The Travel Club for Rhode Islanders Who Never Leave

Members of the Rhode Island 39 Club during a luncheon at Finn’s Harborside in East Greenwich. (Photo courtesy of Martin Podskoch)

The “I Never Leave Rhode Island” bumper stickers say it all: Rhode Islanders are fiercely loyal to our little state.

But how often do you leave your corner of wiener-guzzling, coffee-milk-drinking paradise to see what treasures lie on the other side of the bay? There’s some truth to the stereotype we’re loath to drive further than fifteen minutes away, and sometimes we need an extra push to explore the pebbled beaches of Little Compton or leafy trails of Burrillville. Thankfully, there’s a travel book that does just that. Rhode Island 39 Club, edited by Connecticut-based writer Martin Podskoch, details adventures and history in all thirty-nine of Rhode Island’s cities and towns, with a bonus award and meetup for those who complete the list.

“I just love Rhode Island,” Podskoch says. “It’s got everything. It’s got the forest, it’s got the beautiful beaches, it’s got the city.”

Martin Podskoch

Podskoch first got the idea to write travel books when he was living in New York state and read an article about Vermont’s 251 Club. The club, first suggested by Norwich University English professor Arthur Peach in 1954, recognizes those who visit all 251 (as of 2022, 252) of Vermont’s cities and towns. A longtime teacher who’d penned several books about local history, Podskoch decided to publish a travel book detailing the sites in all 102 towns of the Adirondacks region. As an incentive to visit, he formed the Adirondack 102 Club, which holds annual luncheons and awards the honorary Vagabond Award to travelers who complete the full journey.

“I knew people only went to Old Forge or Lake George or Lake Placid. And they say, ‘I’ve been to the Adirondacks.’ But they don’t realize there are 102 towns,” he says. “I knew people were missing things, because there’s so many interesting things in every town.”

Following the book’s success and his move to Connecticut, Podskoch formed the Connecticut 169 Club and published the accompanying Connecticut 169 Club guidebook. Nutmeg State explorers receive the Leatherman Award, named for a nineteenth-century vagabond of unknown origin famous for his handmade leather clothing.

After two successful travel books, it seemed only natural for Podskoch to turn next to Rhode Island, a state he’d been vacationing in with his family for years.

“Even when I was younger [and living in] the Catskills, I would bring my family down here and go camping in Burlingame — one time, in the Fishermen’s Memorial Campground. I enjoy going down even to Misquamicut in the summertime,” he says.

For his latest project, Podskoch recruited a long list of local writers to record the prominent sites and history of their communities in their own words. The result, he says, is a travel book that offers a snapshot into the life of each municipality, large or small.

“Each town has something unique. It could be the beautiful scenery when you go down to Little Compton — you look like you’re back in the 1800s. The homes, the rock walls are just gorgeous,” he says.

His favorite experiences while exploring the state? Podskoch says he enjoyed checking out Wright’s Farm Restaurant in Burrillville, where a family-style chicken dinner — a novelty for the Pennsylvania native — costs just $17.95 per person. He also sampled the beaches of Narragansett and hopped on the Block Island Ferry, though he has yet to visit downtown Providence on a WaterFire night.

In keeping with tradition, Podskoch hosts an annual luncheon to recognize travelers who visit each of the thirty-nine cities and towns. The Rhody Red Award pays tribute to the Rhode Island state bird, bred around Little Compton in the late 1800s. Previous luncheons have taken place at the Foster Country Club and Finn’s Harborside in East Greenwich, with the 2024 luncheon taking place at Haversham Tavern in Westerly on Saturday, Sept. 7.

Rhode Island 39 Club is Podskoch’s second book about Rhode Island. In 2021, he published Rhode Island Civilian Conservation Corps Camps, detailing the camps and accomplishments of the Depression-era work program in the state. In addition to his travel books, he’s published volumes on the history of the Civilian Conservation Corps in Connecticut and the Adirondacks as well as several books about the historic fire towers of the Catskills and the Adirondacks. Last year, he offered sixty-five historical talks in five states to commemorate the ninetieth anniversary of the Civilian Conservation Corps.

“My wife said, ‘This is your last book, Marty.’ It’s my twelfth and I just hit 80 [years old] in November,” he says.

Rhode Island 39 Club is available to purchase online or by mail from Podskoch Press.

Travelers who visit all thirty-nine of Rhode Island’s cities and towns receive the Rhody Red Award. (Image courtesy of Martin Podskoch)

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