Rhode Island (also known as the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations) is in New England, America and is America’s smallest state. Out of the 13 colonies that originally declared their independence from British rule, Rhode Island was the first to do so but the last to ratify the American Constitution. It is nicknamed “the Ocean State,” which refers to its geography and fact that it has many large bays and inlets, comprising 30% of its entire area.