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Portsmouth Friends Meeting House

Constructed at the turn of the 18th century, the Portsmouth Friends Meeting House thus witnessed several events, including the British occupation of Rhode Island.

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Rhode Island
11 Middle Road Portsmouth, RI 02871
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Portsmouth, RI

The Friends Meeting House cemetery in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, is part of the historic Portsmouth Friends Meetinghouse, Parsonage, and Cemetery complex. This Quaker site dates to the colony's early years. The Quaker community in Portsmouth began to form shortly after the town’s founding in 1638, when religious dissidents from Massachusetts Bay settled there. The current meetinghouse was built around 1699–1700, serving as both a place of worship and a school for local Friends. The cemetery developed alongside the meetinghouse and became the burial ground for Portsmouth’s Quaker community over the centuries. This site has witnessed significant historical events, including British occupation during the American Revolutionary War.

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