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1774 Census

of the
Inhabitants of the Colony
of
Rhode Island and Providence Plantations


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At the session of the General Assembly of the Governor and Company of the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, in New England, in America, begun and holden in Newport on the first Wednesday in May, in the year 1774, and fourteenth of the reign of His most sacred Majesty George the Third, by the Grace of God King of Great Britain, the following resolution was passed:

It is Voted and Resolved, That the Number of Families and Persons in this Colony be taken; specifying the Number of Whites, Indians, and Blacks, both Male and Female, and ascertaining the Number above, and under, the Age of Sixteen.

Bristol County

Kent County

Newport County

Providence County

Washington County


RECAPITULATION

of the inhabitants of the colony of Rhode Island, according to the official census taken in 1774.

Key:


TownFamiliesABCDEFGH
Newport1,5902,1001,5582,6241,6357,917461,2469,208
Providence6551,2198501,0498323,950683034,321
Portsmouth2203433414002851,369211221,512
Warwick3535695126154652,16188892,438
Westerly2574214414434011,70637691,812
New Shoreham751091191211204695155575
East Greenwich2754163454643381,56331691,663
North Kingston3615384975955522,182792112,472
South Kingston3645505545974812,1852104402,835
Jamestown69110901188240032131563
Smithfield4767426657696382,81423512,888
Scituate5649098799338173,5388553,601
Glocester5257437247407192,926-192,945
West Greenwich3044293954654561,745-191,764
Charlestown3073123153502641,241528521,821
Coventry2744745554934701,99211202,023
Exeter2894414154784461,78017671,864
Middletown1232101792591568041364881
Bristol1972722323192561,079161141,209
Tiverton2984185004384341,79071951,956
Warren168237251255185928744979
Little Compton2183042543822201,16025471,232
Richmond1892863163242871,21320241,257
Cumberland2644004084784501,7363171,756
Cranston3404763995173901,78219601,861
Hopkinton2994274204774151,73921481,808
Johnston1672422272542349579651,031
North Providence138193172230197792731830
Barrington911421181621205421841601
Totals9,45014,04212,73115,34912,38654,4601,4793,66859,707


NOTE:

At the January Session of the General Assembly 1858 of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, the following resolution was passed:

RESOLUTION for printing and distributing the census returns of 1774.
Resolved, That the secretary of the state be, and is hereby, authorized and empowered to cause to have printed, at the expense of the state, five hundred copies of the official census of Rhode Island, made by order of the General Assembly in the year 1774; together with a list of men over 16 years of age, made in 1776; provided the cost of the same shall not exceed four hundred dollars; and that when printed, the volume be distributed as follows:

One copy to each of the states and territories in the United States; one copy to each of the public offices in Washington; one to each of the historical societies in the United States; one to each town clerks in the state; one to each of the judges and the clerks of the several courts in the state; one to each of the public libraries in the state; one to each of the general officers, school commissioner and the members of the present General Assembly; one to each public library or institution which now receives the documents of the state; thirty copies to the Rhode Island Historical Society; and thirty copies for libraries, societies and individuals engaged in historical research, at the discretion of the secretary.

On examining the census returns of 1776, alluded to in the resolution, it was found that those of Newport and several other towns were wanting. For this reason it was thought best, rather than to give imperfect lists, to confine the publication to the census of 1774, the original returns of which were complete among the files of the secretary's office, except those of the town of New Shoreham. Of this town, merely the numbers were given, and no names. In printing the census, the orthography of the original manuscript has been followed in the names, as nearly as possible. A recapitulation of the census will be found at the end.


Related Records:

[ Rhode Island Genealogy ]