From Mark Rock Rowdiness to Sunday School Spirituality
After the initial growth of Conimicut in the late 17th century the
village showed little change from its agricultural and sea trading
base until the mid-19th century. After King Philip’s War,
the Gortonites returned to Conimicut and Warwick Neck and watched
the next generation move to the western section of the town to take
advantage of the natural resources there. As the western lands were
divided and inhabited by the children and grandchildren of the original
purchasers, the water power of the Pawtuxet River was put into use
by them. In referring to the move of the younger inhabitants from
the Conimicut Village to the west, the 19th century historian, Oliver
P. Fuller, in his 1875 History of Warwick states, “Farther
up in “the woods”…there was ample water power
and a larger and better supply of lumber and materials. Hence their
interest naturally drew them away from the quietude of Shawomet,
and led them to establish saw mills on the banks of the Pawtuxet.”
A decline in prosperity
During the early part of the 18th century, thanks to a growing sea
trade, Conimicut and the adjoining area had developed into prosperous
farms and trading centers. When the British stopped the ferry from
Warwick Neck to the islands in 1775, these farms suffered. The ferry,
which went from Providence to Warwick Neck and then to Prudence
Island and Newport, was an important trade and mail route that connected
Warwick to the key ports along the eastern seaboard. As a result
of the blockade, Conimicut and other eastern towns declined in importance
and Apponaug, located on the Post Road, became the new center of
trade and politics. Conimicut remained primarily farmland, owned
in a large part by the descendents of the early settlers. This condition
existed well into the 19th century.
A new look for an old village
Early in the 19th century, the western section of the town, now
known a West Warwick, developed a textile industry. As this new
enterprise prospered, immigrants came to work in the mills and the
center of population moved further away from Conimicut. The prosperity
of the mills, however, and the increasing population, brought about
a new meaning and use for the lands along Warwick’s shore.
The newly affluent merchants and mill owners began to look for large
landed estates with a view of the Bay. They found that Conimicut,
with its declining farms, was an excellent source of inexpensive
land and purchased large acreage for very little capital. Soon the
old farmhouses were replaced by lovely Victorian mansions and the
area changed in its appearance and function.
Mark Rock
During the mid-19th century, steamboats cruising along the Bay were
enchanted with Warwick’s shoreline and the desire to establish
shore resorts came into vogue. While Rocky Point, established by
Capt. William Winslow in 1847, was the most well-known and largest
shore attraction in the area, resorts were also founded in and around
Conimicut. Mark Rock, north of Conimicut Point, near the present
day Rock Avenue, was the most notorious for many years. The Mark
Rock Hotel, like the Longmeadow Hotel south of Conimicut Point,
catered for the most part to transient visitors in the late 19th
century. Unlike Rocky Point, it never attempted to become a “rich
man’s resort” or an amusement park, but rather developed
into a drinking and gambling mecca.
The Mark Rock Hotel was located near a large, flat rock which archeologists
believed bore indications of Indian, or perhaps Scandinavian, hieroglyphics.
Steamboats from Providence stopped at the dock near the hotel and
unloaded its group of merrymakers. According to newspaper reports
of the time, the patrons of the Conimicut resort were “thoroughly
disreputable.” The excursion boat from Providence brought
its passengers to Mark Rock early on Sunday morning and came back
in the evening to gather its patrons after a full day of “carousing.”
It was common, we are told, for a detachment of Providence police
to meet the returning boat to arrest the “brawling, intoxicated
revelers as they disembarked at the wharf.”
The Warwick Railroad and the Trolley
Many of the farmers and older residents of Conimicut
cringed at the thought of another Sunday boatload of customers for
the Mark Rock Hotel and the problems that would result. It was a
number of years before residents, adamant in changing Conimicut’s
reputation from being associated with the excesses of Mark Rock
to being a respectable community again. It took a number of years
for the village to recover from this unsavory reputation and much
of this came about with the coming of the Warwick Railroad and the
electric trolley. With easy access to Providence and other areas
of the state via the trolley lines, Conimicut was being regarded
as the ideal suburban setting.
The railroad station at Beach Avenue in Conimicut was the center of the village’s growth from a summer sesort to a year-round suburban area around the turn of the century. The Warwick Railroad became electrified in 1900 which allowed the trolley to make its dramatic impact. From the Henry A.L. Brown Collection. |
A great deal changed as Conimicut, already a fashionable summer
resort, was attracting many of Providence’s more affluent
citizens as well as many who preferred to work in Providence but
live in the more spacious Conimicut area. By the late 19th century,
the railroad station at the intersection of Beach and Transit Streets,
long since demolished, was one of the busiest on the Warwick-Oakland
Beach line.
During the early 20th century, a fine suburban community developed
in Conimicut, made possible by the easy access to Providence. Substantial
homes, such as those on Beach Avenue in Conimicut, grew in number
during the 20th century as Providence’s affluent merchants,
doctors and lawyers found it fashionable to have a summer home along
the Warwick shore. So too did the number of more modest dwellings
grow, as thanks to the electrification of the line and the increase
in the number of trolley cars, it was possible to work in Providence
and live in Conimicut. The first two decades of the 20th century
witnessed Conimicut changing from a rural farm area to a well established
summer colony. The change was gradual as the old and the new mingled.
The main streets in the village were West Shore Road and Beach Avenue
and they were still unpaved.
For much of that period, West Shore Road was still commonly called
“Apponaug Road,” and the slaughter house, located just
south of Mark Rock, was known for its old-fashioned “shindigs”
in the fall. The late Lewis Taft, well-known local historian, remembers
the occasions well. As a boy he chased the “greased pig”
with all the other kids. “A pig,” according to Lew,
“was greased so it would be good and slippery and the boys
would chase it and try to catch and hang-on to the squealing animal.”
The family of the boy who caught the pig would be given the animal
after it had been butchered. Rural events such as these gradually
gave way to different types of entertainments, and Conimicut gradually
became more in accordance with a suburban life style.
Woodbury Union Church
Much of the credit for the change can be traced to the beginnings
of the Woodbury Union Church. This church began with a small gathering
in the Conimicut School in 1906. Many residents, led by Mr. Frank
Sainsbury, wanted to counteract what they felt were the temptations
of the shore resorts and the hotels. They saw a need for religious
instruction for the children. Mr. Sainsbury obtained permission
from the Warwick School Department to use the Conimicut School for
that purpose. The first meeting took place on a very stormy Sunday
on Sept. 30, 1906. As weather reports and forecasts were in their
infancy at the time, it is possible that Warwick may have caught
the tail end of a hurricane or tropical storm. In any event, only
six people attended the meeting because of the weather. Of the six,
four were members of the Sainsbury family. They were joined by Elsie
Coleman and James R. Moore. Despite this poor start, the word spread
through the community and on the following Sunday, 33 persons, children
and adults, attended and five classes were formed. By December of
that year, the number had grown to an enrollment of fifty-five.
The early Woodbury Church ca. 1907. A fire in 1933 destroyed much of this church and it was rebuilt within a few years. |
The growth and success of the Sunday School prompted
discussions among Conimicut residents in relation to establishing
a church in the village. At first this seemed impossible as there
was no established religion in the area and the residents were divided
among Baptists, Episcopalians and a scattering of nearly every other
religious persuasion found at the time. Undaunted by the great variety
of religious beliefs, Mr. William Jamiesen, a well respected resident,
called for a meeting to discuss the building of a church for all
people of all religious persuasion and of all ages. He asked for
a meeting on spiritual rather than established religious grounds.
The meeting took place at the home of Mrs. Beulah S. Parker on Beach
Avenue. It was an immediate success, and a church corporation was
formed and plans were made to erect a suitable building. Mrs. Ida
Wright donated the land for the building as a memorial to Mr. Woodbury,
her father. The church corporation soon after selected the name
“Woodbury Union Church of Conimicut.” It was so named
in honor of Mr. Woodbury and also to indicate that it was inter-denominational.
The Church’s cornerstone was laid on Nov. 9, 1907 and Clarence
Leighton of Conimicut was the contractor . A bell was donated by
David Wilmot and a Ladies Aid Society and a Men’s Club were
quickly organized to help with the upkeep of the church. The Woodbury
Union Church not only provided religious instruction, but also prepared
parishioners for life’s happenings. The development of the
church and the village closely parallel each other as for many years
the Woodbury Union Church was the center of community life.