| R 254 |
| 2019 -- S 0843 Enacted 05/01/2019 |
| S E N A T E R E S O L U T I O N |
| CELEBRATING THE 175TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FOUNDING OF ST. MARY'S CHURCH IN WEST WARWICK, RHODE ISLAND |
| Introduced By: Senators Satchell, Gallo, Ruggerio, Lombardo, and Lawson |
| Date Introduced: May 01, 2019 |
| WHEREAS, It has been known by several names in its long history, but St. Mary's |
| Church has been a mainstay in the tiny village of Crompton, in the Town of West Warwick for |
| the past 175 years; and |
| WHEREAS, By 1844, the Irish settlers of Crompton had grown tired of the ten mile trek |
| to Providence for Catholic Mass. Mary Doran, the wife of a printer in the Crompton Print Works |
| purchased an acre of land and donated it to Father Fitton for the purposes of building a church. |
| The cornerstone for the church was laid on October 15, 1844 and a small church was built upon |
| it. The Irish of the Pawtuxet Valley finally had a church of their own; and |
| WHEREAS, The church started out as a mission church served by priests from the |
| Cathedral in Providence. The church became a separate parish and was renamed St. Mary's under |
| its first Pastor the Rev. Daniel Kelly in 1850. Less than a year later, the Reverend James P. |
| Gibson came to St. Mary's. Under Father Gibson, the transepts and sanctuary were added in |
| 1856; giving the church its distinctive cross shape. The church's bell tower was added in |
| 1859. Reverend Gibson served until his death in 1892, and is buried adjacent to the church; and |
| WHEREAS, After Father Gibson's death, the church was once again a mission church for |
| traveling Catholic priests from Providence. On August 6, 1926, the church was devastated by |
| fire. The church was re-opened on Easter Sunday, 1927. In 1946, the church was returned to |
| parish status and Rev. Barton Daggett was appointed pastor; and |
| WHEREAS, The church continued to grow spiritually, although the building itself had |
| suffered the ravages of time. In 1978, the church's 133rd year, the parish undertook the task of |
| planning and funding an extensive renovation. Work on the project began in April of 1980. The |
| structure was lifted and moved while a new foundation was built. After returning the building to |
| its original location, interior renovations revealed evidence of previous fires. After the |
| renovation, the building was rededicated on January 25, 1981, by Bishop Louis Gelineau. In |
| 1994, St. Mary's held its 150th Anniversary Celebration; and |
| WHEREAS, Today's parishioners are acutely aware of the history of their church. St. |
| Mary's and the adjacent St. Mary's Cemetery are now entered on the National Register of Historic |
| Places. From high atop the hill, the church looks over the village of Crompton and the other |
| villages that would eventually become the Town of West Warwick; and |
| WHEREAS, Most of the original parishioners of Our Lady of Mount Carmel are buried |
| behind the church. Many of their gravestones indicate their Irish birth places. Among their |
| graves are the graves of Mary Doran and Father Gibson. There are also the graves of those who |
| have served our country, and the graves of thousands of other parishioners that have found their |
| way to this little building on Church Street; now, therefore be it |
| RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations |
| hereby joins the parishioners of St. Mary's in celebrating the 175th Anniversary of their church. |
| May she continue to serve as the Mother Church of the Pawtuxet Valley and may she continue to |
| grow with her 18th generation of parishioners from this day forth; and be it further |
| RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to |
| transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to Bishop Thomas J. Tobin, and the Reverend |
| Douglas J. Spina, Ph.D. |
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| LC002030 |
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