For the next two centuries - interrupted sporadically by the
King Philip's War (1675-1676 - versus the Narragansetts locally),
the American Revolution (1775-1783), and
the War of 1812 (1812-1814) - the population expanded slowly. Mills were erected and shipbuilding commenced. Large plantations emerged. Commerce evolved as the area gained a reputation for its produce, particularly for cheese, sheep, horses ("
Narragansett Pacers"), and grain. Shipments departed via the adjacent
Narragansett Bay (the namesake "Narragansett Pier" was constructed in 1781 in the center of the village next to the present location of The Towers).