Josephine Byrd
Josephine “Josie” Byrd Building Community and Breaking Barriers Born to a sharecropper’s family in the rural south, octogenarian and pioneer for the black community, Josephine “Josie” Byrd, has made Woonsocket her home and a better place for 65 years. As a teenage girl, “I wasn’t excited about coming to Woonsocket,” said Byrd. “I came here […]
Captain Richard Arnold
Captain Richard Arnold Thunder on the Blackstone: The Man Who Founded Woonsocket More than 300 years ago, Richard Arnold left the sunshine and contentment of the Moshassuck Valley and “footed” his way along the serpentine banks of the crystal-clear Blackstone River to a spot where the water’s majesty was thunderously pronounced. Arnold had found Woonsocket. […]
Joseph Banigan
Joseph Banigan From Irish Refugee to Millionaire Mogule Joseph Banigan was an Irish born businessman and industrialist who co-founded the US Rubber Company. He served as its president from 1893 to 1896 and was a prime benefactor to Rhode Island’s Catholic churches. When he was six years old, Banigan was part of a wave of […]
Arthur Darman
Arthur I. Darman Living the American Dream Born in 1889 in Kurelvitz, Russia, Arthur I. Darman and his family arrived in the US in 1894 and settled in Woonsocket. As the eldest child he only received a few years of schooling. In 1903, at the age of 14 he ran away from home to join […]
Dr. Seth Arnold
Dr. Seth Arnold Woonsocket’s Medicine Man Dr. Seth Arnold was born on February 26, 1799, to Nathan and Esther (Darling) Arnold. He is a descendant of William Arnold, who came to Providence in a canoe with Roger Williams. A sixth generation Rhode Islander, Seth Arnold spent his early years occupied in a wide variety of […]
Rev. Charles Dauray
Rev. Charles Dauray A Sacred Vision In 1875 the Rev. Charles Dauray was appointed pastor of Precious Blood parish, with its partially completed church. In February of 1876 a gale destroyed uncompleted sections of the new church and left the building in ruins. Undaunted, the young pastor supervised the reconstruction and completion of the beautiful […]
Eileen Farrell
Eileen Farrell A Legendary Voice One of the most appreciated voices of the New York Metropolitan Opera in the 1960’s was the voice of Woonsocket’s own Eileen Farrell. In December 1960, Farrell made her Metropolitan debut, one of the high points in a singing career which had begun as a child.Farrell’s singing career began through […]
Walter F. Fontaine
Walter F. Fontaine Shaping Woonsocket’s Skyline One of Woonsocket’s most prominent and productive architects was Walter F. Fontaine. He was born in Woonsocket in 1871, the son of John B. and Elodie Fontaine who had come to Woonsocket from Quebec before the Civil War. As a young man Walter Fontaine worked for Willard Kent, a […]
Edward Harris
Edward Harris Industrial Giant & Moral Force Edward Harris was the leading mid-18th century industrialist and philanthropist of the area. He constructed six mills in Woonsocket, which were eventually incorporated into the Harris Woolen Company. He was the first president of the Railroad Bank, and members of both branches of the Rhode Island General Assembly. […]
Charles Leo “Gabby” Hartnett
Charles Leo “Gabby” Hartnett The Catcher who became a legend Charles Leo “Gabby” Harnett was born on December 20, 1900, in Woonsocket. At 14 he finished the eighth grade and took a job as a laborer at a rubber shop. As soon as he was able, he began playing baseball and gravitated toward the role […]