NOTE: This post is dedicated to my late mother and father and their hometown. I traveled to Providence, Rhode Island exactly 5 months after my mother died and exactly 60 year after she graduated from St. Francis Xavier all girls’ high school in the city.When I was growing up in Florida, my parents, both natives of Providence, spoke of their hometown with a mixture of pride and scorn. On the one hand, they always told me it was far more sophisticated and educated than my birthplace of 1960s-era Orlando, which, of course, it was. On the other hand, my parents moved to Florida in 1959 because of the harsh New England winters and, more importantly, because they believed at the time that their home state and hometown had seen their respective last good days. Despite my parents’ worst fears, a recent visit confirmed for me that Rhode Island and Providence are alive and well as one of best parts of any visit to New England. The Ocean State and its capital offer a great variety of historical sites, scenery, beaches, sophisticated dining, sightseeing and culture.
On my most recent visit, I am standing on a hill near the campus of one of the Ivy League's oldest and most prestigious members, Brown University, looking out over downtown Providence and the Rhode Island Statehouse. I have never lived in this little corner of southern New England, so any connection for me is ancestral and in my mind only. Yet, from this vantage point, I am happy to report that Rhode Island has proven my parents wrong.
As most people know, Rhode Island is the smallest state in the union. It weighs in at just a little north of 1200 square miles, and has a population of just slightly more than 1 million. Among the facts people may not know: its official name is the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations (the name of two predecessor colonies); it was the first of the original 13 colonies to declare independence from England a couple of months before July 4, 1776; and it was the last colony to ratify the U.S. Constitution following the Revolution to become the 13th state.
DIVINE PROVIDENCE: Modern-day Providence and Rhode Island were inhabited by Native Americans for centuries before a protestant theologian, Roger Williams, founded a colony on the site in 1636. Williams, an early advocate of the separation of church and state (guess he won’t be showing up in any Texas schoolbooks), fled to the head of Narragansett Bay after being chased out of neighboring, Puritan-controlled Massachusetts Bay Colony for his radical religious views. He named the settlement in honor of God’s divine providence for delivering him from his troubles and, two years later, founded the First Baptist Church in America. From its inception, Rhode Island always has hewed to a “to each his own” mindset about religious tolerance and other matters, which continues to this day. In the decades following revolution and statehood, Providence became one of the most important and prosperous industrial centers of New England, growing rich and poor in turns as it moved from slave trading to whaling to jewelry and other manufacturing. Later, during the middle part of the 20th century, Providence fell into a deep decline, became a major center of organized crime, and many left the city for dead, including my parents. Beginning in the 1980s, a former mayor who later spent time in prison (not such an anomaly here) helped launch a renaissance that continues to this day.
In its modern form, Providence is a visitor-friendly and compact city of less than 200,000 at the center of an MSA area of 1.6 million, which includes a large chunk of neighboring Massachusetts. Much of what a visitor would want to see and do is within easy walking distance of the city’s central core. Sitting less than 50 miles from the Massachusetts statehouse on Beacon Hill, Providence also is a commuter town for Boston and a major stop on the 1-95 megalopolis between Beantown and the Big Apple. Despite its size, location and public transit options, having a car is essential to exploring all of the city’s attractions and the rest of Rhode Island.
THREE KEYS: In addition to serving as Rhode Island’s seat of government, Providence is home to several renowned institutions of higher learning, including well-respected Providence College and Bryant University in nearby Smithfield. But, three institutions in particular have shaped Providence’s development over time and, more recently, helped lead the way in the city’s transformation and rebirth. The happy and creative result has been a constant and ever-expanding wealth of great minds, great artists and great chefs, all sticking around to make their way in Providence.
Of course, Brown brings to town each academic year some of the nation’s brightest minds. Adjacent to the Brown campus is one of America’s premier art schools and another of Providence's three keys, the Rhode Island School of Design. RISD grads have gone on to fortune and fame in many areas of the arts, including the creator of the “Family Guy.” For visitors, however, the benefits of the school’s presence and its local alums are tangible and close at hand. First, several RISD grads operate galleries in the city, so there’s a number of places to view student and alumni art. Second, RISD runs one of the best art museums in all of New England. With a stylish and newly expanded exhibition space, the RISD Museum showcases student works, a host of classics and Impressionists, period Colonial furnishings and art, and more. In addition, Providence is home to the original Johnson & Wales University campus, the third key. This top-notch culinary school churns out a steady flow of newly minted chefs, many of whom end up working their creative magic in Providence, all to the benefit of residents and visitors alike.
WHERE TO STAY AND WHAT TO DO: If you are visiting Rhode Island, Providence warrants at least one night’s stay before heading on. In addition to its historical and architectural charms, downtown is perfectly located between the Federalist mansions and funky college vibe of the Brown/RISD College Hill neighborhood to the east and the Italian heart of Providence, Federal Hill, which sits just to the west of downtown. Central Providence has a number of lodging options, including a Westin and a Marriott. In addition, after years of sitting derelict, the grande dame of Providence hotels, the Biltmore, reopened to its former glory, but with WIFI sensibilities. Another local option is the Hotel Providence, a stylish, GLBT-friendly boutique property.
On my recent visit, I park my rental car in the garage adjacent to Providence Place, a downtown mall featuring Nordstrom, Macy’s and the usual mall suspects. Yes, it’s a mall, but Providence has managed to attract suburban shoppers in a way that doesn’t hide the fact that you are not in the 'burbs. It's an easy and relatively cheap place to drop the car and begin your exploration.
When my parents were newlyweds, my dad was a Providence cop and I never forgot the street names he used to recite: Weybosset, Westminister, Dorrance and Fountain. So, I walk the streets of downtown Providence on this warm summer day as my dad would have, except he would have been wearing a badge more than 50 years ago. I walk from the mall up the hill to the Statehouse, which has great views over town, past several beautiful 19th century office buildings, and on to the imposing local headquarters of Bank of America on Kennedy Plaza, which started out life in my parents’ youth as the headquarters of the Rhode Island Hospital Trust National Bank (a great bank name, if ever there was one).
From there, I make my way to the previously paved-over Providence River, a diminutive stream that today is the site of Waterfire, a regular, Venetian-style parade on water of mini-bonfires. Looking for a bite to eat, I head west and first stumble on a rare treat of a different sort, a local bookstore. Symposium Books seems to stock just what its owners, employees and devotees want and nothing else. You know you’re not just anywhere when you’re here. Next door is Tazza Café, a friendly place where I enjoy a delicious prosciutto and dried fig Panini.
Back up on College Hill, Thayer Street is the main drag of the Brown/RISD area. There are bookstores and cafes and cheap but filling places to eat. Heading west, and for another authentically Providence experience, I stop by Federal Hill, the historical and spiritual home of the city’s Italian community. This is where you go to feast on some of the best pasta and cannolis in all of New England.
To be sure, Providence has some fabulous, fine-dining options, including the original Capital Grille location and the Agora at the Westin. A perennial favorite on Federal Hill is Camille’s, a place my parents raved about more than a half century ago. Whether brand new or admired by generations past and present, Providence is a great place to satisfy your palette. Ask around when you're in town and, no doubt, you will get several good local suggestions for a great meal.
THE REST OF THE OCEAN STATE: Of course, there is more to Rhode Island than its capital. Despite its tiny size, Rhode Island boasts miles of beaches along with other historic towns and sites. During my most recent visit, my friend and I settle on a drive down the eastern shore of Narragansett Bay through the tidy, prosperous towns of Barrington, Warren and Bristol. It’s a scenic, nautical slice of New England.
Our destination is Newport, the gilded-age second city of Rhode Island. Founded a few years after Providence, Newport’s claim to fame has been its status as a sailing capital, site of the U.S. Naval War College and, perhaps most famously, all those amazing mansions of a bygone era. We arrive in Newport and ditch the car for lunch near Bannister’s Wharf. After a leisurely meal of lobster and wine, we make our way to the Breakers, the grande dame of Newport mansions. As most travelers know, Newport was, for a brief moment in history, THE place where wealthy industrialists and others not yet burdened by modern sensibilities and a tax code built their summer “cottages.” Today, visitors can experience what life might have been like during one of the period’s summer seasons. The Breakers, along with the other visitor-accessed mansions of Newport, are managed by the Preservation Society of Newport County. In addition to the Breakers, we also tour Rosecliff, scene of the filming of the “Great Gatsby," and make our way along the Cliff Walk, a pedestrian path that hugs the rocky coastline behind the mansions and puts you inches from the pounding waves of the Atlantic. Note, two mansions per visit is more than enough; we found a good deal in the "Breakers plus one" ticket option, which allows you to tour the Breakers plus one other mansion of your choice for $24.
After a full day of exploring the Ocean State, we return to Boston for a night out, glad that my friend has experienced a real slice of Rhode Island. I feel like I have just introduced her to a beautiful, interesting and complicated relative.
MY RULES: Providence and all of southern New England are well served by the user-friendly Theodore Francis Green Airport. A Southwest hub, it satisfies my first rule of cheap, non-stop flights from home base in Baltimore.
As to my second rule regarding GLBT friendliness, Providence seems a fairly open and tolerant city with several gay bars and even an openly gay mayor. Nevertheless, Rhode Island is in the minority of New England states without marriage equality, so spend your dollars wisely until that changes.
