The Battle of Rhode Island Historic District

The Battle of Rhode Island (also known as the Battle of Quaker Hill and the Battle of Newport) took place on August 29, 1778. The battle was the first attempt at cooperation between French and American forces following France’s entry into the war as an American ally. The Battle of Rhode Island Site is the partially preserved location of the Battle of Rhode Island, fought August 29, 1778 during the American Revolutionary War. The battle took place in the town of Portsmouth, Rhode Island, located on Aquidneck Island north of Newport, and was the only major action of the war that took place in Rhode Island. It was also significant as the only battle of the war in which an entirely segregated unit of African-American soldiers fought. At the time of the action, the 1st Rhode Island Regiment consisted of companies of locally recruited African Americans and Native Americans with white officers. The two main areas associated with the battle were designated a National Historic Landmark in 1974.