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Apponaug’s
changing Four Corners
Dorothy Mayor, in her booklet, “I Remember Apponaug,”
noted that many changes had occurred on Post Road at the Four Corners
during her lifetime. On the northwest corner, where Greenwich Avenue
meets Centerville Road, there were a number of enterprises during
the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
A busy corner
In the early years, Greenwich Avenue was known as the road to Pontiac.
It was a dirt road and on the corner, which now houses a modern
phone center and a fish market, there was Joseph Perkins’
Store and a bakery. Perkins had a barn at about the site now occupied
by People’s Storage. Mischievous youngsters enjoyed taunting
Perkins on Halloween by hoisting a buggy to the roof of the barn.
Perkins, who had a dry sense of humor, always took the buggy down
without acknowledging the prank, thus turning the trick on the pranksters.
Early in the 20th century, across from the old Apponaug Hotel, there
was a shoe store on this northwest corner. Around the mid-century,
the S & H drugstore, which had been on the southeast corner
for many years, moved to this location. In time it became the S
& S Pharmacy and later in the century, Warwick Prescription
Drugs. Near the close of the twentieth century, the pharmacy gave
way to the Cellular One Store and Captain’s Catch. For the
last decade plans have been advanced to make changes to drastically
alter the corner to alleviate the heavy traffic, which flows through
there constantly. The constant flow of traffic through the Four
Corners has led many a wit to wonder if Apponaug means “Traffic
Jam” in the Narragansett language.
The Samuel Greene house/Gulf Station
The southwest corner at the crossroads is an excellent example of
how time has changed the face of Apponaug. The Samuel Greene house,
not to be confused with the Caleb Greene Memorial House mentioned
later in this article, once occupied this corner. The Greene family
is one of the most important in the history and development of Apponaug.
Samuel Greene, the great-grandson of John Greene, Sr., one of Warwick's
founders, had inherited the land and lumber to build his house in
1722. His father, Capt. Samuel Greene, the 11th son of Deputy Governor
John Greene, operated a gristmill in Apponaug and had a large farm.
The house faced the first mill that was built along what is today’s
Centerville Road. It was the fulling mill of John Micarter, built
in 1698. The Greene family owned the mill from 1702 until 1853.
Two years later, the mill formed the nucleus for the oriental Print
Works, which later became the Apponaug Company.
Dorothy Mayor’s notes indicate that the Samuel Greene house
was moved to face Post Road, sometime during the 19th century. The
house was one of the most often visited dwellings during the first
half of the 20th century as it was the home and office of one of
Apponaug's most beloved physicians, Dr. Long.
During the mid-20th century, this historic house was demolished.
The major change came as a result of the importance of the automobile.
During the horse and buggy days, Apponaug had several blacksmith
shops. Now that the horse has been replaced by the automobile, the
area has a number of garages and gas stations. This southwest corner
is now occupied by a Gulf Station, which is diagonally across from
the Shell Station that occupied the site of another famous area
landmark, the Apponaug Hotel.
The Caleb Greene Memorial House
Most of the mill complex on Centerville Road has been destroyed
by fire and many of the old buildings are gone. Fortunately, the
late 18th century Caleb Greene, or Greene Memorial, house still
stands. This house, one of the most historically significant, can
best be viewed from across the street at the southwest corner, near
the rear of the Gulf Station. It was built by Caleb Greene in 1798.
Much of its significance comes from the fact that Caleb’s
son, George Sears Greene, one of the most distinguished generals
in the Civil War, lived here. George Sears Greene’s son, Major
General Francis Vinton, Greene gave this house to the Rhode Island
Episcopal Convention. His intention was to have it maintained as
a memorial to his illustrious father. During the 20th century, it
had been owned by the Red Cross. Later as the property of Russell
Howard it was used by Chabad of West Bay for religious services.
Today it is serving in a new capacity. It is a cooperative where
tenants rent a room and share the kitchen, bath and living rooms.
The story of Apponaug will be continued.
1. At the turn of the century, the road to Pontiac (now Greenwich
Avenue) was a dirt road. This was still the era when traffic was
light and the horse and buggy ruled supreme. With the coming of
the automobile, Apponaug’s charming 19th century look was
altered dramatically. The building in the middle was the first Roman
Catholic Church in the village. The building partially burned in
1923 and was later torn down.
From the Dorothy Mayor Collection.
2. Today, after a series of businesses from a shoe store to a
pharmacy, the corner now houses a fish store and a cellular phone
retail enterprise.
Photo by Don D’Amato
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