History
Located nine miles southeast of Providence. Bounded by East Providence on the north and west; by the state of Massachusetts on the northeast; by the Warren River on the east; by Narragansett Bay on the west and south. No point is more than two miles from salt water.
Before the Pilgrims landed, Barrington was occupied by the Wampanoag Indians. Archeological evidence indicates that the American Indian migrated into North America from Asia about 10,000 years ago, as the Ice Age was ending. However, evidence of Indians living in the Rhode Island area goes back only about 8000 years.
The early history of Barrington is tied closely to the arrival of the Pilgrims in 1620. Barrington occupied part of what was then the Wampanoag Indian Empire. Massasoit was the Chief Sachem of the Wampanoags. In 1621, two Wampanoag braves visited the Pilgrims. A week later, Massasoit visited with his retinue. He agreed to accept the King of England as the sovereign of his lands provided the English would protect his tribe in the event of attack. In 1623, upon hearing that Massasoit was ill, Edward Winslow and John Hampden traveled to see him. After giving him some jelly and water, Massasoit revived. The site of these happenings is believed to be the present Hampden Meadows. In 1632 a trading post was established at Tyler Point near the present Barrington Yacht Club. What is now called Barrington was then called by its Indian names, Sowams and Pokanoket.
In 1652, the Land Court in Plymouth decided to distribute the lands then occupied by the Wampanoags; Massasoit was paid 35 pounds in return for them. Myles Standish received much of the land in West Barrington north of the present Rhode Island CC, although he chose not to live there. Other proprietors were Thomas Prince (Prince's Hill),Thomas Willett, Joseph Peck, John Allin, and Thomas Chafee. Thomas Willett lived most of his life north of Bullock's Cove, in Riverside. He was a Baptist, and with others founded a Baptist church at Nockum Hill, north of Hundred Acre Cove. He is considered one of the founders of this town. In 1665, because of his knowledge of Dutch, he was selected to be the first English-speaking mayor of New York City; after a second year in New York, he returned to Riverside. Reverend John Myles was the pastor of the Baptist Church, as well as the local school teacher (tutor). The church later burned; there is a memorial stone at the location today.
|
Barrington township is an "East Bay" town, tucked between East Providence and Bristol, on the east side of the Providence River. Its 15,000 citizens enjoy a quiet life of New England suburbia with little league games, town meetings, and easy access to Providence and Newport.
|
