Which event led to the founding of rhode island.

  The expulsion of Roger Williams by the puritan leader of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

Explanation:

  Roger Williams was a puritan minister, theologian, and author who advocate of religious freedom, separation of church and state, and fair treatment to the Native Americans.

  He was expelled from the Massachusetts Bay because of his thoughts and established the Providence Plantation on land given by the Narragansett people. The year after that, 1637, another group of dissenters from Massachusetts bought land from the Indians and named it Rhode Island.

  I hope this answer helps you.