South County Travel Guide

When the principal interstate traffic through Rhode Island shifted from U.S. 1 to Interstate 95 in the 1960s, the coastal part of the state—known locally as South County, although its true name is Washington County—was given a reprieve from the inevitabilities of development. In the past half century, strong local zoning laws have been instituted and a park system established. In some communities, land trusts were set up to buy open space.