o. 1O-OO,

UNHLEDSTATES DLPARTMENTOFT liii INTERIOR

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

NATIONAL REGISTEROF HISTORIC PLACESINVENTORY-- NOMINATION FORM

FLRNPS 13$! ONLY . .

AECEIVEQ .

DATE ENTERED . -

flNAMEHISTORIC

SEE INSTRUCTIONS IN HOWTO COMPLETE NA TIONAL REGISTER FORMSTYPE ALL ENTRIES-- COMPLETE APPLICABLE SECTIONS

Sa

1

‘ i"2.

AND/OR COMMON

Warwick Civic Center Historic Iistric

flLOCATIONSTREET& NUMBER

Post Road ,,NOI I OR ‘UBUCATION

CITY. TOWN CONGRESSIONAL 1151 141C1

Warwick - VICINITYOF P2 -!!on I.!wa i-J flea ILI

STATE CODE COUNTY CODE

Rhode Island 44 Xent 003

fiCLASSIFICATION

CATEGORY OWNERSHIP STATUS PRESENT USE

,,DISTRICT ,OCCUPIED ,AGRICULTURE XMUSEUM

* UNOCCUPIED COMMEIICIAL . rAnK

STRUCTURE LBOTH IN PROGRESS EDUCATIONAL RESIDENCE

PUBLIC ACQUISITION ACCESSIBLE ENTERTAINMENT RELIGIOUS

PROCESS RESTRICTED GOVERNMENT

CONSIDERED X,,YES: UNRESTRICTED ,,,,INDUSTRIAL ,TRANSPOR!ATION

,OTHEA’

fl OWNER OF PROPERTYNAME

Multiple owners- see continuation sheet 1STREET& NUMBER

CITY, TOWN’ STATE

- VICINITY OF

flLOCATION OF LEGAL DESCRIPTIONCOURTHOUSE.REGISTRY OF DEEDS.ETC. Warwick Cit’: HailSTREET & NUMBER

3275 Post RoadCITY. TOWN STATE

Warwick Ritode Island

El REPRESENTATIONIN EXISTING SURVEYSTITLE

Warwick, Rhode Island- -Statewide Historical Preservation Report K-W- 1 draftDATE .

STATE1980 .

DEPOSITORY FORSURVEY’RECOROS Rhode Island Historical Preservation Commission .

CITY, TOWN

Providence.

,

STATE

Rhode ls land

}IR-3-3iJOA . ‘ .‘ . k11/78

___________________________________

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIORFOR HCRS USE ONLY

HERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION SERVICE ‘

RECEIVED

NATIONAL REGISTEROF HISTORIC PLACES DATEENTERED ,

INVENTORY-- NOMINATION FQRM

CONTINUATION SHEET 1 ITEM NUMBER’ 4 PAGE

City of WarwickWarwick City Hall3275 Post RoadWarwick, R.I. 02886owner of City Hall, Fire Station and land

Kentish Artillery CompanyC/o Joseph Olivieri46 Crest AvenueWarwick, R.I. 02886owner of Armory building

Apponaug Library Associationdo Donald Cramer, Chairman3267 Post RoadWarwick, R.I. 02886owner of Library building

fiDESCRIPT1ON - , , , ., ..

?Th* CONDITION CHECK ONE , CHECK ONE

_EXCELLENT .,.OEIERIORATED , ..aINAIjERED ‘‘‘ OHIGINAL SITE

GOOD _RUINS ALTERED _MDVED DATE_______

_FAIR _UNEXPOSED - -

DESCRIBE THE PRESENT AND ORIGINAL IF KNOWN PHYSICAL APPEARANCE4;;:

The Warwick Civic Center Historic District encompassesfour latenineteenth- and, early twentieth-century public buildings: Warwick City . -:Hall, the Henry Warner Budlong Memorial Library, the Old Fire Station, .

and the Kentish Artillery Armory. The District is located a shortdistance east of the crossroads that constitutes thecenter ofApponaug founded 1696, a former seaport and mill village whosehistoric fabric’ has been severely impaired by twentieth-century-corn- . ‘

mercial-strip development. The Civic Center occupies the southernportion of a large parcel of city-owned land. The northern portion of ‘

this parcel contains a hallf.ieid and an extensive tisplia N’.’-pvci parkuig

______

lot surrounding the City Hall Annex first story built ca. 1940,second story added ca 1955, a large, nondescript structure housingmunicipal offices and a fire station. Post Road bounds the CivicCenter on the south, separating the district from some commercialbuildings and the properties of the Warwick Central Baptist Church andSaint Catherine’s Roman Catholic Church. To the west of the District

____

is a cluster of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century commercial ‘

structures, and to the east is Saint Barnabas’ Episcopal Church and a 4small park which separates the Civic Center from a residential area.

Tliearr angement of hul 111 ugs and I nyont of grounds oF the C iv ftCenter are not the result of formal planning but have evolved spoiltaneously over the years. The city hall, library, and armory arearranged in a row along Post Road and are set varying distances fromthe street, while the fire station is set behind the library and armoryon axis with the opening between these buildings. Driveways run back 5,

from Post Road on the west side of city hall, between city hail andthe library, and between the library and the armory, providing access

_____

to parking areas besideand behind the buildings, and a semi-circulardrive curves up from the street to the ‘front of city hall. Lawnsoccupy the areas in front of the three buildings facing the Street, , -

with the one in front of the armory raised three or four feet above , $street level on a terrace with a ii ellis tone reta 1111 tig wa I I . tue r

grounds were originally planted with elm trees, all but one of whichhave been cut down in recent years. Today the grounds are informallyplanted with a variety of evergreen and deciduous shrubs and trees.In front of city hail stands a World War I monument, a hron:e statueof ‘an ‘infantryman mounted on a boulder with bronze melnorial plaquesdedicated 4 July 1919; John G. Hardy, sculptor. . ‘

The history and usage of the buildings in the Civic Center HistoricDistrict distinguishes them from their surroundings and makes them adis tinct ive unit ivi thin the physical fabric of Appoiiaug ‘il1 age. Thearchitectural character of these structures also differentiates themfrom the commercial buildings, dwellings, and churches Ilea F!,

See Continuation Sheet #2 . .:

FHR-8--300A -

11/78.

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, FOR HCRS USE ONLYHERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION SERVICE -

RECEIVED H !‘

tNATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES DATE ENTERED - -

INVENTORY-- NOMINATION FORM

NICONTI NUATION SHEET 2 ITEM NUMBER PAGE 2

proclaiming their public function and identifying them as’à groupwhich serves a particular purpose in the life of the community.

.‘

INVENTORY OF CONTRIBUTING STRUCTURES

______

3259 Kentish Artillery Armox 1912; William R. Walker and Son,architects: The Kentish Artillery ‘Armory, built in 1912 on thesite of an 1854 armory that had burned, now houses the Warwick ‘:Museum. Described at the time of its erection as a building "of acastellated style," the armory is constructed of red brick withgranite door and window sills It is a two-story structure, butthe ground at the front is terraced a few feet above street level, ,so that the second floor is the main floor and the basement is atgrade on the west side and to the rear. The building consists oftwo subsections.- The front section is flat-roofed with a battlemented parapet and has two projecting, square corner towers, thewestern one broader and taller than the eastern one The westerntower has rows of three narrow, arched windows on the front andthe west side at main-floor level and a row of identical windows ‘"‘

on the west side at basement level. The eastern tower contains a -

narrow, arched window on the front and the east side at main-floorlevel. Between the tower is the main entrance * set in au archedopening with several layers of recessed brickwork formingarchivolt-like banks around the edge. The original double-leafdoor and the arched transom over it have been replaced b a single-leaf door with blind sidelights and transom. The entrance hasa broad flight of concrete steps running up to it from the lawnterrace, and’ over it on the front wall is the inscription "1797 -Kentish Artillery 1912" in raised lettering

The rear section of the building has a very shallow gableroof and wall buttresses supporting projecting roof bams. It -is five bays long. Each bay contains a segmentalarch window -

opening at main-floor level, all of which have been hoarded up*except the window at the front on the west side. At basement

level on the west side there are segmental-arch door ‘openingsin each end bay the rear one is closed off and segmental-arch .twindows in the three Central bays.

&

See Continuation Sheet #3* ‘

‘

MS sa

HR-8-300A11/78 -

-

- UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR -

- HERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION SERVICE

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC. PLACESINVENTORY-- NOMINATION FORM

CONTI NUATION SHEET 3 ITEM NUMBER- 7 PAGE s

On the interior, the main floor of the rear sect ion is takenup by one large room which was originally the drill hall butwhich is now used for museum exhibits. Walls in thi.s. room areexposed brick. The front section contains a room in the westerntower, now used as- an office; a central hallway; and a stai rcasein the eastern tower

On the basement level, a hallway connects the foot of thestaircase to the entrance in the west wall. Opening off thishallway are a kitchen in the base of the west tower and two roomsarranged en suite along the west side. of the building. Behindthese two rooms is the boiler room. A long, narrow room runningthe length of the east side of the building was originally usedfor shooting practice but is now used for storage. Interiortreatment is very plain, with plastered walls and simple architravedoor and window trim. -

3265 Former Fire Station ca. 1890: The old fire station,erected about 1890 and subsequently much altered, now housesoffices o’f social service agencies and the nun ic pa I eiIijll 0’ eescredit union. It is a two-story, wood-frame 5 t rIlcture toppedby a hip roof with an off-center, projecting front gable. A one-story, shed-roofed addition extends across the rear. Exteriorwall surfaces are sheathed with clapboard and the. face of thefront gable is covered with cut shingles’. Different types ofwindows.,are arranged in a different manner on each elevation.The original configuarationof openings has obviously been changed,for there is no longer any evidence of a doorway for the fireapparatus. The building originally had a square turret risingfrom the southeast corner of the roof, hut this has been removed.The interior has been drastically altered and now contains sevenrooms on the first floor a furnace room and six offices andone large office on the second fiooi’ . Interior Cliii sh I samalgam of old and new materials, including matchhoard wainscotting,plywood paneling, and dropped acoustical-tile ceilings.

3267 Henry Warner Budlong Memorial Library 1924-1925; Hoppin, Fieldand Peirce, architects : The Henry Warner Budlong MemorialLibrary, built to serve as headquarters ef:.theApponat1g Free

- See Continuation Sheet #4

FOR tICRS-USE ONLY : -

RECEIVED - - -

DATE ENTERED - --

HR-B- 3U VA

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIORHERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION SERVICE

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACESINVENTORY-- NOMINATION FORM

Library Association, now houses the Apponaug Branch of. the WarwickPublic Library. It is an extremely simple classicistic buildingof yellow brick with concrete and painted metal trim, set on ayellow-brick foundation topped by a concrete beitcoturse’. Thdstructure is composed of two conttgtiotis rectauigul:it blocKs. eachtwo stories high. The monumentally treated front sect i on,slightly wi icr and tal Icr than the rca r sect. ion, II 5 :i I I at: ioo Iwith a proj ecting skylight hidden by a stopped pa ap t. It :three bays wide and one baydeep. The hays are art i cula ted bytwo-story pi lasters with s.impie concrete capitals. The side baysand end bays of’ the facade each contain one six- over - SIX loiih Ichung window on the first floor. Over these at second-floor levelare raised wall panels instead of windows. The central bay of thefacade is recessed and contains the main entrance. It was originally fitted with a pair of Tuscan columns in antis, hut thosewere removed several years ago. The origi nal doors have beenreplaced by a modern aluminum and gJass door with a sidelight toone side and a narrow transom. The doorway, however, is stillsurmounted by a triangular pedimeilt and entablattuFe supportedby scrolled consoles with honeysuckle ornament carved on the s.i des.The entablature above the pilasters comprises a concrete arch i -

t rave a uid a hi-ic 1< Cr ic ze . The fri e ze conta i ns t he i user i pt 1111"Henry Warner Budlong Memorial" in raised lettering.

The rear section of the building -

shallow, almost flat gable roof and icontains one six-over-six double-hungsecond floor. The space between thewindows in each bay are filled withforming a link which emphasizes tile

interior, the Front section contains two rooms on the,l’ianki rIg the entrance, one an ofUce arid one a

void I Il iOOili - ‘the on I I to ecouid ft oo o C I h1’ I. ronis taken up by a room lit by the skylight. This room isin two by a partition and is used for storage and forcollections. The rear section contains a two-storylongitudinal space with a gallery at the second-floorStacks run off at right angles from the main floor and

Access to the gallery and second-floor front room is

1l/78

CONTI NUATION SHEET 4

FOR HçRS USE ONLY ‘ ,

RECEIVED - ‘‘ -

DATE ‘ ENTERED.

PAGE 4ITEM NUMBER 7

I..

- -.‘-

-

SiL:.

___w

,ct

S

-

On tilefirst floorclii Id ren ‘ S

is covered by a verys five hays long. Each baywindow on the first and

first- and second-floorrecessed wooden panels,verticality of tile hay.

section- dividedspecialcentrallevel.gallery.

See Continuation ,Sheet #5

. -‘ . V’,.

I-tn - -

:HR_8_300A11178

-UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FOR HCRS-USE ONLY -:

- HERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION SERVICE - - - -

RECEIVED

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES DATE ENTERED. - - - ‘-- jINVENTORY-- NOMINATION FORM

___

CONTI NUATION SHEET 5 ITEM NUMBER 7 PAGE 5

rby a staircase at the rear wall behind the librarian’s- check-outdesk. Interior decoration is very simple, with plastered walls .

and molded woodendoor and window architraves.

3275 Warwick City Hall 1893-189,4; William IL Walker and Son,

______

architects: Warwick City Hall, originally built to serve as -

Warwick Town Hail, is an impressive Colonial Rev I vai cdi flee.It is a three-story structure with a high basement story and iscubical in form, with projecting end bays on the front flanking asix-story, square clock tower rising from the center of the facade.The tower is fronted by an impressive tetrastyle Ionic portico withcolossal columns and a broad flight of steps leading up to it.The portico projects beyond the end bays and shelters the main - . ,

entrance. A classical cornice with dentil frieze runs around the

_____

building, breaking across the front of the clock tower and -terminating over small scrolled consoles. The main block iscovered by a shallow mansard roof with hip roofs extending forwardover the projecting hays. Five chimneys, two on each side andone at the rear, ,rise from the main block; all arc hacked by

_____

-

gable-roofed, dormer-like projections Wails are of brick, withgranite window sills and lintels and granite quoins and beltcourseframing the basement.

‘ FOpenings at the basement level have segmental-arch tops; most

of these contain windows but a few have doors , tile basement beingalmost a full story above grade. The proj ecting -front bays eachhave two windows at the first-, second-, and third-floor levels.

‘- eThose on the first and second floors are double-hung, two-oyer- -two sash, with the second-floor ones shorter than the others; thoseon the third floor are short lIon zonta1 bands wi Lii Four Ii czhit s -

The window rhythm in these bays is complex. The window palrs ineach bay are separated by brick pilasters but are tied together bycontinuous granite sills and lintels. Those at the second- ‘andthird-floor levels are treated as one unit, with the sills beneaththe second-story windows and the linteis over the third-storywindows. The spaces betieen the second- and third - floor windowsare filled with wood panels containing a large, recessed centralpanel surrounded by smaller, recessed border panels. All thewindows in each bay,are grouped within a molded terra-cottaarchitrave.

See Continuation Sheet HG

FHR-8-30uA -li//g

_________________________________

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIORFOR HCRS USE ONLY

- HERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION SERVICE -

RECEIVED -

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES DATE ENTERED

____

INVENTORY--NOMINATION FORM

CONTINUATION SHEET 6 ITEMNUMBER 7 PAGE - 6 ‘

The portico’s cast-iron Ionic columns, standing on high hi ickpedestals, support a classical entablature with modillion cornice , -

The frieze of, the entablature contains the inscription "1642Warwick City Hail l93U’ in rai’sed lettering these date refer tothe original town settlement and the year of the town’s i ilcorjlora- -

______

tion as a city . The entablature was originally surmounted bya balustrade which has been removed and stored inside the building. ‘

The portico shelters an overscaled, two-storydoorway comprisinga large door opening now infilled with doubl c-leaf aluminum andglass doors beneath a transom :11 anked by sidel i l t s and tOjljetlby a huge elliptical fanlight. To the left of the doorway is a ‘ -

small, one-over-one double-hung window; to the right is a bronze "

plaque with the building date and the names of th town councilmembers, the architects, and the contractor.

Above the portico, at the base of the tower, is a two-storywindow arrangement breaking up through the cornice off the building.The grouping consists of two very tall, narrow, two-over-two,double-hung windows with square transoms. Continuous granite sillsand lintels tie the windows and transoms horizontally, and thewhole composition is set within a molded, archi ti-ave--i ike terra-cotta band similar to those in tile projecting hays. Over thisunit is a rectangular terra-cotta plaque with the legend ‘Town of -- -

Warwick 1893" on a ground of intertwined foliage.

Above the plaque, a granite beitcourse runs around the clocktower, which from this point rises freestanding over the roof ofthe main block. Above the beitcoure, the wall surface is incisedwith narrow vertical grooves. Shallow, square projections at tile - tcenter of each side of the tower contain circular clock faces sun-rounded by heavy moldings and triaiiular patches of fol iatcornament filling the spandrels. The projections are supported byrows of corbeis and are surmounted by bands emhellished withgarlands and swags. Above this a classical cornice with dentilfrieze surrounds the tower, marking the transition from tower tobelfry. A classical balustrade runs around the top of tile tower,its four sections terminating at corner plinths, each of whichsupports three urns. An octagonal belfry rises behind the bal- - -ustrade. Eight Tuscan columns define the corners of the octagon.The shorter, oblique sides are i nfl lied with paneled walls. Thelong sides contain Palladian arches that open into the hell, chamber,

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now screened off to prevent birds from nesting inside - The corner

Sec Continuati on Slice t H 7

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-,I._._

FHR-8--300A11-778

_____________________________________

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR- FOR HCRS USE ONLY ‘. ‘ ‘ , -, - ‘ç

HERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION 5ERVICE-

RECEIVED " - -

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES DATE ENTERED-

____

INVENTORY-- NOMINATION FORM ‘-‘c

CONTINUATION SHEET ‘ 7 ‘ ITEM NUMBER 7 PAGE 7

r - -

columns support an entablature with a classical modillion cornice

____

surmounted by a balustrade with eight corner pedestals and. urns.Above this, a ribbed, og-:ee-curve octagonal dome with weathervanecaps the belfry. -

The west side of city hail is divided into seven’ bays and theeast s ide into six. At tile- fi- st floe r level., each bay conta insa pair of one-over-one, doublehungwindows. Above this, the fivebays toward the rear of the building on each side contain large,two-story, six-over-six double-hung windows with arched tops. Inthe remaining ,bays, two on the west, and one on the east, smallerwindows and recessedwail surfaces are arranged to replicate theform of the large windows in the other bays -

Paired, double-hung windows are disposed across tile hack of ,.. -

the building in irregular fashion, and a grade-level door is itlocated at the east end of the rear. A one-story, brick block ona high basement is attached to the main block by a short, narrowcorridor. Added in the 1930s, it houses a large vault for the cityarchives.

-

The front entrance of city’ bali opens into the stair hall.Two half-turn staircases with handrails supported by spiral , -

balusters run up to the second floor from the rear corners of thehall. Between these staircases, a doorway opens into a central - .

corridor running the length of the building. Offices arc located ‘

on both sides of the corridor, and a rear stair hail is locatedin the northeast corner of the main block. The stair halls andcorridor have beaded matchhoardwainscotting with plastered wailsurfaces above. The office interiors have all been extensivelyaitered.

On the second floor, the main staircases terminate in a halllit by the fanlight over the front entrance. Offices open offthe sides of this’ hall, and two more staircases in the rear cornersof the hail run up to the third floor. Between the staircases-isa doorway that originally opened into a large, two- story town-meeting hail. A dropped ceiling has since been installed andthe space subdivided into offices around the perimeter, linkedby a corridor. In the center is a small chamber for city councilmeetings. Giant carved brackets supporting what was the galleryof the original meeting hail are still visible on the seond floor,in the corridor in front of the councii chamber.

See Continuation Sheet 8

HR8300A:11/78 - . .

- UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR- FOR HCRSUSE ONLY - :;

HERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION SERVICE: - - ‘ ‘ ‘ *

RECEIVED - . INATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES 6ME ENTFRE -

INVENTORY-- NOMINATION FORM -- ,

____

Is

CONTINUATION SHEET’ S ITEM NUMBER- 7 PAGE 3

a’The staircases from the second to the’third floor have three runs, - -iwith half landings near the bottom and quarter landings near tile top.They terminate on the till i-cl floor at a sinai 1 ha LI thzi t. opens into thu..gallery of the meeting hail, still intact and now used Tot atticstot-age. ihe rest ot tile space. above the suspendedcc 1 in ok the’ ‘

new second-floor office and council chamber, is unused. The archedtops of the two-story windows are visible here, and the original I.ceiling of the meeting hail, divided by beams into small border sectionssurrounding a larger central section with an ornamental central medallion.

* -r

,‘ ,* -a.

-

. -

‘ a

ThIR-8-3QUAl1/78 -

- UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIORHERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION SERVICE

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACESINVENTORY-- NOMINATION FORM

CONTINUATION SHEET 9 ITEM NUMBER

rIIIII

WARWICK CIVIC CENTER HISTORIC DISTRICTWARWICK, R.I.

3259 - Kentish Artillery Arriory3265 - Fume r F I i-c S LU. ion

3267 - Henry Warner Budlong Memorial Library3275 - Warwick City Hall

I - I - I - I - I - I S I - I - I

U

3265

III

3275 3267 b__hiI 5- 4 -p I- I

3259 ;

--

FOR HCRSUSE ONLY --

REQEIVED, ‘,"j , ,i* - --"3 -

DATE ENrERED. - - - - -

-tNORTH

7 PAGE 9

POSTROAD

fl SIGNIFICANCE

PERIOD_PRE HIS TOnIC

14 00 ‘ 14 99

_1 500-1599

_1600-1699 ,AIRCHITECTURE

..1 700-1199

Xi 800-1899

Xi900- _COMMUNICATIONS

_RELIGION

_SCIENCE

_SCULPIURE -

2SOCIA LJHUMA NITAR IAN

_THEATER

_TAANSPORTATION

_OTHER SPECIFY

SPECIFICOATES ca. 1890, 1893,1912, 1924-1925

STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

BUILDER/ARCHITECT William U. Walker tj SonHoppin, I-ic ld Peirce

The buildings ti-at constitute tile Warwick Civic Center, are signi ficant as physical manifestations of the city’ s civic identity. Theyrepresent the growth and evolution of public and quasi-public institutlothat have served and continue to serve the needs of local residents., Inaddition, one of the buildings, Warwick City Hall, is an importantvisual landmark by a prominent Rhode island architectural Finn, and isa particularly fine example of its building type, sty Le, and period.

Warwick’s government has changed over the years, and provisaccommodating public bodies and agencies have had to change as aFirst settled by English colonists in 1643, Warwick was one of tindependent Narragansett Bay settlements that were consolidateda parliamentary charter in 1644 to form the colony of Rhode islandProvidence Plantations. Warwick received a municipal charter from thecolony’s General Assembly in 1647, at which time the freemen of thetown first organized as a body politic - Warwick was prlniari lY an agri

‘cultural community through the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries,and its socioeconomlc structure placed Fc’ demands on local govcl-iIIIIeIIt’.Most of the town’s affairs could be easily handled at occasional meetingsof the freemen, while a few officials were appointed by their peers to

Iattend to certain duties that had to he admin stered on a daily basis.The most important officeholder was the town clerk, who was responsihiefor keeping all sorts of records, from minutes of town meetings toregisters of ‘deeds and listings of brands and earmarks used to ‘ident ifycattle - There was no need at this time for a structure to house thelimited functions of government. Town records were kept at the clerk’sresidence, and town meetings were held at various places, usually localtaverns - Population was centered in the eastern end of town, and theoriginal settlement, Warwick Village now Old Warwick , served as thescat off government-

In 1794 the second cotton spinning mil 1 in Rhode IsI and was constructed on the banks of the Pawtuxet River in Warwick, initiatinga process destined to alter the character- -and ultimately the politicaladministration--of the community. Other factories were soon built inWarwick, which quickly became one of the chief industrial areas in thestate. The ensuing growth was phenomenal. Between 1820 and 1830 the

_ARCHEOLUI3Y-PREHISTORIC _COMMUNITV PLANNING

_ARCHEOLOGY-HISTORIC _CONSERVATION

_AGRICULTIJHE _ECONOMICS

AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE--CHECK AND JUSTIFY BELOW

ART

_COMMERCE

_EDUCATION

_ENGINEERING

_LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

- LAW

LIT E RAT U P

LMILITARY

_MU SIC

_EXPLORATION/SETTLEMENT _PHIL0SOPHY

_INDUSTRY

INVENTION

PO LITI CS/GOVERNMENT

115

ions forresult.

he fouru n d er

and

1’’

q

- - ‘

* See Continuation Sheet #10

Ft-IR--8-300A11,118 . -

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR- FOR HCRS USE ONLY ‘

‘ -:

- HERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION SERVICE ....:‘.*‘ y. " ‘ . *?,.:‘

* - ‘ .* *.

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES DATE ENTEREEX

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INVENTORY-- NOMINATION FORM -___________

CONTINUATION SHEET 10ITEM NUMBER

‘ PAGE2

population of the town increased 51 per cent, a rate surpassed onlyduring the decade between 1950 and 1960. Most of the development wasconcentrated in, the Pawtuxet.Va1 ley in what was then the west end. ofWarwick the area was set oI:I :15’ the sep:I ra t’ ttthIi 0 I ICs t I:i t-’- LL Kin 1913 - By t lie tour t.h decade otT t lie. iii net eei t Ii centu IV , Wa w c Khad grown to a point where better and more convenient governmentalfacilities were needed-

In 1834-1835 a Town House and a separate Town Clerk’s Office wereconstructed next to each other on the north side of Post ‘Road east ofthe Greenwich-Pontiac Road in Apponaug, a site more centrally locatedthan the former administrative center Old Warwick. Tilese werethe first buildings erected in Warwick to house governmental functions.The Town House, a large Greek Revival structure, was simply a meetinghall and was used only a few times a year for the town meetings whichall qualified voters were expecfed to attend - Pa ily affairs were coIlducted in the Town Clerk’s Office, a smaller structure set cast ol. alidcloEer to the road than the Town House. Little attention was paid tothe appearanceof the town buildings in the early years, but in 1849the town clerk was authorized to have five elms planted acrossthefront of the Town House lot. This was the first attempt to improvethe town ‘property and give it a more dignified character.

Between 1840 and 1890, Warwick’s, population increased from 6,7:6to 17,761, and by the latter date the town ranked third in Rhode Islandin the value of manufactured products - With physical and economicgrowth, government became more complex as new municipal departmentswere created to serve the public’s needs- By the last decade of thenineteenth century, the town buildings of the lS3Os could not -adequatelyaccommodatethe operations of local government.

In 1893 the Town Clerk’s Office was demolished and the Town Housewas sold and cut into sections thatwere moved to other lots in AppOnaug.Construction of a new Town Hall was begun that year and completed in1894 at a cost of $75,000. The design of the huidng, by William U.Walker and Son of Providence, clearly and emphatically expressed thepolitical organization and administration of the town and the statusof local government. Offices for town departments were I ocated on thefirst floor, where they would he readily ñccessihle to the public Foreveryday business, ‘while the upper two Floors were taken up by a hugeassembly hall for town meetings. The architectural tre’atmeit o.f tile

See Continuation Sheet 1111

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HR3OOA11778

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIORFOR-HCRS -USE ONLY ‘: - -: - . --

HERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREATION SERVICE --

RECEIVED - - -

- F -

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES DATE ENTERED -, ‘

INVENTORYNOMINATION FORM

CONTINUATION SHEET 12 ITEM NUMBER 9 PAGE 2

Fuller, Oliver P. , History of Warwick, Rhode Island ,

Providence: 1875 p. 154. ‘ , .,.

Providence Journal, 17 August 1912, p. 2. - . - -

Providence Journal, 26 April 1925, p. 5.

Providence Journal, Pawtuxet Valley/Warwick edition11 July 1943, p. 11 -

Providence Magazine: The Board of Trade Journal volumeMay 1914, p. 387

Rhode Island Historical Society, ‘Scrapbook 7 unpublishedp. 131.

Specifications for- tile construction of the i-henry WarnerBudlong Memorial unpublished; on file at BudlongMemorial 1924. .

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p.

LIMAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES

FiO’fd, Edward State of Rhode island and’ Providence

1902 vol. 2, p. 624.the Turn of the, Century: A History 3 volumes,.Boston and Syracuse:

Plantations at

See Continua t ion Sheet /I h 2-

WGEOGRAPHICAL DATAACREAGEOF NOMINATED PROPERTY about L4 acres

UTM REFERENCES

All 9! 121915 1411 iO I, 14 ,6 11 p910 S 0 1 I I I t I I I I IZONE EASTING ‘NORTHING ZONE EASTING NORTHING‘

D[.iIIjtIitjjijjftiVERBAL BOUNDARY DEscRIPTION

The southern portion of lot 61 in assessor,’s Mat 245,. containing the Warwick City Hall , Budlong Lii ra ry , Old F i re

Station, and Kentish Art:illery Armory, mehsuring approximately- 63,900 square feet.

LIST ALL STATES AND COUN1IES FOH PROPERIIES OVEHLAF’I’ING SIAIL OR COUNIY IJOUNUAIIILS

STATE CODE COUNTY CODE

STATE CODE COUNTY CODE

ifiFORM PREPARED BYNAME / TITLE

Robert 0. Jones, Jr ., Senior Historic Preservation PlannerORGANIZATION -. DATE

Rhode - Island Iii storica I Preservation Commission Ma rch .1980STREET & NUMBER ILl I IIIINI

150 Benefit Street 401 277-2678CITY OR TOWN STATE

Providence Rhode Island

WSTATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER CERTIFICATIONTHE EVALUATED SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS PROPERTY WITHIN THE STATE IS: -

NATIONAL. STATE__. LOCALX.

As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National Historic Preservation Act ol 1966 Public Law 89 665, Ihereby noriiir,zlto this property or iriclIlsioll in the Nt,ti a oqistr niid certify that it has 1,001, ,‘virltiatotl ac,-orfi,iq to the

Criteria and procerlrirns set truth by the National Pai k S -tvrro,

STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER SIGNATURE.... /

‘----

TITLEState Historic . Preservation Officer

DATEiay 14, 1980

FORNPSUSEONLY . . .

I HEREBY CERTIFY THATIHIS PROPERTY IS INCLUDED IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER‘ ‘

,, DATE

‘DIRECTOR. OFFICE:OFARCHEOLOGYAN D:HISTOHIC PRESERVATION: ‘‘‘,, ‘

ATTEST DATE. . . .

cEEPER-OF THE NATIONAL REGISTER - 1 - " - ‘

‘ 141’ Sir?. 4i

FHR-1-3O0A11/78

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INrERIOR -

HERITAGE CONSERVATION AND RECREA’I’ I ON SERV I CE

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACESINVENTORY-- NOMINATION FORM

CONTINUATION SHEET ii ITEM NUMBER

building was intended to hea reflection of the important purpose Forwhich the edifice ‘had been erected and as.n exhibition of citric pride.With its prominent clock tower and we11 execttt’ed, dec,ot-a’rive deral litig’,Warwick Town Hall ranks as one oF the Fine-st late Vi c tot’ mu ItItut ic I palbuildings in the state.

From the mid-nineteenth centown for other institutions that atorwelfare. In 1854 permission wasto erect an armory on the eastern eKentish Artillery, chartered in 179i-purpose was beneficial to the pif proper to furnish a site for the1870, another structure had also beehouse firefighting apparatus mannedprotectIon was not an oFFicial respolls’iIni’i n’ oFagain it was in the interests of the public formaintaining a fire brigade. One last institution totown was the village library. First organized in 186organized as a free, library in 1885. The library waslocal residents, and when the Town Hall was completedwithin the new building was set aside for the library

tury on, provisions were made by thetended to matters of public safetygranted to the Kentish Arti liary

nd oF the Town Ilotise lot. ilie7, was not a government agency, butuh I ic - interest and the town deemedorgan:tzatioIi’ s facilities. Byn built on the Town house lot toby volunteers - At the tittue fire

I’ lit’ tot’ ‘I 111111.’ iii’ , bLI Ithe town to assist in

be aided7, it was

a henefiin 1894,

‘5 use.

by there -

t tospace

In spite of subsequent changessented in some manner in the Warwicktection has now become a responsihiloperations have been transferred tostat ion of Ca. 1890 near the TOwn iimunicipal efforts to support villagepart of a citywide, government-suppora building erected in 1924-1925 I-Joppifor the private Apponaug Free I,i.bra ryWarner Budlong. The present Kentish AR. Walker and Son, arciti tect replacedin 1911. It no longer houses the muheadquarters of the Warwick Museum, ato public education. Thus the tradi tprivate, public-service 1nstitutons

these institutions are allCivic Center today. Fire

ity of local governtneother faciiit:ies, theow City’ ha ii tCc;I Itsfirefighters. The 1ted library system,n, Field and PeirceAssociation hr benert ii i cry Armory I 9

t lie 18511 a nuo ty witi tia unit hut servesprivate organ.i z

ion o; Inuncipa Icont nttes

repre -

pro -

* and thoughold Firet’a r I

ibrary , nowis housed in

architects[a c. to t I le Ii I’12; i I I fltliic Ii I LI I

instead asatoui de

5 UI DO I’ tVOt C’l.I

For

FOR HCRS USE ONLY - ‘ - -

RECEIVED-

DATE ENTERED,

8 PAGE 3

5.4

,

ilarwick Civic Center Historic DistrictWarwick, R.I.

Robert 0. Jones, nhotographerMarch 1980Negative filed at Rhode Island Historical

Preservation Commission, 150 Benefit Street,Providence, R.I.

View facing northwest along Post Road, showingWarwick City ha11 cent or and Kent i shArtillery Armory right

Photo number 1

Warwick Civic Center Historic DistrictWarwick, R.I.

Robert 0. Jones, photographerMarch 1930Negative filed at Rhode Island Historical

Preservation Commission, 150 Benefit Street,Providence, R.I.

View facing northeast a1on Post Road, s1iowinHenry tarner Budlong Memorial Library leftand Kentish Artillery Armory right

Photo number 2

Kentjsh Artillery ArmoryWarwick Civj Center HistoricDistrict

- . "‘

‘ Wa rwj ck, R. I. -

Robert 0. Jones PhotograpjMarch 1980Negatj

filed at Rhode Island HistorjcaiPreservati

Co50150 Benefit Street,

Providence RI.Viei of Armory facing

northeastPhoto number 3

Former Fire StationWarwick Civic Center_Historic istrictl’arwick, R.I.

Robert 0. Jons, photographerMarch 1980Negative filed at Rhde Island Historical

Preservation Co-.iission, 150 Benefit Street,Providence, R.I. -

View of Fire Station facade facing north, with eastside of Budlong 1emorial Library on the left

Photo number 4

Henry Warner Budlong Memorial LibraryWarwick Civic Center Historic Districtcarwick, R. I

Robert 0. Jones, photographerMarch iS0Negative filed at Rhode Island Historical

Preservation Commission, 150 Benefit Street,Providence, R. I.

View of Library facing northeast

Photo number 5

Warwick City HallWarwick Civic Center Historic DistrictWar-;ick, R.I.

Robert 0. Jones, photographerMarch 1980Negative filed at Rhode Island Historical

Preservation Conmission, 150 Benefit Street,Providence, R.1.

Vie of City Hall facade facing northwest

Photo number 6

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