USA > Rhode Island > The "Old Stone Bank" history of Rhode Island, Vol. III > Part 21
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These picturesquely uniformed bodies retain the high-sounding titles that must have thrilled the early patriots, especially the young men, and associated their activities with deeds of daring and adventure-filled exploits. Such titles as the "Newport Artillery, Kentish Guards, United Train of Artillery, Bristol Train
of Artillery, First Light Infantry," and the comparatively new "Varnum Con- tinentals" have survived since the first of these, the Newport Artillery, was founded in 1741. At the time when the Colonies faced war with England, the active military force in Rhode Island, in addition to some of those already mentioned, con- sisted of such groups as the Kingstown Reds, North Providence Rangers, Scituate Hunters, Providence Rangers, Pawtuxet Rangers, and the Providence Grenadiers. In spite of the fact that these companies were recruited from inexperienced young- sters they were well equipped and strictly disciplined and the Colony had a feeling of safety as long as the drilling, parading and mustering continued in its midst. The officers were elected at stated times by the companies themselves, their choice was communicated to the General As- sembly for approval and then the Gover- nor did the formal commissioning. These officers were, for the most part, prominent citizens who had had military experience in the field or on the training grounds, but practically all of the soldiers were raw recruits.
Although the intent was serious enough,
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these muster days and training days were regarded pretty much as holidays. Those who were not members of the companies joined the frolic and put aside all work in order to watch the drilling of the troopers, and also to take part in the general jolli- fication in the vicinity of the parade- ground. The headquarters of the militia was usually at some one of the many taverns in the town, and the tavern- keeper always made provision for the celebrating by laying in an extra stock of refreshments. It was customary for the newly-elected officers to be generous in treating, not only the soldiers in the com- pany, but everyone else, and quoting Ed- ward Field "liquor was furnished in such overflowing abundance that some who attended training took many more steps returning home than they had in coming."
By a law of the Colony, passed in 1774, each enlisted soldier was required to fur- nish at his own expense "a sufficient gun or fuzee" and a good bayonet for his gun. This equipment was therefore the soldier's own property and, as long as he furnished all that the law required, no question was raised as to the type. There must have been a strange collection of assorted fire- arms when those early defenders of peace and liberty marched and counter-marched across the rough fields and paraded through the narrow dusty streets. The original purpose of the maintenance of these home troops was for protection of the Colony itself but all this preparation led to a much more important and more active service than "home-guarding."
Immediately following the immortal clash of arms at Concord and Lexington, the General Assembly of Rhode Island ordered a so-called Army of Observation to be raised "with all the expedition and despatch that the nature of the thing will admit of," and all of the militia companies were ordered to drill a half-day every two weeks. This Army of Observation, as it was politely called, was raised for the purpose of repelling any "insult or violence that may be offered to the in- habitants" by the fleets and armies which surrounded them - the fleets and armies of His Britannic Majesty. Those who entered the army did so by subscribing to the following oath of enlistment: - "I, the
subscriber, hereby solemnly engage and enlist myself, and in the pay of the Colony of Rhode Island, for the preservation of the liberties of America, from the day of my enlistment, to the last day of Decem- ber next, unless the service admit of a discharge sooner, which shall be at the discretion of the General Assembly; and I hereby promise to submit myself to all the orders and regulations of the army, and faithfully to observe and obey all such orders as I shall receive from time to time from my officers."
This Army of Observation was enlisted in the King's service and, on the face of it, the intention was not hostile to English interests. But the promptness in which this emergency force was organized and put in the field, and the zeal which the patriots displayed in rallying to arms must have worried His Majesty a bit and caused him to surmise that perhaps this hurried military preparation on the part of Rhode Island might have a far different meaning from what appeared on the sur- face. Thus, Rhode Island began to enter into the eight year struggle which was to lead to freedom and self-government by a new nation. Throughout the entire period of the war Rhode Island played an active indispensable part and from the tiny colony enlisted more fighters than from any other colony in proportion to its population.
Governor Wanton, the Deputy-Gover- nor and two assistants protested the action of the Assembly in forming this Army of Observation, but their protesta- tions were of no avail. Nathanael Greene and William Bradford were appointed a committee to confer with the Connecticut Assembly in regard to this matter of general defense; the public ammunition was distributed among the towns; and it was voted to hold the election session of the Assembly at Providence for greater security. At the May session for the election of officers the dividing line be- tween Whigs and Tories was more sharply drawn. Those who preferred allegiance to England were forced to declare them- selves, and there was no place for a straddler. As Nathanael Greene put it "those who were not for the Colonies were against them."
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Governor Wanton was suspended for having in various ways "manifested his intentions to defeat the good people of these colonies in their present glorious struggle to transmit inviolate to posterity those sacred rights they have received from their ancestors." A Committee of Safety was appointed which, with the two highest military officers, was to super- intend the paying and furnishing the troops and direct their movements when called away from the Colony. The army was formed into one brigade of three regiments, each regiment consisting of eight companies, with a train of artillery. Nathanael Greene was placed in command with the rank of brigadier-general and by the first of June nearly a thousand men of this Army of Observation were encamped with their artillery on Jamaica Plain.
After the battle of Bunker Hill an extra session of the General Assembly was called. Committees were appointed to take account of the arms and ammunition in the Colony and report it to Congress. Saltpetre and brimstone supplies were sent to the powder mills in New York, and in all sections of the Colony could be seen open preparations for the impending struggle. A signal post was established on Tower Hill, and the famous beacon pole was raised on Prospect Hill and instruc- tions were broadcast relative to the method in which it would be fired should the enemy strike. The Colony was put on a war footing, and every man of age and physically fit was required to hold himself in readiness for active service. A portion of the militia was designated to act as "minutemen" and the independent com- panies of infantry and artillery drilled with these militia companies. The Army of Observation which, by this time, num- bered about seventeen hundred men, was placed under the command of General
Washington, who had arrived after the battle of Bunker Hill and taken charge of the Continental Army, relieving Artemas Ward.
Providence harbor was fortified between Field's Point and Sassafras Point and a battery of six eighteen pounders was erected on Fox Point. The Beacon on Prospect Hill was given a thorough trial and the glow from the suspended kettle was found to shed a light over an area extending from Cambridge to New Lon- don, and from Newport to Pomfret. Preparations for war continued. All live stock was removed from Block Island and the islands in Narragansett Bay. Rhode Island delegates in Congress were in- structed "to use their whole influence for building at the Continental expense, a fleet of sufficient force for the protection of these colonies, and for employing them in such manner and places as will most effec- tually annoy our enemies, and contribute to the common defense of these colonies." This recommendation led to the appoint- ment of a committee of which Stephen Hopkins and John Adams were members, and which soon laid the foundations of the Continental Navy, the first commander- in-chief of which was Esek Hopkins, the distinguished Rhode Island sailor.
In this and in subsequent conflicts in- volving the safety of the nation, Rhode Island was always in the forefront leading the way for a fight to the finish. This same spirit will ever prevail should similar emergencies be met again. George W. Greene, the historian, described well the spirit of Rhode Island during those exciting days of preparedness for the struggle for independence when he said "Rhode Island drew its sword when the 'Gaspee' was burned, and the scabbard was thrown away when Governor Wanton, the Tory, was deposed."
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STEPHEN HOPKINS
D' URING the 18th century Rhode Island went through a remarkable change. In 1700 it had little more than the rudi- ments of a colony. Communication, within its boundaries and with the neighbors, was poor and infrequent, and the settlements were united only by name. Each commu- nity was self-sufficient, and only Newport and Providence showed the beginnings of commerce and industry. Newport far outshone its rival, at the head of the bay.
At the end of the century, in 1799, Rhode Island had a well-administered local gov- ernment, withits towns all definitely united. It held a position equal to that of other commonwealths, which were all under a central federal authority. Its population had increased seven-fold. It was acquiring wealth rapidly, and its foreign and domes- tic commerce was growing and flourishing. Its system for public education, which did not exist at the beginning of the century, had become an active asset. Moreover, Rhode Island could boast of a college. Be- cause of the common cause which the Revolution provided, the spirit of the colo- nists was now consciously and distinctly national.
The man who had more to do with this rapid growth and change than any other individual was Stephen Hopkins. Stephen was the brother of Esek Hopkins, the first Admiral of the American Navy. He is not so well known as his illustrious brother because he lived during a period of com- parative peace, and no fame is quite so great as that accompanying military or naval glory. A search into his individual record reveals, however, that he was one of the most illustrious citizens that Provi- dence, or Rhode Island, has ever produced.
He was born in 1707 in South Provi- dence, near Broad, Sackett, and Hamilton Streets. His parents, William Hopkins and Ruth Wilkinson Hopkins, were both from Quaker stock. In Stephen's early years, the family moved to Chopmiscook, now Chopmist, near the northwest corner of Scituate. This region was a mere frontier settlement. Bridle paths afforded
the only access, and there was no country store, no postal route, no church, and no school. But Stephen's mother was an exceptional woman, who was well edu- cated, and spared no pains to instruct her children properly. Both Stephen's grand- fathers were intelligent, enterprising, and public-spirited men. They gave him practical instruction in mathematics and surveying, which was later to aid him immeasurably. Also, through association with these older men, he became ac- quainted with many prominent and influ- ential citizens of the State.
By the time he was twenty-one, he was well prepared for the public life which was to follow, and three years later he was elected to his first office, that of Mediator of the town of Scituate. At the next town meeting he was elected Town Clerk, and held this office for ten years, meanwhile taking on other duties. From 1735 until 1742, when it became necessary for him to remove to Providence, he was President of the Town Council. In 1736 he was elected one of the Justices of the Court of Com- mon Pleas, and Justice of the Peace. In 1732 he was one of the two Represent- atives to the Rhode Island General Assembly from the town of Scituate, and was re-elected every year but one until 1738. In 1737 he was engaged to revise the streets and project a map of Scituate and Providence, and this accomplishment won for him, in 1740, the appointment of Surveyor of the Proprietors' Lands and Clerk of the Proprietors. In 1741 he was again Representative from Scituate, and was chosen Speaker of the General Assembly and Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas. The two years preceding this, he had been first on the list of Jus- tices of the Court of Common Pleas for Providence County.
In 1742 he found it necessary and profit- able to move to Providence with his family, and promptly took an active part in the city's affairs. It is written of him that "he taught Providence her capa- bilities, and calculated, rather than prophesied, her future growth and pros-
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perity." At the time of his removal to Providence, the city had a population of 4,000. It had no custom house, no town house, no school houses or college, no library or public market house, no state house, no bank or insurance office, no printing press or newspaper, and no paved streets - only four churches, one mill, and three taverns.
The account of him goes on to say: "Having forecast in his own mind the commercial future which Providence had before it and accurately divided the channels through which it was to come, Stephen proceeded to do all in his power to bring in the new order of things." He found helpful co-operators in the four Brown brothers, Nicholas, Joseph, John, and Moses. These men accomplished much. New wharves and storehouses were built, and new streets, and new bridges, a system of insurance policies was established; together with a school house commission, a library, a college, and a newspaper. Stephen was the prime ex- ponent of all these projects, and the favor in which he stood is attested by his record of public offices held after his removal to Providence. Two years after his arrival he was re-elected Speaker of the General Assembly, and appointed Deputy from Providence. Between 1746 and 1752, he was re-elected to the General Assembly six times. He was also largely responsible for Rhode Island's present boundaries, as he was a member of the commission which attended a hearing on the boundary ques- tion. The result of this hearing was that five towns between Massachusetts and Rhode Island were annexed to this State.
In 1751, he became Chief Justice of the Superior Court, from which office he stepped into that of Governor in May, 1755. In 1754 he represented Rhode Is- land at the Albany Congress, and was the only delegate who fully supported Ben- jamin Franklin's plan for "union and confederation."
During the Seven Years' War, Governor Hopkins organized three additional Rhode Island companies, making such excellent preparations that he was congratulated by General Winslow, Commander of the Massachusetts forces, and was also re- elected Governor. His total time of
service as Governor was a little over ten years, between 1755 and 1768.
From 1763 on, when the legislation of the English Parliament assumed oppres- sive proportions, he played an important part in shaping public opinion towards resisting this oppression and approving the idea of separation and independence. One of his most powerful instruments for this purpose was the Providence Gazette and Country Journal, a weekly which he had helped to found. One of his articles, "Rights of Colonies Examined," was so thoroughly convincing that it was re- printed in almost every colony in America.
When the Declaration of Independence was drawn up, Hopkins was one of the signers. After several years of ill health which did not entirely confine him, he died in 1785, universally mourned as a genial comrade, and respected as a student, mer- chant, leader of public sentiment, writer, historian, orator, legislator, jurist, execu- tive officer, patriot, and statesman.
In the shadow of the imposing new Providence County Courthouse, a few steps from Market Square, has come to rest for future generations to see the little wooden dwelling house that was once the home of Stephen Hopkins, illustrious Rhode Island citizen who played so important a part in the early history of the State. This permanent memorial was turned over to the Society of Colonial Dames in Rhode Island in the year 1929, and its doors were opened so that the public could view the interior of a typical dwelling of Revolutionary days, and picture in imagination the quaint scenes that took place within its walls. Origi- nally this house stood on South Main Street. In 1804 it was moved half way up the hill, and now is located per- manently on the west side of Benefit Street, at the corner of Hopkins Street.
Let us look into the pages of history for one or two sidelights on the character of this man who occupies one of the prom- inent niches in the Rhode Island hall of fame.
John Adams, who was associated with him in Congress, speaks of him thus: "The pleasantest part of my labors in the four years I spent in Congress, from 1774 to 1778, was in the Committee on Naval
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Affairs. Mr. Lee and Mr. Gadsen, two members of the committee, were sensible men and very cheerful, but Governor Hopkins of Rhode Island, above seventy years of age, kept us all alive. Upon busi- ness, his experience and judgment were very useful, but when the business of the evening was over, he kept us in conversa- tion till eleven and sometimes twelve o'clock. His custom was to drink nothing until eight in the evening, when his beverage was Jamaica spirits and water. It gave him wit, humor, anecdotes, science, and learning. He had read Greek, Roman, and British history, and was familiar with English poetry, particu- larly Pope, Thompson, and Milton, and the flow of his soul made all of his reading our own, and seemed to bring in recollec- tion in all of us all we had ever read . Hopkins never drank to excess, but all he drank was immediately converted into wit, sense, knowledge and good humor, and inspired us all with similar qualities."
Here is a letter Hopkins wrote in Phila- delphia to his son's wife, on June 21, 1775: "Beloved Ruth. . . . I wrote you on the 25th of May and gave you an account of our journey hither. Since then I have had an ill turn and two or three fits of fever and ague, but am now well. Your mother has not been well for several days, and is now quite poorly. I hope she will soon be better. George I expected to have seen here, but believe he has gone to South Carolina. Col. Washington will set out from here in a day or two for New Eng- land to take command of the Continental Army of which he is appointed Com- mander-in-Chief. He will be accom- panied by General Lee, who also has a command in the army which is taken into the pay of all America. I can give no guess yet when we shall leave this place --- certainly not very soon, unless we ad- journ to the Northland, which is talked of, but not agreed to yet.
Give my best to all parts of the family, and respects to all who may ask after me. Should be glad to hear from you, and remain your Affectionate Father, Stephen Hopkins."
In March, 1781, it became necessary for Washington to visit the Island of Rhode Island to make arrangements with the
newly arrived French allies, for the con- duct of the approaching campaign. On his way he stopped for a few days at Providence.
It was doubtless on this occasion that Washington paid the visit to Stephen Hopkins of which Moses Brown has left so interesting a record : "I was sitting with him," says Moses Brown, "when General Washington alone, called to see him. I sat some time viewing their simple, friendly and pleasant manner ... these two great men met and conversed with each other on various subjects." Moses Brown adds that he had occasionally seen Washington before and after this occasion, and had been impressed because his simple, easy manner resembled that of Governor Hop- kins.
In 1774 Stephen Hopkins, although in feeble health, was a delegate from Rhode Island to the first Continental Congress. Of the fifty-five delegates present, he was the only one who had been a member of the Albany Congress in 1754. (Franklin, who also had been at the Albany Congress, was not a member of the Continental Congress until 1775.) Hopkins, more than anyone else at that gathering, seemed to appreciate the gravity of the situation, and to realize that war was inevitable. He expressed this conviction in the following memorable and cour- ageous words:
"Powder and ball will decide this ques- tion. The gun and bayonet alone will finish the contest in which we are engaged, and any of you who cannot bring your minds to this mode of adjusting the ques- tion, had better retire in time."
Some historians have gone so far as to acclaim Stephen Hopkins as the most dis- tinguished citizen to whom the city of Providence has given birth. Roger Wil- liams first saw the light of day on the other side of the Atlantic; and Nathanael Greene, whose name is held in deepest honor throughout the State, was born in Warwick, and was never a resident of Providence. The great names of Berkley and Channing have inseparable associa- tions with Newport, though none with Providence. Stephen Hopkins, however, was born on Providence soil, was thor- oughly satisfied with her interests, and
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was one of her most assiduous public serv- ants. She is most deeply indebted to his exertions.
One who knew him well, and had care- fully studied the influence of his person- ality, said of him long after his death:
"Providence, from the beginning, has had to boast some men - the number more or less from time to time - of this peculiar, this Themistoclean character. Men who might say, as Themistocles said: 'True, I do not understand the art
of music, and cannot play upon the flute; but I understand the art of raising a small village into a great city.'"
This striking tribute might most prop- erly have been Stephen Hopkins' epitaph. Those whose efforts are identified with the city of the present day, with its varied interests of manufacture, commerce, rail- ways, schools, libraries, and all the other multiform elements of a city's life, owe more than can easily be realized to the intelligent exertions of Stephen Hopkins.
THE NAVY'S FIRST COMMANDER
T Union's smallest state has the distinction of having built and manned the earliest vessels with which to fight against Great Britain; in Rhode Island were equipped more than her proportion- ate share of vessels during the war; it was Rhode Island that furnished more naval officers than any of the other states; and to Esek Hopkins came the honor of being first Commander of the American Navy. Much has been written about Esek Hopkins, the sailor, and about his brother Stephen, the statesman. The Providence homes of each have been preserved, carefully restored under ex- pert direction, furnished with many family belongings and heirlooms, together with contemporary pieces of furniture and household utensils; and both homesteads are now open to the public. The city has performed a meritorious service by pro- tecting and opening the two Hopkins homes and others of equal importance, and all patriotic citizens sincerely pray that the same can be done for other landmarks that serve as a precious con- necting link between the present and a glorious past.
Esek Hopkins was one of nine children. He was born April 26, 1718, in the section now known as Scituate, Rhode Island, but, at the time of his birth, his home was within the town of Providence. His boy- hood was spent at the family homestead in the midst of a wild and sparsely settled country, and he went to sea at the age of twenty. Little is known of Hopkins'
youth up to the time when he left the farm to begin his career as a sailor, except that he has been described as being "tall, stout and handsome." There was salt in the blood of the Hopkins; two older brothers were already masters of vessels, and Esek was probably influenced in taking to the sea by the tales of travel brought home to the farm by John and Samuel.
Esek's first voyage took him to Surinam and he entered upon his new life with all the enthusiasm of a typical young Rhode Island adventurer. He soon rose to the command of a ship and was ranked among the more prominent master mariners of New England. At the age of twenty- three he was married to Desire Burroughs of Newport, the daughter of a leading merchant and shipmaster. For a while Hopkins maintained a residence in New- port, but later he moved to Providence, where he was made a freeman of the town by subscribing to the required oath of fidelity. It appears that this oath was not taken immediately, very likely because the new Providence citizen was away on one of his extended sea voyages. He dis- played a keen interest in education, his first public office being an appointment on the town's first school committee from which grew the splendid free school system later bringing great credit upon the community.
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