Tiverton, Rhode Island
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This is for the town, for the census designated place, see Tiverton (CDP), Rhode Island
Tiverton is a town in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 15,260 at the 2000 census.
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[edit] Geography
Tiverton stands on the eastern shore of Narragansett Bay, opposite the northern end of Rhode Island proper, meaning the largest island in the said bay, which has leant its name to the state as a whole. The channel separating this island from the mainland, Sakonnet River, narrows to a width of half a mile or less, near Tiverton. According to the United States Census Bureau, Tiverton has a total area of 94.1 km² (36.3 mi²), of which 76.0 km² (29.4 mi²) is land and 18.0 km² (7.0 mi²; 19.16%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 15,260 people, 6,077 households, and 4,405 families residing in the town. The population density was 200.7/km² (519.8/mi²). There were 6,474 housing units at an average density of 85.1/km² (220.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.98% White, 0.43% Black or African American, 0.17% Native American, 0.39% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.22% from other races, and 0.79% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.68% of the population.
There were 6,077 households out of which 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.2% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.5% were non-families. 23.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.95.
The age distribution of the population of Tiverton was 22.1% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18–24, 29.0% from 25–44, 26.6% from 45-64, and 16.5% 65 years older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males aged 18 or more.
The median income for a household in the town was $49,977, and the median income for a family was $58,917. Males had a median income of $41,042 versus $29,217 for females. The per capita income for the town was $22,866. About 2.9% of families and 4.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.7% of those under age 18 and 9.1% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] History
Tiverton was originally incorporated in 1694, as part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. In 1746, in the final settlement of a long colonial boundary dispute between Rhode Island and Massachusetts, Tiverton was annexed to Rhode Island by Royal Decree (together with its fellow towns along the eastern shore of Narragansett Bay, Barrington, Bristol and Little Compton, and the town of Cumberland, to the north of Providence). Tiverton was then incorporated as a town of Rhode Island, in 1747. Until that same year, Tiverton controlled the area of East Freetown, Massachusetts, as an outpost. The boundary settlement of 1746 had put East Freetown in Massachusetts, and in 1747 it was purchased by Freetown, Massachusetts.
Men from that erstwhile Tiverton outpost took part in the Battle of Freetown, on May 25, 1778, during the Revolutionary War. For about three years of that war, December 1776 – late 1779, Rhode Island proper (also known as Aquidneck Island, historically) was occupied by the British. During this time, Tiverton was a refuge for Americans fleeing this occupation, and a mustering place for Colonial forces, gathering to drive away the British. (The occupying forces eventually were withdrawn strategically, as General Clinton marshalled his forces for the 1780 British invasion of South Carolina.[1])
In its early days, Tiverton was chiefly a farming community with some fishing and boat construction. Until 1900 the manufacture of menhaden oil, a fish derivative, was one of the primary industrial pursuits. Cotton and woolen mills were established as early as 1827. As of 2006, trade establishments are the major employers in the town. Recent years have seen Tiverton grow as a summer resort and residential area. New development has been concentrated in the area known as North Tiverton, adjacent to Fall River, Massachusetts.
[edit] Famous Tivertonians
- Robert Gray, merchant sea-captain and explorer
- Paul Di Filippo science fiction author
[edit] Notes
- ^ McEvedy, p.62
[edit] References
- McEvedy, Colin (1988). The Penguin Atlas of North American History to 1870. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-051128-8.
[edit] External links
The Environmental Neighborhood Awareness Committee of Tiverton
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