About ripnewport.com
This website debut in October 2018 to promote support of the historic burial sites located in Newport Rhode Island. In addition to providing information directly, it is also a portal to other sources of information that may be useful for interested people.
The site was designed and is maintained by Lewis Keen. He has been a tour guide for the Newport Historical Society and helped to create and update walking tours of the city including Souls and Stones, a tour of the Common Burying Ground. As a docent at Touro Synagogue, he contributed to the annual open house at the Colonial Jewish Burying Ground. In January 2016 he convened a meeting of interested parties to discuss the importance of our historic burying grounds. Participating organizations included: the City of Newport, the Newport Historical Society, the Preservation Society of Newport County, the Newport Restoration Foundation, The Rhode Island Historic Cemetery Commission, the Rhode Island Genealogical Society, the 1696 Heritage Group, and Salve University. It was decided that an important step forward in the efforts to maintain the sites would be the revival of the Newport Historic Cemetery Advisory Commission. With the support of the City Council and the guidance of Lynn Ceglie, the commission was revived in June 2016 with Lew serving as it's chairman.
As a retired educator, an amateur photographer and a student of Newport history, Lew is committed to presenting fact based history in an informative and engaging manner. The website allows individuals to access records and information regardless of the time of the day or their location.
The side panels of the web pages and faces in the banner are elements of the grave stone for John Stevens I, the founder of the grave stone carving dynasty in Newport. It was carved by his youngest son, William.
Much of the information developed for this website was transferred to print format and published in 2021.
