Washington County, known locally as South County, is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

located in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 129,839.

Rhode Island counties This is a list of the five counties in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Rhode Island is tied with Hawaii for having the second-fewest counties of any U.S. state (only Delaware has fewer, with three counties). Although Rhode Island is divided int ...

have no governmental functions other than as court administrative boundaries, which are part of the state government.

History

Washington County was created as Kings County in 1729 within the

Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations was one of the original Thirteen Colonies established on the east coast of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. It was founded by Roger Williams. It was an English colony from 1636 until ...

. It was renamed Washington County on October 29, 1781, in honor of

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

. At the earliest stage of colonial settlement, the area was called "The Narragansett Country", named after the Naragansett tribe and its tributary tribe the Niantics, both of whom lived in the area. Early land purchases in the Narragansett Country were effected by settlers after the establishment of Indian trading posts at Fort Neck in Charlestown, and at "Smith's Castle" in

Wickford Wickford is a town and civil parish in the south of the English county of Essex, with a population of 33,486. Located approximately 30 miles (50 km) east of London, it is within the Borough of Basildon along with the original town of Basil ...

. A series of conflicts involving the Manisseans on

Block Island Block Island is an island in the U.S. state of Rhode Island located in Block Island Sound approximately south of the mainland and east of Montauk Point, Long Island, New York, named after Dutch explorer Adriaen Block. It is part of Washingt ...

gave that island to the

Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around the Massachusetts Bay, the northernmost of the several colonies later reorganized as the ...

for a number of years, before being transferred to the Rhode Island Colony under Newport County, and then finally to Washington County in 1959. The borders of the Narragansett country were disputed for nearly 100 years among the colonies of Rhode Island,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, and

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. The Narragansetts had pledged their fealty to King Charles, and the area was known as "The King's Province" and was placed under the authority of Rhode Island "until the King's pleasure was further known". In 1664, a royal commission under Charles II stepped in to adjudicate these conflicting claims. The commission extinguished the claims of Massachusetts, and Rhode Island was granted jurisdiction until the commission finished processing Connecticut's appeals, which were not ended until 1726. Settlements of King's Province were named to reflect the

English Restoration The Restoration of the Stuart monarchy in the kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland took place in 1660 when King Charles II returned from exile in continental Europe. The preceding period of the Protectorate and the civil wars came to be ...

, in honor of King Charles II. Towns reflecting this history include the two Kingstowns and Charlestown, as well as the villages of Kingston and West Kingston. Washington County is also known in Rhode Island as "South County", though some definitions of South County include outside towns, such as

East Greenwich East Greenwich is a town and the county seat of Kent County, Rhode Island. The population was 14,312 at the 2020 census. East Greenwich is the wealthiest municipality within the state of Rhode Island. It is part of the Providence metropolitan st ...

in neighboring Kent County, and exclude towns within Washington County, such as New Shoreham.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (41%) is water. It is the largest county in Rhode Island by total area. The county's

topography Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the land forms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sci ...

ranges from flat along the shoreline to gently rolling hills farther inland. The highest point is a large area approximately 560 feet (171 m) above sea level in the Exeter neighborhood of Black Plain; the lowest point is sea level along the coast. The northern boundary west of Davisville is approximately 41.60°N. The western boundary north of Westerly is approximately 71.79°W.

National protected areas

* Block Island National Wildlife Refuge * John H. Chafee National Wildlife Refuge *

Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge The Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge is a National Wildlife Refuge situated along the shore of Ninigret Pond. It is characterized by salt marshes, kettle ponds, freshwater wetlands, maritime shrub lands, and forests, and it is seasonally inhabit ...

Trustom Pond National Wildlife Refuge Trustom Pond is a closed lagoon in South Kingstown, Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. It is one of nine coastal lagoons (referred to as "salt ponds" by locals) in southern Rhode Island. It has a surface area of , and is the only unde ...

Major Highways

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Demographics

As of the

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

, there were 126,979 people, 49,177 households, and 32,297 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 62,206 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.8% white, 1.6% Asian, 1.2% black or African American, 0.9% American Indian, 0.7% from other races, and 1.8% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 2.4% of the population. The largest ancestry groups were: * 27.8% Irish * 21.4% Italian * 19.9% English * 11.4% French * 10.8% German * 4.9% Portuguese * 4.8% Polish * 4.3% French Canadian * 3.5% Scottish * 2.9% Swedish * 2.7% American * 2.5% Scotch-Irish * 1.4% Russian Of the 49,177 households, 28.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.2% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 34.3% were non-families, and 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.95. The median age was 42.3 years. The median income for a household in the county was $70,285 and the median income for a family was $87,999. Males had a median income of $59,598 versus $44,851 for females. The per capita income for the county was $34,737. About 3.4% of families and 7.4% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 6.3% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Towns

* Charlestown *

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

* Hopkinton * Narragansett * New Shoreham *

North Kingstown North Kingstown is a town in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States, and is part of the Providence metropolitan area. The population was 27,732 in the 2020 census. North Kingstown is home to the birthplace of American portraitist Gilbe ...

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

South Kingstown South Kingstown is a town in, and the county seat of, Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 31,931 at the 2020 census. South Kingstown is the second largest town in Rhode Island by total geographic area, behind New ...

(traditional county seat) * Westerly

Census-designated places

* Ashaway *

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

* Carolina * Charlestown * Hope Valley * Hopkinton * Kingston *

Misquamicut Misquamicut State Beach is a seaside public recreation area in the town of Westerly, Rhode Island. It occupies a portion of Misquamicut Beach, a barrier island that extends westward from Weekapaug to Watch Hill and separates Winnapaug Pond fro ...

Narragansett Pier Narragansett Pier is an unincorporated village and a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Narragansett in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 3,409 at the 2010 census. Geography Narragansett Pier is locate ...

Quonochontaug Quonochontaug is a village in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. It is composed of three small beach communities, and is part of Charlestown. Geography Quonochontaug is located between the Ninigret Pond and Quonochontaug Pond and t ...

* Wakefield-Peacedale * Watch Hill * Weekapaug * Westerly *

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

Other villages

Alton Alton may refer to: People *Alton (given name) *Alton (surname) Places Australia *Alton National Park, Queensland * Alton, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Balonne Canada * Alton, Ontario *Alton, Nova Scotia New Zealand * Alton, New Zealand, ...

Arcadia Arcadia may refer to: Places Australia * Arcadia, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney * Arcadia, Queensland * Arcadia, Victoria Greece * Arcadia (region), a region in the central Peloponnese * Arcadia (regional unit), a modern administrative un ...

* Ashaway * Barberville *

Bethel Bethel ( he, בֵּית אֵל, translit=Bēṯ 'Ēl, "House of El" or "House of God",Bleeker and Widegren, 1988, p. 257. also transliterated ''Beth El'', ''Beth-El'', ''Beit El''; el, Βαιθήλ; la, Bethel) was an ancient Israelite sanct ...

* Burdickville *

Canonchet Canonchet (or Cononchet or Quanonchet, died April 3, 1676) was a Narragansett Sachem and leader of Native American troops during the Great Swamp Fight and King Philip's War. He was a son of Miantonomo. Canonchet was a leader of the separatist N ...

* Centerville * Davisville *

Galilee Galilee (; he, הַגָּלִיל, hagGālīl; ar, الجليل, al-jalīl) is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part, divided into Upper Galilee (, ; , ) and Lower Galil ...

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

* Hopkinton City *

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

Kenyon Kenyon may refer to: Names * Kenyon (given name) * Kenyon (surname) Places * Kenyon, Cheshire, United Kingdom, a village * Kenyon, Minnesota, United States, a city * Kenyon, Rhode Island, United States, a village * Kenyon, former name of Pineridg ...

Lafayette Lafayette or La Fayette may refer to: People * Lafayette (name), a list of people with the surname Lafayette or La Fayette or the given name Lafayette * House of La Fayette, a French noble family ** Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757� ...

* Locustville * Matunuck *

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

* Peace Dale *

Point Judith Point Judith is a village and a small Cape (geography), cape, on the coast of Narragansett, Rhode Island, on the western side of Narragansett Bay where it opens out onto Rhode Island Sound. It is the location for the year-round ferry service that ...

* Rockville *

Saunderstown Saunderstown is a small village and historic district in the towns of Narragansett and North Kingstown in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. Saunderstown has its own post office with the ZIP Code of 02874, which also includes a sma ...

* Shannock * Shelter Harbor * Slocum * South Hopkinton * Usquepaug *

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

* West Kingston * White Rock *

* Wood River Junction * Woodville