Newport (redirected from Newportonians)

Newport, town, England

Newport, town (1991 pop. 19,758), Isle of Wight, S England. It is also a port and the commercial center of the island, with agricultural markets and light industries (plastics, soft drinks, and woodworking). In the 17th cent., King Charles I was imprisoned in nearby Carisbrooke Castle. The town grammar school dates from the early 17th cent., and there are remains of a Roman villa.

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Newport, cities, United States

Newport.

1 City (1990 pop. 18,871), seat of Campbell co., N Ky., on the Ohio River opposite Cincinnati and on the east bank of the Licking River opposite Covington; laid out 1791, inc. as a city 1835. Its industries produce wood, food, paper, and steel products; building equipment; and oil and gas. Newport was a station on the Underground Railroad, and Kentucky's only antislavery newspaper was edited there in the 1850s.

2 City (1990 pop. 28,227), seat of Newport co., SE Rhode Island, on Aquidneck (also called Rhode) Island; settled 1639, inc. 1784. A port of entry, the city's economy is tied to its many naval installations. Also important are the tourist industry, educational facilities, fishing, and the manufacture of electrical equipment. Newport hosts yacht races and was the site of the America's Cup races until the early 1980s. Tennis was popularized there; the National Tennis Hall of Fame is in the Newport casino. Jazz and folk festivals, as well as other music and dance fests are held there. The city is the seat of Salve Regina Univ., the U.S. Naval War College, and other naval training schools. Fort Adams State Park is nearby. Newport Bridge (1969) spans the east passage of Narragansett Bay, linking the city with Jamestown.

Founded in 1639, Newport was united (1640) with Portsmouth and then entered (1654) in a permanent federation with Providence and Warwick. Shipbuilding, dating from 1646, and foreign commerce brought pre-Revolutionary prosperity to Newport. In the American Revolution the British occupied the town (1776–79); many buildings were destroyed, most of the citizens moved away, and Newport never regained its former economic prestige. It was replaced in importance by Providence, with which it was joint state capital until 1900.

In the 19th cent., Newport developed as a fashionable resort of the wealthy, and many palatial "cottages" were built. Outstanding tourist attractions from that era are The Breakers, the former summer house of Cornelius Vanderbilt; Belcourt Castle; The Elms; Marble House; and Château-sur-Mer. Cliff Walk and Ocean Drive are known for their spectacular views of the ocean and the coastline.

Of historic interest are the Wanton-Lyman-Hazard House (c.1675; scene of a Stamp Act riot in 1765); the Newport Tower (thought to date from the 17th cent.); Trinity Church (1726); Touro Synagogue (1763), oldest in the country and since 1946 a national historic site; the Redwood Library and Athenaeum (1747); and the brick market house or city hall (1762). Matthew Perry was born in Newport.

Bibliography

See E. Warburton, In Living Memory: A Chronicle of Newport, Rhode Island, 1888–1988 (1988).

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Newport, city, Wales

Newport, Welsh Casnewydd, city (1991 pop. 129,900), 74 sq mi (191 sq km), SE Wales, on the Usk River. Lumber, tea, automobiles, electronics, semiconductors, and aircraft are made; steel and various other metals, paper, and chemicals are manufactured. Newport was first granted a charter in 1385. In 1839, Newport was the scene of Chartist riots (see Chartism). Long a county borough (a district from 1974 to 1996), Newport was made a city in 2002. The Church of St. Woollos, partly Norman, is the cathedral of the Monmouth diocese. The Univ. of Wales College is there.

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Newport

Town (pop., 1995 est.: 22,000), Isle of Wight, in the historic county of Hampshire, England. It was probably the Roman settlement of Medina; there is no trace of Saxon settlement. The first charter was granted between 1177 and 1184, and the borough was incorporated in 1608. It is the Isle of Wight's trade and agricultural centre.

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Newport

Town, port, and county borough (pop., 2001 est.: 137,017), historic county of Monmouthshire, Wales, at the Bristol Channel mouth of the River Usk. By c. 1126 it was a medieval borough with a castle. The city was chartered in 1385. It was industrialized in the 19th century and was the scene of Chartist riots in 1839 (see Chartism). Industries include steel and aluminum.

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Newport

City (pop., 2000: 26,475) and port of entry, southeastern Rhode Island, U.S., at the mouth of Narragansett Bay. Founded in 1639 by colonists from Massachusetts, it became a haven for religious refugees. With Providence, it was the joint capital of the state until 1900. Newport has held many of the America's Cup yacht races, and it is a centre for naval education. It also is the site of one of Cornelius Vanderbilt's mansions (The Breakers) and the Touro synagogue, which is the oldest in the U.S.

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Newport

1. a city and port in SE Wales, in Newport county borough on the River Usk: electronics. Pop.: 116 143 (2001)

2. a county borough in SE Wales, created from part of Gwent in 1996. Pop.: 139 300 (2003 est.). Area: 190 sq. km (73 sq. miles)

3. a port in SE Rhode Island: founded in 1639, it became one of the richest towns of colonial America; centre of a large number of US naval establishments. Pop.: 26 136 (2003 est.)

4. a town in S England, administrative centre of the Isle of Wight. Pop.: 22 957 (2001)