Narragansett Bay

Narragansett Bay is a broad estuary and natural harbor opening onto Rhode Island Sound. More than thirty islands lie within it, including Aquidneck, Conanicut and Prudence. At the time of early European contact, Narragansett people lived west of the bay and Wampanoag communities to the east. The navigator Giovanni da Verrazzano is generally believed to have entered the bay in 1524, calling it a refuge; Adriaen Block explored and mapped it in 1614.