The peninsulas jutting out into Narragansett Bay were called Squantum, the Native American name for “Heap of Rocks.” Squantum Woods Park is a twenty-eight-acre park in Riverside, RI, is a mix of open grass with plenty of shade and woodland forest. This facility was once part of the Rhode Island state park system but now is maintained by the City of East Providence.
According to some, “The Narragansett Indians used to hold meetings on this beautiful peninsula that juts into Narragansett Bay.” [The Salty Sailor Postcards] However, since this was Pokanoket territory, it is unlikely that the Indians who met here were Narragansett!
“The area around Squantum is practically the only untouched spot along the East Providence waterfront and is thus a significant cultural landscape.” [National Register of Historic Places] (Above, right) the East Bay Bike Path runs through Squantum Woods Park and can be accessed from a parking lot west of University Orthopedics.
In the mid 1800’s captains and owners of Clipper Ships gathered here and the fame of Squantum spread widely. In 1872, the Squantum Association (pictured above, left) was incorporated; permanent club houses were erected, and were judged as the “brightest bit of architecture north of the famed villas of Newport.” (Above, right) Downtown Providence is visible along the bike path.
