On this day 250 years ago, Rev. Ezra Stiles recorded in his diary that Captain James Wallace and his fleet continued bombing Rhode Island towns on Narragansett Bay:

The infernal Wallace with 3 Men o’ War, 2 or 3 more armed Vessels of which one Bomb with several Transports — a fleet of perhaps 8 sail is fireing away to the Northward & spreading or aim to spread Terror through the Bay. 

He anchored at Bristol on Saturday Evening & ordered the Magistrates to come aboard & bring 300 sheep in one hour, else he would fire upon the Town — where near 100 persons lye sick of the Dysentery & some lie dead. 

Instead of complying the people set about remove the sick. At IX o’clock at Night he began & continued a Canonade of the Town for an hour. At length upon a promise of 40 sheep he desisted & promised he would fire no more. But…he turned to Popasquash a part of Bristol & canonaded that. 

And now this day at XI A M. he is cannonaded Portsmouth on this Island, i.e. the Houses at Bristol Ferry. And in the Afternoon some of his ships came down the Bay firing as if they would fill the Heavens with Thunder; & some went round the North End of the Island towards Tiverton. 

At length one went over to Canonicut & fired away upon Jamestown, where the Governor had sent Men to guard the stock. The Evacuation of this Town still continues. It is judged that Two Thirds of the Inhabitants are removed up the Island. No passing Bristol Ferry to day.

Sources: https://www.americanhistorycentral.com/entries/narragansett-bay-operations-1775/; https://archive.org/details/diaryezrastiles01stiluoft/page/n633/mode/2up