , an Italian explorer who entered
760-431: The bay. In the winter, winds come from the northwest, helping move water towards the bay's mouth; in the summer, they are out of the southwest and move water towards the head of the bay. Wind-driven waves of over 4.25 feet (1.30 m) also help mix surface waters. Density-driven forces are the third factor affecting circulation. Fresh water inflow comes from natural sources such as atmospheric precipitation and inflow from
798-831: The capture and burning of the British customs schooner Gaspee . The American victory contributed to the eventual start of the war at the Battles of Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts three years later. The event is celebrated in Pawtuxet Village as the Gaspee Days Celebration in June which includes burning the ship in effigy. Roger Williams and other early colonists named the islands Prudence , Patience , Hope , Despair , and Hog . To remember
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#1732776332879836-419: The circulation is mostly well-mixed; however, the Providence River does show some vertical stratification. Narragansett Bay circulation is made up of forces provided by the winds, tides, and changes in water density within the watershed. Its circulation is the result of the flow of fresh water at the head interacting with salt water at the point where the bay meets the open ocean. Residence time of water due to
874-432: The circulation of Narragansett Bay is 10–40 days, with an average of 26 days. Tidal mixing is the dominant driver of circulation patterns in the bay, where currents can reach up to 2.5 feet per second. Non-tidal currents such as the flow of low salinity water at the surface out of the bay and high salinity deep water into the bay contribute to a current of about 0.33 feet per second. Winds also drive circulation patterns in
912-457: The island was Chibachuweset (or Chibachuwese ), and the Narragansetts originally offered to gift it to John Oldham if he would settle there and set up a trading post. Oldham failed to meet the condition, so they gave the island to Roger Williams and John Winthrop in 1637, with each man retaining a one-half interest. Williams took the northern side of the island, and Winthrop took the southern side. Williams and Winthrop hoped to farm pigs on
950-537: The island was used mainly for farming. During the American Revolution , the British forces under Captain James Wallace raided Prudence Island for livestock and engaged in a skirmish with American forces, losing approximately a dozen soldiers. In the 20th century, farming began to decline and the island began to attract summer residents. In World War II , the Navy established an ammunition depot on
988-531: The island were destroyed by the 1938 New England hurricane and Hurricane Carol . As of 2018, the only business in operation on the island is a general store that doubles as the post office. The former naval base is now home to the Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve , while Farnham Farm is a national historic site. The island is served by ferry service to Bristol, Rhode Island . Parts of
1026-581: The island. Williams named it "Prudence" and shortly afterwards purchased and named nearby Patience Island and Hope Island . He sold his half interest in Prudence Island while in England on behalf of the colony, and Winthrop willed his land to his son Stephen. In colonial times, the island was used mainly for farming. During the American Revolution , the British forces under Captain James Wallace raided Prudence Island for livestock and engaged in
1064-400: The many rivers that feed into the watershed, and human-made sources such as water treatment plants. Fresh and saltwater mixing results in a salinity range in the bay of 24 parts per thousand (ppt) in the upper Providence River area to 32 ppt at the mouth of the bay. The bay's currents and circulation patterns greatly influence the sediment deposits within the region. The majority of
1102-651: The names, colonial school children often recited the poem: "Patience, Prudence, Hope, and Despair. And the little Hog over there." Narragansett Bay is divided by Conanicut Island into east and west passages. Its depth averages approximately 9.0 meters throughout the bay, but it is shallower in the west passage and deeper in the east. Narragansett Bay receives freshwater input from several sources, including rivers (approximately 80%), direct precipitation (13%), wastewater treatment facilities (9%), and unknown amounts from ground-water and combined sewer overflows (CSOs). The freshwater input varies greatly from season to season as it
1140-400: The northern side of the island, and Winthrop took the southern side. Williams and Winthrop hoped to farm pigs on the island. Williams named it "Prudence" and shortly afterwards purchased and named nearby Patience Island and Hope Island . He sold his half interest in Prudence Island while in England on behalf of the colony, and Winthrop willed his land to his son Stephen. In colonial times,
1178-421: The ocean floor to measure water height. The bay's tides are semi-diurnal, meaning that the region experiences two high and low tides daily. The tides range in height from 3.6 feet (1.1 m) at the bay's mouth and 4.6 feet (1.4 m) at its head. Water depth varies about 4 feet (1.2 m) between high and low tide. The lunar, semi-diurnal M2 tide occurs at a period of 12.42 hours, with two tides occurring in
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1216-405: The post office. The former naval base is now home to the Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve , while Farnham Farm is a national historic site. The island is served by ferry service to Bristol, Rhode Island . Parts of the 2012 film Moonrise Kingdom were filmed on the island and nearby Jamestown . Prudence Island is the location of Rhode Island's last one-room schoolhouse. It
1254-702: The same time, the Dutch established a trading post approximately 12 miles (20 km) to the southwest which was under the authority of New Amsterdam in New York Bay. In 1643, Williams traveled to England and was granted a charter for the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations . The Gaspee Affair was an important naval event which moved the Thirteen Colonies toward the American Revolution . It occurred in Narragansett Bay in 1772 and involved
1292-467: The sediments within the bay are fine-grained material such as detritus, clay-silt, and sand-silt-clay. Scientists have been able to identify 11 types of sediment that range from coarse gravels to fine silts. the bay's currents deposit fine materials through the harbors of the lower and middle sections of the bay, and the coarse, heavy materials are deposited in the lower areas of the bay where the water velocities are higher. The first visit by Europeans to
1330-580: The south: The Snow Island Trilogy tells the story of a fictionalized version of Prudence Island across two generations. The 2012 film Moonrise Kingdom was filmed in part on Prudence. Narragansett Bay Narragansett Bay is a bay and estuary on the north side of Rhode Island Sound covering 147 square miles (380 km ), 120.5 square miles (312 km ) of which is in Rhode Island . The bay forms New England 's largest estuary, which functions as an expansive natural harbor and includes
1368-410: The southernmost 400 acres (1.6 km) of the island. In 1972, the Navy turned the base over to the State of Rhode Island , leaving bunkers, roads, and a large deep-water pier. Several buildings and businesses that once stood on the island were destroyed by the 1938 New England hurricane and Hurricane Carol . As of 2018, the only business in operation on the island is a general store that doubles as
1406-572: The summer and the opposite in the winter. Narragansett Bay is also subject to periodic summer hypoxic events in the Northern half of the bay, nearing anoxic conditions in some parts. Phytoplankton forms the base of the food chain for many of the bay's marine animals. General trends in phytoplankton biomass across the bay are characterized by highest levels in the Providence River and lowest levels in Rhode Island Sound , correlating with
1444-488: The watershed every 24 hours and 50 minutes. The watershed's neap and spring tides occur every 14.8 days. In Narragansett bay, the tides show a distinct double-peak flood during high tide and single peak ebb during low tide. The movement of water within a system is its circulation . Estuaries are given a classification depending on the pattern of their circulations. The circulation classification can be well-mixed, partially mixed, salt wedge, or Fjord-type. For Narragansett,
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