Old USAEst. 1776

State hub · RI

Rhode Island

One historic landmark in Rhode Island: The Breakers.

Landmarks: 1
Eras: 1

Browse the landmarks Open in the directory

The Breakers in Newport, Rhode Island as viewed from Cliff Walk along Easton Bay at Ochre Point. — Pictured The Breakers
Dennis Heller · CC BY · via Wikimedia Commons

— The register —

Landmarks in Rhode Island

Gilded Age
The Breakers
Newport, RI
The Breakers is the grandest of Newport's Gilded Age 'summer cottages' — a 70-room Italian Renaissance palazzo built for Cornelius Vanderbilt II, whose family's railroad fortune made them the richest in America.

— Archival monographs —

Historical Essays

Gilded Age
Gilded Age America: The Mansions and the Mills
The Vanderbilts built palaces in Newport and the Blue Ridge; the workers of Lowell and Pullman built the fortunes behind them. Four landmarks show both sides of America's industrial boom.
Old USA Editors · 2 min read · September 28, 2026