New Shoreham is a town in Washington County, Rhode Island that is coextensive with Block Island. The town was named for Shoreham, Kent, in England. Harbor Church was founded on October 23, 1765 and is located at 21 Water Street in New Shoreham. The population of New Shoreham was 1,051 at the 2010 census, making it the least-populous municipality in the state. According to the Census Bureau, it has a total area of, of which is land and is water. New Shoreham holds the distinction of southernmost town in both the county of Washington County and the state of Rhode Island. The students of New Shoreham in grades kindergarten through 12th grade attend Block Island School.
Demographics
At the 2000 census, there were 1,010 people, 472 households, and 250 families in the town. The population density was 103.8 people per square mile. There were 1,606 housing units at an average density of 165.0 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 97.82% White, 0.59% African American, 0.79% Asian, 0.30% from other races, and 0.50% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.19% of the population. Of the 472 households 21.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.4% were married couplesliving together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.0% were non-families. 35.0% of households were one person and 12.9% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.13 and the average family size was 2.82. The age distribution was 18.3% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 28.6% from 45 to 64, and 17.3% 65 or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.5 males. The median household income was $44,779 and the median family income was $59,844. Males had a median income of $39,432 versus $28,125 for females. The per capita income for the town was $29,188. About 8.0% of families and 7.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.2% of those under age 18 and 9.7% of those age 65 or over.
