Potowomut, Rhode Island
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Potowomut is an isolated neighborhood and a peninsula in
Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...
,
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 ...
. It is bordered by the Town of
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 ...
to the northwest, and by North Kingstown to the southeast. Greenwich Bay surrounds all other sides. Potowomut's name translates to "land of fires", the Narragansett Indian name for the neck of land.


History

It was originally a village in the Warwick Township of Kent County. It can be called an
exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...
, since there is no overland connection to the rest of the city of Warwick. Potowomut is often mistakenly thought to be part of the Town of East Greenwich because it shares the same ZIP code as all of East Greenwich and because East Greenwich is the preferred place name for postal purposes.
Nathanael Greene Nathanael Greene (June 19, 1786, sometimes misspelled Nathaniel) was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. He emerged from the war with a reputation as General George Washington's most talented and dependabl ...
, a general in the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
was born here on
Forge Farm Forge Farm is an historic farm in Warwick, Rhode Island. Established in the mid-17th century by the Greene family, it is one of the oldest farms in Rhode Island. It was the birthplace of General Nathanael Greene, a prominent American general in ...
in 1742. When Warwick was settled, in the seventeenth century, travel by sea was often more convenient than travel over land. Thus, Potowomut's location would have allowed relatively easy travel across Greenwich Bay to Warwick Neck or Buttonwoods. In the 1680s, the first white settlers arrived with James Greene at what came to be known as Greene's River. Here, his son, Jabez, built a dam and a mill, later; his descendants established an anchor forge, now located at the foot of Old Forge Road. The Greene family mainly used the land to raise cattle and harvest hay, which was then shipped across Greenwich Bay to the wharf in
Apponaug, Rhode Island Apponaug is a neighborhood in central Warwick, Rhode Island, United States, situated on Apponaug Cove, a tributary to Greenwich Bay and nearby Narragansett Bay. The name Apponaug is a derivation of the Narragansett Indian word for "place of oys ...
. Upon James' death, the property passed to his son Richard. A fondness for lavish hospitality and fancy living plunged Richard Greene into deep debt.


Geography

To visit Potowomut by land, one must leave the City of Warwick. The most common route follows
US 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 ...
(Post Rd.), and entering East Greenwich, takes Forge Road.


Emergency services

Potowomut's Fire Fighting services were for a long time provided by the town of East Greenwich for a yearly fee. In December 2015, the City of Warwick opened a new fire station and the Warwick Fire Department assumed responsibility for providing Fire and EMS protection to the area. WFD Fire Station 10 houses Engine Co. 10. The station is affectionately known as "The Outpost" due to its seclusion from the rest of the Dept. Police Services are provided by the Warwick Police Department.http://www.warwickpd.org/


Features and attractions

Today, Potowomut is a reminder of Warwick's past. The peninsula's eastern tip gives a view of Greenwich Bay. The narrow streets have a mix of older and newer houses. Some were originally beach houses, closed in the winter months, now converted to full-time residences. Unique to Potowomut is
Goddard Memorial State Park Goddard Memorial State Park is a public recreation area occupying along the shores of Greenwich Cove and Greenwich Bay in Warwick, Rhode Island. The state park grounds were once the estate of Civil War officer and Rhode Island politician Rober ...
. Goddard Park attracts thousands of visitors each year as Rhode Island's most popular metropolitan park. Its facilities include a 9-hole golf course designed by Donald Ross, a horse barn where the public can rent and ride horses, a beach with bathhouse, sprawling open fields, and a carousel building for functions. Located next to the park is Potowomut Golf Club, a private club. Potowomut is a peninsula on Narragansett Bay which can only be accessed via East Greenwich and/or the town of North Kingstown, only East Greenwich has municipal sewer lines (North Kingstown is in the process of putting them in along Post Road and part of Camp Avenue only). Potowomut cannot be accessed regarding a municipal sewer line due to geography. The city has attempted numerous times to reach a viable agreement with both towns which would enable it to access either of both municipal sewer lines, upon a viable agreement. Potowomut, located on the Narragansett Bay, consists of multiple residential neighborhoods resulting in a catalyst of sewage over-spill into Narragansett Bay. There is no solution at this time.


References

{{authority control Populated places in Kent County, Rhode Island Warwick, Rhode Island Neighborhoods in Rhode Island Peninsulas of Rhode Island Landforms of Washington County, Rhode Island Populated coastal places in Rhode Island