Pawtuxet Off The Beaten Path Tips by Pawtuxet

varied eras of gardening, fences....

Morning glories, holly hocks, daisies, myrtle and ivy.....the list goes on. So many lovely old gates and posts and stairs and gardens to explore. They seem to look better when planted beside an old house.
This old iron railing is on brownstone steps that go into one of the old Rhodes houses of the village....early 1700's.
Second pic is of a stately fence encircling a brick colonial revival on Pawtuxet Neck overlooking Narragansett Bay.

Children's Walking Tour

Each year the kids from the local schools work with parents and neighbors who help the children understand the history of our historic district. The kids research a house and family, dress in costume, and write speeches for when they conduct a walking tour of the village. Visitors buy a ticket in the park and then circulate to the various sites where the school children perform a little vignette in front of a historic house or at a significant site in the village. It's a great tour. The kids do such a great job.
This pic is one of the school children performing in front of an historic home during the annual Stroll Through the Pawtuxet Village walking tour. This little guy was so adorable. At the end of their little speech, they tip their hat and say, "G'day!"
Second pic they are demonstrating some early dancing on the lawn of another historic house.

The textures of the village

Old stones, moss, bricks, blue stone, tree roots, all special colors and varieties

Collection of Carriage Houses

Pawtuxet Village has several eras represented in its architecture. We have the early colonials...such as I live in c.1770... there is a sprinkling of Greek Revival cottages... and then the era of luxury (Victorians) when we became a summer resort for the sailors of the city to come out and build a "summer cottage" with a carriage house on the peninsula which extends out from the northern end of our village. The way it is situated, in a north/south direction, it creates a protective cove for mariners. The peninsula is known as Pawtuxet Neck. There is only one road through the middle...with waterfront property on either side. Those on the east side of the peninsula have a bay view...lots of open water...whereas the houses built on the west side of the peninsula have a cove and village view. Personally I prefer looking at the activity in the cove, but the bay side of the neck is valued much higher. Here we see the carriage house to a wonderful Queen Anne beauty. It's a favorite of many who walk or drive out there to look at the homes. I've created a series of carriage houses which can be viewed here by clicking on the subsequent photos after the cover pic. Hope you enjoy.

Gingerbread cottage included

This little cottage got a total make-over by a relatively new neighbor. There are many houses which were covered with asbestos shingles or some other terrible siding...and new owners have uncovered their original beauty. Susan wrote a nice story for our local newspaper about finding her little cottage by the sea and the satisfaction she got in restoring her new/old home. Great porch in the late afternoon sun.

National Historic District

Our village was designated a NATIONAL HISTORIC DISTRICT in 1973 in order to help us protect our collection of historic homes and waterfront vistas.
Our homes date from the 1700's...with a sampling of all subsequent eras mixed in. Our area is quite a lesson in American architecture, actually. We have a local organization which continues to protect, educate and improve our community. The district is really a very special little microcosm.

A Museum for a Week!!!

VOICES & VISIONS, (an organization in the village) is working on arts and history grants to educate the children (and adults) about the history of our village. They are collecting artifacts, oral history and photographs to be housed in our local library for future researchers to draw from. There is the state folklorist and an artist who head the group. They have won a State Preservation Commission award this year for their Museum for a Week which was wildly successful. In one week people brought artifacts, books, photos, and books to loan to the museum and suddenly the public could enjoy an array of wonderful, fun, and educational tools and memorabilia about this place we all love so much.