East Greenwich Archives - Varnum Continentals

[FEATURE ARTICLE] Scalloptown Then and Now: A look back at the East Greenwich Shoreline

April 30, 2021 By Brian Wallin

“In the past 200 years, the waterfront has run the gamut from slave-trading to industrial fishing; from the Scalloptown scandal to a prime source of livelihood for the town; a bustling port of entry to a yachtsman’s dream of a safe harbor. Without the bay we would never have been; for which we should be everlastingly grateful to those who first settled here”. — Martha McPartland, longtime librarian of the East Greenwich Free Library

Most of us with a connection to history call to mind East Greenwich (EG), RI, as “The Birthplace of the American Navy”. But, long before the American Revolution, EG was a thriving seaport and home to men who fished the sea or dug for shellfish in the bountiful waters of Greenwich and Narragansett Bays. It was an origination point and destination for ships that sailed the world to being trade back to the colonies. And, some of those vessels were also built right here. In fact, a number of small wooden warships were built right through World War II.

In the 17^th and 18^th centuries, ships arrived from the West Indies with sugar and molasses and were exchanged for cargoes of rum and trade goods as they were from the other major colonial ports. Sadly, some of those distant destinations included centers for the slave trade. Rhode Island was a key player in the infamous “trade triangle”. Although some slaves were disembarked here, East Greenwich was not as active a port of call for slavers as were Newport and Bristol, RI. However, Captains Benjamin and Samuel Fry were among those involved, according to local history, and their ships unloaded their human cargo in East Greenwich. Rhode Island outlawed the importation of slaves as early as 1652, but in spite of further legislation, the activity would continue until 1787. A small number of enslaved people remained on the state’s census rolls as late as 1808.

Triangular Trade, as illustrated by a voyage of the Sanderson sailing from Newport, R.I., in March, 1752

Local ship owners included Silas Casey, whose ships “Juno” and “Levant” regularly traveled to Europe. Tavern owner Colonel William Arnold, whose son followed him to sea, ran a trio of ships to the West Indies and back. The son died at sea, and the dynasty and shipping business ended.

Although the port of East Greenwich enabled a number of families to amass considerable fortunes for the time, others languished in poverty, including a small emancipated African-American community that settled along the waterfront and the area to become known as Scalloptown, drawing its name from the town’s reputation as a rich source of seafood.

As the years passed, the relationship between East Greenwich and the sea continued to flourish. The so-called Jail Wharf, located near the old Jail at the foot of King Street, was a departure point for ships sailing into the Atlantic and those plying the Bay. Their bowsprits extended out over the street to the old Shore Mill (now condominiums). The waterline back then was probably a good ten feet or so inland from where it is today and the water deep enough to accommodate ocean-going ships of the period. A constant line of mules and wagons came and went with goods and promised a bright future for the town as a trading center.

Discontent with rule by the British Crown continued to mount in the 18^th century and the winds of war reached East Greenwich. It was here on June 12, 1772, that the Colonial Assembly, (which rotated meetings around the colony including sessions in East Greenwich) authorized two armed vessels, the sloop Katy (later to become the Providence) and the galley Washington to face off against British warships looking to enforce the onerous taxation placed on the colonies. Both local warcraft were placed under command of Captain Abraham Whipple. Both contested Royal Navy ships on the Bay until they were taken into the newly established Continental Navy. Therein lies the claim of East Greenwich as the birthplace of the American Navy. Until the War of 1812, trade by sea would flourish in East Greenwich. Fishermen sailed closer to shore during and after the war and by the early 1830’s, the fishing industry in East Greenwich was pretty much centered around local and coastal waters.

When the railroad arrived in 1837, passing close by the waterfront, the new mode of transport added to the town’s prosperity. But, it also doomed the local commercial sailing trade (the packets that would travel up and down the Bay from town to town) and men turned more to the fishing industry. The sea remained central to life on the West Bay.

Generations of men have “followed the shore” either on large boats or in small skiffs, taking shellfish from the area’s fertile and relatively shallow waters. On any morning, you can still see small boats heading out. Fishermen (and women) still use tongs in the traditional manner to reap the harvest of quahogs and clams (the scallop industry trade faded away a half century ago due to over harvesting and environmental changes in the waters of Narragansett and Greenwich Bays).

In the 1920’s, Joseph Gorman opened a wholesale fish business in town at the foot of Long Street. It would grow to become the popular restaurant Lobstermania. A commercial shellfish processing company is its neighbor and their collection boat often picks up local shell fishermen’s catches to speed processing. On shore, the Bay’s riches are prepared and sent worldwide.

The trendy restaurants, the marina, and yacht club that line the waterfront are a far cry from what the East Greenwich shoreline looked like in the latter part of the 19^th into the early 20^th century. Today, it is an area of genteel condos and mixed development, and, yes, home to the Town’s sewage treatment plant. Thanks to man and nature, the shape of the shoreline has also significantly altered over the years.

But, the area along Water Street still retains its historical name of Scalloptown. Visitors and some newer residents connect the name with the scenic park along the upper end of Greenwich Cove: a place for exercise or to commune with nature’s beauty and local wildlife. But, let’s go back in time.

By the 19^th century, the part of the shoreline that ran from roughly the Town Dock and the old jail down past Finn’s Lobstermania to the foot of London Street was known as Scalloptown: an apt title as it was home to the many watermen who farmed the surrounding waters. Piles of empty shells rising twenty feet or more surrounded a ramshackle collection of huts and buildings. Some were built out over the water (as a few are still today), subject to the whims of nature. More than once, storms and raging tides have attacked the area until it was ultimately devastated by the 1938 Hurricane and the area dramatically changed in use and appearance.

Scalloptown was once a rough neighborhood by any terms. Between 1890 and 1913, it was not a place for the faint of heart to wander. It was not unusual to find a body or two floating under the docks after a rowdy Saturday night. Martha McPartland in her book on the history of East Greenwich (1677-1960) shares an anecdote about local men in the early 1900’s rowing out into the cove on a Saturday night for “viewing at a safe distance, the goings on at Scalloptown”.

The neighborhood was inhabited by poor whites and a number of African-Americans, some descended from emancipated slaves. Living conditions were primitive to put it mildly, consisting of shanties, muddy pathways, and rudimentary (if any) sanitation. In 1900, the conditions shocked even the most hardened investigators .

As the 20^th century began, community-minded citizens started to take action to improve to the quality of life for Scalloptown residents, spurred on by hard-hitting editorials in the East Greenwich Pendulum that decried the drunkenness and other evils that pervaded the neighborhood. The paper made a point of noting that “the foul turkey buzzards concerned and mixed up in the filthy affair were white, and the disclosure of their morality shown to be so far below that of the lowest and vilest animal or carrion ronyon that crawls.”

Scalloptown shanties in the early 20th century

As strong as those words were, it would not be until 1913 that a cleanup of the area began. Civic minded residents took it upon themselves to gather up the children and innocent adults and find them decent accommodations. The community programs of Neighborhood Cottage, located on Long Street, played an important role. Eventually, the town fathers took direct action, condemned many of the shacks and brought to an end the activities that surrounded them. Finally, in 1926, the town put the remaining shacks to the torch. Today, there are a few newer buildings representative of the simple architecture. One more recently built serves as the home of the “Scalloptown Yacht Club”.

In the past couple of centuries, Scalloptown and the East Greenwich waterfront have run the gamut from slave trading to commercial boat building, industrial and recreational fishing, upscale dining and yachting. Today it is a lively part of the economy. But, it’s livelihood and survival are owed to the waters of Greenwich Bay.

Scalloptown Park, located at the end of Rocky Hollow Road to the south of the old Scalloptown neighborhood and atop the former town landfill, is a tranquil place for exercise and simply to commune with nature and wildlife. An occasional Amtrak train passing nearby is the only distraction. A signboard on the walking trail gives a brief history of the area. Walk along the path or sit on one of the benches and surrounded by the beauty of the upper end of Greenwich Cove, think back to those days when East Greenwich was a thriving seaport, a center for the fishing industry, and in the case of old Scalloptown, a rowdy and dangerous neighborhood.

The writer extends a special thanks to the East Greenwich Library and the East Greenwich Historical Preservation Society for assistance in researching this story. Some details were drawn from Martha McPartland’s book “The History of East Greenwich 1677 to 1960”, published by the East Greenwich Free Library Association in 1960.

[FEATURE ARTICLE] A Look Back at the East Greenwich Railroad Station

October 1, 2019 By Brian Wallin

East Greenwich Railroad Station postcard.

Turn off Main Street, go down London Street and you’ll find a piece of East Greenwich, RI, history at the corner of Duke Street. It once served as a focal point in the life of the community, from the 1800s into the latter years of the 20^th century. The cream building with brown trim (once again in its original color scheme) dates from 1873. Typical of the period architecture, it has a cross-gabled roof, clapboard siding with Italianate trim, arched first-story windows, and a handsome oriel on the south end. Until the 1970s, a wrap-around platform also graced the front of the structure. We’re talking about the old East Greenwich railroad station, still standing and with a new lease on life.

East Greenwich Railroad Station
East Greenwich Railroad Station

Back in the 1830s, railroads began a rapid expansion across New England stretching out from Boston, MA. Providence, RI, was a prime early destination and the logical next step on the way to connecting Boston and New York. That was the aim of the New York, Providence, and Boston (which had quickly swallowed up the smaller Stonington Railroad). Passengers would link up with steamships at Stonington and comfortably sail on to New York City. (Eventually, the New York, New Haven, and Hartford RR swallowed up just about every rail line in southern New England, along with other mass transit, but that is a story for another time).

East Greenwich Railroad Station in 1889 with Engine No. 33.

According to Dr. D.H. Greene in his 1877 “History of East Greenwich”, the New York, Providence, and Boston directors’ original plan called for the track to pass west of the village, but fortunately they were persuaded to come straight through town. It made good sense. In the early years of the nineteenth century, “East G” had become a thriving mercantile and agricultural community. As a growing commercial center, it would support passenger traffic. It also had strong political connections as one of the rotating sites for General Assembly sessions. The town was more fortunate than our neighbor to the south. The village of Wickford was bypassed by the railroad as it followed a straight-line route down through South County.

When the tracks were laid through East Greenwich, a byproduct of major excavation was the improvement of access to the harbor and cove from the town proper. By 1837, trains were crossing the handsome double overpass spanned King Street and stopping at a simple structure south of the bridge to serve as the first station. The railroad still wasn’t sure there would be a demand for passenger use, so why waste the money on a fancy station? They were soon proven wrong. (The original building would be picked up and moved to Slocumville to serve passengers when the new station was built).

In 1873, the railroad built the handsome new depot as described above. Three years later, Dr. Greene noted that 34,300 tickets were sold at the new station, not including tickets bought by commuters starting to use the train to go to and from Providence, RI. Earlier, in 1860, the railroad built an engine house just to the north of the depot to serve the engine “Apponaug”. A livery stable, opened that same year by James Fones, “was a good stand for business”, according to the Pendulum newspaper. Sidings, several small structures, and a hotel rounded out the busy station area.

New Haven Railroad railway map showing the East Greenwich Railroad Station (circa 1960s).

Grade crossings were the norm in railroads of the day and on the main line through Rhode Island, they continued well into the 20^th century until several tragic accidents led to their closure. One of the busier railroad crossings was at London Street just south of the station where gatekeepers stood watch around the clock. That crossing was one of the last in the area to be abandoned when the railroad finally fenced off the mainline. A 1987 issue of the Packet, published by the East Greenwich Historic Preservation Society, noted that by 1900 seventeen weekday trains stopped at East Greenwich to and from Providence. This became a boon to business people and gave rise to regular commuters to and from the capitol city.

Wartime always brought increased traffic to railroads. During World War I, the Gallaudet Aircraft factory, just up the line in Chepiwanoxet, was slated to have its own siding, but it never happened. Instead, warplanes built there during the war years were crated, trucked down to the siding at East Greenwich, and loaded aboard trains. World War II saw several East Greenwich factories converted to production of military goods and these were also shipped by rail. After the war, however, rail traffic across the country began to decline as highways improved and truck and automobile usage increased.

East Greenwich Railroad Station in 1974.
East Greenwich Railroad Station in 1988

By the 1960’s, air travel had put a major dent in long distance passenger rail service. The often-bankrupt New Haven Railroad finally bit the dust in 1969, succeeded by the short-lived Penn Central. The latter was merged into Conrail, which continues to this day. Amtrak took over passenger service and by the 1980s, ended service to East Greenwich, RI. One of the last station agents was John Allen, who lived on Spring Street according to the East Greenwich Preservation Society. The venerable depot was soon boarded up and fell into disrepair. The town negotiated for a number of years with the railroad before the building was eventually turned over for development and a new lease on life.

Railroad “ticket counter” in the Maurice Jeffery Hair Studio.

In the 1980s, with paint and primping, it reopened as a gourmet shop, All Aboard, Inc., and an eating place, the Depot Restaurant. In the 1990s, an early learning center opened in the building (and delighted children who could watch the mainline trains speed past their windows). Several other ventures came and went. Along the way, the building acquired a new owner who restored the exterior to the original station color scheme. For the past three years, the entire building has been rented to the Maurice Jeffery Professional Hair Studio. Owner/Manager Maurice LaPlante has his office in the area formerly occupied by the ticket window. Today, where passengers once eagerly awaited the arrival of their train, customers enjoy a cut and color or a blow dry.

East Greenwich Railroad Station in modern times.

One wonders what the first station agent, Captain Nathaniel Greene, would think if he were suddenly transported from the 19^th century to stand in the middle of the station. Fortunately, East Greenwich has a penchant for preserving history and this important piece of the town’s past, along with many other irreplaceable structures, including own Varnum Memorial Armory Museum and the Varnum House Museum, enjoy a protected lease on life. It would be a shame if we had lost the East Greenwich Depot. Fortunately, it proved to be a survivor.

The author thanks the East Greenwich Historic Preservation Society and the New Haven Railroad Historical and Technical Association for information that contributed to this article.

[FEATURE ARTICLE] Remembering Those Who Served: The East Greenwich World War I Memorial

April 21, 2017 By Brian Wallin

World War I Memorial in front of Town Hall in East Greenwich, RI.

How many times have you driven down Main Street past the East Greenwich Town Hall and noticed the handsome stone and bronze memorial on the front lawn? Ever wondered how it got there and what it represents? This gracefully-aging monument commemorates the World War I service of 183 East Greenwich residents who responded to the call to duty in the “war to end all wars” and commemorates five who died in the service of their country.

Not surprisingly, the Varnum Continentals own Howard V. Allen played a key role in the memorial’s solemn dedication ceremonies on October 22, 1919, not quite one year after the November 11, 1918 armistice marking the end of hostilities. (In November 2016, we wrote about Rhode Island’s response to the armistice.)

Shortly after the World War I ended, a town meeting was convened to establish a Welcome Home event. The ever-active H.V. Allen was named chairman of the committee and co-chairman of the parade committee with his good friend, business partner and fellow Varnum Continental George Hanaford. Work quickly got underway on all components of the observance. A prominent sculptress of the period, Louise Allen Hobbs of Boston, was engaged to create a graceful, robed female figure cast in bronze and mounted on stone. The entire work stands on a granite base. In 1920, Ms. Hobbs also donated a sculpture valued at more than $200 to be raffled off during a major event that raised funds for improvements to the Varnum Memorial Armory Museum.

Hobbs’ work for the war memorial is striking. In full relief, the female figure stands with outstretched arms over a text that reads:

MCMXVII MCMXIX The Town of East Greenwich erects this memorial in grateful remembrance of her citizens who served in the military or/naval forces of the United States or the allies during the World War. They carried on that liberty might be enjoyed throughout the world.

The names of the 183 East Greenwich residents who served in various branches of the military are cast on a bronze plaque on the reverse side of the monument. At the time of the dedication, the monument itself was surrounded by plantings of cedar trees and ivy. A description of the monument is also recorded in the Smithsonian Museum of Art Inventory.

Once work was completed on the monument, the next step was the dedication ceremonies to be preceded by a parade. Other events surrounding the dedication included a concert, reception, and banquet and a ball. According to the an account in the East Greenwich Packet, published in November of 1982 by the East Greenwich Preservation Society, the morning of October 22 dawned brightly following rain the night before. The parade formed on Peirce Street and marched down to Main Street and to what was then the Courthouse Building (now the East Greenwich Town Hall). The Varnum Continentals, of course, were well represented in the line of march.

The dedication ceremonies themselves were brief but moving, according to published reports. Jesse A. Whaley, an Army veteran who was blinded in the war, was joined by several of his fellow soldiers in unveiling the monument. A large audience, including a contingent of town veterans, heard Judge George A. Loomis call the event “one of the proudest and gladdest days this old town has ever had.” A choir of schoolchildren sang “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.” Former Lieutenant Governor Roswell Burchard then gave the principal address, followed by music from Church’s Cranston Blues Band.

Medal recipients at the World War I Memorial monument dedication ceremony in East Greenwich, RI.

Following the dedication, Town Clerk George Loomis presented each soldier, sailor, and marine with a personalized bronze medal with the town seal on the front and a commemorative inscription reading “in grateful recognition of service” on the reverse side. After receiving their medals, the veterans posed for a group picture in front of the Varnum Memorial Armory. In what was probably the most moving moment to those present, a bugler played “Taps” for the five East Greenwich men who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country and community: Marine Pvt. George Cleveland, National Guardsman Richard Grant, Navy Machinist Mate Victor Lorenson, Army Pvt. Fred Magoon, and Army Sgt. Cyril Mosher. The closing benediction was given by Sgt. Mosher’s father, The Reverend Gibson Mosher, who himself had enlisted as an Army chaplain after his son’s death. The names of father and son appear together on the memorial.

Interestingly, there are several names missing from the monument of individuals who likely considered East Greenwich their home town, but by a fluke of chance and geography had lived on the east side of Division Street, which put them in Warwick, RI. One was Navy Ensign Theodore Kilkenny, who was said to have been the first man in East Greenwich to enlist in the service.

Richard S. Conover, World War I veteran from East Greenwich, RI.

Another was Richard S. Conover, who had enlisted in the Army in 1917. He was the son of Rev. James Conover who had been the rector of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church (from which he later resigned). The 20-year-old Richard enlisted from Newport, a clue as to why he may not have been included in the memorial. He was killed in action on May 17, 1918, while serving as a machine gunner in the 18th Infantry Regiment near Cantigny, France. Ironically, his father visited the battlefield shortly after the war and located the spot where his son died. In an eerie circumstance, he found the remains of a mud-stained letter with “East Greenwich” on the corner. It was a letter he had mailed to his son. Richard is buried in an American military cemetery in France. His father later served as rector of St. Mary’s Church in Portsmouth, RI. He died in 1931 and was buried in that community. Another veteran, apparently overlooked on the monument, was Harriot Frances Drake.

She had been called into active service as a “Yeomanette” in the U.S. Navy (women had been reluctantly accepted into the Navy – as well as the Army and Marines – to serve in support capacities and to free up men for combat duty). She served from May of 1918 until the end of the war. She died in 1998 at the age of 107. Harriot had been a member of the American Legion for 79 years.

World War I Memorial monument dedication ceremony in East Greenwich, RI.

There are a handful of surviving photographs of the monument dedication, one of which prominently shows the Varnum Continentals contingent. Apparently, there was also motion picture film shot of the event, according to the accounts of the ceremonies. These were later shown at the Star Theater. Sadly, the film has disappeared into the vacuum of time.

The Guard was created for home service during the war. Included was the 16th Company composed of the Varnum Continentals. The Museum also displays a newspaper article from The Pendulum recounting an effort to locate family members of 13 men whose medals had been discovered in a drawer in the East Greenwich Preservation Society’s offices.

The article quotes our late Armory Museum Curator, Don Marcum, who said, “at the time (of the medal presentations), most of the towns were extremely patriotic with the town fathers wanting to do something for veterans. It was a different period in American history.” Perhaps, but the mission of the Varnum Continentals is simply that: “To Preserve Patriotism.” And we continue to carry out that mission.

The author acknowledges the much-appreciated assistance from Rachel Peirce of the East Greenwich Preservation Society and from Bruce MacGunnigle in preparation of this article.