Darlington Neighborhood Tour Preservation Society of Pawtucket

Samuel Newman From its beginning, Weymouth, MA had been a place of controversy. The colony of Wessagusset (as it was first called) had in 1622 been founded by Thomas Weston, the main backer of the settlement in Plymouth. Driven primarily by financial motives, Weston’s colony failed. English Navy Captain Robert Gorges attempted to form a royalist colony at the site later in 1623, but in a matter of weeks the harsh winter drove him away. The few settlers who remained formed the nucleus of the permanent settlement. In 1630 it was officially incorporated into the Massachusetts Bay Colony and in 1635, with the addition of 100 families under the leadership of the liberalist Joseph Hull, the name was changed to Weymouth. Hull was an opponent of Governor Winthrop and was eventually expelled from the colony. By 1644 Weymouth had a new band of dissenters under the leadership of the Reverend Samuel Newman, who had disagreements with the Puritan doctrine of the colony. Newman and his group moved south to land they had purchased from the Plymouth Colony and settled a town called Rehoboth. William Bucklin William Bucklin arrived in Massachusetts from England some time before the autumn of 1635. He came with his wife, Mary Bosworth, her parents, and their two-year old son Joseph. They made their journey from London on the ship Elizabeth Dorcas. Around 1652 William Bucklin acquired 600 acres of land in the towns of Rehoboth and Attleboro, Massachusetts. Six hundred acres is about a square mile, almost equal to all the land holdings of Rev. Newman and his entire congregation in their Rehoboth settlement. William’s land ran along the east side of the river; it included the falls, a primary fishing spot for both the Indians and early settlers. The falls would later be called Pawtucket Falls and the area was developed into the town of Pawtucket, MA. William’s son Joseph would build his own house near what is today Royal Square, at the intersection of Cottage, Central, and Sabin Streets.

Other occupants in the area were John Daggett (whose 1685 farmhouse is now in Slater Park), Rhode Island Chief Justice Tristam Burgess (1770-1853), and John Hyde (whose land was centered at the current intersection of Newport Avenue and Liberty Street). Darlington By 1828 the town of Pawtucket, MA was growing quickly with the influx of new citizens seeking opportunities in the area’s factories and mills. Around 1874, Edwin Darling, a successful grocer, farmer, and public official, saw potential in the area along the Providence & Worcester Railroad line. As new industries such as Royal Weaving and Phillips Insulated Wire were established, there was a demand for housing, and Darling’s vision was realized. The area along Central Avenue was developed and became a center of activity. After being incorporated with the village of Pawtucket in North Providence, RI in 1886, the neighborhood would eventually be called Darlington, named for Edwin Darling. An 1896 advertisement that Darling placed in the Providence Journal of Commerce declared Darlington as "The Finest Location for Manufacturing Industry in New England!” After World War II, the remaining available land was steadily filled with houses, and nearby subdivisions such as Pinecrest and Countryside became desirable places to live. Darlington is now approximately three square miles with nearly 30,000 residents.

Lyman B. Goff Junior High School (974 Newport Avenue) 1929 The school was designed in 1929 by the Pawtucket architecture firm of Monahan & Meikle. Lyman Bullock Goff was the son of Darius Goff and the younger brother of Darius Lee Goff. Lyman (1841-1927) found himself in the middle of the Sioux Uprising in South Dakota in 1862 while on a hunting trip. Upon his return to Rhode Island, he was motivated to join the Rhode Island militia, rising to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in command of the state's artillery. Following the Civil War,

Lyman Goff returned to Pawtucket to work as a clerk for his father. In 1872, along with his brother, Lyman was admitted as an equal partner in his father's firm, which then became known as D. Goff & sons. Lyman also served as a board member for the Union Wadding Company, the Pawtucket Hair Cloth Company, and the American Textile Company. Lyman Goff established the Pawtucket Boys' Club in 1880 for the advancement of working boys and news boys. James C. Potter (1855-1925) was an American engineer, inventor, businessman and civic leader in Pawtucket. His father James Sr. was a mechanic who came to Philadelphia from Scotland in 1872, residing there for two years before going to Lowell, MA. James, Jr. and his mother arrived in 1874. James C. had

been educated at the Mechanics Institute in Glasgow and was employed as a mechanical engineer. On coming to this country he was appointed manager of the Whitehead & Atherton Machine Company in Lowell and in 1887 started the Potter and Atherton Machine Company at Pawtucket. He later (in 1893) organized the Howard & Bullough American Machine Company, Ltd., in Pawtucket. Mr. Potter was an inventor of many patents on textile machinery, nearly all of which were in operation. He married in Baltimore, MD in 1879 to Charlotte Holland, and had six children. He became an American citizen in 1892. In 1917, Potter served as the chairman of the Pawtucket Park Commission; the Potter Casino building in Slater Park is named for him. James C. Potter Elementary School (973 Newport Avenue) 1922 This was the first public elementary school in Darlington. The Burns name was added when Anna Burns Elementary School (on Prospect Street) closed in the early 1980s. This building is now

the home of the Potter-Burns Elementary School. Anna Burns was a former school principal and served a term at the JC Potter School. Potter-Lumb house (1008 Newport Avenue) c. 1917 This house was built for James C. Potter as a gift to his daughter Mary upon her marriage to Ralph A. Lumb, treasurer of the Lumb Knitting Company. The cornerstone was laid in 1917 and the house was completed in 1919. The Lumb Mansion is fashioned in the English Tudor Style. The first floor contained an oak-paneled library with a gothic-style fireplace mantel featuring the combined coat of arms of the Lumb and Potter Families. The butler’s pantry and kitchen were located in the rear of the house and staff quarters were on the third floor. The Lumb Mansion was converted into the William W. Tripp Funeral Home in 1957.

Potter-Shaw House (1012 Newport Avenue) c. 1915 This house was built by James C. Potter for his daughter Elizabeth upon her marriage to Chester Shaw, a clerk in the Potter & Johnston Manufacturing Company. Potter & Johnston Manufacturing Company (1027 Newport Avenue) 1899 The company was organized by Scottish immigrant James C. Potter to manufacture machine parts. Covering more than ten acres of land, the Potter & Johnston Machine Company was the largest machinery plant in Pawtucket. The business was incorporated in 1899 and reorganized in 1901. Potter’s machines greatly improved the worldwide

textile industry. Potter & Johnston closed in 1959 and in 1962 Hasbro Industries purchased and expanded the plant on Newport Avenue. Jenks-Potter House (1042 Newport Avenue) c. 1890 This house was designed by local architect Albert Humes for S. Herbert Jencks, who was President of the Pawtucket Manufacturing Company, a producer of nuts and bolts. After 1902 it was the home of James C. Potter, founder of Potter & Johnston and Pawtucket Park Commissioner. Albert H. Humes 1867-1947 Albert Hadfield Humes was a local architect who had attended Scholfield's Commercial College in Providence, and worked for noted architects William R. Walker & Son for six years. He opened his office in Central Falls in 1887 and in 1895 moved it to Pawtucket. He continued to practice at least through the early 1940s, though he fell out of prominence after 1910. Humes served as the mayor of Central Falls in 1903-04 and is buried in that city’s Moshassuck Cemetery.

St. Martin’s Episcopal Church (1080 Newport Avenue) 1941 As the city grew, new church buildings were needed in outlying neighborhoods. They were often sponsored by established parishes in the city’s core. St. Martin’s was completed in 1941. There was once was a tower on the church, but structural problems required its removal. The building is now the home of the Darlington YMCA.

Episcopal Diocese of Rhode Island The diocese was founded in 1790 by representatives of the four charter churches, King's Church in Providence (1722), Trinity Church in Newport (1698), St. Paul's in Narragansett (1707), and St. Michael's in Bristol (1720). In the first part of the 20th century, under the leadership of Bishop William McVickar, the Episcopal Church in Rhode Island focused on urban ministry and social concerns. The Episcopal parishes in Pawtucket are: St. Luke's, Church of the Advent, Good Shepherd, St. Paul's Episcopal Church.

St. Cecilia’s Roman Catholic Church (755 Central Avenue) c. 1924 Saint Cecilia Parish was formed in 1910 by members of the rapidly growing French Canadian population who were worshipping at the Our Lady of Consolation church. In 1924 the cornerstone was laid and the following year 168 families attended church services in the basement of the new building while construction of the sanctuary was completed. In 2011, St. Cecilia’s and St. Leo’s were combined to form the parish of Blessed St. John Paul II.

Church of St. Leo the Great Roman Catholic Church (697 Central Avenue) c. 1916 St. Leo’s is the tenth catholic parish in Pawtucket. In 1916, members of two other catholic churches, St. Joseph’s and Sacred Heart, formed the parish of St. Leo the Great. This parish was absorbed into the newly formed St. John Paul II parish in 2011 and the St. Leo’s building now houses the parish offices.

Darlington Congregational Church (685 Central Avenue) The Darlington Congregational parish grew out of a small chapel ministry called the Union Mission Sunday School that was serving the ethnically and spiritually diverse population of the neighborhood. A small chapel was built to accommodate the ministry and a rapidly growing Sunday school in 1881. In 1901, the Pawtucket Congregational Church was interested in establishing a new branch of the church and eventually bought the chapel and began serving as its mother church. The parish and its ministry steadily expanded and in 1907 a new church building was erected, which now houses the offices and Sunday School classrooms. By the 1950’s, the church sanctuary was filled to capacity; a building committee was formed, and the present sanctuary was added in 1956. Congregationalism in America The Congregational Church has its roots in the Protestant Reformation in England. It was established in America by Christian pilgrims who wanted to separate themselves from the Anglican church, in some cases by not having church buildings. By the 1750s, several Congregational ministers

were teaching the possibility of universal salvation and many congregational churches were using Unitarian theologies, such as the singular personality of God. By 1800, all but one Congregational church in Boston, MA had Unitarian preachers teaching the strict unity of God, the subordinate nature of Christ, and salvation by character. Harvard University, founded by Congregationalists, became a center of Unitarian training. Twenty-five years later, the Unitarian churches separated from Congregationalism.

Hose Co. No. 6 (636 Central Avenue) 1895 The Hose Company Number 6 was a fire station built in 1895 to serve the Darlington neighborhood. The station was built by Charles E. Kirk, a Pawtucket resident and building contractor, who was about 26 in 1895.

Kirk later was appointed (in 1897) as a superintendent in the city's public works department. The building is in the Queen Anne style, which was prevalent in America between 1880 and 1910. Along with the old fire station No. 4 at 474 Broadway (an 1890 Queen Anne building), the Hose Company No. 6 was closed in 1974 when the new Cottage Street station (now station # 4) was built. In the late 1970s the Community Development Block Grant program assisted in the adaptation of several historic buildings for new uses. The Hose Co. No. 6 was converted to a restaurant in 1977. The building was awarded the Preservation Society’s very first historic marker plaque.

Lumb Knitting Company (505 Central Avenue) 1913 The Lumb Knitting Company was incorporated in 1903. This plant housed 90 knitting machines and 175 sewing machines. The company produced women's ribbed underwear, union suits, and infants' wrappers. This building is now owned by Teknor-Apex, a manufacturer of vinyl, PVC, and thermoplastic products. Apex Tire & Supply Company (485 Central Avenue) c. 1945 The Apex Companies were founded in 1924 by Albert Pilavin. Apex was originally started as an automotive service and manufacturing business. The first store was a tire and service shop located on Westminster Street in Providence. The hurricane of 1938 destroyed the Providence location so the company moved to Central Avenue in Pawtucket and eventually opened a chain of 16 retail and service stores. In the 1960s, the company moved to the new Apex mall in downtown Pawtucket. Apex started its online sales in 1996, making it a pioneer in this area. The building on Central Avenue was remodeled in 1974 and is now part of the Teknor-Apex complex. Phillips Insulated Wire Company (36 Freeman Street), 1893 In the 1870s and 1880s Darlington attracted a number of manufacturers that had previously been based in the tiny town of Central Falls where there was little room for industrial expansion. One such company was the Phillips Insulated Wire Company, founded in 1884 by brothers Edgar B. Phillips and Herbert O. Phillips. The company manufactured weather-proof copper wire. In 1893, Phillips Insulated Wire became the first major manufacturing firm to move to Darlington. Pawtucket had become a major industrial center, with many plants in the process of switching from coal-fired steam to electrical power, and thus in need of insulated wire. The New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad passed right by the new Phillips plant, and the port of Providence was just a few miles away, providing access to regional, national, and international transportation networks. Copper was being mined in large quantities in the midwest and raw materials could be shipped directly to Rhode Island by rail. Public transportation (in the form of an electric street railway) was also available on Central Avenue, giving employees an easy commute to work. The Phillips Insulated Wire Company was able to adapt and diversify product lines at times when other companies went out of business. The complex includes fourteen buildings constructed between c. 1898 and 1927. The American Insulated Wire Corporation added four 20th century structures during their ownership of the property.

American Insulated Wire Corporation In 1946, an affiliate of AIW, International Wire & Cable Co., purchased the former Phillips Wire Company plant and remained in business at this location for almost six decades. By the early 1990s most of Rhode Island's major wire manufacturers had either gone out of business or were forced to cut back significantly on their local work force. AIW, one of the last surviving wire manufacturers in Rhode Island, sold its Central Avenue/Freeman Street complex in April 2003. The complex has been converted for residential use by Brady Sullivan. The wire industry in Pawtucket Wire manufacturing in Rhode Island evolved out of the state's base metals industry; by the mid-1800s wire was being used in both the jewelry and textile industries for applications ranging from machinery to finished products such as earrings and corsets. In 1926, the textile industries employed 80% of all industrial workers in Pawtucket; iron and steel companies came in second, and wire products, wood products, and several other specialty industries collectively came in third. Increasing competition from mills in the Southern states led to the eventual failure of Pawtucket’s textile industry, but the wire industry flourished over the next several decades. By the 1940s, Pawtucket had become "the world center of the wire industry." Insulated Wire Technology Steel wire and cables were developed in Europe in the 1820s and first manufactured in the United States in the 1840s. In 1844, Samuel F.B. Morse used steel cable for the nation's first telegraph line, strung on wooden poles that extended between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. To protect against harsh outdoor conditions, telegraph wires were insulated with glass plates, which were not very durable nor resistant to water penetration. By 1855, a waterproof insulating material made from hemp and gutta-percha (similar to rubber) had been developed. As the 19th century progressed, steel wire came to be used for a wide variety of other purposes, including safety pins, woven and barbed wire fencing, crinoline hoop skirts, corsets, hair pins, stringed musical instruments, and suspension bridge cables. Transmitting electrical power over metal wires became available (the telephone was patented in 1876, the electric light bulb in 1879), and copper proved to be the metal of choice, but it required insulation made from non-conductive materials.

Providence & Worcester Railroad freight house, 1874 The Providence and Worcester Railway was incorporated in Massachusetts in March 1844, and in May of 1844 as the Providence and Worcester Railroad in Rhode Island. The two companies merged in November 1845 and bought the Blackstone Canal, which also ran between Providence and Worcester. The line from Providence to Central Falls was shared with the Boston and Providence Railroad, and in 1892, the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad leased the P&W for 99 years. The East Providence Branch Railroad was the only branch built by the P&W before it was leased to the NYNH&H. The freight house in the Darlington neighborhood was constructed in 1874 and was named by the railroad for Edwin Darling, who they recognized as being instrumental in much of the area’s development. After railroad usage ended, the building was used as a warehouse. In the early 1960s, the railroad tracks were moved to accommodate a new north-south road, now the George Bennett Highway. Bennett was on the staff of the Pawtucket-Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce. Royal Weaving (300 Cottage Street) The Royal Weaving Company was founded by German immigrant Joseph Ott. Mr. Ott was born in Trochtelfingen, in the district of Hohenzollern, Germany, in 1861. He came to America to escape military duty when he was about twenty-three years old. He was employed by the Slater Cotton Company, from which he retired to begin the manufacture of silk. In 1888, he established the Royal silk industry in the Hicks Building on East Avenue and began weaving with eight looms. Three years later the business was incorporated under the name of the Royal Weaving Company, with Darius Goff and Daniel Littlefield also having interests in the firm. The plant was moved to the mill of the Pawtucket Hair Cloth Company, on the Pawtucket-Central Falls line, and subsequently expanded. In 1906, Ott purchased the six-acre site where the present buildings were erected. The Royal Weaving Company had the largest weave-shed in the world, it employed nearly three thousand people, and produced dress and lining silks and satins. In the 1930s, the company became involved in a labor dispute and eventually closed in 1949. The weave shed was demolished for construction of a parking lot.

_______________________________________________________________________________________ Additional places to visit in Darlington:

Edwin Darling gravesite (in the Oak Grove Cemetery) Edwin was born in 1834 in Bellingham, MA, the youngest of the seven sons of Samuel Darling and Margaret Smith. Edwin began his career as a cattle dealer in the Providence, RI markets. At age 21 (in 1855) he came to Pawtucket and opened a butcher store and general market on North Main Street (now Roosevelt Avenue). From 1861 to 1880 he ran the Eagle Market on East Avenue (then called Pleasant Street). Edwin advocated for many improvements that contributed to the growth and development of Pawtucket. In his position as turnpike commissioner, he abolished turnpikes in the state, paying the last toll on the Providence and Pawtucket turnpike (now Pawtucket Avenue) and eliminated his own job. He was a member of the school committee and chaired the building committees that erected both the Church Hill and Grove Street schoolhouses. He served on the commission that erected the Exchange Street Bridge, and through Edwin’s efforts, the state appropriated funds for the construction of the Red Bridge (now gone) over the Seekonk River. In 1871, he was the commissioner for diseased cattle. Simultaneously to all this, he had been serving in the state legislature since 1867. The greatest accomplishment of his life (by his own consideration) was the building of the water works in the town. He along with Samuel S. Collyer and Isaac Shove served as water commissioners, until he was appointed in 1880 as superintendent of the water works. In that same year water was supplied to the town of East Providence, and in the next year to the towns of Cumberland and Lincoln. Darling personally oversaw the construction of the new pumping station at Valley Falls, the storage reservoir at Diamond Hill, and the dam at Happy Hollow. Darling was a member of the volunteer fire department for 20 years. The New York, Boston, and Providence Railroad, in recognition of Darling’s service in building up the east side of Pawtucket, named the train station in that area after him. The neighborhood today is known as the Darlington section of Pawtucket. Edwin Darling married three times and had a total of ten children.

Slater Park (main entrance on Newport Avenue) Slater Park is a 197-acre public park in Pawtucket named for Samuel Slater. It is located in what had been the plains of Rehoboth, MA. John Daggett, Jr. established a farm here around 1685; his 1688 house is the only remaining 17th century building in Pawtucket. The Pawtucket DAR renovated the Daggett House and continue to manage it as a museum. The city purchased the land and the house in 1894 to create a park, though development did not begin until 1907. The major project in the first years was the building of a network of roads in the park. Between 1909 and 1917, several buildings were constructed under the direction of City Engineer George Carpenter, President of the Park Commission James C. Potter, and Park Superintendent George Saunders. The casino was built in 1917 as a gift to the city from James Potter. In the same year, the bandstand was erected after consulting with John C. Olmsted, nephew and former partner of the more famous Frederick Law Olmsted. Pawtucket Country Club (900 Armistice Blvd) In 1902 five prominent men from the Pawtucket area founded the Pawtucket Golf Club - William Meiklejohn, James C. Potter, Edward W. Blodgett, Leland J. Tuck and James L. Jenks. As the Club progressed, the rented land was purchased and a small clubhouse was erected. By the early 1920's the club purchased another 55 acres of land, adding to the original 50 and a new clubhouse was built on the present site. In 1924 the existing 9-hole layout was enlarged to an 18-hole course "with greens of remarkable smoothness, inviting fairways, and well devised hazards." On Valentine’s Day in 1954 a fire destroyed the clubhouse and another new building was constructed. With the completion of the new clubhouse in 1955 the club was reorganized as the Pawtucket Country Club.

Narragansett Race Track (closed in 1979, Narragansett Park Drive) On May 18, 1934, Rhode Island voters approved a measure legalizing parimutuel betting. The following day, the Narragansett Racing Association announced plans for a $1 million race track and steeplechase course on the site of the former What Cheer Airport, and filed articles of incorporation with the Secretary of State. Construction was completed in less than two months and Narragansett Park opened on August 1, 1934, with 37,281 people in attendance, including Jack Dempsey and Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney. The park was frequented by celebrities such as Cab Calloway, Jimmy Durante, Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Mickey Rooney, and Milton Berle. Many patrons came from Boston’s South Station via the New Haven Railroad directly to the park. It was here that Seabiscuit began his career in 1935, and in 1937 finished third in the Narragansett Special. The track’s prosperity slowly declined in the 1950s and in 1960, two of the track's barns burned down. By the 1970s the track was unable to attract high-quality horses. On June 29, 1979, the stockholders of Narragansett Park voted to sell the track to the City of Pawtucket. The park’s building was significantly altered and used as a Building 19 store for many years. St. Matthew Trinity Lutheran (680 Newport Avenue) In 1974 the St. Matthew Evangelical Lutheran (est. 1891) and Trinity Lutheran (est. 1893) churches merged, despite being affiliated with different Lutheran organizations. St. Matthew Evangelical Lutheran Church was a member of the Missouri Synod Lutheran Church, which was considered a conservative branch of Lutheranism, and Trinity Lutheran Church was a member of the more liberal Lutheran Church in America. Furthermore, Trinity Lutheran’s congregation was primarily Swedish, while St. Matthew Evangelical Lutheran’s congregation was primarily German. The combined churches formed the St. Matthew Trinity Lutheran church, the only Lutheran parish in Pawtucket. Their building in Newport Avenue was designed by a firm in Urbana, IL. Today, the church serves a large population of Liberian refugees who settled in Rhode Island after fleeing from the Liberian Civil War.

McCoy Stadium (One Mondor Way) The project to build a stadium in Pawtucket began in 1938, championed by Mayor Thomas P. McCoy. It was to be built on a swampy piece of land known as Hammond's Pond. On the afternoon of November 3, 1940, Mayor McCoy laid the foundation’s cornerstone. The original plan proposed a 15,000-seat stadium, but the stadium that was finished in 1942 had only 5,800 seats. With World War 2 in progress, there was neither the time, nor the personnel to start a baseball league. In 1946 the stadium was dedicated to Mayor McCoy and began hosting minor league teams. The Pawtucket Slaters, a Class B affiliate of the Boston Braves, was the first team to call McCoy Stadium home. The Slaters lasted four full seasons, but in 1950 the New England League disbanded and the eight-year old McCoy Stadium was left without a permanent tenant. In 1969 the Boston Red Sox came to scout McCoy Stadium and in 1970 moved their minor league affiliate from Pittsfield, MA to make Pawtucket their permanent home. The team became known as the Pawtucket Red Sox. In 1988 the stadium was expanded to include 10,031 seats. Nehemiah Bucklin House In the shadow of McCoy Stadium is one of three 18th century houses remaining in Pawtucket. It was built sometime after 1754 for yeoman Nehemiah Bucklin who was the grandson of William Bucklin, owner of 600 acres of land in this area. Eintracht Society (78 Carter Avenue) In the early 1900s, Rhode Island attracted many German workers to jobs in the mills and factories. They were generally well qualified after having been trained in European apprenticeship programs. Both Royal Weaving and the Hand Brewery Company were large Darlington employers with German founders. The Eintracht Society’s original building burned and was replaced by the present building in 1927. They offered activities such as choral singing, dramatic productions, gymnastics, studies of German language and culture. The German American Cultural Society still occupies the building.

________________________________________________________________________________________ Sources:

1. A Tour of Darlington, Preservation Society of Pawtucket, 2005 2. TheApexCompanies.com 3. "Illustrated History of Pawtucket, Central Falls and Vicinity," Henry R. Caufield, 1897 4. Wikipedia 5. DarlingtonCongregationalChurch.com 6. PawtucketCountryClub.com 7. Smtlc.org 8. “Pawtucket Past and Present,” Slater Trust Company, 1917 9. Phillips Insulated Wire Company Complex nomination survey, National Park Service 10. http://bucklinsociety.net/bucklin-family-history/william-bucklin/william-bucklins-six-hundred-acres/ 11. http://www.riheritagehalloffame.org/inductees_detail.cfm?iid=29 12. https://scsri.org/history 13. http://www.trippfuneralhome.com/home/stories 14. http://intothesunstudio.com/narragansettpark/ 15. James Wellman Photography

This tour was developed and written by Barbara Zdravesky for the Preservation Society of Pawtucket, 2017.