Elmwood Historic District | |
   | |
| Location | Providence, Rhode Island |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 41°48′N71°25′W / 41.8°N 71.42°W |
| Built | 1875 |
| Architect | Multiple |
| Architectural style | Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Late Victorian |
| MPS | Elmwood MRA |
| NRHP reference No. | 80004603 [1] |
| Added to NRHP | January 7, 1980 |
Elmwood is a neighborhood in the South Side of Providence, Rhode Island. The triangular region is demarcated by Broad Street, Elmwood Avenue, and Interstate 95.
Prior to the 1850s, the region had been used primarily as farm land. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, as the city began to expand south and west with the development of manufacturing and shipping interests, the area began to develop. In the 1840s through 1860s, as the city of Providence expanded from a population of 23,000 to past 50,000, development crept southwestward along Broad Street. As areas began to be densely populated, the remaining farms were subdivided.
The neighborhood takes its name from one of its principal developers, Joseph J. Cooke, who in 1843 purchased a large tract of farm land and named the estate "Elmwood". He and other developers sought to build a model suburban community with wide streets and shade-giving elm trees. [2]
As public transportation improved from omnibuses (horse-drawn carriages) to horse-drawn tracked cars, and finally to electrified streetcars, development began to quicken pace. A number of manufacturers moved to Elmwood, while the area near Public St, Elmwood Ave, and Potters Ave began to develop as a middle to upper class residential neighborhood.
As the automobile came to increase in popularity, businesses in the form of car dealerships, garages, and service stations would proliferate along Elmwood Avenue. As the trolley service was bustituted, Elmwood Ave was widened significantly and the elm trees Cooke planted had to be removed. These changes in streetscape changed the character of the neighborhood.
When the 1950s came, Interstate 95 was constructed, and many single-family homes were converted into apartments. Combined with the aging housing stock and traffic congestion, the neighborhood became less appealing to the middle-class, who left in large numbers during this time. By the early and mid 1970s, spot demolition on dilapidated houses became common and Elmwood fell into disrepair.
In more recent years, there have been many efforts to restore many older mansions and revitalize the neighborhood. In 1980, two large, predominantly residential areas of Elmwood were added to the National Register of Historic Places as the Elmwood Historic District, with emphasis on their nineteenth century revival and Victorian houses. Additionally, the City of Providence [3] has established local (municipal level) historic districts as North Elmwood [4] and South Elmwood, [5] which protect historic properties and the neighborhood's historic identity by restricting exterior modifications of architectural items such as windows, porches, slate roofs, etc. Restoration efforts in Elmwood were featured on 'Season 11 of Bob Vilia's Home Again' when he helps 11 neighbors with various projects over the course of 13 episodes highlighting the historic nature of homes in the neighborhood.
The neighborhood remains one of the most ethnically, culturally, and racially diverse in the city. [6] As of March 2007 [update] , 56.7% of the population was Hispanic, 23.3% Black or African-American, 23.6% White (10.5% Non-Hispanic White), 9.3% Asian, and 1.8% Native American. [7] 70% of children under the age of six spoke a language other than English as their primary language. [7] Median family income rates were well below the citywide average. Nearly 28% of families lived below the poverty line while nearly 17% received some form of public assistance. Nearly one in four children had been exposed to high amounts of lead, mostly from lead paint in older homes. [8]
At the municipal level of government, most of Elmwood [7] is within Ward 9, [9] though the area of Elmwood north of Potters Avenue falls within Ward 11. [10] Carmen Castillo and Mary Kay Harris represent Wards 9 and 11, respectively, in the Providence City Council. Both are Democrats.
At the state level, nearly all of Elmwood falls within Rhode Island House District 11, [11] with the exception of the area of Elmwood which lies west of Elmwood Avenue to the south of Columbus Square, which is in House District 10. Grace Díaz serves as the state representative for District 11; she was first elected in 2004. Scott Slater serves as the state representative for District 10; he was first elected in a special election in November 2009. All of Elmwood falls within Rhode Island Senate District 2; [12] Elmwood is represented by Ana Quezada, who was elected to the seat in 2016.
At the federal level, all of Elmwood falls within RI Congressional District 1. [13] David Cicilline, first elected in 2010, currently fills that seat.
Green space in Elmwood consists of parks, community gardens, and cemeteries.
Elmwood has five small parks: Sackett Street Park and Amos Earley Park south of Sackett Street, Jennifer Rivera Memorial Park on Niagara Street at Potters Avenue, Peace and Plenty Park [14] at the intersection of Peace Street and Updike Street, and Columbus Square at the intersection of Elmwood and Reservoir Avenues. [15] Except for Columbus Square, each of these parks has playground equipment for children.
There are several community gardens in Elmwood, including Cadillac Drive Community Garden, Laura Street Community Garden, and Peace and Plenty Community Garden. [16]
Additional green space in Elmwood is provided by two historic cemeteries along Elmwood Avenue: Grace Church Cemetery at the northern tip of Elmwood, and Locust Grove Cemetery, which is part of the Providence Public Parks System and is adjacent to the South Elmwood Local Historic District. Immediately to the south of the neighborhood lies Roger Williams Park, the city's premier public park.
The urban forest in Elmwood is composed of trees in parks and cemeteries, trees on private property, and street trees which line the sidewalks of the neighborhood. As of 2006 [update] , Elmwood's Urban Tree Canopy was estimated at 16.3% of total land area. [17] Elmwood's urban tree canopy was below the citywide average, which was 23% of total land area.
Elmwood has several schools within its neighborhood borders. The Sackett Street School is a public elementary school. [18] Charter Schools operating in the neighborhood are Highlander Charter School [19] and Paul Cuffee Upper School. [20] Sophia Academy [21] is an independent middle school for Providence residents. The Montessori Community School of Rhode Island offers a Montessori education. [22]
The Knight Memorial Library on Elmwood Avenue services Elmwood, the West End, and other south side neighborhoods. [23] The library was financed by the children of textile magnate Robert Knight on property which had been part of Knight's estate. [24] The 17,000 square foot library was designed by renowned architect Edward Lippincott Tilton with a grand Italian Renaissance exterior and Beaux Arts Neoclassical interior, and opened in 1924. [24] [25]
Management of the library transferred from the Providence Public Library to a community group, the Providence Community Library, in 2009. [26] The building was temporarily closed for "urgent repairs and upgrades" in 2017, and considered "endangered" by the Providence Preservation Society in 2018. [25] A $554,000 grant from The Champlin Foundation in 2018 provided for repairs on the exterior masonry, roof, gutters, cornice and skylights. [27]
In northern Elmwood, Teatro ECAS is a Spanish-language performing arts space. [28] At the northern tip of Elmwood Avenue, and at the nexus of the Elmwood, Upper South Providence, and the West End neighborhoods, the Southside Cultural Center of Rhode Island hosts a number of arts and cultural organizations and offers performance space. [29]
In 2018–19, the historic 1921 Bomes Theatre on Broad Street underwent a "complete restoration". The work included restoration of the historic exterior, reproduction 1940s era marquee, modern dinner theatre interior, and the creation of two new retail units and commercial office space on the second floor. [30] [31]
St Joseph's Hospital for Specialty Care was a Catholic hospital located at 21 Peace Street in the northern portion of Elmwood. It once completed a line of four hospitals on the South Side that to the east includes Rhode Island Hospital, Women and Infants Hospital of Rhode Island, and Hasbro Children's Hospital.
Brookland, also known as Little Rome or Little Vatican, is a neighborhood located in the Northeast (NE) quadrant of Washington, D.C. Bounded by Fort Totten Metro Train tracks NE, and Brookland CUA Metro train tracks, Taylor Street NE, Rhode Island Avenue NE, South Dakota Avenue NE. It is best known for its numerous Catholic institutions, including schools, religious communities, shrines, institutes, and other organizations built and based around the Catholic University of America.
The Dundee–Happy Hollow Historic District is located west of Midtown Omaha, Nebraska. It covers the area between Harney Street on the south, Hamilton Street on the north, Happy Hollow Boulevard on the west, and 46th Street on the east. The "heart" of Dundee is located at 50th and Underwood Avenue in Omaha, Nebraska, United States. It was founded in 1880 and annexed into the city in 1915. Dundee is home to Warren Buffett and nationally syndicated editorial cartoonist Jeff Koterba and was the hometown of filmmaker Alexander Payne. Actor Henry Fonda additionally lived in the Dundee neighborhood.
Riverside is a neighborhood in the city of East Providence in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. Despite not being an incorporated city, Riverside has its own zip code, 02915, and is an acceptable mailing address according to the United States Postal Service. Riverside has a population of approximately 20,000 people.
Olneyville is a neighborhood in Providence, Rhode Island bordered by Atwells Avenue to the north, U.S. Route 6 to the south and Rhode Island Route 10 to the east. The Woonasquatucket River runs through the southern portion of the neighborhood. The area is roughly triangular.
Roger Williams Park is an elaborately landscaped 427-acre (173 ha) city park in Providence, Rhode Island and a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The park is named after Roger Williams, the founder of the city of Providence and the primary founder of the state of Rhode Island.
Clairemont is a community in San Diego, California, United States. It has a population of about 81,600 residents and an area of roughly 13.3 square miles (34 km2). Clairemont is bordered by Interstate 805 on the east, Interstate 5 to the west, State Route 52 to the north, and the community of Linda Vista to the south. The community of Clairemont can be subdivided into the neighborhoods of North Clairemont, Clairemont Mesa East, Clairemont Mesa West, Bay Park, and Bay Ho.
Blackstone is a predominantly residential neighborhood in Providence, Rhode Island. It is in the northeast corner of the city and is bounded to the south and west by Lloyd Avenue and Hope Street respectively. It is one of six neighborhoods comprising the East Side of Providence.
College Hill is a historic neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island, and one of six neighborhoods comprising the city's East Side. It is roughly bounded by South and North Main Street to the west, Power Street to the south, Governor Street and Arlington Avenue to the east and Olney Street to the north. The neighborhood's primary commercial area extends along Thayer Street, a strip frequented by students in the Providence area.
Norwood is a neighborhood in the city of Warwick, Rhode Island. Norwood is bounded by Route 37, the Pawtuxet River, Elmwood Avenue, and Post Road. Such borders mark the area traditionally served by the fire station previously located at the current site of the Norwood Boys & Girls Club.
The East Side is a collection of neighborhoods in the eastern part of the city of Providence, Rhode Island. It officially comprises the neighborhoods of Blackstone, Hope, Mount Hope, College Hill, Wayland, and Fox Point.
Upper South Providence is an official neighborhood in the South Side in the city of Providence, Rhode Island. It is bound to the north by Interstate 95, the east by the Providence River, to the south by Public Street, and the west by Broad Street. Often associated with Lower South Providence directly to its south, Upper South Providence is a distinct neighborhood.
The Lower South Side is a neighborhood in the southern part of Providence, Rhode Island. It is bounded by Public Street to the north, by Interstate 95 to the south, by Broad Street to the west, and by the Providence River to the east.
The College Hill Historic District is located in the College Hill neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island. It was designated a National Historic Landmark District on December 30, 1970. The College Hill local historic district, established in 1960, partially overlaps the national landmark district. Properties within the local historic district are regulated by the city's historic district zoning ordinance, and cannot be altered without approval from the Providence Historic District Commission.
The Elmwood Historic District encompasses two large residential sections of the Elmwood neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island. The Elmwood area was mainly farmland until the mid-19th century, when its development as a residential area began, and these two sections represents well-preserved neighborhoods developed between about 1850 and 1920. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
Buttonwood Beach Historic District is a historic district bounded by Brush Neck Cove, Greenwich Bay, Cooper and Promenade Avenues in Warwick, Rhode Island. Buttonwood Beach is a bucolic neighborhood on the eastern limb of the Nausauket neck, located in the West Bay area of Warwick, Rhode Island. Buttonwoods is delimited by Nausauket and Apponaug to the west, Buttonwoods Cove to the north, Greenwich Bay to the south and Oakland Beach to the east. Buttonwood Beach was founded as a summer colony in 1871 by the Rev. Moses Bixby of Providence's Cranston Street Baptist Church, who was looking for a place to establish a summer colony by the shore for his congregation. He envisioned a community that would be similar to Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard, where the Methodists established a summer campground in 1835. Today, this coastal neighborhood on Greenwich Bay is home to people from many different religious backgrounds.
Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, it is one of the oldest cities in New England, founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He named the area in honor of "God's merciful Providence" which he believed was responsible for revealing such a haven for him and his followers. The city developed as a busy port, as it is situated at the mouth of the Providence River at the head of Narragansett Bay.
Robert Knight was a New England industrialist and philanthropist, who was a partner with his brother Benjamin Knight in B. B. & R. Knight and was one of the largest textile manufacturers in the world when he died in 1912. He co-founded the clothing brand Fruit of the Loom, now owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway.
Columbus Square is a historic public square in the Historic Elmwood Neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island. Located at the intersection of Elmwood Avenue and Reservoir Avenue, it serves as a gateway to Elmwood from the Reservoir and West End Neighborhoods.
Mashapaug Pond is the largest freshwater pond in the city of Providence, Rhode Island.
