Collections News
Carr School
The Carr School was built in 1889 on the site now anchored by McQuade's Market. It was a large two-story building serving grades K-4 and was in use until 1955 when the Lawn Avenue School was built. May Day was celebrated with a Maypole Dance, a Queen and her court,...
Fans
This fan has been dated to the 18th century by the Textiles Department at URI. The donor was Mary Howland (Gardner) Clarke, the daughter of John Howland Gardner. She grew up in upstate New York, visited relatives in Jamestown and married David Otis Clarke who grew up...
Clara Lewis, Teacher at Clarke School
Clara was the daughter of Clara Silvia Furtado and Manual Dutra Lewis who immigrated from Fayal Island Azores and were married January 14, 1906 in the Parish of St. Mary, Our Lady of the Isle in Newport. Manual and Clara had two daughters, Mary Lewis, who married...
Historical Collection & Archives
Ferry Boats & Bridges
Getting to Conanicut Island is important to Jamestown. Ferryboats were in service for over 300 years. The first bridge to connect Jamestown was built across the West Passage in 1940. The Newport-Pell bridge across the East Passage in 1969. A large part of the collection is the history of the ferryboats and
effects of the bridges.
Jamestown Summer Resorts
The Resort Era began with the introduction of the steam ferries in 1873. Hundreds of visitors came each summer escaping the congested cities looking for accommodations in hotels, rental cottages, summer camps and boarding houses. Items in our collection include signs, menus, hotel account books, over 1000 photographs of the summer “cottages” and hotels.
Postcard Collection
Our collection of Jamestown postcards roughly span the years 1900 to present day. The importance of postcards cannot be under estimated as it gives us a wealth of knowledge about how our neighborhoods and town looked and may be in some cases, our only record.
Colonial Records
Colonial records include the original signed pre-purchase agreement among the men who acquired the islands from the Narragansett, a bill for the building of the second Beavertail Lighthouse in 1755, several Quaker marriage contracts, and documents about the town’s preparations for the American Revolution.
Military History
Until the late 20th century, the military – sensitive to its strategic location in Narragansett Bay – maintained forts and other installations on the island. Flags, signs, and records of the use of local forts for detention of prisoners of war, as well as photographs of the military at the various installations, record the federal government’s influence.
Jamestown Library
Papers and periodicals in the local history collection at the Jamestown Philomenian Library are included in the catalog. Programs from events, records of student awards, and articles about real estate transaction and artistic endeavors give insight into the public life of the town.