North Kingston in Washington County, Rhode Island — The American Northeast (New England)
Rabbit Island
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Photographed by G.W.Bartlett, July 19, 2026
1. Rabbit Island Marker
What is now called Rabbit Island was part of the territory of the Queen Sachem of the Narragansetts and was named "Queen's Island" by early European traders. The Sachem Canonicus allowed Roger Williams to use the island as a trading site and also as a place to keep his goats, which had proved destructive to gardens planted by the tribe. In 1651 trader Richard Smith purchased Roger Williams' Cocumscussoc lands, which he assumed included Queen's Island, but the island was instead claimed by Cachauaquant, a descendent of the then deceased Queen, and in 1659 was sold by him to Randall Holden and Samuel Gorton. When Richard Smith Jr. inherited his father's lands in 1667 he unsuccessfully fought the sale of the island in court for several years. He was finally able to buy the land from Gorton's heirs. The island has been part of the Cocumscussoc property ever since.
The island remained Queen's Island on the maps until the property was surveyed in 1881 when the Babbit family owned Cocumscussoc, and it then became known as Babbit Island. When maps were redrawn in the 1950's a typographic error changed Babbit Island to Rabbit
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Because of its separation from the mainland it has remained free from the invasive plants that have overrun so much of the Cocumscussoc property.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Colonial Era • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Natural Features • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1651.
Location. 41° 34.982′ N, 71° 27.429′ W. Marker is in North Kingston, Rhode Island, in Washington County. It can be reached from Richard Smith Drive. The marker is on the Smiths Castle historical site property along the shore in by the water in front of Smiths Castle, in a location with a view of Rabbit Island. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 41 Richard Smith Drive, North Kingstown RI 02852, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is on Narragansett Bay and in South County. It is also in the American Northeast, in New England, and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere.
Photographed by G.W.Bartlett, July 19, 2026
2. Rabbit Island Marker
Marker is in the shade of the trees to the left. Rabbit Island is in the distance.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Captain John Gallup (within shouting distance of this marker); Cocumscussoc Archaeological Site (within shouting distance of this marker); Here Were Bvried (within shouting distance of this marker); Roger Williams (about 700 feet away, measured in a direct line); North Kingstown G.A.R. Monument (approx. 1.2 miles away); Robert Rodman's Village (approx. 1.6 miles away); Centerpiece of the Rodman Empire (approx. 1.6 miles away); The New Mill & New Beginnings (approx. 1.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in North Kingston.
Photographed by G.W.Bartlett, July 19, 2026
3. Rabbit Island
Beyond the marker there is a bench and an unobstructed view of Rabbit Island / Babbitt Island / Queens Island.
Credits. This page was last revised on July 23, 2026. It was originally submitted on July 20, 2026, by G.W.Bartlett of Hingham, Massachusetts. This page has been viewed 8 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on July 20, 2026, by G.W.Bartlett of Hingham, Massachusetts. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
