Little Compton in Newport County, Rhode Island — The American Northeast (New England)

United Congregational Church

Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), September 18, 2026

1. United Congregational Church Marker [Left plaque]

Inscription. United
Congregational
Church
Organized
1704
This building erected
1832

In commemoration
of the
Methodist
Church
Founded in 1820 and united with this church in 1940

United Congregational Church
of Little Compton Rhode Island
Organized 1704
Building erected 1832
This property is listed
in the
National Register of Historic Places

Erected by United Congregational Church.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Colonial Era • Religion & Religious Structures. A significant historical year for this entry is 1704.

Location. 41° 30.554′ N, 71° 10.275′ W. Marker is in Little Compton, Rhode Island, in Newport County. It is on Commons Street east of Spring Lane, on the left when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1 Commons St, Little Compton RI 02837, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Narragansett Bay.

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,

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and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once one of the original Thirteen Colonies.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Col. Benjamin Church (within shouting distance of this marker); Elisabeth Pabodie (within shouting distance of this marker); Methodist Episcopal Church (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); World War Memorial (about 400 feet away); Korean Conflict Memorial (about 400 feet away); World War II Memorial (about 400 feet away); Vietnam Conflict Memorial (about 400 feet away); Veterans Memorial (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Little Compton.

Also see . . . National Register of Historic Places nomination form for the Little Compton Common Historic District. The United Congregational Church is a contributing structure to the Little Compton Common Historic District. This form was prepared by Richard B. Harrington, Consultant for the Rhode Island Historical Preservation Commission on November 18, 1973. A statement of historical significance for the historic district begins on page 3:

Little
Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), September 18, 2026

2. United Congregational Church Marker [Right plaque]
Compton township's history as a colonial settlement goes back to 1674 or earlier, and originally it was an Indian domain (Saughkonet or Sakonnet) presided over by a female sachem named Awashonks, who was friendly to the newly-arriving white people before, during and after King Philip's War. With her acquiescence, these settlers laid out and allotted among themselves farmland properties which now fill or define the township, which was at first included in the Plymouth (Massachusetts) Colony but was annexed to Rhode Island in 1747. While this township is about twenty square miles in area, its centre or focal point has ever since the 1670's been that small triangle called Little Compton common, and here since then has been the seat of local government and the business- and meeting-place of inhabitants from round about. As a marker at the edge of the Common informs, a "town house" or hall where the elders or council could meet existed there as early at 1683, and the burying-ground on the Common is said to date from 1675-1677.

The United Congregational Church is mentioned in the description of the historic district on page 6:

Quite
Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0)

3. United Congregational Church Marker [Plaque in the yard]
dominating the Common is the United Congregational Church... which to-day has its entrance facing south. Such was not always the case, for this large clapboards, gabled structure was built in 1832 in traditional meeting-house form, presumably in simple Greek Revival style: a high, one-storey church auditorium with three tall triple-sashed windows along each side. Around 1872, however, the meeting-house was raised to allow for the insertion of a new ground storey; its pulpit-end was reversed from south to north, and its south end was given a projecting frontal in vernacular Victorian Gothic style, complete with a bonnetted belfry, upon which in 1874 a tall spire was erected. This church and its sizeable cemetery area to the west... dating from 1675, form the chief landmark and visual attraction of Little Compton Common and, indeed, of the whole surrounding township.

Additionally, there is an architectural description of the church building in the Inventory of Buildings on page 11, item 7:

United Congregational Church, 1832, 1872, 1874. Greek Revival style with Victorian Gothic additions; two storeys (the lower one inserted in 1872),
Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), September 18, 2026

4. United Congregational Church of Little Compton
three bays wide and three long bays from front to back, gable-roofed with end to the street, clapboard; originally a plain meeting-house, revised and enlarged 1872, 1874 with "Gothic" frontal addition, belfry-tower, spire.

Editorial note: Rhode Island is completely divided into municipalities does not contain any kind called "townships." Instead the state has two kinds of municipalities: cities and towns. Little Compton is a town. Much like other Rhode Island towns, it contains unincorporated villages. While the historic district is referred to as Little Compton Common Historic District, colloquially, the village is referred to as the Little Compton Commons or simply the Commons. (Submitted on September 27, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.)

Credits. This page was last revised on September 27, 2026. It was originally submitted on September 27, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 6 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on September 27, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.