Barrington, Rhode Island
Encyclopedia
Barrington is a town
New England town
The New England town is the basic unit of local government in each of the six New England states. Without a direct counterpart in most other U.S. states, New England towns are conceptually similar to civil townships in other states, but are incorporated, possessing powers like cities in other...

 in Bristol County
Bristol County, Rhode Island
The border with Bristol County, Massachusetts is rather unusual since the counties both share the same name. The only other instances in which two neighboring counties with the same name share a state border are Sabine County, Texas and Sabine Parish, Louisiana, Union Parish, Louisiana and Union...

, Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The population was 16,310 at the 2010 census
United States Census, 2010
The Twenty-third United States Census, known as Census 2010 or the 2010 Census, is the current national census of the United States. National Census Day was April 1, 2010 and is the reference date used in enumerating individuals...

.

In July 2005, CNN/Money
CNNMoney.com
CNNMoney.com is the world's largest business website. The site is the online home of Fortune and Money, and serves as CNN.com's exclusive business site. The site, edited by Chris Peacock, together with the three titles, is part of the Fortune|Money Group, and attracts more than 10.8 million unique...

 and Money
Money (magazine)
Money is published by Time Inc. Its first issue was published in October 1972. Its articles cover the gamut of personal finance topics ranging from investing, saving, retirement and taxes to family finance issues like paying for college, credit, career and home improvement...

 magazine ranked Barrington sixth on its list of the 100 best places to live in the United States.

History

The land in Barrington was originally granted by the King of England to members of the Mayflower party. Some parts of the town retain names from this land grant, including Prince's Hill, named for Thomas Prince.

Barrington was part of Swansea, Massachusetts
Swansea, Massachusetts
Swansea is a town in Bristol County in southeastern Massachusetts.It is located at the mouth of the Taunton River, just west of Fall River, 47 miles south of Boston; and 12 miles southeast of Providence, Rhode Island....

 from its incorporation in 1667 (part of the Plymouth Colony
Plymouth Colony
Plymouth Colony was an English colonial venture in North America from 1620 to 1691. The first settlement of the Plymouth Colony was at New Plymouth, a location previously surveyed and named by Captain John Smith. The settlement, which served as the capital of the colony, is today the modern town...

 until the merger with Massachusetts in 1691). The Baptist residents petitioned for separation from Swansea in 1711, and Barrington was incorporated as an independent town in 1717. It was named after Barrington, Somerset
Barrington, Somerset
Barrington is a village and civil parish, situated south east of Taunton and west of Yeovil in the South Somerset district of Somerset, England...

, where many of the English settlers came from.

In 1747, Barrington was ceded to Rhode Island but made a part of Warren, Rhode Island
Warren, Rhode Island
Warren is a town in Bristol County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 10,611 at the 2010 census.-History:Warren was the site of the Indian village of Sowams on the peninsula called Pokanoket , and was first explored by Europeans in 1621, by Edward Winslow and Stephen Hopkins...

. In 1770, its independence was restored by the Rhode Island legislature.

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century Barrington was home of the Barrington Brick Works, which made bricks that were used in construction worldwide. Many laborers from Italy lived in Barrington and worked in the brickyard. Their descendents still make up a significant portion of the town population.

Since the 1980s, Barrington has attracted an increasingly affluent population, drawn from academics, professionals, and executives who work in Providence.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, Barrington has a total area of 15.4 square miles (39.9 km²), of which, 8.4 square miles (21.8 km²) of it is land and 7.0 square miles (18.2 km²) of it (45.46%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 16,819 people, 6,011 households, and 4,712 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 1,998.1 people per square mile (771.2/km²). There were 6,199 housing units at an average density of 736.4 per square mile (284.3/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.37% White, 0.68% Black or African American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, 0.11% Native American, 1.77% Asian, 0.26% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...

, and 0.81% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.05% of the population.

There were 6,011 households out of which 40.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.7% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.6% were non-families. 18.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.14.

In the town the population was spread out with 28.2% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 95.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $74,591, and the median income for a family was $84,657. Males had a median income of $59,722 versus $36,195 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the town was $35,881. About 3.0% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.5% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The public schools offered to its residents include:
  • Elementary:
    • Nayatt Elementary School,
    • Primrose Hill Elementary School,
    • Sowams Elementary School,
    • Hampden Meadows School
  • Junior High: Barrington Middle School
  • High School: Barrington High School
    Barrington High School (Barrington, Rhode Island)
    Barrington High School is located in Barrington, Rhode Island. Its Principal is Joseph Hurley, who assumed the office following the retirement of former principal John Gray...



Other schools in the town include Barrington Christian Academy
Barrington Christian Academy
Barrington Christian Academy is private Christian school located on 9 Old County Rd. in Barrington, Rhode Island.The school was originally started in the 1979-1980 school year by the neighboring Barrington Baptist Church and was made into an elementary and middle school containing grades K-8. ...

, St. Luke's, and St. Andrew's School
St. Andrew's School (Rhode Island)
St. Andrew’s School is a nondenominational boarding and day school located on a campus in Barrington, Rhode Island, serving co-educational grades 3-12.- Mission statement :...

.

Barrington has been home to one college, Barrington College
Barrington College
Barrington College was a four-year Christian liberal arts college located in Barrington, Rhode Island. It is no longer in operation.-History:...

, which closed in 1985. A bible college, Zion Bible College
Zion Bible College
Zion Bible College is a Bible college in Haverhill, Massachusetts. ZBC's sole purpose is to teach and train students for excellent Pentecostal ministry in fulfillment of the Great Commission.-History:...

, occupied the campus until 2008.

Notable sites

  • Alfred Drowne Road Historic District
    Alfred Drowne Road Historic District
    Alfred Drowne Road Historic District is a national historic district in Barrington, Rhode Island. It was added to the register in 2005 as building #05000584. The district is bounded by Alfred Drowne Rd., Annawamscutt Rd., and Washington Rd.-References:*...

  • Barrington Civic Center
  • Belton Court
    Belton Court
    Belton Court is a historic estate on Middle Highway in Barrington, Rhode Island.The building was a former mansion for the Peck family...

  • Nayatt Point Lighthouse
  • O'Bannon Mill
    O'Bannon Mill
    O'Bannon Mill is an historical mill at 90 Bay Spring Avenue in Barrington, Rhode Island....

  • Rhode Island Country Club
    Rhode Island Country Club
    Rhode Island Country Club is a private country club located in Barrington, Rhode Island. It includes a golf course designed in 1911 by Donald Ross and overlooks the Narrangansett Bay near the intersection of Nayatt Road and Middle Highway....

  • St. Matthew's Episcopal Church
    St. Matthew's Episcopal Church (Barrington, Rhode Island)
    St. Matthew's Episcopal Church is a historic Episcopal church located at 5 Chapel Road in Barrington, Rhode Island. It is an active parish in the Episcopal Diocese of Rhode Island....


Notable natives and residents

  • David Angell
    David Angell
    David Lawrence Angell was an American producer of sitcoms. Angell won multiple Emmy Awards as the creator and executive producer, along with Peter Casey and David Lee, of the comedy series Frasier...

     - American television sitcom producer
  • Nicholas Bianco
    Nicholas Bianco
    Nicholas "Nicky" Bianco was a Rhode Island mobster who became an influential member of the Patriarca crime family of New England.-Biography:Bianco was born and raised in Providence, Rhode Island...

     - Former member of the Colombo Crime Family before moving to Barrington. Underboss then Boss of the Patriarca Crime Family. Died in prison in 1994. Lived on Bowden Ave.
  • Thomas W. Bicknell
    Thomas W. Bicknell
    Thomas W. Bicknell , American educator, historian, and author, lived to be 91.Bicknell, born in Barrington, Rhode Island, he was the son of a farmer, minister, state legislator, and Colonel in the Bristol County, Rhode Island Militia, Thomas would become a wealthy eastern historian and educator...

     - Educator and historian; born there
  • Christopher Denise
    Christopher Denise
    Christopher Denise is the artist for many of Brian Jacques' Redwall books. He Illustrated the picture books The Great Redwall Feast and A Redwall Winter's Tale....

     - Illustrator of children's books, including many in the Redwall
    Redwall
    Redwall, by Brian Jacques, is a series of fantasy novels. It is the title of the first book of the series, published in 1986, the name of the Abbey featured in the book, and the name of an animated TV series based on three of the novels , which first aired in 1999...

    series
  • Brad Faxon
    Brad Faxon
    Bradford John Faxon, Jr. is an American professional golfer. He has won eight times on the PGA Tour.-Early years and amateur career:Faxon was born in Oceanport, New Jersey and raised in Barrington, Rhode Island...

     - Professional golfer
  • Steven Frazier, CNN anchor, graduated from Barrington High School, 1970.
  • Henry Giroux
    Henry Giroux
    Henry Giroux, born September 18, 1943, in Providence, Rhode Island, is an American cultural critic. One of the founding theorists of critical pedagogy in the United States, he is best known for his pioneering work in public pedagogy, cultural studies, youth studies, higher education, media studies,...

    - World renowned academic and cultural critic
  • Spalding Gray
    Spalding Gray
    Spalding Rockwell Gray was an American actor, playwright, screenwriter, performance artist and monologuist...

     - An actor, screenwriter and playwright born there.
  • Scott Haltzman
    Scott Haltzman
    Dr. Scott David Haltzman is an American psychiatrist, relationship counselor, and author. He is known for his work in support of marriage and husbands....

    - A physician and author (wrote Secrets of Happily Married Men)
  • Michael S. Harper
    Michael S. Harper
    Michael Steven Harper is an American poet from Brooklyn, who was the Poet Laureate of Rhode Island from 1988 to 1993. He has published ten books of poetry, two of which, "Dear John, Dear Coltrane" and "Images of Kin" , have been nominated for the National Book Award. A great deal of his poetry...

     - Poet
  • Phil Madeira
    Phil Madeira
    Phil Madeira is an American songwriter, producer, musician and singer from Nashville, Tennessee. He was raised in Barrington, Rhode Island and attended Taylor University, which he graduated from in 1975....

     - Nashville songwriter, musician, and recording artist, raised there. Graduated from Barrington High School 1970.
  • Shanna Moakler
    Shanna Moakler
    Shanna Lynn Moakler is an American model, actress, reality television star and a former beauty queen. She was the winner of the Miss New York USA pageant in 1995 and was originally the first runner-up at Miss USA 1995. She was later crowned Miss USA after Chelsi Smith won Miss Universe...

     - Model, Miss USA 1995, actress, and reality television star
  • Jon Land - Author and screenwriter of Dirty Deeds
    Dirty Deeds (2005 film)
    Dirty Deeds is a 2005 American comedy film directed by David Kendall, produced by Bill Civitella and Dan Kaplow; written by Jon Land and Jonathan Thies...

    .
  • Dan & Jordan Pious - Winners of the Amazing Race 16.

External links

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