U.S. Army Colonel (Ret.) Joseph McGraw, a Portsmouth resident, former Green Beret and current associate professor at the Naval War College, delivered a timely and stirring speech during his keynote at the annual Patriotic Exercises on Tuesday morning.
The Rhode Island Mayor Who Loved a Good Fourth of July Parade
Bristol, R. I., has celebrated July Fourth for nearly 240 years, making it “The Most Patriotic Town in America.” Legendary Providence Mayor Buddy Cianci made the festivities not only historic, but infamous.
July 1, 2021 •
Although banned from the 1980 Fourth of July parade in Bristol, Providence Mayor Buddy Cianci nonetheless marched. According to various reports, he received more cheers from the crowd than any other participant, including then-Governor Joseph Garrahy. Here, he is greeted by a spectator. (The Providence Journal) Many towns throughout New England claim to have some of the longest-running Fourth of July celebrations. New Haven, Conn., for example, can trace its July Fourth festivities back to 1788. Bristol, Vt., boasts the longest continuously running parade in the state. But according to historical archives, the oldest Fourth of July celebration in the United
GoLocal editors dreamed about getting out and around to the best of Rhode Island over the past year and so we have built the ultimate "beach pail" list (rather than a bucket list — it just seems less final and more summery).