Westerly is a town on the southwestern shoreline of Washington County,

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 ...

, first settled by English colonists in 1661 and incorporated as a municipality in 1669. It is a beachfront community on the south shore of the state with a population of 23,359 as of the 2020 census. The

Pawcatuck River The Pawcatuck River is a river in the US states of Rhode Island and Connecticut flowing approximately .U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 There are eight dam ...

flows on the western border of Westerly and was once renowned for its own species of Westerly salmon, three of which are on the town's official seal. The river flows from inland, emptying into Little Narragansett Bay. It also serves as the boundary between Westerly and

Pawcatuck, Connecticut Pawcatuck is a village and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Stonington which is located in New London County, Connecticut. The population was 5,624 at the 2010 census. It is located across the Pawcatuck River from Downtown Westerly, ...

. Three large salt ponds lie along the coast of Westerly which serve as shallow, reef-like pools whose outer walls form the long, white beaches for which the town is renowned. From west to east, these ponds are Maschaug Pond,

Winnapaug Pond Winnapaug Pond (also known as Brightman Pond) is a breached saltwater lagoon in Westerly, Rhode Island, United States, connected to Block Island Sound by the Weekapaug Breachway, which was constructed during the mid-1950s. The lake is separated f ...

, and

Quonochontaug Pond Quonochontaug is a coastal lagoon in the towns of Charlestown and Westerly, both in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. It is the most saline of nine such lagoons (often referred to as "salt ponds") in southern Rhode Island. Geogra ...

. The Westerly area was known for its granite and stone-cutting industry, which quarried a unique stone known as Westerly granite. This pinkish granite is ideal for statuary and has been used in numerous government buildings of several states on the eastern seaboard. Westerly becomes a popular tourist destination during the summer months when the population nearly doubles. Its well-known beaches include Weekapaug Beach, Westerly Town Beach,

Misquamicut State Beach 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 ...

, East Beach, and Watch Hill Beach.

History

Westerly's primary industries today are textiles and tourism, but the town was historically famous for its

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

, quarried in

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 ...

and Potter Hill. Westerly was probably named for the settlement's location respective to Rhode Island's geography, being the westernmost town in the state. But there is also a possibility that the town got its name from the English village of Westerleigh, in the county of

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

. The English village was the home of one of Westerly's founding fathers Elder John Crandall (–1676). Crandall settled in Westerly in 1661, and the early history of Westerly contains many references to him and his sons. The four trolley lines of the Groton and Stonington Street Railway, Norwich and Westerly Railway, Pawtucket Valley Street Railway, and the Ashaway and Westerly Railway converged in Westerly and shared track between the railroad station and Dixon House Square downtown. The lines were built in the 1890s and 1900s and ran until the 1920s. Physician,

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

general, and Rhode Island Supreme Court justice Dr. Joshua Babcock was born in Westerly, as was Chief Justice and Governor of Rhode Island Samuel Ward.

Tropical cyclones

Due to its location, Westerly is vulnerable to tropical storms and hurricanes. Westerly was devastated in 1938, 1944, and 1954 by several major hurricanes. In 2012,

Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as ''Superstorm Sandy'') was an extremely destructive and strong Atlantic hurricane, as well as the largest Atlantic hurricane on record as measured by diameter, with tropical-storm-force winds spann ...

left beaches along the Westerly shoreline devastated and nearly unrecognizable, including Misquamicut. Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee stated that Misquamicut was "our New Jersey," referring to the amount of damage that was received in the state of New Jersey. In 2021,

Tropical Storm Henri The name Henri has been used for six tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean: *Hurricane Henri (1979), took unusual route around Yucatán Peninsula, caused no significant damage * Tropical Storm Henri (1985), crossed Long Island as a weak storm, ...

made landfall in Westerly, causing significant damage and power outages.

Geography

According to the

United States 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 town has a total area of 74.8 square miles (193.8 km²), of which, 30.1 square miles (77.9 km²) of it is land and 44.7 square miles (115.8 km²) of it (59.78%) is water. Westerly sits atop a glacial

moraine A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a glacier or ice shee ...

, a series of small hills of debris left behind by receding

glaciers A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...

in the last Ice Age. A pristine sample of the moraine encompasses a preserve owned in perpetuity by the Westerly Land Trust. Within the trust land are the rare

kettle A kettle, sometimes called a tea kettle or teakettle, is a type of pot specialized for boiling water, commonly with a ''lid'', ''spout'', and ''handle'', or a small electric kitchen appliance of similar shape that functions in a self-contained ...

formations that extend out under the sea to

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 ...

Climate

Westerly has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

''Cfa'') according to most recent temperature averages.

Villages

Westerly consists of a number of small villages. Downtown Westerly on the Pawcatuck River is the municipal seat of the area, with the old town post office, library, YMCA, railroad station, former police headquarters (the current headquarters is located on Airport Road), granite buildings, and Wilcox Park. Other villages include Avondale, with antique colonial-style and Queen Anne-style homes;

, with its own post office and postal code; Dunn's Corners; Mastuxet;

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 ...

, a beachfront community with small amounts of nightlife and several hotels; Potter Hill, where the Town Forest is located; Shelter Harbor; Watch Hill, with beaches and summer cottages; Weekapaug; White Rock; and Winnapaug, with public golf courses. The town holds a number of annual events, such as the Pawcatuck River Duck Race in April, Virtu Art Festival in May, Shakespeare in the Park and the Summer Pops (hosted by the

Chorus of Westerly The Chorus of Westerly is a 190-voice chorus based in Westerly, Rhode Island. It is one of the few choruses in the United States that has children singing alongside adults for every performance of its season (regardless of work or difficulty). Mem ...

) in June, and Riverglow in July. In recent years, the Westerly-Pawcatuck Chamber of Commerce's events have attracted many visitors, including big screen movies on the beach through July and August, Westerly's Columbus Day parade in October, and several beachfront events. Also, the Westerly-Pawcatuck Veterans Board of Control hold two of the oldest parades in the United States. The Memorial Day Parade started in 1867, held in May on Memorial Day, and the Veterans Day Parade started in 1917, held in November on the Saturday of Veterans Day week. The former granite mining and stone-cutting industry is historically important. Its quarries produced blue granite, in addition to pinks and reds. The

Smith Granite Company Smith Granite Company In 1845 Orlando Smith discovered a granite outcrop on the property owned by Joshua Babcock in Westerly, Rhode Island, and a year later purchased the site from him. He established a granite quarry shortly thereafter and by ...

employed many granite cutting craftsmen and was one of the town's major employers until the quarries stopped operating in the 1950s. Hundreds of examples of their work can be seen on the battlefields of Gettysburg and in city squares, municipal buildings, cemeteries throughout the United States, and even the

Georgia State Capitol The Georgia State Capitol is an architecturally and historically significant building in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The building has been named a National Historic Landmark which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. As t ...

. The Guild Guitar Company was founded in 1952 by Alfred Dronge in New York City. They moved production to Westerly in 1966 and continued to make their well-respected archtop, acoustic, and solid body guitars there until 2001, when they were bought by Fender Musical Instruments and production was moved to Corona, California.

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 22,966 people, 9,402 households, and 6,130 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 763.3 people per square mile (294.7/km²). There were 11,292 housing units at an average density of 375.3 per square mile (144.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.17%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 0.71%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.57% Native American, 1.99%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.34% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.22% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 1.18% of the population. There were 9,402 households, out of which 29.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.2% were married couples living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.8% were non-families. Of all households, 29.0% were made up of individuals, and 12.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.98. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.5% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 29.7% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $44,613, and the median income for a family was $53,165. Males had a median income of $37,887 versus $26,800 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the town was $24,092. About 4.3% of families and 6.7% 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 9.6% of those under age 18 and 6.6% of those age 65 or over. The most frequent ancestries among the town's population are Italian (34.2%), Irish (17.9%) and English (14.2%). Many Italians moved to Westerly from

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

around the start of the 20th century (particularly from

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

and

Calabria , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

), and Italian dialects are still spoken at the homes of many older residents.

Economy

Washington Trust Bancorp Inc., a publicly traded regional bank with operations in Rhode Island and Connecticut, is headquartered in Westerly.

Transportation

The

Westerly State Airport Westerly State Airport is a public use airport in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. It serves the town of Westerly and is located southeast of its central business district. It is primarily a general aviation airport, but there i ...

offers service by one commercial airline.

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

offers service between

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

and

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, stopping at the

Westerly station Westerly station is a passenger rail station on the Northeast Corridor located just north of downtown Westerly, Rhode Island. It is served by Amtrak's ''Northeast Regional''. Westerly is one of a small number of Amtrak stations (along with Myst ...

near downtown. The station itself was closed in October 2016, but passengers can still board and disembark at the platform. Westerly has

U.S. Route 1 U.S. Route 1 or U.S. Highway 1 (US 1) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway that serves the East Coast of the United States. It runs from Key West, Florida, north to Fort Kent, Maine, at the Canadian border, making i ...

and state routes 1A, 3, and 91.

Route 78 The following highways are numbered 78: International * AH78, Asian Highway 78 * European route E78 Australia * Waterfall Way- New South Wales State Route B78 China * G78 Shantou–Kunming Expressway, G78 Expressway Iran *Road 78 (Iran), Ro ...

forms a bypass around Westerly downtown and ends near Westerly Airport, with three interchanges in Rhode Island; the other endpoint is in

Stonington, Connecticut The town of Stonington is located in New London County, Connecticut in the state's southeastern corner. It includes the borough of Stonington (borough), Connecticut, Stonington, the villages of Pawcatuck, Connecticut, Pawcatuck, Lords Point, and W ...

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1, US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between M ...

is approximately 5 miles away and can be reached by

Connecticut Route 2 Route 2 is a state highway in Hartford and New London counties in Connecticut. It is a primary state route, with a limited-access freeway section connecting Hartford to Norwich and following surface roads to Stonington. The entire ...

and by

Rhode Island Route 3 Route 3 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Route 3 serves as a local alternative to Interstate 95 (I-95) as it parallels I-95 for almost its entire length. Route 3 in West Warwick was the site of The Station nightclub fire. ...

Points of interest

Westerly High School Westerly High School is a public high school located in Westerly, Rhode Island, United States. The school is part of Westerly Public Schools. History Various incarnations of a high school have been serving students in Westerly since shortly af ...

* Westerly Town Beach *

* Watch Hill * Westerly (Amtrak station) *

* Wilcox Park * Christopher Columbus Memorial statue by Charles H. Pizzano

National Historic Register sites

* Babcock-Smith House * Bradford Village Historic District, in Hopkinton and Westerly * Flying Horse Carousel *

Former Immaculate Conception Church The George Kent Performance Hall (known previously as the Immaculate Conception Church and the Westerly Center for the Arts) is a historic building in Westerly, Rhode Island. Description The building, a rectangular Carpenter Gothic structure, w ...

* Lewis-Card-Perry House * Main Street Historic District * North End Historic District *

Nursery Site, RI-273 The Nursery Site, RI-273 is a prehistoric archaeological site in Westerly, Rhode Island. Located near the Westerly Airport, this site has yielded evidence of Woodland Period stone tool work. The site was listed on the National Register of Histor ...

* Perry Homestead Historic District *

Ram Point Ram Point is a historic summer estate property at 77 Watch Hill Road in Westerly, Rhode Island. It is located at the head of an eponymous geographic features, which projects into the Pawcatuck River between downtown Westerly and the Watch Hill ...

* U.S. Post Office (Westerly, Rhode Island) * Watch Hill Historic District * Weekapaug Inn *

Westerly Armory The Westerly Armory is an historic United States National Guard, National Guard armory (military), armory building located on Railroad Avenue, west of downtown Westerly, Rhode Island. History The armory was built in 1901 to replace another destro ...

* Westerly Downtown Historic District * Wilcox Park Historic District

Notable people

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Towns in Washington County, Rhode Island Populated coastal places in Rhode Island Italian-American culture in Rhode Island 1669 establishments in Rhode Island Towns in Rhode Island