The Town of Smithfield was named after John Smith, "The Miller," who was granted land by Roger Williams. Smith was one of the original party of six men headed by Roger Williams that formed the first settlement in Rhode Island. Settlement in the area to become known as Smithfield proceeded slowly during the 17th century. A limited number of pioneering spirits ventured from the nucleus settlement of Providence into the wilderness of the outlands. In the beginning, these peoples coexisted with the Wampanoag tribe who utilized this vast area for hunting and fishing. The Smithfield of today was called Wionkhiege. The King Philip War in the later 1600's defeated the Indians and destroyed the unity of their tribal structure. The opportunity for a development pattern of increased white inhabitation was created.
By 1730/1731 (1730 by Old Style Calendar - Julian Calendar/173 by New Style Calendar - Gregorian Calendar in use today) supervision of the activities of the outland inhabitants had become "burdensome" to the parent town of Providence. Accordingly, the "outlands" were set off as three separate townships and became the communities of Smithfield, Glocester and Scituate. Smithfield comprised a land area of approximately 73 square miles and a population of less than 500 people.
The 18th century provided several important contributions to Smithfield's development. With the incorporation of the Town of Smithfield, the institution of the town meeting began. Political structure of town meetings followed example set by parent town of Providence established in 1636 by Roger Williams and company. Adult male residents convened twice a year to vote on matters which in turn influenced town policy. One meeting was devoted to appropriating town funds and electing town officials. The other meeting was held for the purpose of selecting representatives to the Rhode Island General Assembly. The financial town meeting is still held today.
The highway act of 1738 evidenced an innovative approach to establish links with commercial centers. Able-bodied Smithfield men over the age of 21 years were assigned to road construction details for a specified number of days of each year. Throughout the 1700's, these roads helped to encourage travel through Smithfield and establish the many area taverns which flourished as havens for the numerous number of weary travelers as well as local centers for congregating.
The many watercourses located within the town were utilized at an early date for their assistance in industrial pursuits. The foundry industry of the Smithfield Farnums prospered to such a degree that proceeds from the family business built the Farnum Turnpike from Georgiaville to "Providence" (the Providence boundary of the 1700's is the North Providence-Smithfield boundary of today) for the primary purpose of transporting their product to the commercial markets. Industrial pursuits of the early years demonstrated an enterprising spirit which was to become prevalent in the 1800's.
Despite the innovativeness of a number of Smithfield individuals, subsistence farming continued to be the predominant occupation of most residents. Throughout the century, a decided lack of cohesiveness was apparent within the Smithfield community. The massive land area as well as the rugged physical landscape helped to create an attitude of separateness with no central unifying force except amongst residents living in relative close proximity to one another.
The values of the large Quaker population (also known as Society of Friends) provided a strong influence upon societal concerns of this period. Exemption of persons with “tender consciences" from the Revolutionary War draft, promotion for the abolition of slavery, and support for free school are but a few examples of this influence.
Politically, Smithfield supported the war effort and freedom from foreign domination, however, strong opposition was voiced relative to unifying the colonies into a single nation. Upon declaring July 4th a holiday, Smithfield residents declared their approval with the stipulation that such resolution did not indicate their vote for the United States Constitution. For quite a while, this feeling was expressed throughout Rhode Island; nevertheless, enough votes finally were secured to allow Rhode Island to become the last state to ratify the constitution and the birth of a nation.
The 19th century served as a Golden Age for manufacturing in Smithfield and many other Rhode Island communities. During this period, old Smithfield was transformed from an agrarian society to a manufacturing center in Rhode Island. At the turn of the century, Smithfield possessed a population of 3,120 persons. Within the next 70 years, these numbers would increase by 430%.
Samuel Slater's inventiveness in the harnessing of water energy for manufacturing gave birth to the creation of the textile industry in Rhode Island. Smithfield's numerous waterways provided a perfect setting for the development of this economy. By the mid-1800's, Smithfield had become the cotton manufacturing center in Rhode Island. These mill operatives initially utilized laborers of WASP (White, Anglo-Saxon Protestant) descent. Very soon, however, Irish immigrants, and later French-Canadians became the predominant work force. Entire families including children as young as seven years worked in these mills.
Major new societal patterns of development emerged over the next few decades. One important outgrowth was the mill village. This type of village comprised a mill, mill store, housing for the work force, ancillary structures, and adjacent land areas, all of which were possessed by the mill owners. The mill village frequently was totally self sufficient and many residents never left the confines of the village. One of the first villages in Rhode Island based upon this concept was Slatersville, then a part of old Smithfield. Examples of villages existing today which developed upon this similar foundation are Stillwater, Georgiaville, Spragueville, and Esmond (previously known first as Allenville, then Enfield).
The tremendous manufacturing productivity of Smithfield led to related strides in turnpike, reservoir, and railroad construction. Societal concerns continued to promote educational opportunities and slavery abolition as well as women's suffrage and temperance. Mill owners often provided assistance in the successful accomplishments relating to these concerns by providing financial support as benefactors which lead to the cultural advancement of Smithfield society.
Politically, Smithfield citizens placed pressure upon state legislators for modifications in the system of representation in state government. Traditionally, allocation methods in state government were based upon the number of landowners rather than population counts. Positive reforms in this area developed finally as an outgrowth of the Dorr Rebellion. (Dorr & his supporters were defeated but a number of political reforms were still achieved.)
Within Smithfield proper, tensions grew between the various villages as mid-century approached. The lack of cohesiveness created by the physical landscape since the town's incorporation as well as differences in economic, social, and political priorities created identity problems which only worsened as time went on. These problems eventually led to the division of the town into separate political entities.
In 1871, the old Town of Smithfield divided. Three new Townships arose - Smithfield, North Smithfield, and Lincoln (Lincoln later divided further into Central Falls and Lincoln in 1895) - while the northernmost area was annexed to Woonsocket.
The new Smithfield comprised a land area of 27.8 square miles of which 1.1 square miles involved waterways. The new population count identified 2,605 people and represented a population loss of 84% (1870 census reported 16,537 Smithfield residents). The new Smithfield included the greatest proportion of the old Town's road system and retained four significant mill operatives. A new economy, the apple industry, soon would be introduced and eventually would provide the Town with a new identity as it undertook its "new" beginning.
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