Waterford is a village located on and around St. Paul Street in

North Smithfield, Rhode Island North Smithfield is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States, settled as a farming community in 1666 and incorporated into its present form in 1871. North Smithfield includes the historic villages of Forestdale, Primrose, Waterfo ...

and

Blackstone, Massachusetts Blackstone is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 9,208 at the 2020 census. It is a part of the Providence metropolitan area. History This region was first inhabited by the Nipmuc. Blackstone was settl ...

. The

Blackstone River The Blackstone River is a river in the U.S. states of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. It flows approximately 48 mi (80 km) and drains a watershed of approximately 540 sq. mi (1,400 km2). Its long history of industrial use has left ...

and Branch River converge just south of the village. Waterford was developed in 1824 by Welcome Farnum, a

Yankee The term ''Yankee'' and its contracted form ''Yank'' have several interrelated meanings, all referring to people from the United States. Its various senses depend on the context, and may refer to New Englanders, residents of the Northern United St ...

entrepreneur, who purchased land, built a dam on the Branch River, and constructed the first

textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...

called Red Mill. He named the village Waterford because many of the Irish workers in his mill came from

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The last mills in the area were constructed mid-nineteenth century. Waterford is home to St. Paul's Church (1851), originally served a largely Irish population, and sits on the Rhode Island/Massachusetts border. Adjacent to the church is the church school and many businesses. File:St Paul Street School and Church a Roman Catholic parish in Blackstone MA and North Smithfield RI USA.jpg, St Paul Street School (1927) and Church (1851) straddles the border between Blackstone, Massachusetts and North Smithfield, Rhode Island File:Blackstone River dam and reservoir fishing in Blackstone Massachusetts MA USA.jpg, Fishermen on Blackstone River Dam near Massachusetts-Rhode Island border File:Blackstone River dam in Blackstone Massachusetts MA and North Smithfield RI Rhode Island USA.jpg, Blackstone River gorge in Blackstone Massachusetts, MA and North Smithfield, RI

External links and references

*Walter Nebiker, ''The History of North Smithfield'' (Somersworth, NH: New England History Press, 1976). Villages in Providence County, Rhode Island Villages in Rhode Island Villages in Massachusetts Villages in Worcester County, Massachusetts Blackstone, Massachusetts {{RhodeIsland-geo-stub

See also

External links and references