Newman Congregational Church

{{short description|Historic church in Rhode Island, United States}}

{{Infobox NRHP

| name = Newman Congregational Church

| nrhp_type =

| image = Newman Congregational Church 2025.jpg

| caption =

| coordinates = {{coord|41|50|28|N|71|21|3|W|display=inline,title}}

| location = 100 Newman Avenue, Providence, Rhode Island

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| area =

| built = 1810

| architect =

| architecture =

| added = November 28, 1980

| mpsub = East Providence MRA

| refnum = 80000003

| website =

}}

Newman Congregational Church is a United Church of Christ congregation in East Providence, Rhode Island. The church is a two-story wood-frame structure on a high brick basement. It was built in 1810 for a congregation that was gathered in 1643. Newman Church is the oldest Congregationalist organization in Rhode Island.{{cite web|url=http://www.preservation.ri.gov/pdfs_zips_downloads/national_pdfs/east_providence/eapr_historic-resources-of-east-providence.pdf|title=Historic Resources of East Providence, Rhode Island (PDF pages 29-30)|publisher=Rhode Island Preservation|accessdate=2014-09-07}} Historically located at the center of the Rehoboth "Ring of The Green," the church today is located between the historic Newman Cemetery and Carpenter, Lakeside, and Springvale Cemeteries.{{cite web |title=Ring of the Green |url=https://ephist.org/historic-sites/ring-of-the-green/ |website=East Providence Historical Society |access-date=29 May 2025}}

History

The Newman Congregational Church was established by the Rev. Samuel Newman (1602–1663) of Weymouth, Massachusetts. In 1641, he and members of his congregation purchased a tract of land from Pokanoket leader Massasoit Ousamequin located east of Providence, Rhode Island and the Seekonk River.{{cite web |last1=Weed |first1=David |title=Ring of the Green and settlement in the 17th Century |url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=207459 |website=The Historical Marker Database |publisher=Bill Pfingsten |access-date=30 May 2025}} Newman named the new town Rehoboth, and soon afterwards he formed his congregation there.{{cite web|url=https://www.rihs.org/mssinv/Mss584.htm| title=Newman Congregational Church Records|publisher=Rhode Island Historical Society Manuscripts Division |accessdate=25 February 2020}}

In 1812, the town of Rehoboth, Massachusetts, was divided in two, and the church location was assigned to the new town of Seekonk. In 1862, the western part of the town of Seekonk became part of the state of Rhode Island and received the name East Providence. Therefore, Newman Church has existed in three towns, two states, and multiple countries, without ever having moved.