The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1902-08-15
THE STORY OF "PINE SWAJ1P"

Everybody in the Outlands Of
Providence knows where the Pine
Swamp Reservoir is situated, more
especially those disciples OF Isaac
Walton who delight i'll the sport #
fishing for pickercl and bullheads,
and many a chowder has been served
upon Its shore, or at the nearby farm
house of old Uncle Billy Young in
the last half century, but how many
know anything about the history OF
the land it covers and from whence 1T
takes its name. 1t has with the first
dawning ray Of the history OF the
Outlands themselves, And by the
term outlands is meant, of course,
all that part OF the plantations includ-
ed in the four towns of Burrillville,
Glocester, Scituate and Foster, or all
the territory to the west OF the line
which constitutes their eastern bound
ary. Wellnigh two hundred and
fifty years ago the proprietors voted
that this line should constitute the
western boundary OF the town of
Providence and the territory beyond,
being uninhabited, unorganized and
almost unknown the designated rs
the "Outlands," and being covered
by continuous forest it was also pop
ularly called "Providcncc Woods"
The Pine Swamp was known at this
early day, long before the first settler
built his cabin near of Moswansicut
and when the Indian, the bear, the
wolf and the catamount held carnival
IN the forests of this solitary corner
OF the earth, whence, in due course
OF time have come forth statesmen,
warriors, governors, diplomats, as
tronomers and distinguished men in
all the varied walks of life.
When the Hon. Isaac Saunders
contemplated building this reservoir
something more than fifty years ago,
he cast about to find an owner from
whom to purchase this swamp, but
to his surprise he could find none.
He could find owners on all side OF
IT, but the land he wanted appeared
to have no owner at all. Without
understanding the reason for this he
went ahead and built the reservoir
without protest from anyone. Had
he solved the mystery he would have
found that away back in 1905 when
the proprietors of Providence began
their preparations for the settlement
of this part of their territory they
passed n vote that the "plne swamp
southwestwardly from Swassacut'
and also the the cedcr swamp at
Waynkeag should not be laid out to
any man, but remain common.
Their short experience in colonial
affairs had taught them that this pre
cautionary step was necessary in or
der to prevent anyone from making
"corner" in "pitch wood tor can
dell light" And this last remark
suggests the fact that the history OF
the Outlands naturally and properly
divides itself into four distinct pc
RODS, not separated however. by any
strongly defined line Of demarkation,
but gradually blending INTO each
other like the colors of the rainbow,
viz The Pitch Wood, the Tallow
Candle, the Whale Oil and the kcr-
osene periods, the latter of which
may be expected soon to blend rapid
ly into the fifth, or Electric period.
But to go back little, the title
which the proprietors gained to this
territory in 1850 was III the nature OF
quit clam, the Narragansett chiefs
simply transferring their right of
sovereignty over it without interier-
ing with claims of the local chiefs
who ruled over difleren; sections of
the purchase. A committee had
therefore to be appointed to eXtin-
guish these claims. Accordingly,
during the spring OF 1902 this COM
mittee came up here and bought the
claim of the sachem who ruled about
Moswansicut, bearing the euphonious
name of Wesauomog, and it was then
that they came into full ownership of
the Pine Swamp and the whole Mos
wansicut valley besides. This sa-
chem is probably buried near the
north end of the pond on the wester-
ly side in the Indian burial ground
at that place, as tradition has always
held that the last chiei who ruled in
these parts was buried there, and he
was certainly the last. II can easily
be believed that he was living when
John Mathewson built his cabin but
little distance from the spot less
than thirty-five years later. All
through the first period OF our history
this swamp was invaluable to the
settlers, who resorted here for thier
supply of pitch wood for lights. But
as time passed on and the number of
cattle increased while the goats de-
creased, the tallow candle gradually
but surely usurped the place of pitch