Ida Lewis Revered as America’s Bravest Woman

She saved 18 people while keeping watch at the Lime Rock Lighthouse in Newport Harbor

New England Historical Society
1 min read
Share
New England Historical Society
Ida Lewis Revered as America’s Bravest Woman
Copy

Did you know the so-called “bravest woman in America” was from Newport? Ida Lewis saved about 16 people during her time as the keeper at the Lime Rock Lighthouse in Newport Harbor, but rescuing two soldiers from drowning when their boat capsized on March 29, 1869, gained her national attention.

Lewis’ final rescue came in 1906, when she was 64. The lighthouse is now named in her honor.

Get the full story in the reel below.

Wading through local cranberry bogs, two researchers from the University of Rhode Island uncover rare pollinators—shedding light on climate change’s silent toll on bee populations
With a sharp linocut tool and a wit to match, his clever artwork will ease you into a Rhode Island state of mind
Can you name five women artists? That’s the question posed by Erin L. McCutcheon, as part of a course she teaches as assistant professor of Arts of the Americas at the University of Rhode Island
The hospital filed a lawsuit in March
The investigation previously covered activities at the Warren Alpert Medical School and is now expanded to the entire university from the period of Oct. 7, 2023 to the present
After years of debate, Rhode Island lawmakers unveil competing bottle bills aiming to boost recycling and cut litter — but retailers remain wary and questions linger over logistics
Mayor Smiley unveils an ambitious roadmap to reclaim Providence schools from state control, but state education officials say the plan lacks clarity and collaboration
Backed by youth advocacy groups, a new bill would mandate ethnic studies in all public RI high schools by 2026, aiming to reflect the diverse histories of the state’s student population