The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1893-06-22
Danish THE COBBLE STONE
Great improvement 10 the Highways
Of the City.
MILES OF new GRANITE PAVING
Laid During Past Three Years-Totai
Length of New Pavement Will Iro-
badly lie Over sixteen MiIes-An Evil
dence of Progress

L
| Junction of South Main and Wickendeu
streets, and the peope who travel over
| the East Providence route were very EN-
| phatic in their expressions when they
were compelled to change cars In today's
storm.
But that is only one of the discomforts
incident to providing the people of this
city with modern convenie noes. South
Main street is being paved with gra mite
blocks Sd the + st Providence cars can
not make tips without oh inges. This
| pavement is needed to replace the old
| cobble stones which have Tor years
threatened to rattle every vehicle driven
over hem TO pieces
| 'It seems to me-" growled disconso-
/ late passenger who had lost his Inside
| seat during the change OF cars, that
| Providence has goie into the paving
business by Wholesale. "A few months
aao we had 10 walk on T,ckwotten
| street, then we w, re ordered out on Pike
street, AID now we yet IL again on South
Main street. / wonder il this will be
| the last Of IL ~
| Unfortunately for him. but fortunately
Tor the city this Will not be the last OF
it," for before the clos, of the present
season South Main street, from Planet To
/ James street, will be repavel with gran
| ite blocks. and the East Providence
| growler will nave to make con meet ions
| by foot power.
Great Improvements Made.
One part OF his remark, however, had
the element Of truth. Providence has
| gone into the paving busints IS on the
| wholesale plan. and when it gets through
| it's stree will equal those OF any other
| cil y in tie country.
This matter of roadways was for years
| neglected. Cobblestones, those Destroy
| ers OF horses and wreckeIs OF drays and
| carriages, were considered ample for the
| most busy thoroughtares. such streets
as Broad. Hign, Charles. Weybosset
| Mathewson, and many others over which
| the heaviest teamiug is done, were in "a
| deporable condition. Turee years ago
| there came a cnange In policy. which
| has been continued siuce, which has
| given the citizens roadways OH which
| they eau drive with safety and comfort.
1ne amount of work accomplished in
| less than three years is really remarka-
| lie. In 1890 for instancs, 17,763 square
| Yards OF block paving were laiu. The
| sire, is improved were:
| Worcester from Eidy to Cove.
Dorrance from Futon to Washing
| ton.
Nor, h Main from Olney to Randall.
| Friendship from Chestnut 10 Beacon
| avenue. .,.-.-t.
| Back from Orms to Smith.
| Ihe total length Of the paving laid was
| over mile. The most important i'm
provement mads in 1891 was tuat on
| Dorrance street. There, it wall be re-
| ,nembered, the roadway was GOV, red
| with old-iashioned square blocks and so
uneven were they thai IN stormy weather
| one who wou Il cross tue street was com
| PEELED to wade through six incheS OF
| water and more AZ times.
For the whole year over "a, 00) square
| yards, or more than two miles. OF
| granite blocks were put into the streets.
Those thoruughfares subjected to im-
provement were:
Oorrance from Westminster to Friend
| ship.
Weybosset from Dorrance to Orange.
Olney from North Main TO Prospect
Friendship from Beacon avenue to
| Summer.
rockwo ten from East to Ives.
| Atwell's avenue from Academy to Har-
| rs avenue.
Eddy from Public to Thurber's avenue
and from Weybosset TO Westminster
/ street.
Carried or the Palm.
I, st year, however, carried off the
| palm, for during 1t more than five miles
| of street were laid with granite paving
| and the most important work of high
way improvement accomplished. The
tn, r, ,ughfares on which the new paving
| WIS placed were:
Fountain from Aborn TO Dean.
Richmond from Bro q to Ship.
BE tefit from Wickeaden to India
Charles at the new railroad bridge.
Aborn from Westminster 10 Sabin.
Cranston from Winter to Waverly.
| Tockwotten from Ives to Gauo.
Htgh from Broad to Knight
| Brook from Wickendea e. India
| Pettis from Prntery to Nichols.
Atwelps avenue from Knight to Har-
| ris avenue.
Snow from Westminster to Weybosset.
Brook from Wickenden to Power.
| South Main from Crawford TO Planet
Broad from Dorrance TO Chestnut.
1t will be seen therefore, that Broad
| street. or Weybosset as IL Is now called.
| was covered with the old rattlebones and
| out-of-dste cobDlestones until "a year ago.
| This is certainly a pretty good show
| ing Tor three years, and II the work goes
| on as there is every prospect 1t will the
| unsightly cobDle stone will soon be a
| mere memory.
| With the close OF the present season
| Provide CO may boast OF fourteen miles
of gra lite paved streets. which she did
not have three years ago.
A Growing City.
| And what DOS all this meanf Sim
| ply that Providence has got out Of the
| ru: that she sees the mistake OF let ting
| things drift, AID recognizes the neces-
sity Of keeping up with the procession OF
| progress
Providence il growing as never before
| In her history, and these imp rovemonts
| only help to make tnat grow the still
larser. There may be some peesimists
who doubt this. but let them look about
| them. In the west and southerly parts OF
| the city new houses are going up by
| the hundreds. Tue Tenth ward has a
healthy aud steady growth, while in the
| Second there IL remarkably large num-
| Der OF buildings la process OF cOnstruc-
| tion.
III this will not satisfy the eroaker fet
| him 20 over TO the city hall and examine
/ the books of the water department
/ There he will nnd evidence that viii con-
| vince him unless he is a hopeless case.
| More This Year.
The indications are that this year will