Misplaced Pages

City of Warwick
City
Warwick City Hall, Brush Neck Cove, the Caleb Greene House, and T. F. Green Airport
Seal
Location in Kent County, Rhode Island
Coordinates: 41°43′N 71°25′W / 41.717°N 71.417°W / 41.717; -71.417
Country	United States
State	Rhode Island
County	Kent
Founded	1642
Incorporated (town)	August 8, 1647
Incorporated (city)	April 21, 1931
Named for	Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick
Government
• Type	Mayor-council
• Mayor	Frank Picozzi (I)
• City Council	William Foley (D) Jeremy M. Rix (D) Timothy Howe (D) Jim McElroy (D) Edgar N. Ladouceur (D) Donna M. Travis (D) Steven McAllister (D) Anthony Sinapi (D) Vincent Gebhart (D)
Area
• Total	49.75 sq mi (128.85 km)
• Land	35.00 sq mi (90.65 km)
• Water	14.75 sq mi (38.20 km)
Elevation	20 ft (6 m)
Population
• Total	82,823
• Density	2,366.30/sq mi (913.64/km)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (Eastern)
ZIP Codes	02886, 02888–02889
Area code	401
FIPS code	44-74300
GNIS feature ID	1220018
Website	www.warwickri.gov

Warwick (/ˈwɒrɪk/ WORR-ik or /ˈwɔːrwɪk/ WOR-wik) is a city in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States, and is the third-largest city in the state, with a population of 82,823 at the 2020 census. Warwick is located approximately 12 miles (19 km) south of downtown Providence, Rhode Island, 63 miles (101 km) southwest of Boston, Massachusetts, and 171 miles (275 km) northeast of New York City.

Warwick was founded by Samuel Gorton in 1642 and has witnessed major events in American history. It was decimated during King Philip's War (1675–1676) and was the site of the Gaspee Affair, the first act of armed resistance against the British, preceding even the Boston Tea Party, and a significant prelude to the American Revolution. Warwick was also the home of Revolutionary War General Nathanael Greene, George Washington's second-in-command, and Civil War General George S. Greene, a hero of the Battle of Gettysburg.

Today, it is home to Rhode Island's main airport, T. F. Green Airport, which serves the Providence area and also functions as a reliever for Logan International Airport in Boston, Massachusetts. Warwick was also home to Rocky Point, which closed in 1995 and is now a state park.

Early history

Warwick was settled by Samuel Gorton in 1642. Narragansett Sachem Miantonomi sold him the Shawhomett Purchase for 144 fathoms of wampum. This included the towns of Coventry and West Warwick, Rhode Island. However, Sachems Sacononoco and Pumham claimed that Miantonomi had sold the land without asking for their approval. They took their case to Boston, where they placed their lands under Massachusetts rule. In 1643, Massachusetts Bay Colony sent a militia force to Shawomett to arrest Gorton and his followers. After a tense standoff, all but three of the Gortonists surrendered to the Massachusetts forces. Gorton then sailed back to England and sought a charter from the King. He was greatly assisted in gaining it by Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick, so Gorton and his fellow settlers changed the name of their colony from Shawumet to Warwick.

The ongoing harassment from Massachusetts Bay Colony, however, caused the other three colonies on Narragansett Bay (Providence Plantations, Portsmouth, and Newport) to unite with Warwick and get a British royal charter allowing them to form the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.

In 1772, Warwick was the scene of the first violent act against the British Crown in the Gaspee Affair. Local patriots boarded the Gaspee, a revenue cutter that enforced the Stamp Act 1765 and Townshend Acts in Narragansett Bay. It was here that the first blood was spilled in the American Revolution when Gaspee's commanding officer Lt. Dudingston was shot and seriously wounded during the struggle for the ship. The Gaspee was stripped of all cannons and arms, then burned.

During the Revolution, Warwick militiamen participated in the battles of Montreal, Quebec, Saratoga, Monmouth, and Trenton, and they were present for the British surrender at Yorktown in 1781.

Transportation

Major traversing highways include:

• Interstate 95
• Interstate 295
• Route 37
• T. F. Green Airport Connector Road

Interstate 95 is the major thoroughfare of Rhode Island, with the first southbound exit in Warwick at Jefferson Boulevard, and ending with the Route 117 interchange, near the Apponaug rotaries. Interstate 295 connects to the main highway at exit 27, providing direct travel to Woonsocket and Massachusetts. Smaller routes include Route 37 (Lincoln Avenue Freeway) connecting 295 to U.S. Route 1, and the Airport Connector Road.

The Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport is the main airport serving Rhode Island, and is located in Warwick. The name was changed from T.F. Green Airport in 2021. T. F. Green Airport is a station on the Providence/Stoughton Commuter Rail Line, providing weekday service to Providence Station and Boston's South Station.

Climate

Geography

Warwick is located at 41°43′N 71°25′W / 41.717°N 71.417°W / 41.717; -71.417 (41.7181, −71.4152).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 49.6 square miles (128 km), of which 35.5 square miles (92 km) is land and 14.1 square miles (37 km) (28.46%) is water. Warwick's entire eastern edge is waterfront, starting with the Providence River at its northern border with Cranston. Conimicut Point marks the end of the river and the beginning of Narragansett Bay, which extends beyond the city's southern limit on its way to the Atlantic Ocean; two southern Warwick peninsulas, Warwick Neck and Potowomut, enclose the water to form Greenwich Bay.

Warwick is bordered by Cranston to the north, West Warwick to the west, and East Greenwich to the south. The city's southernmost neighborhood, Potowomut, is a semi-exclave, reachable by land only by passing through East Greenwich; through Potowomut, Warwick also shares a border with North Kingstown. Because of the North Kingstown border, Warwick borders two Rhode Island counties: Providence County and Washington County.

The following villages are located in Warwick:

• Apponaug
• Arnold's Neck
• Brush Neck Cove
• Buttonwoods
• Cedar Tree Point
• Chepiwanoxet
• Coles
• Conimicut
• Cowesett
• Duby Grove
• East Natick
• Gaspee Point
• Greenwood
• Governor Francis Farms
• Hillsgrove
• Hoxsie
• Lakewood
• Lincoln Park
• Nausauket
• Natick
• Norwood
• Oakland Beach
• Old Buttonwoods
• Pawtuxet Village (also in Cranston)
• Pocasset
• Pontiac (also in Cranston)
• Potowomut
• Riverview
• Shawomet
• Warwick Neck
• Wildes Corner

Demographics

Warwick is officially a part of the Providence metropolitan area, which has a population of 1,600,852 in the 2010 census.

2020 census

The 2020 United States census counted 82,823 people, 36,555 households, and 21,150 families in Warwick. The population density was 2,366.3 inhabitants per square mile (913.6/km). There were 38,625 housing units at an average density of 1,103.5 per square mile (426.1/km). The racial makeup was 85.69% (70,967) white or European American (84.28% non-Hispanic white), 2.11% (1,751) black or African-American, 0.3% (252) Native American or Alaska Native, 3.11% (2,575) Asian, 0.02% (13) Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian, 2.58% (2,138) from other races, and 6.19% (5,127) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race was 6.06% (5,019) of the population.

Of the 36,555 households, 22.5% had children under the age of 18; 42.6% were married couples living together; 30.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 33.8% of households consisted of individuals and 16.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.3 and the average family size was 2.9. The percent of those with a bachelor’s degree or higher was estimated to be 25.3% of the population.

16.9% of the population was under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 29.4% from 45 to 64, and 21.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46.0 years. For every 100 females, the population had 108.6 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 112.4 males.

The 2016-2020 5-year American Community Survey estimates show that the median household income was $73,285 (with a margin of error of +/- $2,534) and the median family income was $90,027 (+/- $4,102). Males had a median income of $51,057 (+/- $1,899) versus $39,959 (+/- $1,627) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $44,491 (+/- $1,873). Approximately, 3.8% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.0% of those under the age of 18 and 9.2% of those ages 65 or over.

Government

Warwick is split into three districts in the Rhode Island Senate which are currently held by Democrats Michael McCaffrey (District 29), Jeanine Calkin (District 30), and Kendra Anderson (District 31). The town is a part of Rhode Island's 2nd congressional district, which is currently represented by Democrat Seth Magaziner. It is traditionally Democratic in presidential elections; no Republican has carried it in over three decades.

Economy

It is considered part of the Pawtuxet River Valley  [Wikidata]. Before its dissolution, Eckerd Corporation had its headquarters in Warwick.

The ten largest employers in Warwick are Kent Memorial Hospital, Citizens Bank- Warwick Call Center, UPS, MetLife, City of Warwick, Leviton Manufacturing, Wal-Mart, Community College of Rhode Island, J.C. Penney, Kenney Manufacturing, and Inskip Automall.

Notable people

• Bill Almon, MLB player who attended Warwick Veterans Memorial High School
• Rocco Baldelli, MLB player and Minnesota Twins manager who attended Bishop Hendricken High School
• John Belluso, playwright
• Brenda Bennett, musician and former member of Vanity 6, born in Warwick
• Clarence Otis Bigelow, pharmacist and banker
• John Brown, American merchant and participant in the Gaspee Affair; Brown University is named for him
• Vanessa Carlton, musician
• Marnee Carpenter, actress
• Thomas Holden, American general and Rhode Island Supreme Court justice
• John Hynes, Head coach of the NHL Nashville Predators, born in Warwick
• Michaela McManus, actor, best known for roles on One Tree Hill and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, attended Toll Gate High School
• Martha McSally, Senator from Arizona (2019–2020), born and raised in Warwick
• Walt Mossberg, personal technology journalist and editor, born and raised in Warwick who attended Pilgrim High School
• Nolan North, voice actor who attended Bishop Hendricken High School
• Nicholas O'Neill (1985–2003), writer, actor, and musician best known as the youngest victim of The Station nightclub fire.
• David Petrarca, notable director of TV, film and theatre including Game of Thrones.
• Dave Shalansky, actor, attended Toll Gate High School
• Kyle Smith, Vice president of player personnel of the Atlanta Falcons
• Chris Terreri, NHL goalie attended Pilgrim High School
• Dan Wheeler, MLB pitcher attended Pilgrim High School
• Fred Whittingham, NFL player and coach, attended Warwick Veterans Memorial High School
• James Woods, actor, attended Pilgrim High School in 1965

Education

Local public schools are operated by Warwick Public Schools. Toll Gate High School and Pilgrim High School are the two comprehensive public high schools located in Warwick. The high schools are set for renovations in March 2025, a year after the city council issued a $350 million bond to rebuild them. The two public middle schools are Winman Junior High School and Warwick Veterans Junior High School. Aldrich Junior High School and Gorton Junior High School closed in 2016 as part of the school consolidation project. The school department is headed by superintendent Lynn Dambruch.

Bishop Hendricken High School is an all-male college preparatory Catholic high school located in Warwick. Rocky Hill School is a Pre-K–12 co-ed secular country day school located on Warwick's isolated Potowomut peninsula. The school lists an East Greenwich address, despite being geographically included as part of the city of Warwick.

The Community College of Rhode Island Knight Campus is also located in Warwick on the former Knight Estate.

References

1. Mean monthly maxima and minima (i.e. the expected highest and lowest temperature readings at any point during the year or given month) calculated based on data at said location from 1991 to 2020.
2. Official records for Providence kept at downtown from November 1904 to May 1932 and at T. F. Green Airport since June 1932.

1. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
2. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Warwick, Rhode Island
3. ^ "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
4. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
5. Farzan, Antonia Noori. "Rhode Island pronunciation guide: 35 names that visitors and even some locals get wrong". The Providence Journal. Retrieved July 4, 2024.
6. "The Seal of Warwick".
7. Austin, John Osborne (1887). Genealogical Dictionary of Rhode Island. Albany, New York: J. Munsell's Sons. ISBN 978-0-8063-0006-1.
8. This version of the story is told by Ephraim Bowen and John Mawney in Staples, William R., The Documentary History of the Destruction of the Gaspee, (Providence, R.I.: Knowles, Vose, and Anthony, 1845), p. 14–16. These men had taken part in burning Gaspee and made these statements in 1826.
9. "Joseph Bucklin V Biography". Joseph Bucklin Society. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
10. Gagosz, Alexa (May 12, 2021). "R.I. House votes to rename T.F. Green Airport". The Boston Globe. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
11. Authority, Massachusetts Bay Transportation. "Providence/Stoughton Line < Commuter Rail < Schedules & Maps < MBTA - Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority". mbta.com. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
12. ThreadEx
13. "NowData – NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
14. "Station: Providence T F Green AP, RI". U.S. Climate Normals 2020: U.S. Monthly Climate Normals (1991–2020). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original on June 24, 2023. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
15. "WMO Climate Normals for PROVIDENCE/GREEN STATE, RI 1961–1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original on June 24, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
16. ^ "Providence, Rhode Island, USA - Monthly weather forecast and Climate data". Weather Atlas. Retrieved July 4, 2019.
17. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
18. ^ RI.gov: Cities & Towns
19. ^ "US Census Bureau, Table DP1: PROFILE OF GENERAL POPULATION AND HOUSING CHARACTERISTICS". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
20. "Gazetteer Files". Census.gov. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
21. "US Census Bureau, Table P1: RACE". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
22. "US Census Bureau, Table P2: HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
23. "US Census Bureau, Table S1101: HOUSEHOLDS AND FAMILIES". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
24. "US Census Bureau, Table S1501: EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
25. "US Census Bureau, Table S1903: MEDIAN INCOME IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS (IN 2020 INFLATION-ADJUSTED DOLLARS)". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
26. "US Census Bureau, Table S2001: EARNINGS IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS (IN 2020 INFLATION-ADJUSTED DOLLARS)". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
27. "US Census Bureau, Table S1701: POVERTY STATUS IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
28. "US Census Bureau, Table S1702: POVERTY STATUS IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS OF FAMILIES". data.census.gov. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
29. "Previous Election Results". www.elections.state.ri.us. Archived from the original on October 27, 2012.
30. "Contacting Us." Eckerd Corporation. Retrieved on June 19, 2010. "Mail: 50 Service Ave., Warwick, RI 02886."
31. Shane, Ken (February 19, 2015). "Former Vanity 6 singer inducted into RI Music Hall of Fame". The Jamestown Press. Archived from the original on June 27, 2018. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
32. "1965 Pilgrim High School Yearbook". www.classmates.com. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
33. Botelho, Jessica A. "James Woods recently retires from acting, now selling RI home". WJAR. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
34. Warwick Public Schools website
35. Maravi, Vallery. "When will Warwick start building the 2 new high schools?". WPRI.com. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
36. "Warwick Public Schools Consolidation". sites.google.com. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
37. "Office of the Superintendent". Warwick Public Schools. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
38. "Bishop Hendricken Catholic High School - Rhode Island". Bishop Hendricken High School. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
39. "RI Private School- Pre-School, Prep School, Rhode Island". Rocky Hill School. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
40. "Home Page – Community College of Rhode Island". www.ccri.edu. Retrieved January 30, 2018.

External links

• Official website

v t e Municipalities and communities of Kent County, Rhode Island, United States
County seat: East Greenwich
City	Warwick
Towns	Coventry East Greenwich West Greenwich West Warwick
CDP	Anthony Arkwright Coventry Centre Fairbanks Greene Harris Quidnick Spring Lake Summit Tiogue Washington Whaley's Hollow
Villages	Blackrock Conimicut Coventry Centre Crompton Hillsgrove Hopkins Hollow Lippitt Pawtuxet Pontiac River Point Westcott
Rhode Island portal United States portal

v t e State of Rhode Island
Providence (capital)
Topics	Outline Buildings and structures Colonial Colleges Communications Delegations Geography Government History Images Mass media newspapers radio TV Narragansett people People Quahog State symbols Thirteen Colonies Visitor attractions
Society	Abortion Climate change Crime Culture Demographics Economy Education Gun laws LGBT rights Politics
Regions	Counties Bristol Kent Newport Providence Washington Geographic Blackstone Valley Block Island Historic Rhode Island Providence Plantations
Cities	Central Falls Cranston East Providence Newport Pawtucket Providence Warwick Woonsocket
Towns	Barrington Bristol Burrillville Charlestown Coventry Cumberland East Greenwich Exeter Foster Glocester Hopkinton Jamestown Johnston Lincoln Little Compton Middletown Narragansett New Shoreham (Block Island) North Kingstown North Providence North Smithfield Portsmouth Richmond Scituate Smithfield South Kingstown Tiverton Warren West Greenwich West Warwick Westerly
Rhode Island portal

v t e Narragansett Bay
Islands	Aquidneck Island Coasters Harbor Island Conanicut Island Cornelius Island Despair Island Dutch Island Dyer Island Fox Island Goat Island Gould Island Greene Island Hog Island Hope Island Lime Rock Patience Island Prudence Island Rabbit Island Rock Island Rose Island Starvegoat Island Whale Rock
Major rivers	Blackstone River Pawtuxet River Providence River Sakonnet River Seekonk River Taunton River
Cities & towns	Barrington Bristol Cranston East Greenwich East Providence Jamestown Middletown Narragansett Newport North Kingstown Portsmouth Providence Warren Warwick
Bridges	Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge Jamestown Bridge Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge Mount Hope Bridge Sakonnet River Bridge Stone Bridge

• Warwick, Rhode Island
• Cities in Rhode Island
• Cities in Kent County, Rhode Island
• Populated places established in 1642
• Providence metropolitan area
• Populated coastal places in Rhode Island
• 1642 establishments in Rhode Island