South Ferry Church
South Ferry Church is technically in the town of Narragansett, but the area itself is considered part of Saunderstown. Even by today’s tradition, Saunderstown spreads across town lines of North Kingstown and Narragansett.
The wooden church was designed and built in 1850 by Thomas A. Tefft in the Carpenter Gothic Style. It served the Baptist community in the area.
It was originally part of the thriving South Ferry textile village. During these early years, the church was the meeting place for some of the area’s most prominent families. However, changes in the textile industry and transportation led to a decline in the village.
The Baptists moved to a different location about a mile away in 1908. The location they moved to is currently the Saunderstown Post Office.
Saint Bernard Roman Catholic Church
Saint Bernard Roman Catholic Church, located in Wickford, Rhode Island, was established in 1874 thanks to the initiative of Reverend William Halligan. Rev. Halligan was pastor of the Church of the Holy Name of Jesus in East Greenwich, which is now known as Our Lady of Mercy. He often travelled to Wickford to celebrate Mass in the homes of residents since there was no church nearby. The Catholic population in North Kingstown gradually increased as French-Canadian and Irish immigrants settled in the area to work in the mills and factories. In 1874, realizing that there was now a big enough Catholic community to support a church, Fr. Halligan purchased a half acre of land for the construction of what became St. Bernard Church. The Church was dedicated by Bishop Thomas F. Hendricken, the first bishop of the Diocese of Providence, on July 4, 1875.
The Chapel of St. John the Divine
The Chapel of St. John the Divine was built and finished in 1896. It serves the Episcopal Community of Saunderstown RI.
Two sisters had the church built on family land to honor their sister Esther Carpenter.
Unfortunately she passed away shortly before its dedication. Esther was a gifted and meticulous writer. Her sisters may well have taken John the Evangelist for its patron, to honor her writing skills.
Stony Lane Six Principle Baptist Church
Stony Lane Six Principle Baptist Church, also known as the Old Baptist Meeting House, is a historic church in North Kingstown, RI. It is one of the last surviving historical congregations of the Six Principle Baptist denomination and one of the oldest churches in the United States.
The building sits along stony Lane, in an area between the Davisville and Lafayette villages.The Congregation was founded in 1665, and the meeting house and cemetery date to approximately 1703.
Thomas Baker, ordained a Baptist minister in 1658 in Newport, was convinced, by none other than Roger Williams himself, to pack up his bags and move to minister to the people here. He was North Kingstown’s very first permanent “man of God”. He became the first Pastor of The Six-Principle Baptist Church.
Wickford Methodist Episcopal Church
The former Wickford Methodist Episcopal congregation built their chapel in 1885 near the intersection of Main and West Main Streets. Known for being "vocally demonstrative" with loud hymn singing, this congregation thrived until the 1920s
In 1894, a building across the street on West Main Street was bought and became the parsonage for the Wickford Methodist Episcopal Church. It remained a parsonage until 1918 when it was sold.
Close your eyes and imagine what these buildings have been converted to. Do you see someone sewing, getting a haircut or tattoo ? At the parsonage you can now buy a meal and a drink.
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