41°37′01″N71°18′59″W / 41.6170°N 71.3164°W /41.6170; -71.3164
Prudence Island is the third-largest island inNarragansett Bay in the state ofRhode Island and part of the town ofPortsmouth, Rhode Island, United States. It is located near the geographic center of the bay. It is defined by theUnited States Census Bureau as Block Group 3, Census Tract 401.03 ofNewport County, Rhode Island. As of the2010 census, the population was 278 people living on a land area of 14.43 km2 (5.57 sq mi).[1]
TheNarragansett name for the island wasChibachuweset (orChibachuwese), and the Narragansetts originally offered to gift it toJohn Oldham if he would settle there and set up a trading post. Oldham failed to meet the condition, so they gave the island toRoger Williams andJohn 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 the island. Williams named it "Prudence" and shortly afterwards purchased and named nearbyPatience Island andHope 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.[2][3]
In colonial times, the island was used mainly for farming. During theAmerican Revolution, the British forces under CaptainJames 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. InWorld War II, the Navy established an ammunition depot on the southernmost 400 acres (1.6 km2) of the island. In 1972, the Navy turned the base over to the State ofRhode Island, leaving bunkers, roads, and a large deep-water pier.
Several buildings and businesses that once stood on the island were destroyed by the1938 New England hurricane andHurricane Carol.[4] As of 2018, the only business in operation on the island is a general store that doubles as the post office.[4] The former naval base is now home to theNarragansett Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, whileFarnham Farm is a national historic site. The island is served by ferry service toBristol, Rhode Island. Parts of the 2012 filmMoonrise Kingdom were filmed on the island and nearbyJamestown.[5]
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.[6][7] The school has served the community on the island since 1896, with a six-year hiatus from 1982 to 1989.[8] In 2019, three students were enrolled.[9]
There are several different summer colonies on the island. These are in order from the south:
TheSnow Island Trilogy tells the story of a fictionalized version of Prudence Island across two generations. The 2012 filmMoonrise Kingdom was filmed in part on Prudence.
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