Providence is the Capital (political) capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, and one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, Rhode Island Providence County, it is the estimated third-largest city in the New England region. Despite having an estimated population of 172,459 as of 2007, it anchors the List of United States metropolitan areas 36th largest Providence metropolitan area metropolitan population in the country, with an estimated metropolitan statistical areas MSA population of 1,600,856, exceeding that of Rhode Island by about 60% due to its reaching into southern...

Providence is the Capital (political) capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, and one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, Rhode Island Providence County, it is the estimated third-largest city in the New England region. Despite having an estimated population of 172,459 as of 2007, it anchors the List of United States metropolitan areas 36th largest Providence metropolitan area metropolitan population in the country, with an estimated metropolitan statistical areas MSA population of 1,600,856, exceeding that of Rhode Island by about 60% due to its reaching into southern Massachusetts. >http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/tables/SUB-EST2007-01.csv accessdate=2007-06-29}} Situated at the mouth of the Providence River, at the head of Narragansett Bay, the city's small footprint is crisscrossed by seemingly erratic streets and contains a rapidly changing demographic.

Providence was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams (theologian) Roger Williams, a religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He named the area in honor of Divine Providence 'God's merciful Providence'which he believed was responsible for revealing such a haven for him and his followers to settle. After being one of the first cities in the country to industrialize, Providence became noted for its jewelry and Silver (household) silverware industry. Today, Providence city proper alone is home to eight hospitals and seven institutions of higher learning, which has shifted the city's economy into service industries, though it still retains significant manufacturing work. The city was once nicknamed the'Beehive of Industry'', while today'The Renaissance City'is more common, though as of 2000 census, its poverty rate was still among the ten highest for cities over 100,000.

History

The area which is now Providence was first settled in June 1636 by Roger Williams (theologian) Roger Williams, and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies of the United States. Williams secured a title from the Narragansett (tribe) Narragansett natives around this time and gave the city its present name. Williams also cultivated Providence as a refuge for persecuted religious dissenters, as he himself had been exiled from Massachusetts. Providence's growth would be slow during the next quarter-century"the subsuming of its territory into surrounding towns, difficulty of farming the land, and differing of local traditions and land conflicts all slowed development.

In the mid-1770s, the British government levied taxes that impeded Providence's maritime, fishing and agricultural industries, the mainstay of the city's economy. One example was the Sugar Act, which was a tax levied against Providence's distilleries that adversely affected its trade in rum and slaves. These taxes caused Providence to join the other colonies in renouncing allegiance to the British Crown. In response to enforcement of unpopular trade laws, Providence residents spilled the first blood of the American Revolution in the notorious Gasp??e Affair of 1772.

Though during the Revolutionary War the city escaped enemy occupation, the capture of nearby Newport, Rhode Island Newport disrupted industry and kept the population on alert. Troops were quartered for various campaigns and Brown University's University Hall was used as a barracks and military hospital.