Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame:

H. Cushman Anthony

Inducted in 1985

Mr. Anthony was known as "Mr. Boy Scout" in Rhode Island. He was also known as "Gus", as he dedicated a lifetime to the youth of our community and gave of himself in aiding the elderly. Read more >

Therese Antone was born in Central Falls, the third of seven children raised by Florence Smith Antone and George Antone, a cobbler. After graduation from Cumberland High School, she earned a bachelor’s degree from Salve Regina University, a master’s from Villanova University, and a Doctor of Education degree from Harvard University. She also completed the senior executive program at the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Sister Therese’s career has included teaching at all levels. Read more >

Marion F. Avarista

Inducted in 1988

Ms. Avarista was ounder of the Traveler's Aid Runaway Youth Project nand developer of the Travelers Aid Medical Van providing free service for the homeless in providence. A Cranston resident, she is one of those most responsible for the growth and development of the Traveler's Aid Society in RI and is a very active civic and comunity leader. Read more >

Nelly Ayvasian

Inducted in 1988

Mr. Ayvasian became an Executive Director of the International Institute of Rhode Island. Born in the Soviet Union, and severly wounded during WWII, he was imprisoned in a German labor camp before coming to live in Warwick, RI. He loined the Institute staff in 1959 and over the years helped thousands of immagrants with housing and employment, english lessons, and citizenship classes. Read more >

Christina Carteaux Bannister

Inducted in 2003

Christina Carteaux Bannister was born Christina Babcock in Rhode Island’s South County sometime between 1820 and 1822. Details concerning her birth and background are obscure, but she appears to have been of mixed native American and African-American parentage and was undoubtedly descended from slaves that worked the plantations of South County during the eighteenth century. As a young woman she moved to Boston and took up the trade of hairdressing. During her twenty-five year residence in Massachusetts she owned salons both in Boston and Worcester and prospered as an independent businesswoman and self-styled “hair doctress. Read more >

Mayor Amos Chafee Barstow (1813-1892)

Inducted in 2004

Mayor Amos Chafee Barstow (1813-1892) was one of the most accomplished and versatile men in the history of Rhode Island . A Providence native, Barstow made his fortune by the manufacture of stoves. His firm, the Barstow Stove Company, located at Point and Richmond Streets covered two and one-half acres and employed 200 workers. Barstow won the Grand Medal of Merit at the 1873 Vienna World’s Fair for the best cooking stoves and ranges. Read more >

Bernard E. Bell

Inducted in 1991

Mr. Bell was a retired business executive who lead Hospice Care for Rhode Island. He recieved the 'Man of tthe Year Award', presented by Hospice America, and was very active in public and civic service. He served as Trustee of the Albright Institute of Archeological Research, Director of the Rhode Island Children's Freind and Service, and worked with the Jewish Federation of RI, the RI Jewish Historical Association, and the Torro National Heritage Trust. Read more >

Andrew J. Bell, Jr. (1907-2000)

Inducted in 2007

Andrew J. Bell, Jr. was born in Providence in September 1907, the son of Andrew J. and Beatrice J. Read more >

Ade Bethune

Inducted in 1990

Ms. Bethune of Newport, whose expertise in liturgical architecture and iconography is world-renowned, led her to a distinguished career as a much sought-after consultant for church planning. She held special concern for less fortunate parishes, as well as community efforts to include low-income housing, solar heating, and energy efficiency. A recipient of six Honarary Degrees and several prestigious awards and honors, she is Art Director of the Terra Santa Guild and a former Editor of Sacred Signs and The Catholic Art Quarterly. Read more >

William Binney (1825-1909)

Inducted in 2006

William Binney (1825-1909), was the son of Horace Binney, a trial lawyer of national acclaim who twice declined a seat on the United States Supreme Court. His grandfather, Barnabas Binney, was a renowned surgeon, who served with distinction in the American Revolution. William Binney was born in Philadelphia and obtained bachelors and masters degrees from Yale University. He also earned a masters degree from Brown University in 1856, launching his storied connection with Rhode Island. Read more >

Major General George Newman Bliss (1837-1928)

Inducted in 2003

George Newman Bliss was born in Tiverton, Rhode Island on July 22, 1837, the son of James and Sarah (Stafford) Bliss. He attended Brown University, secured a bachelor’s degree from Union College, and earned a law degree from Albany Law School in 1861. Enlisting in the Civil War as a private, he rose to the rank of major in the 1st Rhode Island Cavalry serving with valor and resourcefulness in numerous engagements in the Virginia theater of war. At Waynesboro, Virginia on September 18, 1864, he displayed such heroic action as to merit the Congressional Medal of Honor. Read more >

Governor Augustus O. Bourn (1834-1925)

Inducted in 2005

Governor Augustus O. Bourn (1834-1925) was born in Providence in 1834 to a distinguished old-line Rhode Island family whose earliest ancestor Jared Bourn served as a Portsmouth representative to the colonial assembly in 1654-55. After graduation from Brown University in 1855, Bourn joined his father in the business of manufacturing India-rubber goods.

In 1864, Bourn founded the National Rubber Company in Bristol which had a workforce of over 1100 within twenty years of its establishment and became, by far, Bristol’s largest industry. Read more >

Mary P. Brennan

Inducted in 1992

Ms. Brennan has been the Cheif of Airport Marketing at T. F. Green State Airport. Read more >

Edwin C. Brown

Inducted in 1986

Mr. Brown was one of the foremost proponants of organized labor in the State. He was elected Secretary-Treasurer of the RI AFL, and later was a key negotiator in the merger of the AFL with CIO, He served on the State Board of Education and later the Board of Regents for twenty-eight years, being elected Chairman in 1964. He served a miriad of causes in Rhode Island and received honary degrees from URI and Bryant, and was honored witht the United Way's National Beirne Award in 1981. Read more >

T. Dawson Brown

Inducted in 1970

Mr. Brown was former President and Chairman of the Board at the Industrial National Bank. One of the states most active leaders in promoting brotherhood, the betterment of youth, and civic renewal, he served for many years as President of the Narragansett Council of Boy Scouts. He was also one of the pioneers in the development of a Downtown Providence Master Plan. Read more >

Sydney Richmond Burleigh (1853-1931)

Inducted in 2011

Sydney Richmond Burleigh, a man with roots in Little Compton, Rhode Island, studied art with Jean-Paul Laurens in Paris for two years from 1878 to 1880. Upon his return, he became one of the founders and one of the first exhibitors at the newly-formed Providence Art Club. He taught at the Rhode island School of Design and was one of the founders of the Providence Watercolor Club. He became a champion of the emerging Arts and Crafts Movement. Read more >

Dr. Joseph E. Cannon (1911-1989)

Inducted in 2010

Joseph Cannon was born in Providence in 1911, the son of General Francis Cannon and Mary (Milligan) Cannon. He attended Technical High School and graduated from Brown University in 1932. He chose a career in medicine, and in 1936 he earned his degree cum laude from Tufts Medical School. Dr. Read more >

Elizabeth Buffum Chace (1806-1899)

Inducted in 2002

Elizabeth Buffum Chace (1806-1899), recently selected as the first woman to be memorialized with a statue in the Rhode Island State House, was an antislavery activist and a pioneering advocate for women’s suffrage. The daughter of abolitionist leader Arnold Buffum, she married fellow Quaker Samuel Chace, a Fall River textile manufacturer. The Chaces had ten children; tragically the oldest five died of scarlet fever before the youngest five were born.

Chace first became publicly active in the cause of abolition in 1835 when she and two sisters helped to organize the Fall River Female Anti-Slavery Society, which was allied with the radical wing of the antislavery movement led by William Lloyd Garrison. Read more >

George Byron Champlin (1851-1946)

Inducted in 2008

George Byron Champlin (1851-1946) was born in Providence on September 11, 1851, just after his old-line family had left their farm in southern Rhode Island to pursue new opportunities in the state’s expanding capital city. George’s father, Stanton B. Champlin, opened a produce business on Pine Street in the Downtown, but soon his interest turned to the jewelry industry. In 1872, twenty-one year old George joined his father to establish Stanton B. Read more >

Samuel Pomeroy Colt (1852-1921)

Inducted in 2008

Samuel Pomeroy Colt (1852-1921), a brother of U.S. Senator LeBaron Colt, shared his sibling’s impressive lineage. Born in Paterson, New Jersey in 1852 as the youngest of six children, he received his early education in Hartford, graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1873, and from Columbia Law School in 1876. Read more >

Dr. Patrick T. Conley

Inducted in 1995

Dr, Conley, of Bristol, is universally considered as Rhode Island’s most prolific historian and a leading disseminator of knowledge concerning the State’s heritage. Earning distinction through his pursuit of several careers as an educator, author, attorney, civic leader, government official, real estate developer, as well as historian, he has written and published more scholarly works pertaining to the history of Rhode Island than any other person. He founded the Rhode Island Heritage Commission where he served as Chairman, which preceded the Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission of the State. Read more >

Kathleen S. Connell

Inducted in 2010

Kathleen Sullivan Connell was born in Newport, Rhode Island, the only daughter of Lawrence and Margaret Sullivan. She attended St. Mary’s School and St. Catherine Academy, graduated magna cum laude from Salve Regina University with a BS in Nursing, and then earned a master’s degree in International Relations from Salve. Read more >

Dr. Anthony Corvese

Inducted in 1976

Dr. Corvese, a veteran physician, was the first Italo-American to intern at Rhode Island Hospital. Instrumental in organizing the first free children's dental clinic in the state, he also established a gynocological and sugical clinic at The House of the Good Shepard. He was also a medical pioneer in the use of spinal anesthesia. Read more >

George W. Curtis

Inducted in 1973

Mr. Curtis was an essayist and lecturer who became editor of Harper's Magazine. A co-founder of the Republican Party, he led the movement for civic service reform. Read more >

Joseph R. DiStefano, Esq. (1938-)

Inducted in 2008

Cities and states do not progress and prosper randomly. To thrive, they need leaders whose creative vision is matched by the drive, energy, and diplomatic skills that can draw together diverse people and disparate factions into a common – and ultimately successful – undertaking. Such a leader is Joseph R. DiStefano. Read more >

Rev. Vincent C. Dore

Inducted in 1971

Reverend Dore was a Dominican educator who served at Rhode Island College as Athletic Director, Treasurer, Dean of Studies, Dean of Faculty, President, and Chancellor. A social scientist by training, he served on many municipal and state boards and commissions, concentrating on problems of labor and economics. Read more >

Thomas W. Dorr (1806-1854)

Inducted in 1973

Mr. Dorr was known as Rhode Island's greatest political and constitional reformer, and the principle draftsman of the People's Constitution in 1841. He became Governor of Rhode Island in 1842 on the People's Party ticket, and was the leader of the famous Dorr Rebellion. Read more >

George T. Downing (1819-1903)

Inducted in 2003

George T. Downing, abolitionist, businessman, and civil rights advocate, was born in New York City on December 30, 1819 into a prominent, well-to-do African-American family. His father Thomas Downing was a restauranteur, whose Oyster House was a gathering place for New York’s aristocracy and politicians. Under his father’s guidance, young George participated in the Underground Railroad and lobbied to gain equal suffrage for blacks. Read more >

David A. Duffy

Inducted in 2001

DAVID A. DUFFY, of North Kingstown, chairman of the highly successful firm of Duffy & Shanley, a Providence based advertising, marketing and public relations firm, who is chairman of the national board of directors of the National Conference for Community and Justice and a member of the select commission on race and police-community relations. Dave is involved in a myriad of other organizations and activities including the chairmanship of the Capital Campaign Committee of the Heritage Harbor Museum.

Governors Elisha & Elisha Jr. Dyer

Inducted in 2007

Governor Elisha Dyer (1811-1890) and Governor Elisher Dyer, Jr. (1839-1909) traced their illustrious ancestry to William and Mary Dyer of Boston who settled Portsmouth in 1638 as exiled disciples of Anne Hutchinson. They eventually embraced Quakerism, and Mary repeatedly returned to Boston to preach the new doctrine in defiance of the Puritan magistrates. Such persistence earned her martyrdom. Read more >

William H. Edwards

Inducted in 1978

Mr. Edwards was head of Edwards and Angel, the prestigiuos Providence law firm. He was active in numerous civic groups, and focused his energy especially on the needs of minority groups and the elderly. Read more >

Irving J. Fain

Inducted in 1985

Mr. Fain was a philanthropist, successful businessman, and comunity leader whose perseverance and ideals almost single-handedly led to the establishement of a fair housing law in Rhode Island. He was raised in Lippett Hill, now University Heights, an American landmark mixture of races and economic backgrounds he helped to create. He was a backer of humane causes, an extremely active leader in the community, and one of Rhode Island's most prominant citizens until his death in 1977. Read more >

Susan L. Farmer

Inducted in 2010

Susan L. Farmer joins her forebears, Bishop Alexander Griswold and Anne Hutchinson as an inductee into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame. Like Hutchinson, a pioneer in many areas, including the advancement of women, Susan was a “first” as well. When elected Secretary of State in 1982, she became the first woman elected in Rhode Island to a statewide office. Read more >

Aram G. Garabedian

Inducted in 2012

Aram G. Garabedian was born in Providence and raised by his Armenian parents. He graduated from Hope High School. After losing an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Maine, Aram decided to hitch-hike there anyway with just $35 in his possession. Read more >

Carol Garnett (Wheeler)

Inducted in 1968

Ms.Wheeler (Garnett) was a member of the U.S. women's swim team who competed in the 1924 Paris Games. Read more >

Governor Lucius F. C. Garvin, M.D. (1841-1922)

Inducted in 2008

Lucius Fayette Clark Garvin’s life was one of compassion, political struggle, tragedy and
service to all. Born in Knoxville, Tennessee on November 21, 1841 to educated parents, his father, James, died when Lucius was only four and his mother, Sarah, a school teacher moved to Greensboro, North Carolina where she remarried and bore two more children.

Lucius was attending Amherst College in Massachusetts when the Civil War broke out. Upon graduation he enlisted in Company E, 51st Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. Read more >

Nancy Gewirtz, Ph.D.

Inducted in 2006

When Nancy Gewirtz died in 2004 after her courageous and graceful battle with cancer, she was widely and appropriately known by a title the Fund for Community Progress had aptly bestowed upon her in 1997--“A Voice for the Voiceless.” Indeed, Dr. Gewirtz's entire life was marked by her tireless efforts on behalf of the poor, the exploited, the defenseless, and the marginalized.

Ever since she completed her graduate studies, which included a doctorate in Political Science from the University of Connecticut and a Master of Social Work from the State University of New York at Buffalo, Dr. Read more >

William Gilbane

Inducted in 1977

Mr. Gilbane was Vice-President of Gilbane Construction, one of the largest firms in the country. He was known for being the Captain of Brown University's great 1932 football team, and was named 'Big Brother of the Year' in 1956. William was General Chairman of the United Fund, and active in Boy Scouts and other civic endeavors. Read more >

Frederick R. Glassman

Inducted in 1979

Mr. Glassman was a Blackstone Valley business and civic leader who has been honored many times for his community service. He was cited after World War II for his contributions as Chief of Rubber Conservation for the War Department. Read more >

Darius L. and Lyman B. Goff

Inducted in 1997

The Goff Brothers, formerly of Pawtucket, were the sons of the Honorable Darius Goff, and members of one of the most prominent industrialist families in New England. They were partners in D. Goff & Sons, which occupied a foremost position among regional industrial concerns. They were credited with introducing electric power to the City of Pawtucket, and deeply involved in civic and cultural affairs. Read more >

Manuel Gorriaran

Inducted in 1975

Mr. Gorriaran was a sportsman, philanthropist, industrialist, and a Pan-American-World Olympic Wrestling Team manager. He was inducted as a member of the Helms Hall of Fame, the International Ameteur Wrestling Federation's highest award. He also served as Chairman of People to People of Rhode Island. Read more >

Rabbi Leslie Yale Gutterman

Inducted in 2012

Rabbi Leslie Y. Gutterman, the son of David and Winifred Gutterman, grew up in Flint, Michigan. He received a B A degree from the University of Michigan and a Doctor of Divinity degree from Hebrew Union College. In 1970, he completed his graduate studies and was ordained a rabbi. Read more >

Rudolf Frederick Haffenreffer, III (1902-1991)

Inducted in 2007

Rudolf Frederick Haffenreffer, III (1902-1991), the eldest son of Rudolph Haffenreffer, Jr., succeeded to his father’s positions in several family ventures. Rudolph, III graduated from Dartmouth College (where he was an active alumnus) and Harvard School of Business Administration. He served as president of Narragansett Brewery and the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company which the Haffenreffer family acquired in 1930. Read more >

James Hanley (1841-1912)

Inducted in 2007

James Hanley (1841-1912), was born in Roscommon, Ireland and came to America with his parents as a child in 1846 during the Great Famine migration. He rose from poverty to prominence as Rhode Island’s leading brewer.

Hanley’s first important step into the world of business came in January 1862, at the age of twenty, when he opened an inn and liquor store in downtown Providence. In 1876 he began his career as a brewer in partnership with fellow-Irishman John P. Read more >

Bishop Matthew Harkins (1845-1921)

Inducted in 2007

Bishop Matthew Harkins (1845-1921), was born in Boston, the son of Patrick and Mary Margaret (Kranich) Harkins, both immigrants from Ireland. After completing studies at Boston Latin, the future bishop attended Holy Cross College for a year, and then, in 1863, went abroad to study at the English College in Douai, France. Like so many other American clerics, he was ordained at the Seminary of St. Sulpice in Paris on May 22, 1869. Read more >

Sylvia K. Hassenfeld

Inducted in 1997

Ms. Hassenfeld, formerly of Providence, lived in both New York City and Palm Beach, FL. She was widely recognized as an outstanding civic, cultural, and philanthropic leader of international communal services for more than 40 years. She was President of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee for non-sectarian humanitarian work, and a prominent member of many Boards of Trustees, including the NYU Medical Center, Brandeis University, and the Hasbro Children’s Foundation. Read more >

Thomas Robinson Hazard (1797-1886)

Inducted in 2002

Thomas Robinson Hazard (1797-1886) was a South Kingstown manufacturer, agriculturalist, author, and social reformer who embodied the egalitarian spirit of the pre-Civil War age of reform.

Affectionately called “Shepard Tom” because of his prize sheep herd, Hazard was a seventh generation descendant of Thomas Hazard, the progenitor of the famous Hazard clan of Rhode Island and one of the nine founders of Newport. He was also the grandson of Thomas Hazard (1720-1798), an eighteenth-century South County Quaker abolitionist called “College Tom” because of his advanced study at Yale, and the older brother of Rowland Gibson Hazard (1801-1888), a noted Peace Dale woolen manufacturer, railroad promoter, and writer on philosophical subjects.

Thomas Robinson Hazard grew wealthy as a South County sheepraiser and woolen goods magnate. Read more >

James V. Healey

Inducted in 2013

Jim Healey was a two-sport all-state athlete in high school and the sparkplug of a South Providence sandlot baseball team that won five age-graded championships from 1953 to 1957.

A fierce competitor in collegiate and professional sports, Jim was noted for his “hustle.” Fortunately for those whose cause he championed through life, that hustle and persistence only intensified.

Jim Healey’s unprecedented accomplishments over a 45-year career in the field of developmental disabilities made him one of the nation’s leading pioneers in that arena. Read more >

Randall C. "Randy" Hien (1949-2006)

Inducted in 2009

Randall C. (“Randy”) Hien (1949-2006) became legendary in Rhode Island for his remarkable accomplishments in two fields. As one of the most successful baseball coaches in the state, he devoted himself tirelessly to Rhode Island youth sports for thirty years. During that time, he transformed his beloved Lincoln Little League All-Stars into a nationally-competitive powerhouse, winning an unprecedented ten District Championships, seven Rhode Island Championships, and two New England Championships that culminated in two trips to the Little League World Series. Read more >

Rt. Rev. John Seville Higgins, D.D.

Inducted in 1974

Reverend Higgins was Episcopal Bishop of Rhode Island for seventeen years until his retirement in 1972. Active in the ecumenical movement, and in fair-housing legislation, he organized the Episcopal Charities Appeal Fund. Read more >

Stephen Hopkins

Inducted in 1973

Mr. Hopkins was Governor of Rhode Island for ten years and a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Historians rate him as "one of the most illustriuos citizens Rhode Island has ever produced. Read more >

George Katz

Inducted in 1995

Mr. Katz, formerly of East Providence, became the first Executive Director of the Big Brothers of Rhode Island, and served as Director of Development for Big Brothers of America for ten years. He travelled extensively throughout the U.S. Read more >

Bruce R. Lang

Inducted in 2011

Bruce Lang, a resident of Newport, has a B.A. from the University of Rhode Island and a Masters of Business Administration from Harvard Business School. He also served two years as an officer in the United States Army. Read more >

Margaret Langdon-Kelly

Inducted in 1997

Mrs. Langdon-Kelly, of Little Compton, was affectionately known to all as “Poggy”. She, along with Dr. Eric Denhoff, founded Rhode Island’s famed Meeting Street School, a world renowned institution providing early education as well as medical intervention for special needs children. Read more >

Frank B. Lanning

Inducted in 1970

Mr. Lanning was a 'Providence Journal' sports cartoonist and President of the Hall of Fame. He was well known throughout the state for his sports cartoons and his contributions to Rhode Island life in general and its' youth, in particular. Read more >

Dr. Renato E. Leonelli

Inducted in 1996

Dr. Leonelli, formerly of Providence, advanced the education of RI youth through his 39 year tenure as Professor of Physical Science and Science Education at Rhode Island College, as well as through a weekly, live, local television program entitled ‘Small Fry Science’. He also served on the Boards of numerous civic and cultural organizations and as a member of the Providence Human Relations Commission. Read more >

George S. Lima, Jr. (1919-2011)

Inducted in 2012

George S. Lima, Jr. (1919-2011) spent his adolescent years in Harlem, Fall River, and Providence with his Cape Verdean family. His life changed dramatically when he enrolled at North Carolina A&T State University in 1939 on a football scholarship. Read more >

Frederick Lippitt (1917-2005)

Inducted in 2006

Born to a life of privilege, Fred Lippitt (1917-2005) decided it was a privilege to serve
others. The Lippitt family was among the first settlers of Rhode Island. In 1638, John Lippitt
arrived in Providence. An ancestor, Christopher Lippitt, commanded Rhode Island troops in the
Revolution. Read more >

Royal Little

Inducted in 2012

Quality traits such as curiosity, courage, and counter-intuition have characterized key moments of Royal Little’s life. A natural inquiring mind led him to insights others missed or thought not possible, most notably his invention of the business conglomerate, Textron, a company comprised of separate, unrelated, diversified manufacturing enterprises.

Dealt a harsh blow in early life by his father’s death and the relocation of his family from Wakefield, Massachusetts, he faced the grim possibility of attending a rural, one-room school in California, Little was rescued by his uncle, Arthur D. Little, enrolled in a private Boston-area school and then sent on to Harvard. Read more >

Mayor Patrick J. McCarthy (1848-1921)

Inducted in 2008

Mayor Patrick J. McCarthy (1848-1921) was the only immigrant ever to serve as mayor of Providence. Born in County Sligo, Ireland in 1848, his family fled the Potato Famine in 1850 only to be quarantined on Deer Island in Boston Harbor. Both his parents died there. Read more >

Charles J. McDonald, M.D.

Inducted in 2013

Charles McDonald, MD, is the founding chairman of the Brown University Medical School Department of Dermatology and Physician-in-Chief of the Department of Dermatology at Rhode Island Hospital. An internationally recognized dermatologist, Dr. McDonald has distinguished himself as a clinician, researcher, and educator and as a leader in his community and beyond.

Dr. Read more >

Francis Whipple McDougall (1805-1878)

Inducted in 2004

Frances Whipple McDougall (1805-1878) was one of Rhode Island’s most significant mid-nineteenth century writers and reformers. She was born in Smithfield where she spent her childhood in modest circumstances despite her membership in two of Rhode Island’s pioneering families.

Frances began her writing career by publishing her poems in local newspapers and by editing, in 1829, two issues of a local interest periodical which she entitled The Original. By the late 1830s, the reformist spirit of America’s “Age of Equalitarianism” turned her interest increasingly towards some of the causes of that period, especially temperance, abolition, and workers’ rights. Read more >

Harry McKenna

Inducted in 1984

Mr. McKenna was News and Public Affairs Director of WEAN radio, and as "Dean" of R.I. news correspondents he had a distinguished thirty-nine year carer as a broadcast journalist. Read more >

Rev. Charles E. Millard, Jr. (1914-2006)

Inducted in 2007

The Reverend Charles E. Millard, M.D. excelled in many walks of life--as an athlete in his youth, as a noted family physician, husband, parent, author, professor of medicine, and civic leader in his prime, and as a deacon of the Roman Catholic Church after the death of his beloved wife Mildred Lowney Millard. Read more >

Bernard Mondor

Inducted in 1984

Mr.Mondor was a Canadian-born business man who became one of R.I.'s most outstanding sports promoters as owner of the Pawtucket Red Sox Baseball Team, which was recognized as the strongest franchise inthe International League. Read more >

Sister Eileen Murphy

Inducted in 1987

Sister Murphy was founder of the Amos House in Providence for the care of the homeless and needy of Rhode Island. A tireless worker for the cause of homeless men and women and helping to provide daily services, including food for low-income Rhode Islanders. Sister Murphy dedicatred a lifetime to the teaching and ministering of the needy. She died in 1983 at the age of forty-eight, leaving a legacy for all citizens to follow. Read more >

William T. Nicholson (1834-1893)

Inducted in 2004

William T. Nicholson (1834-1893) was the founder of the Nicholson File Company of Providence, the originator of machine-made files in America, the largest company of its kind in the world, and one of Providence’s “five industrial wonders” of the nineteenth century.

Nicholson was born on March 22, 1834 in the village of Pawtucket, then in the town of North Providence. His father, a machinist, moved the family to Whitinsville, Massachusetts where young William was raised and educated. Read more >

James Joseph O'Connell, M.D.

Inducted in 2009

Dr. James J. O’Connell, a native of Newport and a graduate of Harvard Medical School, has truly made a difference in the world of medicine. Since 1985, when he helped found the Boston Health Care For The Homeless Program, he has worked tirelessly to bring medical care and dignity to the less fortunate. Read more >

Michael Pappas

Inducted in 1991

Mr. Pappas was an Executive Vice President for the Pawtucket Boys & Girls Club, for which he served in variuos capacities for more than forty years. He was also a sportscaster for several RI radio stations, a prominant public relations advocate for many area sports events, and a public address announcer for professional hockey and baseball teams. He became very active in variuos civic and community organizations, and was a Boys Club of America 'National Alumnus of the Year'. Read more >

John J. Partington (1929-2006)

Inducted in 2008

John Partington (1929-2006) was born in the Valley Falls section of Cumberland, the son of the late Williard F. And Mary C. (Hogan) Partington, and he remained a lifelong Cumberland resident. From 1955 to 1967 John served as a police officer in his native town. Read more >

John R. Rathom

Inducted in 1973

Mr. Rathom was the energetic editor of the Providence Journal who served during World War I. He also served as Boy Scout Commissioner and was credited with giving scouting its' biggest boost during its' formative stages. Read more >

Major General Harold N. Read

Inducted in 2005

General Harold Read started his military career in 1942 as a member of the Rhode Island State Guard. He was inducted into federal service during World War II and served in the European Theater as a member of the IX Troop Carrier Command, First Allied Airborne Army. He participated in the airborne invasions of Normandy, Southern France, and The Netherlands. He rose through the enlisted ranks, and in September, 1945 he was selected to serve as a member of A Company, 503d Military Police Battalion, the guard company for General George C. Read more >

Brigadier General Elisha Hunt Rhodes

Inducted in 2003

Elisha Hunt Rhodes, eldest son of ship captain Elisha Hunt Rhodes and Eliza Ann (Chace) Rhodes, was born in Pawtuxet Village on March 21, 1842. This lineal descendant of Roger Williams attended schools in Cranston and Providence including Potter & Hammond’s Commercial College. His father’s death at sea when Elisha was only sixteen left him the sole supporter of his family. He left school to work as a clerk in the office of a mill supplier. Read more >

John M. Sapinsley (1922-)

Inducted in 2013

John M. Sapinsley’s personal traits such as curiosity, courage, critical thinking, and kindness led him on an extraordinary life journey as a successful U.S. Navy veteran, businessman, professor, mentor, philanthropist, champion gofer, and most importantly, a loving husband to Senator Lila Sapinsely (a 2004 RI Heritage Hall of Fame Inductee), a father of four accomplished daughters and a proud grandfather of nine. Read more >

Lucian Sharpe

Inducted in 1973

Mr. Sharpe was a business leader who was co-founder of Brown & Sharpe Mfg. Company. Cited for his efforts in seeking improved working conditions, he served as President of the Providence Journal Company for Thirteen years. Read more >

Mary Elizabeth Sharpe

Inducted in 2001

The late MARY E. SHARPE, formerly of Providence, an entrepreneur, author, environmentalist, philanthropist, and self-taught landscape architect, whose achievements in the field of landscape design were legendary. She was instrumental in the beautification of Brown University, assisted in the creation of the Japanese Gardens at Roger Williams Park, and spearheaded the renovation of India Point Park.

Merrill W. Sherman

Inducted in 2007

Merrill W. Sherman is the president and CEO of the Bancorp Rhode Island, Inc., a publicly traded bank holding company, and its wholly owned subsidiary, Bank Rhode Island. She is Rhode Island’s only female CEO of a publicly held bank. Read more >

Archibald & Ida Silverman

Inducted in 1971

Mr. Silverman was a Providence jewelry manufacturer, and civic leader for many years. Mrs. Silverman was a crusader for the establishment of the State of Isreal and played important role in fund-raising for Rhode Island hospitals. Read more >

George L. Sisson (1919-)

Inducted in 2005

Born in Portsmouth, R.I. 1919, Resident of Bristol since 1963
Fall River Public Schools, Durfee High, 1938
William & Mary College, A.B. Read more >
Ambrose "Amby" Smith
Inducted in 1983

Mr. Smith was a sports editor and Vice President of the Pawtucket Valley Daily Times, for which he served for forty-two years. He was a founder and officer of both Words Unlimited and the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame. He was also a past President of the Providence Gridiron Club. Read more >
David R. Stenhouse
Inducted in 2008

David R. Stenhouse’s well-rounded career includes playing high school, college, and professional sports; college coaching; business; fundraising; and community service. For his athletic attainments, he has been inducted into the University of Rhode Island and the Rhode Island College Halls of Fame.
A native of Westerly, Dave was a star athlete at Westerly High School before enrolling at URI in 1951 on a baseball and basketball scholarship. Read more >
George L. Sutcliffe
Inducted in 1988

Mr. Sutcliffe was a WWII flying ace whose heroic exploits as a fighter pilot have been chronicled in several books, as he flew eighty missions as a highly decorated war hero. he was Founder and owner of a very successful and nationaly recognized insurance firm in Smithfeild, RI, has been active in the Big Brothers Association, and as a civic and cultural leader. Read more >
Howard G. Sutton, II
Inducted in 2012

Howard G. Sutton II of Portsmouth, publisher, president and chief executive officer of The Providence Journal Company, began his career at the Journal as a circulation statistician thirty-nine years ago, rising through the ranks before being named publisher, president and CEO in 1999.

A Rhode Islander since the age of eight, Sutton’s record of public service in his adopted state has been exemplary and diverse.

In 2011, he was honored by Crossroads Rhode Island for his longtime commitment to serving the state’s homeless. Read more >
Lucy Rawlings Tootell (1911-2010)
Inducted in 2013

For nearly a century of public life, Lucy R. Tootell was a force of energy promoting heritage education, celebrating the “South County mystique,” and preserving the architecture and memory of the past.

Born in Jacksonville, Illinois on November 27, 1911, Lucy moved to South Kingstown, Rhode Island, with her family in 1913 before she was two years old.

As the wife of 1924 Olympic Gold medalist and Rhode Island Hall of Fame inductee, Fred Tootell (teacher, coach, and athletic director of URI), Lucy was a champion in her field, whether it be the school classroom, or telling tales out of school in the nearly half dozen historical societies she founded in South Kingstown, Charlestown, and Richmond. Read more >
Reverend Mahlon Van Horne (1840-1910)
Inducted in 2005

Reverend Mahlon Van Horne (1840-1910) had a career that ranged from minister of the Gospel at the black Union Congregational Church at Newport to minister of diplomacy as United States Consul to St. Thomas in the West Indies. He was at heart always a teacher.

Bom in Princeton New Jersey in 1840, Van Horne was graduated from Lincoln University in Pennsylvania. Read more >
Michel S. Van Leesten
Inducted in 2001

MICHAEL S. VAN LEESTEN, of Providence, Executive Assistant to the Chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, is the former director of the Department of Planning and Development for the City of Providence, former director of the Opportunities Industrialization Center of Rhode Island, former chairman of the Rhode Island Housing and Mortgage Finance Corporation, and a prominent real estate developer. He has held leadership positions in the NAACP, Urban League, the Black Repertory Company, and the Rhode Island Black Heritage Society. As a youth, Mike was a star schoolboy and college athlete, excelling in basketball. Read more >
Joseph W. Walsh, Esq.
Inducted in 2012

Joe Walsh is a leader, a public servant, and a humanitarian with a thoughtful manner and a big heart. His passion for people, desire to serve his community, and popularity in his days in government led The Providence Sunday Journal Magazine to ask: “Doesn’t Anyone Out There Hate this Man?” (Sept. 9, 1979). The newspaper that he delivered as a boy, was then writing stories about him. Read more >
Harriet Ware (1799-1847)
Inducted in 2001

Harriet Ware (1799-1847). Born in Paxton, Massachusetts, this young woman of strong religious convictions first taught school in Union, Maine before coming to Hopkinton, RI.

A group of women on the East Side of Providence, concerned with the plight of neglected children in the India Point neighborhood, offered to support Harriet if she would open a school in that district. More than a school, her efforts took on all the aspects of a school, a church, and a family counseling service. Read more >
Earl C. Whelden
Inducted in 1977

Mr. Whelden ran the Shriner's Circus at Narragansett Park for years, the proceeds from which went to the Shriner's Hospitals for crippled children of all races and creeds. He also established the Palestine Temple Shriner's 22-bed Hodges-Lawton unit at Rhode Island Hospital for crippled children. and ran an annual Christman party for unfortunate youngsters at the Elk's Auditorium. Read more >
Dr. Lucius A. Whipple
Inducted in 1991

Dr, Whipple was former President of the Rhode Island College of Education for twelve years, and had a distinguished thirty-seven year career in the feild of education, mostly associated with the training of students and teachers. He served for four years in the Rhode Island Department of Education and another four years as Executive Secretary of the Pawtucket and Blackstone Valley Community Chest Organization. He was a prominant civic and community leader, and was awarded five Honary Degrees. Read more >
George A. Wiley (1931-1973)
Inducted in 2010

Warwick’s George Wiley (1931-1973) compiled a record of service to his country which equals the sacrifices and service of his fellow hometowners, Nathanael and Christopher Greene. Like those men of the Revolutionary War generation, George, too, became a champion of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Whereas the Greenes took direct military action against Britain’s King George by snatching the scepter from a tyrant’s hand, George Wiley took direct action to ensure that the rights forged by the American Revolution were extended to those of the least station in American society, the poor.

Born in 1931 to a middle-class black family with a deeply held religious tradition, George A. Read more >
James N. Williams
Inducted in 1978

Mr. Williams was former Executive Director of the Urban League of Rhode Island. He also was active in many civc endeavors and served as a member of the state Advisory Council on Aging and other organizations which assist elderly residents. Read more >
J. Harold Williams
Inducted in 1968

Mr. Williams, a native of Providence, served for forty-three years as a Boy Scout executive in Rhode Island. He was planner, lecturer, friend, and advisor to some 200, 000 boys and men, and he developed Camp Yawgoog in South County into one of the nation's leading scout camps and a model for boys' camping. Read more >
Leonard Woodcock
Inducted in 1977

Mr. Woodcock was national President of the United Auto Workers Union. He headed a group of Americans in seeking final disposition of the Missing-In-Action servicemen who served in Vietnam. He was recognized as one of the more conservative leaders. Read more >
Angelo Zuccolo
Inducted in 1980

Mr. Zuccolo was affectionately known to thousands of Rhode Island Boy Scouts and thier leaders for his devotiona nd development of scouting. He was Director of Public Relations at Narragansett Council Headquarters, and a prominant and well-loved leader at Camp Yawgoog. Read more >

Inductees in Civic Leaders

Mayor Amos Chafee Barstow (1813-1892)

Andrew J. Bell, Jr. (1907-2000)

William Binney (1825-1909)

Major General George Newman Bliss (1837-1928)

Governor Augustus O. Bourn (1834-1925)

Sydney Richmond Burleigh (1853-1931)

Dr. Joseph E. Cannon (1911-1989)

Elizabeth Buffum Chace (1806-1899)

George Byron Champlin (1851-1946)

Samuel Pomeroy Colt (1852-1921)

Joseph R. DiStefano, Esq. (1938-)

Thomas W. Dorr (1806-1854)

George T. Downing (1819-1903)

Governor Lucius F. C. Garvin, M.D. (1841-1922)

Rudolf Frederick Haffenreffer, III (1902-1991)

James Hanley (1841-1912)

Bishop Matthew Harkins (1845-1921)

Thomas Robinson Hazard (1797-1886)

Randall C. "Randy" Hien (1949-2006)

George S. Lima, Jr. (1919-2011)

Frederick Lippitt (1917-2005)

Mayor Patrick J. McCarthy (1848-1921)

Francis Whipple McDougall (1805-1878)

Rev. Charles E. Millard, Jr. (1914-2006)

William T. Nicholson (1834-1893)

John J. Partington (1929-2006)

John M. Sapinsley (1922-)

George L. Sisson (1919-)

Lucy Rawlings Tootell (1911-2010)

Reverend Mahlon Van Horne (1840-1910)

Harriet Ware (1799-1847)

George A. Wiley (1931-1973)

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