Rhode Island is the smallest state, smaller than Delaware, smaller than the Island of Hawaii–though larger than Oahu. It packs in a lot of people relative to its size. It’s the 2nd densest state, with 1,006 people per square mile, beat out only by New Jersey. New Jersey is dense.

It seems like everybody in Rhode Island is a Democrat; maybe it’s required by law? There are in fact more Democratic leaning states, Massachusetts, Maryland, Hawaii . . . But based on percentage of Democratic voters, Rhode Island is about as Democratic as, say, Illinois or Washington State, but with no red rural counties. Its governor, both senators, both representatives, and both state houses are Democratic controlled. Only Kent County in the middle of the state voted for Donald Trump in 2016, and Trump only received 38.9% of the total Rhode Island vote. In Rhode Island he was trounced. As for Kent County, it was the first time a Rhode Island county had voted for a Republican since 1984. Four years later, Joe Biden carried 59.39% of Rhode Island, including Kent County.

Bernie Sanders won the Democratic Primary in Rhode Island in 2016, but by its 2020 primary Sanders had already withdrawn. It’s likely that Sanders would have won again in 2020.

Rhode Island sits directly below Boston. I’ve taken the train from New York to Boston, so I must have at least passed through Rhode Island. I suppose lots of people pass through Rhode Island, but a lot of people stop for a bit too. Tourism is its second largest industry, after healthcare.

Rhode Island was founded by Massachusetts’ dissidents. This deserves pondering. In 1620 the first settlers of Massachusetts were so angry with England that they left for Massachusetts. In 1636 the first settlers of Rhode Island were so angry with Massachusetts that they left for Rhode Island. The early Rhode Island settlers were a very special group. They couldn’t get along with anybody.

Rhode Island was the first colony to declare independence from England. They were the first to ratify the Articles of Confederation. Then they got mad at everybody and were the last to ratify the Constitution, and wouldn’t until they were promised the Bill of Rights. Like I said, a very special group.

In 1790, in connection with the new government, George Washington wrote a letter to the Jews of Newport defining religious freedom: For happily the Government of the United States gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in giving it on all occasions their effectual support. The Bill of Rights was ratified in 1791.

Rhode Island began as a slave state, with the highest number of slaves per capita of the New England colonies. After England got out of the trade, Rhode Islanders dominated slave shipping. They carried rum to Europe and Africa, slaves to the Caribbean, and sugar and molasses from the Caribbean to New England. Nicholas Brown, namesake and benefactor of Brown University, was a slave trader.

In 2020, Rhode Island’s population was estimated at 1,097,379, slightly larger than Montana’s. About 71.4% of the population is Anglo, 16.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.5% African American, 1.1% Native American, and 2.9% two or more races. Ethnically the Anglo population is a jumble, and there are sizable portions of the white population with Irish, Italian, Portuguese, English, and French ancestry. Racial labels don’t tell much, and one reason is their lack of nuance.

Until 2020, Rhode Island was the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. “Plantation” had nothing to do with slavery, but after the death of George Floyd, because of the connotations of slavery and Rhode Island’s participation in the slave trade, Rhode Islanders voted to drop “Providence Plantations“ from the state’s name. It’s now just the plain-old State of Rhode Island, though apparently they haven’t changed their seal.

Before the 19th century, there were more than 20 rum distilleries in Rhode Island, but Thomas Tew is the first rum distilled there in 150 years. Westward expansion allowed grain-based whiskey to replace molasses-based rum as the American drink of choice. I’ve had the same bottle of rum for three years or so, and it only gets drunk at Christmas with eggnog. Whiskey doesn’t last so long.

Perhaps Rhode Island is best known as the playground of the ultra-rich, the Vanderbilts and Astors and Archers. In Theophilus North, Thornton Wilder describes nine different cities of Newport: the citizens of the sixth are the ultra-wealthy, the seventh are the servants of the ultra-wealthy, and the eight are the hangers-on of the ultra-wealthy. Apparently wealth takes up a good bit of Rhode Island real estate. Oddly, Newport was never known as the playground of the Boston rich, since the Boston rich have Cape Cod.

Besides rum, 13 percent of Rhode Island is water, most of it salt. You would expect with so much access to the Atlantic and to Narragansett Bay that Rhode Island would be a flat coastal plain, but away from the the ocean it rises quickly to join the New England Uplands. The highest point in Rhode Island, Jerimoth Hill, is 812 feet. The highest point in Florida, the flattest state, is 345 feet.

We’re going to Newport for the Orvis Northeast Fly Fishing School, two days, in which my fondest hope is that Kris will finally learn to tie a knot. For the 30 years we’ve fished together, she’s depended on me or guides to rig her lines. That’s ok though. I’m not sure what use I’d be to her if she could tie knots.

The fish of choice in Rhode Island are apparently stripers and bluefish. I only hope the bluefish aren’t as personable as the fish in Dr. Seuss.

We’ll spend one day in school on casting lessons and hopefully knots, and one day fishing with a guide. This is a recipe for disaster, since like as not on our one day fishing it will rain, or hurricane, or have no fish, or I’ll be too chilled to cast in the middle of a New England winter. We’ll return home to Houston fishless and owe another trip to Rhode Island. Winter in New England starts in September, right?