East Side of Providence
According to legend, when Roger Williams crossed the Seekonk River a group of Narragansett called out to their English friend, asking what news he brought: “Wh…
location_fill Start tour18 stops
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1
Rhode Island State Houselocation_fillAt the crest of Smith Hill, once pastureland for a sleepy colonial town, sits a marble giant, the Rhode Island…
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2
Roger Williams National Memoriallocation_fillA visionary and independent thinker, Roger Williams (c. 1603 – 1683) was warned by the Puritan authorities in … -
3
The Home of Betsey Metcalf (Demolished)location_fillIs it a stretch to see Benefit Street as a sweatshop for girls of the cultural elite? Probably; but it is inte… -
4
The Changing Citylocation_fillProvidence began as a sleepy farming village along the Great Salt Cove and The Great Salt River (the Providenc… -
5
The Old Brick Schoolhouse and the Providence Preservation Societylocation_fillRhode Island had one of the earliest public education systems in the country, housed in this building beginnin… -
6
The Home of Sissieretta Joneslocation_fillIf anyone deserves a blockbuster biopic on this tour, it is Sissieretta Jones. Jones, a soprano, studied voice… -
7
Early Industry and Wood-Fired Pizzalocation_fillRhode Island is perhaps inordinately proud of its superlatives and firsts: first to establish religious freedo… -
8
Providence Art Clublocation_fillProvidence’s tightly-knit community of artists and collectors created the Providence Art Club to congregate, c… -
9
First Baptist Churchlocation_fillAs the population of the East Side grew in the 18th century, residences sprang up quickly along Benefit Street… -
10
Rhode Island School of Design and RISD Museumlocation_fillThe Rhode Island School of Design, most commonly known by its acronym RISD, is an internationally acclaimed le… -
11
Market Square and the Market Houselocation_fillAs you stroll the streets of the East Side, pay attention to the street signs: many of the streets you pass be… -
12
The Providence Athenaeumlocation_fillIn the mood for a seance? If you were a member of the cultural elite in 19th-century Providence, all signs wou… -
13
The Stephen Hopkins Houselocation_fillThis home of Declaration-signer Stephen Hopkins (1707 – 1785) is among the oldest still standing in Rhode Isla… -
14
Mary Balch's School (Demolished)location_fillToday, needlepoint samplers that were done by students – many of them age 10 and under – at Mary Balch’s Schoo… -
15
First Unitarian Churchlocation_fillOnly two months before Washington would burn at the hands of British troops during the War of 1812, Providence… -
16
John Brown House Museumlocation_fillSuccess, ambition, and glamour dominate this block of Benefit Street. John Brown became wealthy from his famil… -
17
Brown University Quadranglelocation_fillIf the walls of University Hall could talk, they might tell you about the time they met George Washington (alt… -
18
Governor Henry Lippitt Houselocation_fillProminent textile manufacturer Henry Lippitt, his wife and six children lived in this opulent Italian Renaissa…
18 mapped stops