Davisville

The Historic Village of Davisville Over 350 years ago….. The land held by the Narragansett people becomes Davisville, through colonial settlement.

Over 350 years ago Joshua Davis arrived on the scene in 1694, and he and his English relatives built a place of commerce, prosperity, and community. This became the Historic Village of Davisville, part of the town of North Kingstown, RI. He built grist mills, saw mills, and fulling mills for textile processing along the Hunts River.

Workers built needed housing and established places to buy goods. The meeting house, the mill houses, and other buildings helped bind the community together. During the buildup to WW II, Davisville became the point of entry for construction materials arriving by rail.

A military base was hastily built nearby, and many historic buildings were moved or demolished at that time. Today the mills and basic village are gone, but the Davisville Library, over 100 years old, still exists. It serves the community as a result of the generosity of Davis family descendants. The Davis family donated the land the library sits on and provided funds for its construction.

Text provided by Tim Cranston, Swamptown Enterprises

Thanksgiving Greetings from Davisville

I'ds fierce to be poor, ain't i'd? Ven you're live in Davisville

I'ds fierce to be poor, ain't i'd? Ven you're live in Davisville

There are all kinds of "Bridges" in Davisville But "Auction bridge" for me

There are all kinds of "Bridges" in Davisville But "Auction bridge" for me

This is a historic picture from the village of Davisville. It is a picture of the mill that once employed villagers of the area in North Kingstown RI. Early industrial activity began around 1700 when Joshua Davis established a water-powered gristmill and sawmill on the banks of the Hunt River. The original mill burned down in 1847 and was replaced with a larger two-story wooden structure that operated until 1924.

This is a picture from the historic village of Davisville. It is a picture of Carpenter’s Clothing store. Later on this store housed Zeek’s Furniture Store. Situated near Davisville and Old Baptist Roads, the store supported the village that grew around the Reynolds Manufacturing Company’s steam-powered textile mill (circa 1889) and earlier Davis family mills.The area featured a train depot, schoolhouse, and worker housing, making the company store a central, functional part of daily life for mill workers.

This is a picture of the iconic Seabee, who’s soldiers were located in Davisville RI. On the 27th of June 1942 The Naval Construction Training Center, Camp Endicott, was established. This served as a premier World War II training base for the U.S. Navy's Construction Battalions, known as "Seabees". From 1942 to 1946 more than 100,000 Seabees were trained in construction trades, combat tactics, and the assembly of structures, before deploying worldwide.