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PROVIDENCE |
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Splayed across seven hills on the Providence and Seekonk rivers,
PROVIDENCE
was Rhode Island's first settlement, founded "in commemoration of God's providence" on land given to Roger Williams by the Narragansett Indians (his insistence that Indians should be paid for their land being waived in his own case). Now New England's fourth largest city, it has been the
state capital
since 1901, and flourished as one of the most important ports of call in the notorious "triangle trade," where New England rum was exchanged for African slaves, who were then sold for West Indian molasses. Since Slater's invention of the water-powered textile mill, port trade and industry have been the mainstays of the economy. Today Ivy League
Brown University
and the
Rhode Island School of Design
(RISD or "Rizdee") give the place a certain cultural verve (although this admittedly doesn't stray far beyond the immediate environs of College Hill on the east bank of the river), and the many original colonial homes on
Benefit Street
emphasize a historical importance almost absent from the somewhat drab downtown across the river. Ethnic diversity is provided by
Little Italy
on Federal Hill, west of the river, and by fairly voluble Greek and Portuguese - and especially Cape Verdean - communities.
The City
Providence's main attractions focus around three of its seven hills. Downtown, which centers on
Kennedy Plaza
, is situated just below
Constitution Hill. City Hall
, at the western end of the plaza, is mainly notable for the...
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