USA > Rhode Island > The "Old Stone Bank" history of Rhode Island, Vol. III > Part 28
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THE WAD OF CONTINENTAL MONEY
H ALLOWE'EN, the vigil of Hallowmas, or All Saints' Day, is a singular observ- ance, especially in Scotland where it was once the popular custom for all households to light bonfires at nightfall. Some believe that the custom originated with the very ancient and widely diffused practise of kindling sacred fires at certain seasons of the year, usually on the eves of May 1 and November 1. At any rate, Hallowe'en seems to be a designated occasion when fairies and ghosts are both unusually active and propitious, and the passing of time does not appear to lessen the popular fancy that, once a year, eerie forms are all about us, close at hand, beckoning to us with skinny fingers to put aside material things for a few hours and to live in the spooky land of flying broomstocks, hide- ous grinning faces, and dancing goblins. Ducking for apples, masquerading, and practical joking are comparatively new Hallowe'en diversions, but the belief in
ghost-walking and fairy frolicking, on the eve of November 1, go back through American history far beyond its begin- nings to early European history when popular regard for the supernatural played a much more important part in the lives of people than it does today. There- fore, the reoccurrence of the hours when most children and many grownups will observe this age-old custom in true American style calls for the telling of some strange tale, one that has to do with a ghost or haunted place. Unfortunately, Rhode Island folk-lore includes but few stories of this fascinating character and years of diligent searching has disclosed not more than half a dozen ghost and haunted house tales that can be definitely traced to persons, places and events actually associated with this state. Here is one of these few that you may find interesting.
It was in the Spring of 1783, on a dark
DRY
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. PROVIDENCE "ISTITUTION FOR. SAVINGS
:1927
PAIN
THE OLNEYVILLE BRANCH OF THE PROVIDENCE INSTITUTION FOR SAVINGS, 1917-21 WESTMINSTER STREET, OLNEYVILLE SQUARE. ERECTED IN 1927.
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and stormy night, when a stranger was seen wearily following the old winding road that led to Providence from Fall River. This stranger was a traveling peddler and he carried his wares in a bulky pack, securely strapped to his back. A cold, cutting wind drove the rain into his face as he peered ahead through the darkness in search of a twinkling light that might, or might not, direct him to warmth, food and shelter for the night. No light did appear until this rain-soaked, travel-tired man had reached the very outskirts of Providence, and there, the very first door upon which he knocked was thrown open and he entered to receive the best that the host could offer, at the customary price for such hospitality and accommodations in those days.
His pack was unstrapped and placed in a corner, his drenched clothes spread out to dry and a humble Colonial meal was placed before him upon the table. When the traveler finished his supper, he sat with the family, a man, his wife and their young son, and as the fire crackled and the flames roared up the chimney, fanned by the rush of the May storm wind that had hurried this stranger to cover before reaching one of the regular downtown Providence taverns, the two men talked of their country, as yet without either a President or a Constitution. No doubt, the host talked of the debts that a long war had brought upon every American family, and he probably bemoaned the fact that each family in the new states and in the Colonies that were soon to become States owed an average war obligation of $200 - a goodly sum at that period. He also discussed the injustice of being forced to pay a special tax when he crossed the line into Massachusetts and there attempted to offer a bushel of potatoes to a housewife.
Likewise, the peddler had his tale of woe. Business was slow with him, but worse than that, paper money was good in one section of the new nation and it had no value in other places. As he talked, he displayed a huge wad of Continental paper money which he feared was of little or no value. The peddler pulled this paper money from a deep pocket of his stout buckskin trousers, and, as he did so,
the keen, close-set eyes of the apparently gracious host caught the gleam of the good gold and silver coins that were scarce and so difficult to obtain in those lean days of the year 1783. Evidently, then, the stranger who so freely displayed his wealth had been able to find some of the good hard money for all of his com- plaining and whining over the worthless Continental bills.
Finally the money was put away and the peddler brought forth his pack to show the family, before going to bed, what he had to sell the housewives of New Eng- land. From compartments, rolls, and pockets in the spacious portable depart- ment store he produced spools of thread, buttons, candle-snuffers, hair-pins, brushes, dress ornaments, buckles, jewelry of many varieties and many odds and ends of knick-knacks and small household utensils. The young man of the family had his eyes glued to several attractive articles and urged his folks to buy, but times were hard, there was no hard money to spend for trinkets and such luxuries, - everything was returned to its proper place in the pack - the family prepared for the night.
The trundle bed was pulled from beneath the large bed that the father and mother occupied, and with visions of all that he had seen displayed in his own home, still in his mind, this youngster lay down for the night, hearing distinctly before he dropped off to sleep, the sound of the tired feet of the peddler climbing the narrow stairs to the bedroom in the attic. Sometime during that stormy, mysterious night, the boy awoke with a start for he thought he had heard a scream, or perhaps the sound of someone groaning and crying. It startled him so that he quickly crawled from the tiny trundle bed to the larger one beside it hoping to find his father and mother there, who would quiet him and assure him that he had had a nightmare. The larger bed was empty. The boy returned to his own bed, and hearing no further outcry or sound of any kind, soon fell fast asleep.
Awake and out of his bed unusually early, the boy rushed to the kitchen hop- ing to see the kindly peddler again before
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he left the household, and also holding a faint hope that his parents would con- descend to make at least one purchase before it was too late. It was too late, for the boy was told that the peddler had made an early start planning to make several calls along the way into the center of Providence. The disappointed child sat down to his breakfast of milk and hasty-pudding and he told of his fear in the night. He asked his mother if she had heard the wind howling in the night - he inquired if either his father or mother had heard any sound like a human groan or cry - he told how he had risen from his own bed and gone to the other only to find it unoccupied - he wanted to know if they had been disturbed by anything unusual. A strange silence pervaded that particular Colonial home- stead for many an hour and day, but parental assurances that nothing had happened, no sound had been heard except the howl of the wind, satisfied the youngster, and soon the incident was forgotten, that is, by him.
Months went by, but the same, good- natured pack peddler with his enchant- ing roll of eye-catching treasures never stopped at the house again. Every time the wind blew, every time the rain pelted down at nightfall, the lad listened for the knock at the heavy door and the sound of the peddler's cheery greeting. He was never seen again in these parts. Mean- while, this little family of three who lived on the outskirts of Providence seemed to have come upon better days. The house was repaired, new cows had been pur- chased, there was money to spend on luxuries, and the war debt was paid with good, hard cash. However, the neighbors no longer came to call, people seemed to avoid the family, and wide-eyed children would always run, never walk, past the house. The boy often wondered about all of this but questions put to his folks and to others brought no information.
Death came to both his father and mother after a few years, so the lad, old enough now to earn his own living, de- cided to journey far away to seek his fortune. A neighbor purchased the home- stead, and the time soon came when he was to spend the last night under the roof
which had sheltered him since birth. He spent this evening alone, going from room to room, cupboard to cupboard, bidding fond farewell to each one of them, leaving the attic until the last. Once again a May storm was brewing - the rain lashed against the windows, the wind howled outside of the lonesome structure. He climbed the narrow stairs that led to the dark old attic and stood holding a flicker- ing taper before the great stone chimney that extended up through the slanting, nail-studded rafters.
Either the rain that sifted down through the flue or the shaking of the huge chimney by the gale had unloosed one of the round field stones a few feet above the floor and it had fallen to the hearth. Jutting out from the aperture, in which this stone had been inserted, this young man observed something that appeared to be a piece of cloth or a strip of paper. Quickly placing the flickering candle on the floor, he reached for this curious object in the cavity and his fingers touched something soft and cob-webby. He drew out the object and beat the dust from it. Then he began to laugh a little to himself since he held in his hands a pair of old buckskin trousers. Thinking that the pockets might contain something of interest he returned to the center of the room and stooped down to pick up the candle seeking better light to examine the curious relic. All of a sudden, almost at his very side, he heard a sound, a sound of someone groaning and crying, the identi- cal sound that had driven fear into his little heart several years before on the night when the kindly peddler spent the night under his father's roof. The wind blew again outside, the rain beat against the tiny window at the end of the garret - once more the blood-curdling sigh and gruesome moan of an invisible occupant of the lonely room transfixed him to the spot, bewildered, terrified, sick with fear.
To make matters worse the door at the foot of the attic stairs suddenly blew open with a bang, as though some imprisoned spirit had burst its chains and dashed to freedom. Tarrying no longer, the terror- stricken young man flung himself down the dark stairway and burst out of the house, not once stopping in his flight along
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the storm-beaten highway until he reached Providence. He remained there for one sleepless night, and left the next day for parts unknown never to be seen again in Rhode Island. Whether or not reflection upon his fearful experience eventually revealed to him the truth concerning an unexplained incident in his younger days, was never known, but, when the workmen hired by the new owner of the house replaced a stone in the great stone chimney, in order to close up a hole through which the wind whistled and made a moaning, crying sound, they found a strange object on the attic floor. It was a pair of old buckskin trousers
with the pockets filled with beads, but- tons, spools of thread, odds and ends of knick-knacks and a huge wad of old- time Continental paper money.
The outline and main details of the foregoing tale of strange happenings in Rhode Island, once upon a time, were furnished the author by the late Althea Louise Hall who died in Pawtucket, July 27, 1934. Miss Hall brought to light a valuable store of original Rhode Island historical matter during her lifetime, and her research in connection with the lives of Ann Hutchinson and Catherine Little- field Greene will be forever helpful to writers and historians.
THE TURNPIKE ERA
FTER the close of the War for Inde- pendence, Rhode Island witnessed a vast improvement in its facilities for trans- portation, both by water and by land. Ves- sels of greater tonnage were built, and lines of ships running to several coast ports were built. Besides, the various ferry crossings in the State were there- after maintained with a greater degree of efficiency. Lines of stages were estab- lished to Taunton, New Bedford, Worces- ter, Plainfield, Springfield and to other places, while the main stage line between Boston and New York, via Providence, was so much improved that the time for the trip was reduced to three days, going in either direction. Facilities for trans- porting freight were also provided on these same routes. However, the great obstacle to fast communication and transportation by land in those days was the unimproved condition of the roads. The citizens who happened to live along these main lines of communication showed no interest in the upkeep and improvement of the roads because, in their opinion, only strangers and stage owners from other States derived any profit from this new and rapidly-growing industry of carrying pas- sengers and goods. Likewise, the owners of stage and transportation lines did not care to spend money to put the roads in first-class condition when the residents
along the lines would receive the chief benefit from such expenditures.
This short-sighted attitude on the part of all concerned finally led to the intro- duction of what might be termed the "turnpike era" in Rhode Island. Under the system of turnpikes, a corporation assumed the care of a particular stretch of road and charged everyone, neighbor or stranger, a given fee for the use of it, every time such use was made. Fees were charged according to the extent of the use made; thus, a wagon or team with four cattle was charged less than one with more; a single horse and chaise less than a coach and more horses, etc. This strange schedule of rates seems to have been derived from the early system of charging bridge tolls, long the custom at that time. The original idea of the toll-bridge was that those who originally built a bridge were entitled to the use of it free, yet strangers were required to bear their fair share of the expenses of maintaining the structure. During the days of Roger Williams, the Wapweyset Bridge, one of the earliest erected in Providence, was free to all citizens of the Town, while all strangers were required to pay tolls.
The first turnpike of which there is any record in the statutes was on the line from Boston to New York; it was in existence previous to the year 1798 and was called
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the Providence and Norwich turnpike. The Providence and Boston turnpike was in active use before the turn of the cen- tury, having been built under an act of the Massachusetts legislature; also, an act to incorporate the same was passed in Rhode Island on October 29, 1800. Turn- pikes to East Greenwich, Gloucester, the Island of Rhode Island, Smithfield, Paw- tucket, Wickford, Coventry, Cranston, Foster, Cumberland, Worcester and other places were incorporated during the first quarter of the nineteenth century, and until the introduction of railroads, the turnpike was regarded, naturally, as the highest development of land communica- tion.
The development of industry in Rhode Island helped in no small measure to bring about action that gave the State its excel- lent system of turnpikes. When mills were established on the streams through- out the State, it was soon discovered by their owners that the existing roads were inadequate for industrial requirements, making it very difficult to transport raw material and the finished products. Con- sequently, through the influence of these early manufacturers, particularly the cotton spinners, pressure was constantly brought to bear upon the legislators and others who soon became "road conscious" and supported all efforts to better high- way conditions. Perhaps Rhode Island's present preeminence as a "good roads" provider is due to the efficient propaganda of more than a century ago. Frequently, in those days, an old road or cart-path was taken, rebuilt and improved, but not until a franchise had been obtained from the State Legislature.
An illustration of the important influ- ence the cotton industry exerted on road building is afforded by the work in this direction performed by the Wilkinson family of Pawtucket, justly recognized as the leaders in cotton manufacturing in Rhode Island for forty years after it was established. About 1804, Oziel Wilkinson built thirteen miles of a turn- pike leading from Pawtucket in the direc- tion of Boston, a highway that took the place of the old road previously used, and Oziel made all of the picks and shovels used in the construction work at his own
shop in Pawtucket. This improved road accommodated the stages that brought passengers from Boston to Providence on their way to New York by way of packet or steamboat. The Valley Falls turnpike was built by Isaac Wilkinson, the son of Oziel, about 1812. The Wil- kinsons also aided in improving many other highways in the vicinity, and other pioneer manufacturers in Pawtucket were likewise interested in the matter of road building as members of the turnpike corporation, if not as actual road builders.
Referring again to turnpike toll rates, some of the established charges are inter- esting to review. On the Providence and Boston turnpike, that had the heaviest traffic of any road, the following rates were fixed when the charter was granted in 1800: "A wagon, cart, or ox sled not exceeding four cattle, 12}¢; a team of more than four cattle, 15g; a sleigh with more than one horse, 122¢; a one horse sleigh, 64g; a coach, chariot or phaeton, 40g; a chaise chair or sulky, 2}¢; a horse and horse cart, 64¢; a person and horse, 64¢; draft horse, and neat cattle in droves, per head, 2g; swine in droves for every fifteen, 10g; for less number than fifteen, each, 1g; sheep and store shoat, each ¿¢; mail stage, 64¢. And foot passengers shall not be liable to any toll, nor shall persons passing in said turnpike road for the purpose of attending public worship or funerals; nor any persons living within four miles of the place of the turnpike, passing on said turnpike road for the purpose of attending town meetings or other town business, or going to and from mills, or for the purpose of husbandry."
One of the most important of the old turnpikes was the New London road, built and operated by a Turnpike Com- pany, chartered in 1816. It was intended that this road should be three rods wide, and it extended from Providence south- westerly to West Greenwich and thence through South County to Pawcatuck bridge, the old Indian fording place at Westerly on the western boundary of Rhode Island. The company that held the charter was empowered to maintain six toll gates, and by various amendments to the charter was given permission to absorb portions of existing highways.
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This turnpike was not completed until 1820, when it became a popular stage route over which the coaches from Boston passed on their way to connect at New London with steamboats for New York. The company thought that this would provide a shorter route than the one which had been developed from the historic Pequot Trail, but the success of the new turnpike was not lasting because it failed to follow the easy grades and con- form to the natural principles of early road evolution. Nowadays, with modern machinery and labor-savers, hills, valleys, swamps and protruding ledges are not regarded as serious obstacles; whereas, in pick and shovel times, topography di- rected the course of successful cross- country highways.
The Providence and Pawtucket Turn- pike Company turned over its rights and property to the State of Rhode Island in 1833, and from that time until 1869 the State continued to collect tolls on the turnpike. In the latter year it was sur- rendered to Providence and to the Town of North Providence, and then the turn- pike became a free road. Thomas Burgess was State agent for this turnpike from 1833 to 1850. The income from the suc- cessful highway between Providence and Pawtucket for twelve months beginning on October 24, 1835 was $4044.02, and
the expense of maintenance during the same period was $878.33; but after the railroads became well-established the revenue from this turnpike decreased sharply. The original charter of the Boston and Providence Railroad Com- pany gave that corporation the right to acquire the turnpike, but the railroad officials finally declined to avail them- selves of this privilege.
Comparable to the present rivalry among motor coach, airplane, steamship and railroad lines, turnpike and stage lines made common cause against the railroad when it first appeared, and attempted to run it out of existence by vigorous competition, but the railroad could make the trip to Boston from Providence, in the beginning, in two hours and a half, and no amount of speedy horses or frequent relays could drive a stage coach between those points as quickly as that. The stage lines then sought business by lowering prices, but here also the railroad could meet and discount them, and reluctantly the stage lines and turnpike corporations yielded to the inevitable and accepted their fate. The same destiny may overtake some of our present-day common carriers; certain people will have regrets, but senti- ment and personal interests mean little in the face of progress.
TWO FAMOUS VOYAGES
IOMPARATIVELY few persons, particu- C larly in Rhode Island, are aware of the fact that there is a close bond between the northwest corner of the United States and the smallest state in the Union. Historical writings about Rhode Island contain little or no mention of the name of an intrepid, native sailor who was born in a delightful section of the state, and who spent the greater portion of his life there. However, Captain Robert Gray has not been entirely forgotten by those who, today, reside in the two great states of Washington and Oregon - there his fame as an explorer and discoverer is properly recognized, and there he is
acclaimed as an outstanding figure of early American history. Every Rhode Islander should learn of this distinguished son and join with those who reside in the far distant corner of the nation in paying just tribute to Robert Gray of Tiverton who sailed his ship "Columbia" on May 11, 1792 into, and explored for about fifteen miles, the great river to which he gave the name of his ship. This first entrance into the Columbia River gave the United States their principal claim to the territory drained by the river, and is thus a most important episode in the history of the Oregon region, which formerly comprised the
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present states of Washington, Oregon and Idaho.
Robert Gray, a direct descendant of early Plymouth settlers, was born in Tiverton, Rhode Island, in 1755. There he spent his childhood and most of his life, for he did not move to Boston until 1794. The ship "Columbia" was built in 1773 on the shores of the North River, a stream that empties into the ocean near Marsh- field, Massachusetts. She was quite a large vessel, being somewhat more than two hundred and forty tons, and was equipped with ten guns. As a consort to the "Columbia," the sloop "Lady Wash- ington" was also built at the same time, both ships being owned by enterprising Bostonians. These owners, inspired by the successful voyages of the famed Cap- tain Cook, had planned to send these ships around Cape Horn into the Pacific and along the west coast, where cargoes of cured skins might be secured from the natives. Then, it was their intention to have the voyage continued to China, where the skins could be exchanged for more valuable oriental goods. No expense was spared in preparations for the voyage and in the outfitting of the two ships. Picked crews for both the "Columbia" and the "Lady Washington" were selected for the expedition, and thousands of trinkets and attractive small articles were shipped for trading with the natives encountered.
Anchors were weighed in 1789, and the two ships sailed out of Boston on the first long lap of their journey down the Atlan- tic to the treacherous tip of South Amer- ica. Captain John Kendrick was in com- mand of the "Columbia," and Captain Robert Gray of Rhode Island commanded the sloop "Lady Washington." Gray had previously served his nation on the high seas during the War for Inde- pendence and was rated as an able sea- man. He was also a close friend of Ken- drick's, probably the chief reason why the Rhode Islander was elevated to the command of a ship. For many days two ships sailed on in sight of each other; they stopped at several island ports, but steadily continued on their way south. Cape Horn was rounded safely, but on the way north, in the waters of the Pacific, the ships became separated. Captain
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