Portsmouth RI Founders' Day Celebration

Portsmouth RI to Celebrate Founders' Day on March 7 with Showing of the Original 1638 Compact and 1776 Southwick Copy of Declaration of Independence  

Portsmouth, RI -- The Portsmouth Historical Society will host a celebration of the Town’s 1638 founding with a ceremony at the Town Hall on March 7.  The original founding document, the Portsmouth Compact of 1638, one of the oldest and most important documents in the State Archives, will be transported with a police escort to the Portsmouth Town Hall (2200 East Main Rd.) where the public can view the document from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM. 

There will be a short ceremony from 12:00 PM to 12:30 PM where Town and State Officials and Historian Jim Garman will give brief remarks.   

Also on display will be the Town of Portsmouth’s 1776 copy of the Declaration of Independence, printed for the Rhode Island Assembly by Newport printer Solomon Southwick on July 13, 1776. They were distributed to each city and town clerk in Rhode Island to be read to the public or posted for the public to view. 

For more information, go to the Portsmouth Historical Society web site www.portsmouthhistorical.org or email phsinfo@portsmouthhistorical.org