history

Aside from a few advertisements in 1905, Rhode Island motors were of short duration. Like many of these small marine engines, the manufacturer simply folded up, went into another line of business entirely, or continued to operate as a goodsized machine shop. In coastal locations, these firms were often in the boat-building business before and after their excursion into the engine business. Especially with two-cycle engines, there were relatively few parts, so inventories were low. The great majority of two-cycle marine engines were of three-port design, using the crankcase for scavenging air.