Newport, RI Coordinates
As its name implies, Newport was built around the water. And the town is rightly known as the yachting capital of the world. Over a thousand sailing vessels are moored in Newport Harbor, and it is the starting place of the biennial Newport to Bermuda Race. Even the most famous presidential yachtsman, John F. Kennedy, together with Jacqueline Onassis regularly sailed their yacht, Honey Fitz, out of Newport.
The America’s Cup has a rich history in the town of Newport, with every race between 1930 and 1983 occurring there. Today, you can still sit at anchor and watch America’s Cup winners, like Intrepid (’67 and ’70), Weatherly (’62), and Columbia (’58), sail by, as they call the port home. Countless other jaw-dropping racing come through Newport, including everything form Volvo Ocean racers to classic J-Class boats to the schooner Columbia to the Herreshoff designed Ticonderoga. Suffice it to say that if you appreciate boats, your head will be on a swivel in Newport Harbor.
While sailing is a huge part of the scene in Newport, there is so much more to enjoy there and other rich history to revel in. Newport was long a summer resort for the wealthy, and the fabulous Gilded Age mansions still line the rocky coastline. You can tour the homes or take a stroll along the magnificent Cliff Walk out front. And the beaches that lured the elite are now everyone’s playground.
There is rich American Revolutionary War history in the town. And Fort Adams, dating from the War of 1812, guard the harbor entrance. But the fort is best known as the home of both the Newport Jazz Festival and the Newport Folk Festival. It was at the latter of the two where Bob Dylan infamously went in electric in 1965. Newport also served as the home for the first US Open in both tennis and golf, and the International Tennis Hall of Fame is in town.
Newport is also a seafood lover’s paradise with countless restaurants serving the freshest fruits of the sea, straight from the fishing boats in the harbor. And the mixologists in town have brought the cocktail to new heights in Newport. Needless to say, you will not go wanting for the finest food and drink in the town.
Regardless of what brings you to Newport, you will surely want to proclaim your love for the town. And what better way to do it than with this classy coordinates t-shirt that will ensure you can always find your way back to the special location on Narragansett Bay.
