Although known as the retail capital of Rhode Island, Warwick is much
more than a conglomeration of shopping centers, malls, and industrial
parks; it is a city marked by an extraordinary history and in many ways,
serves as a mirror of the American experience. Like many communities
across the United States, Warwick developed from a rural hamlet into a
town distinguished by a variety of industries in the nineteenth century,
attracting immigrants from across the globe desiring a new beginning
within its mill villages. These industries brought wealth and
opportunity, and paved the way for Warwick's transformation from small
town to cosmopolitan center. Warwick: A City at the Crossroads is not a
stale chronology, but is a work that breathes new life into the
memorable characters and events that shaped the community's history over
the past four centuries. Taking readers on an exciting journey through
Warwick's past, this unique illustrated history begins with the first
Narragansett Indian tribes that hunted amidst the virgin wilderness and
details an evolving landscape touched by colonial settlement, wars,
storms, depressions, resort development, and industrialization up
through the present day. However, the true measure of a community is in
its people, and Warwick possesses a remarkable cast of colorful
characters, such as controversial city father, Samuel Gorton,
Revolutionary War heroes Nathanael Greene and James Varnum, textile
magnate Robert Knight, and scores of other distinct personalities,
ranging from privateers and bootleggers to feared political bosses and
industrial giants.
