Rumford, Rhode Island

Rumford Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
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Location	Pleasant St. and Greenwood and Pawtucket Aves, East Providence, Rhode Island
Coordinates	41°50′43″N71°21′07″W / 41.84528°N 71.35194°W / 41.84528; -71.35194
Area	150 acres (61 ha)
Architectural style	Queen Anne, Shingle Style
MPS	East Providence MRA
NRHP reference No.	80000008 [1]  (original) 100002778  (increase) 100002777  (decrease)
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	November 28, 1980
Boundary increase	August 6, 2018
Boundary decrease	August 6, 2018

Technically Rumford is a neighborhood or village, as it is currently the northern section of the city of East Providence, Rhode Island, United States. The Rumford section of East Providence borders Seekonk, Massachusetts to the east, Pawtucket, Rhode Island to the north, and the Ten Mile River (Seekonk River) to the south.

History

Since the establishment of the separate parish formed by Newman Congregational Church in 1643, ^[2] Rumford has had a community identity. Rumford has been part of three towns and two states: Rehoboth then Seekonk in Massachusetts, then East Providence in Rhode Island.

Eben Norton Horsford, a Harvard chemist who received the Rumford Chair of Physics in 1847, developed the first practical calcium phosphate baking powder. He co-founded Rumford Chemical Works in 1859, named in honor of Sir Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford, his benefactor. Rumford Baking Powder was made in the town at the Rumford Chemical Works, which led to Rumford's current name.

Rumford became part of Rhode Island in 1862.

Wannamoisett Country Club was established in Rumford in 1898 on land rented from Rumford Chemical Works and it hosts the Northeast Amateur Invitational Golf Tournament each year. ^[3] The 1931 PGA Championship was played here. ^[4]

About 150 acres (61 ha) of the Rumford area was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, encompassing the historic heart of old Seekonk and the 19th-century center of East Providence. ^{[1] [5]}

• 
  Bridgham Memorial Library
• 
  First Baptist Church, designed by William Walker
• 
  Persy's Place diner, on Newport Avenue

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Providence County, Rhode Island

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
2. Newman Congregational Church. Accessed 25 July 2025.
3. "Northeast Amateur Invitational Golf Tournament". Northeast Amateur Golf Tournament. Archived from the original on February 23, 2007. Retrieved June 8, 2007.
4. "Creavy whips Shute, 2 and 1, for pro golf title". Chicago Sunday Tribune. September 20, 1931. p. 1, sec. 2.
   - "Creavy brings new style to paid brigade". Pittsburgh Post Gazette. United News. September 22, 1931. p. 12 – via Google News.
   - King, Bill (September 20, 1931). "Tom Creavy, 20-year-old Albany pro, downs Denny Shute for P.G.A. title". Youngstown Vindicator. Ohio. Associated Press. p. C-2 – via Google News.
5. "Historic Resources of East Providence, Rhode Island (PDF pages 7-19)" (PDF). Rhode Island Preservation. Retrieved September 7, 2014.