Local History Articles
R
ead about the history and people of Smithfield, Rhode Island, in our collection of articles written by local historians. New articles are frequently added.
One can also read about Smithfield history in the following books: “Remembering Smithfield, Sketches of Apple Valley” and “Images of America – Smithfield.”
Apple Growing
Aviation
A View Heretofore Reserved For Birds And Gods- Arthur Gould’s Vision of the Future
- Forgotten Tales of North Central Airport
- The Wreck of the Dawn Patrol
- The Jinxed Airplane
- The Jinxed Airplane Revisited
- Historic Rhode Island Aviation Accidents
- Smithfield Plane Crash – 1935
- Plane Crash – 1940
- Wolf Hill Plane Crash – 1943
- Smithfield Airport Ad – 1944
- Plane Crash – 1947
- North Central Airport Plane Crash – 1952
- Lime Rock Rd. Plane Crash – 1970
- North Central Airport Plane Crash – 1974
- Lime Rock Rd. Plane Crash – 1977
- North Central Airport Aviation Accident – 1978
- Forced Aircraft Landing – 1979
- North Central Airport Plane Crash – 1980
- North Central Airport Helicopter Crash – 1981
- Scituate Reservoir Plane Crash – 1982
- North Central Airport Plane Crash – 1986
- Mann School Rd. Plane Crash – 1988
- Williams Rd. Plane Crash – 1990
- North Central Airport – 2002
- North Central Airport Plane Crash – 2008
- North Central Airport Plane Crash – 2016
- North Central Airport Plane Crash – 2019
Banks
- Early Banks of Smithfield
- Smithfield Union Bank Robbery – 1838
- Providence County Bank Robbery – 1844
- The Brazen Bank Bandits of Slatersville
- The Scituate National Bank Robbery of 1868
- A New Lease On Life For The Former Smithfield Exchange Bank
Cemeteries
Churches/Religion
- Two Trips to Heaven
- A Spiritual Journey Along The Camino De Santiago
- A Pilgrim’s Quest For Mary
- An Angel For St. Philip Church
- St. Thomas Church Parsonage Article – 1881
- Devine Faith
- Smithfield Union Chapel – 1893
- St. Michael Church Cornerstone – 1875
Crimes and Dastardly Deeds
- Elephant Shot In Chepachet – 1826
- Dorr War Kidnapping Article – 1842
- A Sad Case Of Mistaken Identity: How a chance meeting and a runaway imagination led to tragedy
- Blood, Bullets, and Bad Men
- Murdered For Thirteen Dollars
- Police Tales of Yesteryear
- Tobey’s Store Burglary – 1892
- The Great Georgiaville Liquor Raid of 1898
- The Brazen Bank Bandits Of Slatersville
- Smithfield Union Bank Robbery – 1838
- Robbery & Arrest – 1854
- A Highway Robbery – 1864
- Remington’s Store Burglary – 1896
- Highway Robbery – 1901
- The Great Escape of 1916
- A Murderous Night in Cumberland – 1901
- If Smithfield Had A “Black Book”
- The Mysterious Skeleton of Putnam Pike – 1977
Dairy Farms
Disasters
- Narragansett Bay Shipwreck – 1812
- Woonsocket Falls Village Fire – 1829
- Woonsocket Fires – 1840s
- Smithfield Fire Log, 1854-1897
Manchester Print Works Explosion – 1858 - Hurricane of 1869
- Stillwater Mill Fire – 1872
- Capron Mill Fire – 1876
- Long Lost Local Lore About Lightning – 1878
- Lightning Strikes – 1870s
- Quaker Meeting House Fire – 1881
- Severe Thunderstorm Over Greenville – 1890
- Stillwater Train Wreck – 1894
- Georgiaville Fire – 1900
- Forest Fire – 1913
- Capron Home Fire – 1914
- The Great Greenville Conflagration of 1924
- The Wreck of the Dawn Patrol – 1931
- The Wolf Hill Plane Crash – 1943
- Prelude to Wolf Hill Plane Crash – 1942
- Industrial National Bank Disaster – 1962
- Esmond Street Bridge Collapse – 1977
- Assorted Rhode Island Shipwrecks
- Historic Wild Weather
Esmond (Village)
Fire Department
Smithfield’s First Fire Engine – 1848- Smithfield Fire Log, 1854-1897
- Union Worsted Co. Fire – 1866
- The Mystery of the Water Witch
- Origin Of The Greenville Fire Co.
- Early Fire Fighting In Georgiaville
- Three New Recruits Join Fire Dept.
- Smithfield’s First Paid Firemen
- The Wionkhiege Valley Fire Co.
Georgiaville (Village)
- Tales of Georgiaville Pond
- The Phillips Parker Black House – Georgiaville
- Bernon Mill Improvements – 1894
- Georgiaville Baseball team – 1899
- Georgiaville Baseball Team – 1900
- Georgiaville Fire – 1900
- 25 Overcome By Coal Gas – 1907
- Georgiaville Fire – 1909
- Georgiaville Fire Company History
- Early Fire Fighting In Georgiaville
- Georgiaville Barn Fire – 1897
- Georgiaville Train Station
- Georgiaville Electric Trolleys
Greenville (Village)
- The Cranford Club History
- Old Greenville Tavern – 1929
- Tobey’s Store Was the “Capitol” of Smithfield
- Elephants and Other Curiosities
- Greenville Postmasters 1823 – 2005
Hanton City
Holidays
- Forgotten Romance Superstitions Of Halloween
- Poems and Ponderings Pertaining to Pumpkins
- Vintage Christmas Cards Reveal Santa Didn’t Always Wear Red
- Little Known Victorian Legends of Christmas Past
- Who’s Donder and Blixem?
- Forgotten Folktales of Easter
- Forgotten Miracles of Saint Patrick
Human Interest
- The Woodstock Generation Reaches A Milestone
- Erstwhile Parlance Of Yesteryear
- Historic Tree Cut Down – 1890
- Forgotten Tales Of Yankee Peddlers
- Human Carrying Kites Of The 1890s
Ice Harvesting
Labor Unrest
A House DividedMills
- Early Mill Articles – 1800s
- Stillwater Mill Fire – 1872
- Bernon Mill Fire – 1874
- Bernon Mill Improvements – 1894
- Stillwater Grain Mills
- Forgotten Tales Of The Esmond Mill
- Meet the Keeper of the Stories of the Esmond Mills
- Forgotten Industries of Spragueville & Mountaindale
Military Veterans
- A Supreme Act of Kindness – Sgt. Lawrence J. La Croix of Georgiaville
- “Black Thursday” – The Day Nobody Anticipated
- By Daw
n’s Early Light – Howard Thornton of Greenville - Chance Relics Reveal a Forgotten Tale – Robert M. Martin of Spragueville
- Sgt. Robert Martin Memorial
- The Escolar Mystery
- Freedom Isn’t Free
- A Footnote to History
- One Veteran’s Story – Leo Swider of Georgiaville
- Snatched From Friendly Skies – Lt. Frances Payette
- Lest We Forget The Price For Peace – Pvt. Alexander M. Balfour
- The Forgotten War
- Unsung Heroes – Capt. Peder Johnson
- Pvt. Richard O. Austin – WWII
- Remembering Our Heroes on D-Day
- The Wolf Hill Plane Crash – 1943
- Dorr War Poem – 1842
- A History of the Rhode Island State Guard
- A Smithfield Lad’s Letters From The Front
- When Lilacs Last In The Door-Yard Bloomed” – Civil War
- Omaha Beach Memorials to Smithfield Servicemen
Miscellaneous History
- Stone Walls – The Bones of New England
- Human Carrying Kites of the 1890s.
- Forgotten tales of Yankee Peddlers
Moshassuck Valley
- Forgotten Tales Of The Moshassuck Valley
- Smithfield’s Most Historic Bell
- Moshassuck Valley Railroad
- A Description of Central Falls – 1827
- Lime Rock Fatal Accident – 1828
- Manchester Print Works Explosion – 1858
- Protecting Smithfield in a Simpler Time
- Police Tales Of Yesteryear
- Days of Town Sergeants & Constables
- Newport Police Officer Shot – 1884
- Rhode Island Liquor Law – 1887
- Rhode Island’s First State Police
- To Serve And Protect – Rhode Island’s Roll of Honor
- Jencks Smith Obituary – 1910
- Smithfield Police – A Concise History
- Early Rhode Island Municipal Police Insignia
- Early Rhode Island State Police Insignia
- Vintage Rhode Island Sheriff Insignia
- Vintage R. I. Fish & Wildlife Patches
- Vintage Rhode Island Forestry Patches
- Vintage State of R. I. Law Enforcement Insignia
- Vintage State Police/Highway Patrol Patches
- Police Capture Fugitives – 1936
- Smithfield Police Ordinance – 1937
- Smithfield Bridewells – 1913
- Relics of Smithfield’s Police History Rescued Just In Time
- Sgt. Norman G. Vezina Memorial Poem – 1970
- The Mysterious Skeleton of Putnam Pike – 1977
- Vintage Rhode Island Prison News Articles
Post Offices
Schools
A Place to Call Home- Hidden History in Plain Sight
- If Walls Could Talk
- The “Hot Potato” School
- Protecting Bryant University
- Bryant Campus Turns 50
- Smithfield’s Early Schools
- New School House – 1871
“Skeeterville” & Fountain Spring
Smithfield
- Smithfield’s Native People
- From Humble Beginnings
- The “Death Moon” of March and Other Historical Curiosities
- The Town Seal of Approval
- The Rift that Nearly Divided The Town – Again
- The Smithfield Meeting House Lottery of 1807
- Tobey’s Store was the “Capitol” of Smithfield
- News Items From 1867 & 1868
- Newspaper Articles Relating to the Division Of Smithfield – 1871
- The Smiths of Smithfield – 1867
- Smithfield Voting Districts – 1845
- Smithfield Public Health League
- The Smithfield Raiders Football Team
- Boarding House Accident – 1906
Stillwater (Village)
- Stillwater Mill Fire – 1872
- Capron Mill Fire – 1876
- Stillwater Train Wreck – 1894
- The Stillwater Country Club
- Adin B. Capron Obituary – 1911
- Capron Home Fire – 1914
- Stillwater Grain Mills
Strange Happenings
Smithfield’s “Suicide Bridge”- The Ghoulish Resurrection of Stella Newman
- The Jinxed Airplane
- The Jinxed Airplane – Revisited
- The Mysterious Skeleton of Putnam Pike
- Tall Tales of Treacherous Trees (Smithfield’s Witch Tree)
- If Smithfield Had A “Black Book”
- The Mysterious Snake Man
- Are There Ghosts In Smithfield’s “Haunted City”?
- The “Grant Radish” – 1868
- A Four Legged Chicken – 1900
Strange Weather
- The August Gale of 1635
- New England Storm – 1761
- The September Gale of 1815
- The Drought of 1835
- The Drought of 1838
- The Freshet of 1840
- The Great Flood of 1843
- Hurricane of 1869
- Lightning Strikes – 1870s
- Severe Hail Storm – 1877
- The Yellow Day of 1881
- Severe Thunderstorm Over Greenville – 1890
- The Heatwave of 1911
- Lightning Lore
Transportation
- Narragansett Bay Shipwreck – 1812
- Assorted Rhode Island Shipwrecks
- 19th Century Prov. & Worcester R.R. news articles
- Early Blackstone Canal Newspaper Articles – 1820s
- A Steamboat Called Rhode Island – 1836
- Steamboat Rhode Island Newspaper Articles – 1836
- Harold Parkinson’s Great Smithfield Railroad, and Other Lost Tales of Yesteryear
- Smithfield’s “Powder Mill” Turnpike
- When the Future Was New
- The Capron Rd. Bridge
- Smithfield’s Air-Line Railroad
- Smithfield’s Air-Line Railroad Newspaper Articles – 1843-1893
- Smithfield’s Woonasquatucket Railroad
- Woonasquatucket Railroad Newspaper Articles – 1870s
- Railroad Accident – 1835
- Valley Falls Train Wreck – 1853
- Railroad Accident – 1855
- Lonsdale Railroad Accident – 1855
- Stagecoach Accident – 1873
- Railroad Accident – 1878
- Lonsdale Railroad Accident – 1893
- Railroad Shanties – 1890s
- New Smithfield Stagecoach Route – 1895
- Georgiaville Trolleys – 1903
- Smithfield – Glocester Trolley Lines – 1913
- Scituate Reservoir Plane Crash – 1982
Union Village
50 Years Ago Articles
- 50 Years Ago — August 1965
- 50 Years Ago — September 1965
- 50 Years Ago — October 1965
- 50 Years Ago — November 1965
- 50 Years Ago — December 1965
- 50 Years Ago — January 1966
- 50 Years Ago — February, 1966
- 50 Years Ago — March, 1966
- 50 Years Ago — April, 1966
- 50 Years Ago — May, 1966
- 50 Years Ago — June 1966
- 50 Years Ago — July 1966
- 50 Years Ago — August 1966
- 50 Years Ago — September 1966
- 50 Years Ago — October 1966
- 50 Years Ago — November 1966
- 50 Years Ago — December 1966
- 50 years Ago — January 1967
- 50 Years Ago — April 1967
- 50 Years Ago — July 1967
- 50 Years Ago — August 1967
- 50 Years Ago – September, 1967
- 50 Years Ago – October, 1967
- 50 Years Ago – November, 1967
- 50 Years Ago – December, 1967
- 50 years Ago – January, 1968
- 50 Years Ago – February, 1968
- 50 Years Ago – April, 1968
- 50 Years Ago – May, 1968
- 50 Years Ago – June, 1968
- 50 Years Ago – August, 1968
- 50 Years Ago – September, 1968
- 50 Years Ago – October, 1968
- 50 Years Ago – November, 1968
- 50 Years Ago – December, 1968
- 50 years Ago – February, 1969
- 50 Years Ago – March, 1969
- 50 Years Ago – April, 1969
- 50 Years Ago – May, 1969
- 50 Years Ago – June, 1969
- 50 Years Ago – June, 1969
- 50 Years Ago – July, 1969
- 50 Years Ago – August, 1969
- 50 Years Ago – September, 1969
- 50 Years Ago – October, 1969
- 50 Years Ago, December, 1969
- 50 Years Ago – January, 1970
- 50 years Ago – February, 1970
- 50 Years Ago – March, 1970
- 50 Years Ago – November, 1970
- 50 Years Ago – December, 1970
- 50 Years Ago – January, 1971
- 50 years Ago – February, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – March, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – April, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – May, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – June, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – July, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – August, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – September, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – October, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – November, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – December, 1971
- 50 Years Ago – January, 1972
- 50 Years Ago – February, 1972
- 50 Years Ago – March, 1972
- 50 Years Ago – April, 1972
- 50 Years Ago – May, 1972
- 50 Years Ago – June, 1972
- 50 years Ago – July, 1972
- 50 Years Ago – August, 1972
- 50 Years Ago – September, 1972
- 50 Years Ago – November, 1972
- 50 Years Ago – December, 1972
- 50 years Ago – January, 1973
- 50 Years Ago – March, 1974
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1967
- 50 Years Ago — Ads from the 1960’s
- Smithfield Ads from 1970 to 1972
- Smithfield Advertisements 1973
