Mount Hygeia

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Mt. Hygeia

Rhode Island Greening original apple tree in Foster RI.jpg

Early Rhode Island Greening apple tree on Mt. Hygeia, pictured ca. 1900
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Location Foster, Rhode Island
Coordinates 41°50′48″N71°45′17″W / 41.84667°N 71.75472°W / 41.84667; -71.75472 Coordinates: 41°50′48″N71°45′17″W / 41.84667°N 71.75472°W / 41.84667; -71.75472
Built 1808
Architect Unknown
Architectural style Federal
NRHP reference # 77000008 [1]
Added to NRHP August 12, 1977

Mt. Hygeia (also known as the "Solomon Drown House") is an historic farm property at 83 Mt. Hygeia Road in Foster, Rhode Island.

Foster, Rhode Island Town in Rhode Island, United States

Foster is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, in the United States. The population was 4,606 at the 2010 census.

Contents

History

Dr. Solomon Drowne, a prominent physician, academic, botanist, and surgeon during the American Revolution, owned the property in the early nineteenth century. Around 1801 Drowne returned to Rhode Island and bought the farm next to Senator Foster and named it Mt. Hygeia after the Greek goddess of health. As near as can be determined, Drown's home was built around 1806 (as determined by Anselyn Lynch researching for the National Register of Historic Places). Drowne used the farm for botanical research and named his driveway the "Appian Way". [2] The farm house was built in 1808 in a Federal style. One of the oldest Rhode Island Greening trees was located on the property at the turn of the twentieth century. [3] [4]

Solomon Drowne American physician

Dr. Solomon Drowne was a prominent American physician, academic and surgeon during the American Revolution and in the history of the fledgling United States.

American Revolution Colonial revolt in which the Thirteen Colonies won independence from Great Britain

The American Revolution was a colonial revolt that took place between 1765 and 1783. The American Patriots in the Thirteen Colonies won independence from Great Britain, becoming the United States of America. They defeated the British in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) in alliance with France and others.

Hygieia Ancient Greek goddess of good health and cleanliness

In Greek as well as Roman mythology, Hygieia, was one of the Aeclepiadae; the sons and daughters of the god of medicine, Asclepius, and the goddess of healing, Epione. She was the goddess/personification of health, cleanliness and hygiene.

The house in 2015 FosterRI SolomonDrownHouse.jpg
The house in 2015

The property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.

National Register of Historic Places federal list of historic sites in the United States

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.

See also

National Register of Historic Places listings in Providence County, Rhode Island Wikimedia list article

This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Providence County, Rhode Island.

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References

  1. National Park Service (2007-01-23). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.
  2. Brown University info accessed Feb. 8, 2009
  3. The Apples of New York By Spencer Ambrose Beach, Nathaniel Ogden Booth, Orin Morehouse Taylor, New York (State). Dept. of Agriculture, New York State Agricultural Experiment Station Published by J.B. Lyon, 1905 Item notes: v.1, pg. 281
  4. "Cyclopedia of American Horticulture: Comprising Suggestions for Cultivation of Horticultural Plants, Descriptions of the Species of Fruits, Vegetables, Flowers, and Ornamental Plants Sold in the United States and Canada, Together with Geographical and Biographical Sketches" By Liberty Hyde Bailey, Wilhelm Miller Edition: 2 Published by The Macmillan Company, 1902, pg. 1515