Event Title
When Bridgewater Almost Became Part of Rhode Island: The Border Commission of 1741
Location
Hart 116
Start Time
12-5-2016 1:15 PM
End Time
12-5-2016 1:45 PM
Description
The 1663 Charter of Rhode Island in theory extended the eastern border 3 miles east of Narragansett Bay. However, the province of Massachusetts ignored this provision and it was not until 1741 that a Border Commission assembled at Providence and gathered testimony for two months designed to arrive at a definitive solution to the border question. Early in the proceedings RI tried to claim the entire Taunton River basin, which would have made Bridgewater a border community of RI. While the final border was established far to the west, this incident shows the border commission of 1741 to be a fascinating document, containing testimony from inhabitants, both Anglo-American and Native American, of the region.
When Bridgewater Almost Became Part of Rhode Island: The Border Commission of 1741
Hart 116
The 1663 Charter of Rhode Island in theory extended the eastern border 3 miles east of Narragansett Bay. However, the province of Massachusetts ignored this provision and it was not until 1741 that a Border Commission assembled at Providence and gathered testimony for two months designed to arrive at a definitive solution to the border question. Early in the proceedings RI tried to claim the entire Taunton River basin, which would have made Bridgewater a border community of RI. While the final border was established far to the west, this incident shows the border commission of 1741 to be a fascinating document, containing testimony from inhabitants, both Anglo-American and Native American, of the region.
Comments
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