USA > Rhode Island > Providence County > History of Providence County, Rhode Island, Volume I > Part 36
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The general assembly passed an act at its January session, 1857. for the incorporation of the Woonasquatucket Railroad Company to join the track of the Stonington, or the Hartford road, near Olney- ville, and then to run up the valley of the Woonasquatucket river to the state line. The capital authorized was $1,000,000. The commer- cial crisis of that year and the years of war following practically put an end to the enterprise for the time being. The charter was contin-
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ted by successive applications to the general assembly, until in 1871, an organization was finally effected and the building of the road be- gun'. At the January session, 1872, the general assembly changed the name to the Providence & Springfield railroad, extended the limit of time granted for locating and constructing the road. and authorized the town of Burrillville to subscribe for $50,000 of the company's stock, and the city of Providence to exchange its bonds for those of the railroad company, to the amount of $500,000, to be secured by a mortgage on the road. Both of these propositions were accepted. The construction of the railroad was pushed forward rapidly, and it was completed as far as Pascoag, its present terminus, a distance of nearly 23 miles. It was opened for traffic August 11th, 1873. In 1881, as a part of a scheme to increase the connections of the Providence & Springfield railroad and thereby enlarge its possi- bilities, an extension was planned from Pascoag to the town of Web- ster. An act was passed by the general assembly in May, 1881, pro- viding for such extension as far as the boundary line of either Connecticut or Massachusetts, and incorporating it under the name of the Providence, Webster & Springfield Railroad Company. The limit of time for the location of the road and subscription to the stock was set at May 1st, 1886. Here the enterprise rests, awaiting further action to carry it to the point aimed at by its original projectors, that of forming a through connection with the West from Providence. The president and general manager of the company is William Tinkham.
The Union railroad, which performs such efficient and widely ex- tended service in the local passenger traffic of Providence, was, as its name implies, formed by the union of several earlier companies, which were originally quite independent concerns. The first of these was the Providence, Pawtucket & Central Falls Railroad Company, incorporated at the January session of the general assembly, 1861. It provided for a railway to be operated by horse power and with passenger cars only, from some points in Smithfield and North Provi- dence to some convenient terminus in Providence. The charter was accepted at a meeting of the corporation in May, 1863, at which H. 1I. Thomas was elected president; and in September of the same year the city council of Providence granted the requisite permission for the laying of tracks in the highways. The line as constructed ran from its present terminus at the bridge, the same as it does to day, to Pawtucket. In March, 1864, it was opened for travel.
At the same session of the general assembly in 1861 an act was also passed to incorporate the Broadway & Providence Railroad Com- pany to run tracks under the same provisions to Olneyville, and the road was built and put in operation under authority of an ordinance of the city council, passed November 28th, 1864. The Cranston road was incorporated at the May session, 1864, in which Mr. Amasa
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Sprague was largely interested, on account of the desirability of facilitating communication with the Cranston Print Works from the city. An ordinance of the city council, passed August 8th, 1864, authorized the laying of tracks both on Cranston street to Cranston, and on High street to Olneyville. A "Providence and Olneyville Railroad Company" had been chartered to run cars on the latter route, but never took up its charter. The Cranston road at once began operations and ran its cars over both lines. The Elmwood, Pawtuxet and South Main Street Companies, all chartered at the May session, 1864, were empowered to begin work by ordinances of the city council, dated November 28th, 1864.
The accommodations offered by the horse railroad lines were found to be a great convenience, but there were difficulties which arose from the fact that they were run independently of each other. They used each other's tracks to a large extent, and the time table inter- fered to a greater or less degree. A consolidation was so obviously to the advantage of all that a very short time was sufficient to bring it about. In January, 1865, the general assembly consolidated the Cranston, Broadway, Elmwood, South Main Street and Pawtuxet Railroad Companies into one corporation, under the name of the Union Railroad Company, with a capital of $700,000. This included all the original street railroads except the Providence, Pawtucket & Central Falls line. which continued to run independently. In 1872 the Union Railroad Company purchased this line, and it then came under its control and was run in connection with the other lines. The company, when the consolidation was effected, possessed an equipment of 35 cars and 250 horses. Fares were established the same as they have ever since remained. In 1867 the present station was erected on the Great bridge. New lines and extensions have repeatedly been opened and the rolling stock of the company corre- spondingly increased till now there are 1,320 horses, 249 cars, oper- ated by about 600 employees.'
CHAPTER X.
PROVIDENCE CITY-PARKS, CEMETERIES, OLD BUILDINGS, TAV- ERNS AND HOTELS.
Roger Williams Park .- The Cove Park .- Blackstone Park .- Tockwotten Park .- Washington Park .- Roger Williams Square .- Hayward Park .- Franklin Square .- Prospect Terrace .- Abbott Park .- The Heater Piece .- Dexter Training Ground .- Field's Point Farm .- Arnold Square .- Elmwood Avenue Park .- Cemeteries .- North Burial Ground .- Grace Church Cemetery .- Swan Point Cemetery .- Locust Grove Cemetery .- Hebrew Cemetery .- St. Patrick's Cemetery .- St. John's Church- vard .- West Burial Ground .- Historic Buildings .- Old Business Houses .- Antique Churches .- Ancient Dwellings and Homesteads .- Old Public Buildings .- Old Buildings now Unknown .- Old Inns and Taverns .- Hotels of the Present Time.
T' HE city of Providence, though not remarkable for the extent or liberal improvements of its public parks, yet has several breath- ing places that are worthy of notice. The largest of these is Roger Williams Park, situated in the southern part of the city, and containing 104 acres. This beautiful park was devised to the city by the will of Betsey Williams, who died in November, 1871. It is emi- nently adapted for park purposes, being beautifully diversified with hill, dale, woods. lawns and water. A mature forest covers a large portion, while an ample meadow remains for ornamentation, contain- ing an artificial lake of some ten or twelve acres in area. The water adds greatly to the attractions of the park, furnishing excellent ac- commodations for sea fowl, and facilities for boating in summer and skating in winter. The park contains an ideal statue in bronze of Roger Williams, mounted upon an appropriate pedestal of granite, beside which stands another figure in bronze, representing History, in the act of writing upon one of the tablets of the pedestal. The monument was erected in 1877, being dedicated October 16th of that year. It stands on a plateau in front of the old Williams house. Its total height is 273 feet and its cost was $18,500. The park is situ- ated nearly three miles from the business center of the city, yet is conveniently accessible both by steam and horse cars.
The Cove Park, once an attractive and much frequented prom- enade in the heart of the city, is now almost abandoned as a pleasure resort for the people. It contains something over 300,000 square feet of area, encircling the sheet of water formed by bridging the river below, and has a promenade about 80 feet wide, provided with trees for shade and seats for resting. The effluvia rising from the cove at
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low tide, however, together with its proximity to the railroads, are features of decided disadvantage, and the place is unpopular as a resort.
Blackstone Park is a wooded ravine of much natural beauty, ex- tending from Butler avenue to the Seekonk river. A brook flows through the park, and in summer the place, though but little im- proved by art, is quite attractive. It contains about five acres, is wooded, picturesque and finely situated. It was presented to the city in 1866 by Messrs. William P. Vaughan and Moses B. Jenkins.
Tockwotten Park fronts on Tockwotten street, contains an area of about two acres, and is admirably adapted for park purposes. It has an elevated position and a fine outlook upon the bay, from which it receives cooling breezes in summer. The park for many years be- longed to the city, being the site of a reform school. The buildings have recently been removed and the grounds tastefully laid off for pleasure purposes. The main building of the old reform school was built by the Hon. James B. Mason, as a residence, and so occupied by him for many years. When the Boston & Providence railroad was built the mansion was transformed into a hotel, and in 1849 was bought by the city for a reform school, several adjoining lots being thereafter added to the hotel estate.
Washington Park is bounded by Benefit, India, Traverse and Shamrock streets. It was given to the city in 1830, although it was thrown out for a public square by the Fox Point Association in 1816. It is a valuable little park of nearly an acre in extent.
Roger Williams Square is supposed to be the spot where Roger Williams landed near Slate Rock, and embraces a portion of the old shore of Seekonk river. It is 200 feet square, and is situated at the lower end of Power street, between that and Williams. It was given as a public park by the heirs of Governor James Fenner. Slate Rock is the rock upon which Williams stepped when he first landed from his canoe on these shores. The rock is protected from relic hunters by an iron fence. The surroundings are not inviting, and the sandy hillsides are still a conspicuous feature. The spot, however, is one of the richest in its historical importance.
Hayward Park is an area of nearly two acres, bounded by Beacon, Friendship and Plane streets. It was formerly known as the Sixth Avenue Park, or the Proprietors' burying ground, having been used for burial purposes. The graves have been removed to other grounds, and the spot has been improved as a public park, the city council giving it the present name in honor of William S. Hayward, a former mayor of the city. A formal opening of the park and dedi- cation of a handsome fountain, 253 feet in height, took place on the evening of September 25th, 1889.
Franklin Square is an attractive breathing place on Federal hill. fronting on Atwell's avenue, and containing an area of about half an
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acre. It is of considerable sanitary and pecuniary value to the neigh- borhood. It was conveyed to the town in 1808. by Amos M., Atwell and others, for public uses. Its name was given to it in July, 1857.
Prospect Terrace is an invaluable little park on account of its ele- vated and sightly position. No better view of the city can anywhere be had than from this park, and no cooler spot can be found so near the center of the city on a summer's evening. The ground was pre- sented to the city for a public park, by several citizens, in 1869. It fronts on Congdon street 120 feet, and extends back 100 feet.
Abbott Park is a small park, fronting on Broad street, near Chest- nut, and contains a beautiful fountain. It was conveyed in 1746, by Daniel Abbott, to a committee of the Congregational society for pub- lic uses, but never to be encumbered with any building.
The Heater Piece is a small triangular piece of ground containing, including old Governor street, 12,000 square feet of surface, and is located on the corner of Williams and Governor streets. It has been thrown open for public use more than 70 years.
Dexter Training Ground, situated in the Eighth ward, on Dexter street, is nearly oblong in shape and contains an area of about nine acres. It was given to the city by Ebenezer Knight Dexter. It is hardly a park, but a grassy common, originally intended for training of military companies, but being no longer used for that purpose, it is practically of but little use except as a place for youthful recre- ations.
Field's Point Farm contains an area of about 37 acres. It was pur- chased by the town, from George Field and John H. Clark, in 1825. It contains a promontory extending far out into the river. The view on the bay from this point is unrivalled.
Arnold Square is located on elevated ground on River avenue, in the Tenth ward. It was platted as a public square in 1854. Its area is a little less than an acre.
Elmwood Avenue Park i's a small triangular piece of ground, meas- uring 200 feet on Elmwood avenue, 109 feet on Adelaide avenue, and 227 feet on Greenwich street. It was dedicated to the town of Crans- ton by Joseph J. Cook, for a park or pleasure ground, and became the property of the city when the Ninth ward was annexed.
The resting places of the dead are the conservators of history more emphatically than any other class of institutions of which this or any other city can boast, if perhaps we should except here and there an active historical society. But even those institutions must go to the cemeteries for much of their most valuable material.
In the year 1700 the less than 1,500 inhabitants of the town voted to lay out grounds " for the use of military affairs, for the use of training soldiers, etc.," and also "a place to be for the use of receiv- ing the dead." It was provided in the resolution passed that the land should be taken out of the " common lands at the north part of
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the town." Forty-three acres was the area of the spot. The training field was the tract of about seven acres which now lies at the south entrance to the ground, laid out as a very pleasant park. This "training ground," as it was called, was, until the appointment, in 1847, of the first superintendent of the grounds, Mr. Philip W. Mar- tin, fenced off from the burial portion. It had not at this time been used as a training field in 50 years. Perhaps the burial of the French soldiers upon it shows its usage during the revolution, but it is cer- tain that it was never of the importance its original surveyors ex- pected it to be. At first the entire expanse laid out was unfenced and little cared for. The people of the town were only obliged to select a lot in the grounds when they wished to bury, and when it was staked out it was their claim. The rules and regulations were unwritten, if there were any at all. No one had any general man- agement until Mayor Bridgham's time. The first burial was that of John Whipple, who died March 12th, 1710-11 and from that time until 1848 the interests of the burial ground were enwrapped in the lives of the families burying there. Probably about the commence- ment of this century a fence was built about it, separating it from the training ground and from the roadway upon the east. During Mayor Bridgham's administration, the lot owners were compelled to keep this fence in repairs. It was removed when the first commis- sioners of the North Burial Ground were appointed in 1848.
The physical history of the cemetery until this time was very matter of fact. The number of acres increased to nearly 70. To-day they have increased to 158. The new officers straightened out the boundary lines, finding them very irregular, and laid out the interior, which was also in confusion from the old manner of obtaining lots. The new era was really commenced by Mayor Bridgham in 1833, it being one of the ideas of his public life to have an overseer appointed. In lieu of this officer, he himself was wont to see that lots were properly staked out. In 1845, commissioners to lay out roads and walks, and price lots, and draw up regulations, were appointed. They surveyed the grounds, and two years after the first superintend- ent was chosen. The control of the estate is now in the hands of the commission, which was created in 1848. It consists of three mem- bers, who are elected annually. The commissioners have complete control of things, even to the management of the grounds like a cor- poration. Up to their appointment it is estimated that 60,CCO bodies were buried, but no record was kept. Since then fully 20,000 mounds have been raised. Mr. Joseph Warren Baker is now superintendent.
A description of this great municipal property must commence with a word about its character as a cemetery. It is safe to say that here is memorialized all the city's past-rich and poor, high and low. There are the sections which constitute the " Potter's Field " (so far as the term should be used to-day in America), the free white and the
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colored grounds, and 4,000 graves are beheld in it, most of them marked only by numbered slabs. The Colored Shelter, the Rhode Island Hospital, the Prescott Post, G. A. R., the French Memorial and the Fireman's lot show what stability isexpected in the ground as a last resting place. There were a few Catholics interred here in the first days of the Catholic sect in the city. As to the appearance of the cemetery, it is now as generally artistic as good care can make it. In shape it is an irregular polygon. The stone house at the entrance was built in 1883. The superintendent's house was originally upon land added to the estate. The contour of the land is scenic, and affords an opportunity for the exercise of the finest landscape artistry. There are many noble examples of monumental art, and, on the other hand, there are noble names cut in memorials of the simplest kind. Emblems of memory apart from the relation of clay beneath a mound also are here, as the boulder dedicated to Canonicus, and standing upon its moccasin-shaped plat. Here are the graves of General Barton and Commodore Hopkins, the tomb of Tristam Burges, the grand monuments of Nicholas Brown and Presi- dent Wayland, the French Memorial, the Fireman's Monument and Ebenezer Knight Dexter's shaft, erected by the city to commemor- ate his munificence.
The future of this cemetery is to be long. Perpetual cares for lots are now sold, and the sums, with donations of funds, are invested to yield a perpetual income. There is also a general improvement fund, and the North Burial Ground sinking fund affords the city an annual revenue from this estate.
Probably Grace Church Cemetery is as prominent a one as any in the city. Situated in a central spot, the arched gateway and the house of the superintendent, with the triangular burying place be- yond, constitute a landmark. When first established it was imagined to be out of danger from any increase of the city's population, but it is now in a thickly inhabited center. It originally belonged to the corporation of Grace church, and was a sectarian ground. The land was purchased in 1834. Many bodies have been transferred to the more stable cemeteries within late years.
There is nothing but simplicity in the layout of this ground. It was made a burial place, presumably without a thought of landscape beauty. Still it is a neat tract of land, and in later years has been very greatly improved in appearance.
The ownership was in 1840 transferred from the church society to the corporation of Grace Church Cemetery, which, however, com- prises the vestry of Grace church. These gentlemen act as directors. of the corporation and elect the superintendent. Mr. L. R. Stearns is now superintendent. Over 5,000 burials have taken place here, and since the formation of the Corporation of Grace Church Ceme- tery the burials have not been confined to the Episcopal sect.
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The Swan Point Cemetery is the most beautiful and costly in the city. It was founded in 1846, with this idea, the late Thomas C. Hartshorn being its original projector. The land had been pur- chased (60 acres) in 1845, and the Swan Point Cemetery Company was incorporated in 1847. A board of management conducted the cemetery until 1858, when " The Proprietors of Swan Point Ceme- tery " were incorported, and they now manage the grounds thicugh directors and a superintendent. Mr. Timothy McCarthy has held the latter office since 1876.
The area of Swan Point Cemetery is now about 200 acres, lying next the Seekonk river, and about equally on each side of the Swan Point road. Only the river side of the estate, however, is yet uscd for burials. The beauty of the place is in its landscape, and a gicat deal is the result of artistic landscape gardening. An old and 1.cw part of the grounds exist, as well as a miscellaneous portion. There are the most and finest memorials here of any ground in the city, among them that of Senator Anthony, that of the Barnaby family, and that of the Nightingale family. Hundreds of others are the equals of any work which could be produced. Some of those who slumber here are Senator Anthony, General Buinside, Colonel Slo- cum, Major Ballou, Commander Ames and Pierre Donville.
The preparations for the existence of this cemetery have from the beginning been on the noblest scale. President Wayland delivcicd the address at the dedication, and Mrs. Whitman contributed a poem. The wealthy modern people of the city have placed their loved ones here. Up to 1888 $130,000 was invested for the perpetual cares of individual lots. About 11,000 graves are here, in 2,500 lots. Without including the investment funds mentioned above, the corporate property, after deducting all liabilities, amounts to $482,000.
Locust Grove Cemetery, when first opened, was situated in the town of Cranston. In 1848 Amos D. Smith, James Y. Smith, William V. Daboll, Benjamin B. Adams and Rollin Mathewson, all interested in real estate in Elmwood, in the midst of which suburb of Provi- dence the ground was, obtained a charter under the name of the Locust Grove Cemetery Corporation, to conduct a public burial ground. They purchased the tract, shaped like a parallelogram, opening from Greenwich street, Elmwood. The cemetery has very little history. Its best days were lived before the population of Elm- wood was swelled by the growth of the city. It has of late afforded interments at rare intervals.
The character of it is that of a rustic graveyard. It is laid out simply, is surrounded by a hedge now very high and rather gloomy in aspect, and within the shrubbery is generally of an unrestraincd growth. But there are several lots in which quite costly memorials have been raised. There is no superintendent, but the corporation carries on the little work needed by means of one or more workmen.
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Ere long this ground will doubtless yield its contents for interment in more sacred ground. Perhaps 800 graves are here.
On Reservoir avenue, and formerly in the town of Cranston, is an enclosure, 15 by 150 feet, showing a few gravestones of a simple style. This is the holy ground of the Congregation of the Sons of Israel of this city. It is not so famous a spot as the Jewish Ceme- tery at Newport, but Longfellow's lines upon that, " How strange it 'seems, these Hebrews in their graves," point out to the observer here the sweet faith the Hebrew race entertains. The white marble slabs are all so placed that the sleepers will behold their promised Im- manuel when the glorious day comes and appears in the east.
About 60 bodies have been buried here. The grounds were pre- sented to the Congregation of the Sons of Israel in 1856 by Solomon Prairie, who was at that time president of the congregation. They were opened the same year, shortly before the Day of Atonement. From this time until 1882 the burying went on as the deaths befel, without any event. September 10th, 1882, a ceremony of re-dedica- tion took place. Mr. Henry Green was then president of the congre- gation, and Mr. Meyer Noot acting rabbi. More than $1,000 was spent in putting the ground in order, so that to-day it is in a very neat condition. It does not contain any graves of the distinction of those at Newport.
One of the largest cemeteries in the city is the St. Patrick's, on Douglas avenue, formerly in the Tenth ward in the town of North Providence. It includes ten or more acres of ground, and was for years the one consecrated burying place of the Roman Catholics in this vicinity. In 1847 St. Peter's and St. Paul's church opened the ground, and from that time until 1871, when the St. Francis Ceme- tery, in Pawtucket, was consecrated, the burials were very numerous. It is now estimated that 40,000 Catholics have found a resting place here. The first management is by the bishop of the diocese, but de- tails are carried out by workmen without a superintendent's media- tion. The burials are neatly done, but there is no advance of ar- rangement. A few good monuments are standing. At present no new lots are sold, the great majority of the dead being interred in St. Francis Cemetery, which is fast becoming a beautiful spot.
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