Tag: Demolition by “Progress”

A lovely split-square dual residence at the beginning of Atwells Avenue, razed in 2014 for a speculative development that has not come to pass

A quick redevelopment of two historic homes in an eroding historic district under pressure to provide “modern” student housing

Nine homes on a block off Thayer Street were demolished ot make way for a large bulk of student apartments

Eight houses allowed to decay as student housing and easily demolished because of a lack of visual maintenance

Originally located along N. Main & Canal Sts., across from Roger Williams Park, Providence, the last meat-packing plant survived for about 50 years

Two late-19th century houses are to be torn down in favor of a five-story mixed-use residential and commercial building in the College Hill Historic District

Once a circa 1920s car garage, most recently this was a commercial block home to Bagel Gourmet and East Side Mini-Mart, two Brown-University-student staples

A converted industrial office building became the State Traffic Tribunal but closed for better digs

The story of two central fire stations located on the perimeter of Exchange Place, now Kennedy Plaza.

A former industrial building converted to a Benny’s department store and then converted to a strip mall

A neighborhood battle and a prolonged redevelopment took down Clark’s to replace it with mixed-use residential and commercial space

A slowly built-up set of factory buildings that decayed for more than a decade before being razed for… a flower farm

A loved but neglected set of mills suffer fire and neglect before finally being razed

A large, sprawling glass manufacture complex and large employer in Central Falls, closed its doors in 2014

A low-slung, semi-circular mid-century modern transportation hub in downtown Providence.

In use for almost 70 years, the East Side Train tunnel burrows beneath College Hill and once connected Union Station to East Providence

The littlest building in downtown (not including parking lot shelters) that was once home to small coffee shops.

The earliest steel-framed buildings in the city, constructed by the Berlin Iron Bridge Company of Connecticut

A quietly operational General Electric light bulb plant for over 70 years until a swift demolition after 20 years of neglect

A sprawling complex and a leading designer of silver goods for 100 years or more. Still in business (not in RI) as part of the Lenox Corporation.

A sweet little simple Art Deco brick gas station in the middle of the Hope Street commercial district. Probably contaminated and hard to subdivide, so it came down.

A 100+ year old former fire house was demolished in order to command a high price for redevelopment on a busy street

The roadway system of on and off ramps when I-195 cut through the Jewelry District and over the Providence River

The roadway system of on and off ramps and causeway over Wickenden Street and the murals that adorned it

A lovely little pub that we never had to pleasure of visiting. Construction on a 3 mile sewer project damaged the foundations beyond repair

A love it or hate it concrete structure in the Brutalist style — its knobby elbows sticking out as decoration

One the last remaining historic homes on the Thayer to Brook Street block demolished for a new structure

“That very Rhode Island, deliberately shabby den of loud music, cheap beer and all kinds of people”

Abandoned and derelict for 17 years, the former brewery complex that once employed 850 people was razed in 1998. The brand has lived on and has since reclaimed its Rhode Island heritage.

Before it was demolished and rebuilt, the Ocean House was one of the few surviving 1800s seaside resort hotels in RI

A mid-century, pre-Brutalist retail amenity in downtown was razed only to avoid maintenance costs

A massive private home designed by important turn-of-the-century minds had as colorful a history as it had decorative stone details.

Demolished as part of the relocation of I-195 in the early 2000s, this large mill complex was home 45 small businesses, art studios, and a bar.

A big hulking 5300-person capacity civic auditorium that hosted sports and entertainment for close to 50 years.

By the time we took photos, most of the main mill building had crumbled. The main building, though, is still standing and has been converted to a restaurant.

Two mid-to-late-century buildings will be demolished for a new Brown University science lab, connected and in proximity to other biotech and science-related facilities

An early demolition of a large mill complex that flew under the radar in the early 2000s. Replaced by a Home Depot shopping center.

The ever changing face of Thayer Street captured whenever we can (mostly from 2004 and 2020)

Another erosion of the neighborhood fabric, moving from wood-built houses to slick “modern concept” commercial structures

A large, late 19th-century mill complex razed for the relocation of I-195 in the mid-2000s. The complex was eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

The one that started a revolution. A 13 acre site, bounded by Atwells Ave, Eagle Street, and Valley Street, housing cheap artist studio space and the famous Fort Thunder arts collective.