Friday, November 8, 2024

Great Road Historic District, Lincoln, Rhode Island

SEPTEMBER 24, 2016

EXPLORE OUR PAST BY VISITING LINCOLN???S HISTORIC SITES DURING FOR FREE DURING GREAT ROAD DAY ON SEPTEMBER 24

Saturday, September 24, 2016???????? Great Road Historic District, Lincoln, Rhode Island

11a.m. – 5p.m.

Several historic sites along Lincoln???s Great Road will host free tours on Saturday, September 24th as part of the annual Great Road Day, a collaboration of historic properties within the nationally-designated Great Road Historic District. The opening is part of Smithsonian???s Museum Day.

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Hearthside House Looms

Participating sites include: Hearthside House (1810), Historic New England???s Arnold House (1693), Hannaway Blacksmith Shop (1870), Chase Farm Park (1867), Saylesville Friends Meetinghouse (1703), Valentine Whitman House (1694), Moffett Mill (1812), Northgate, home of the Blackstone Valley Historical Society, and the Mt. Moriah Masonic Lodge (1804).

Visitors are invited to tour at their own pace and select sites they would like to see, or visit all of them. The hours are from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. with the exception of the Blackstone Valley Historical Society: North Gate will be open until 4:00 p.m, and the Arnold???s Lonsdale Bakery will be open 11:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m. Blackstone Valley Historical Society will also have an exhibit from their archives titled Central Falls Annual School Reports, 1904-1916, and 1929-1934: Unexpected Photographs and Artwork.. All sites are open with free admission. There is parking at each site with the exception of the Moffett Mill, which is accessible only by shuttle bus which will run between Hearthside and the Mill.

Each year, the last Saturday of September is designated as Smithsonian???s Museum Day, with museums across the country opening their doors for free admission. The goal is to get more people to visit and appreciate the museums in their own local communities.

Great Road got its name because it was so much more substantial than other routes through the valley. Great Road was built in 1683 as the major thoroughfare on the west side of the Blackstone River. With historic houses, farms and mills, the nationally-designated Great Road Historic District in Lincoln retains much of the Blackstone Valley???s early 19th century rural character.

For more information, contact Hearthside House at 726-0597.

The locations and addresses are as follows:

Hearthside – 677 Great Road

Moffett Mill ??? accessible only by shuttle bus from Hearthside

Arnold House – 487 Great Road

Saylesville Friends Meetinghouse ??? 374 Great Road

Mount Moriah Lodge ??? 1093 Great Road

Hannaway Blacksmith Shop & Chase Farm Park ??? 671 Great Road

Valentine Whitman House ??? 1147 Great Road

Historic Site Details:

Arnold House (1693): In 1693, Eleazer Arnold, a major landowner, built his house along Great Road, one of the earliest roads in the colonies. Two stories high, with a pilastered chimney, the home so dominated the modest dwellings of nearby farmers that it earned the title ???Eleazer???s Splendid Mansion.??? With its massive chimney end wall, the house is a rare survivor of a once-common Rhode Island building type known as a stone-ender. The structure has sustained many alterations over the centuries. Visitors find evidence of seventeenth-century construction methods, eighteenth-century additions, nineteenth-century graffiti, and the twentieth-century approach to preservation that restored the house to its present appearance. Arnold House is located at 487 Great Road. It is open year-round on weekends, with guided tours on the hour from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with the last tour at 4 p.m.

Hearthside House (1810): At the heart of Great Road is Hearthside House, a well-recognized stone mansion at the intersection of Breakneck Hill Road. Built in 1810 by Stephen Hopkins Smith, a Great Road mill owner as well as being one of the leaders in the development of the Blackstone Canal. According to legend, Smith used $40,000 in lottery winnings to construct this stately home for a young lady he wished to marry. Hearthside took its name from a well-known hand weaving business which operated in the house in the early 1900s. Hearthside is considered to be one of the finest Federal-style houses in Rhode Island, featuring many unique architectural elements. A residence until 1997, it is now an award-winning house museum, with docents in period costume welcoming visitors to step back in time as they experience what life was like for the families who called Hearthside their home. It is located at 677 Great Road. Hearthside is open each month from March-December for tours and special events on specific dates.

Moffett Mill (1812): A rare example of a wooden mill built during the first wave of industrialization in the Blackstone Valley and considered one of the earliest machine shops constructed in Rhode Island. At one time, the Mill made parts for wagons, carriages, shoe and corset laces. Because of its precarious location on a dangerous curve, it is only accessible by shuttle bus available at Hearthside on a continuous loop. The shop is rarely opened so this is a unique opportunity to visit this newly-restored mill along the Moshassuck River.

Hannaway Blacksmith Shop (1870): Hear the sound of the hammer striking the anvil and smell the metal as it heats from the fire of the forge as turn-of-the-century blacksmithing demonstrations take place at this original smithy that served area farms and homes. Located at the entrance to Chase Farm Park. The Shop is open year round on weekend mornings for demonstrations and classes in hand forging.

Chase Farm Park (1867): Lincoln???s last operating dairy farm is now a public park, with picturesque hills and meadows. Interpretive panels help explain the history of this early farm, one of many that dotted the landscape during the 19th century in Lincoln. Recently moved across town to Chase Farm Park is a one-room school, the Pullen Corner School, also known as the ???Hot Potato School,??? an 1850 schoolhouse that was part of the Smithfield school system (before Lincoln existed) where children of farm families were educated from grades 1-8. While it is currently undergoing restoration and therefore not open, the history of the school will be told as part of the tour of the Park.

Saylesville Friends Meeting House (1703): This is one of the oldest continuously-used Quaker meeting houses in New England and the first house of worship erected in Northern Rhode Island. The meeting house hosts a book swap and a self-guided tour is available. A cemetery adjacent to the building is the final resting place of many of Lincoln???s earliest families including the Arnolds and Stephen Hopkins Smith. Located at 374 Great Road.

Mount Moriah Lodge: In 1804 the Grand Lodge of Rhode Island granted permission to form a Masonic Lodge in Smithfield (before Lincoln was formed), which came to be known as Mount Moriah, the 8th lodge in the state at that time. The 2-story brick building started as a one-room schoolhouse and then was enlarged in 1804 for the Lodge. This was an important local institution in Lime Rock, and included many of the town???s most notable citizens, including Stephen Hopkins Smith, builder of Hearthside. There are only two lodges in the state that still meet in their original buildings, and Mount Moriah is one of them. The Lodge holds an Open House for visitors once a year so don???t miss this opportunity. Located at 1093 Great Road at the corner of Anna Sayles Road.

Valentine Whitman Jr. House (1694): A classic stone-ender house, this is the site of the first town meeting in Smithfield. The Whitmans were some of the first settlers in Northern Rhode Island. The house is fully furnished and has 3 floors open for viewing. Located at 1147 Great Road. Open for tours and special events on specific dates.

Northgate, Home of the Blackstone Valley Historical Society (1807): This two story building was originally built as a tollgate residence for the Louisquisset Turnpike. In later years, it served as the Grange, a social gathering place for local farm families.???? It is currently home to the Blackstone Valley Historical Society. Located at 1873 Old Louisquisset Pike. Open monthly for meetings and events.