Rhode Island

Rhode Island is the smallest state in the United States by area — just 4,001 km² — yet it is the second most densely populated, with roughly 1.1 million residents packed around Narragansett Bay. Founded in 1636 by Roger Williams as a refuge for religious dissenters, it became the cradle of the American Industrial Revolution when Slater Mill began spinning cotton in Pawtucket in 1793. Today the economy runs on healthcare and education (Brown University, Rhode Island Hospital), defense and marine industries anchored by Naval Station Newport and the Quonset Point shipyards, insurance and finance, tourism along 640 km of coastline, and a fast-growing offshore wind sector led by the Block Island and Revolution Wind farms.

Capital: ProvidenceLargest city: ProvidenceNickname: The Ocean StateStatehood: 1790
1.10 M
Population
44th in the U.S.
$84,972
Median household income
$79 B
GDP
45th in the U.S.
4,001 km²
Area
50th (smallest) in the U.S.

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