In the City of Newport, in the State of Rhode Island, at the highest point of the Aquidneck Island, and at the latitude 41 degrees and 27 minutes, exists the  enigmatic Newport  Tower located in the Touro Park

It is round structure with eight arches, built with small granite stones held together by a mixture of sand, shells and rotten fish. 

Over the centuries 3 theories have been presented as to its probable builders:

       (1)   Viking Theory
 (2)  Yankee or Arnold theory
 (3) Portuguese theory.

Please note the bias name "The Old Stone Mill"

In the background you see the Newport Tower with the  8 arches. 

The Viking theory was destroyed a few years ago when a team from  Denmark came to do radiocarbon studies  in the “cement mixture” to measure the  atmospheric carbon dioxide  that was caught in bobbles  at the time the  cement mixture was made. Their scientific studies proved that the   Newport Tower was built around 1500s. Of course this news was very upsetting to the defenders of the Viking theory.  They have not given up, yet. They do not know that the Viking ship with its square rigger sail cannot navigate even today  against the  Gulf Stream .  Therefore the Vikings  1000 years ago could NEVER navigate to reach the  Narragansett Bay.

The Yankees or Arnoldists are also holding their theory by the  skin of their teeth based  on Governor Benedict Arnold  that refers to the Tower in his will (November 24, 1477)  as “my stone built-wind-mill”.  If today we make a wind mill out of the   Newport Tower the vibrations will destroy the entire structure!   There in  North America no windmills anywhere in the seventeenth century! 

The Portuguese theory was first thought by Herbert Pell  (father of the Senator Claiborne Pell) who was an  American Ambassador to  Portugal in 1948.   He visited Tomar, the headquarters of the Cross of the Order of Christ, and verify that the  main altar  of that Convent has an octagonal structure with 8 arches, very similar to the  Newport Tower 

But the Officials of the City of  Newport , and the  Newport Historical Society,  do not care about the Portuguese theory. They continue --  because they are bias --  to display their  true sentiments as we can verify on this  stone standing on the   Touro  Park .

Please note that the name they give to the  Newport Tower is the Old Stone Mill.

They, the Yankees, even do not know that the name Touro is a Portuguese name. Touro was the founder of the Portuguese Synagogue in Newport, the first in  U. S. A.

The name Touro – which means Bull in Portuguese – in Spanish is Toro (without the U ) meaning also Bull. 

Eventually,  as the Yankees will died out,   the Portuguese name will be get  its due. On final analysis  the truth always wins!

For additional information on the Newport Tower, click here and here

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