Tag Archives: Rhode Island

The Colonial Portsmouth Schoolhouse

(This essay was originally published as “Schoolhouse has survived centuries of change,” by the Newport Daily News on April 5, 2016.) Believing in “how excellent an ornament learning is to mankind,” the Town of Portsmouth three hundred years ago authorized … Continue reading

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Amid Horrors of 1864, R.I. Soldier Perseveres

Through the battles, death, mud and misery of 1864, Elisha Hunt Rhodes, a Civil War soldier from the village of Pawtuxet, Cranston, was sustained by his indomitably positive spirit, a deep religious faith, and a firm commitment to the Union … Continue reading

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Julia Ward Howe, Author of Battle Hymn, Spent Much of Her Life in Portsmouth

(This essay was originally published as “Beyond the ‘Battle Hymn,’” in the Newport Daily News on March 22, 2014.) Julia Ward Howe, a talented, independent-minded woman of the 19th century—poet, writer, playwright, preacher, lecturer, and reform leader—spent much of her life at … Continue reading

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