Full of charm, history and smack dab in the middle of our state; the city of Cranston has a little bit of everything! There are fantastic shopping and dining options, farms for berry and pumpkin picking on the western side of the city and festivals throughout the year that bring the community together. For three years in a row Cranston was named one of the 50 best cities in live in the US by 24/7 Wall Street. The website’s editors said Cranston was "the most livable city in Rhode Island and one of the most livable in New England."

History

Much of Cranston’s land was purchased by Roger Williams from the Narragansett Indians in 1638 as part of the Pawtuxet Purchase. Cranston incorporated as a town in 1754 after 116 years of being part of Providence. After losing much of its territory to neighboring towns and the city of Providence, Cranston itself became a city on 10 March 1910.

Governor Sprague Mansion on Cranston Street is one of the older homes in Cranston. Originally built in 1790, it is now the headquarters for the Cranston Historical Society.

Events and Community

One of the more well known and much loved yearly celebrations in Cranston is the St. Mary’s Feast, inspired by the Feast of the Madonna della Civita celebrated in Itri. Since 1905, the St. Mary's Feast has been a week-long festival celebrated in July in Cranston with vendors, a carnival, fireworks, and a religious procession from St. Mary's Church. In 2000, Cranston and Itri became sister cities.

Garden City Center is one of the most lovely places to shop, year round. The outdoor mall has retail, dining and entertainment all at your fingertips. In the summer there is a free weekly concert series at the Gazebo.

Outdoor Spaces

There is no shortage of outdoor space to relax, exercise, walk your furry friends and enjoy the beautiful New England weather in Cranston. Meshanticut, which is a Narragansett Indian word meaning "place of woods" features an eclectic array of housing styles including Victorian homes, cottages, and capes. The focal point of the neighborhood is Meshanticut State Park which surrounds Meshanticut Lake, a small lake popular for fishing in the summer and walking and jogging year round. Ducks, Geese and Swans reside at the lake and it is stocked for fishing.

The Washington Secondary Bike Path is the longest bike path in the state with a significant portion going through Cranston. Popular for biking, walking and jogging. Keep in mind you may find yourself needing to stop for a scoop or two at Sundae’s Ice Cream!

Thinking about moving to Cranston? I have listed a few Cranston homes below currently on the market for you to check out.

Alpine Estates

65 Alpine Estates Drive is a 4 bed, 5 bath Colonial on almost half an acre with a gorgeous chef’s kitchen, library with built in bookcases, high end lighting, a finished basement and oversized garage. Asking $695,000. Listed by Residential Properties, Ltd.

Meshanticut Lake Neighborhood

At 27 Metropolitan Ave; this 3 Bed, 3 Bath 1924 Bungalow is full of charm with touches of modern elegance and almost 3000 square feet. Asking $399,900. Listed by Homesmart Professionals.

Please contact Lisa Pagano at lisa.pagano@mottandchace.com or 401.447.9505 to view these or similar homes.

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Above: The original bandstand at the site of the John M. Dean mansion circa 1906, and the original mansion, photos courtesy of the Sprague Historical Society.

112 Tupelo Hill Drive, the home for sale that sits on the Dean site today. Asking $785,000. Click here for more details.

Meshanticut State Park (1910)

Meshanticut Park was given to the Metropolitan Park Commission in 1910 by John M. Dean. He was the president and treasurer of the John M. Dean Company of Providence, founded in 1892. It was an off-shoot of the Cady and Dean Company, started in 1876. Dean’s business activities centered on a successful Providence furniture company and real estate development. He was also very active in Masonic affairs and Cranston politics. His gift occurred the same year Cranston became a city.

Dean’s Cranston home was called Tupelo Farm. It was comprised of the former Cranston Poor Farm and the old King farm property, dating back to colonial times. Its location was just north of the state institutions at Howard and Sockanosset, immediately west of Garden City, along Reservoir Avenue. His farm eventually became Dean estates and was developed by his grandson, beginning in the 1930s. It also included Dean Parkway, new at the time, which was donated along with the Meshanticut Lake to the Metropolitan Park Commission to be part of its system of boulevards and scenic drives which radiated out of Providence and led to a necklace of parks surrounding the city.

The park portion of his gift in 1910 was a twenty acre parcel of lake and parkland on the western slope of the Dean farmlands stretching down to Cranston Street. The lake is reached by Dean Parkway and Dean Street. Meshanticut Drive forms the eastern border of the lake. Housing crowds the western drive. These homes, planned by Dean were originally summer residences. Nearby is the Cranston educational complex of Cranston Vocational Tech, Cranston West High School, and Western Hills Junior High School.

While John M. Dean focused his business activities in Providence and had a home in Fort Myers, Florida, his pride and joy was his Cranston farmstead and his development efforts known as Meshanticut Park. This land, lying astride the Hartford, Providence, and Fishkill Railroad was part of the late 19th century phenomenon in Rhode Island known as Railroad suburbs. The railroad began at the Providence Union Station and had stops at Atwells Avenue, Arlington, West Arlington, Cranston Print Works, Knightsville (also known as Wayland), Meshanticut Park, Oaklawn, and West Pontiac. Then it proceded to a whole litany of stops in industrial villages of West Warwick, country stops in Coventry, and continuing on to Hartford, Danbury, Connecticut, and Fishkill, New York. Perhaps the closest stations to Providence, such as Arlington, Cranston, Meshanticut, and Oaklawn were the most important from the standpoint of development of the suburban hinterland. In addition to the park and lake, Dean’s efforts from 1894 onward included building the railroad station, a community church, and the laying out of Meshanticut Park village house lots. To create the lake as a park center piece, the Meshanticut Brook was dammed. Turning these 20 acres of ‘pond, bridges, landscaped walks,’ and the connecting parkway over to the state as a gift seems to have been a civic gesture, and it certainly helped to give momentum to the new boulevard and parks program of the Metropolitan Park Commission. The Commission installed a cabin-like building with a large stone fireplace suitable for ice skaters to use. The work was probably done as part of the WPA/CCC improvements of the 1930s and 1940s. There were also picnic facilities around the pond.

The name, Meshanticut, derives, according the Indian expert, Sidney Rider, from the Native term, “well-wooded country,” rather than from the name of the stream flowing through the area. It was part of a land transaction attempted by William Arnold, one of the early settlers of Pawtuxet and part of the controversies between Roger Williams and his real estate rival, William Harris. The transaction took place with local Indian chief, Socononco, from which Sockanosset is derived. The earliest settlers were John Harrold, Roger Burlingame, and Thomas Relph or Ralph. Meshanticut as a remote location/destination appears in many early records of the Town of Providence. The King family farm and their famous apple orchards on Sockanosset Hill, purchased by Dean, came later, as did Dean Estates. The apple prominence of the King farm is reflected in local street place names, like Baldwin Orchard Drive, Applegate Road, and Greening Lane.

Today, the Washington Secondary Bike path follows the former rail line of the Hartford, Providence and Fishkill Railroad, but as the path passes Meshanticut Park it does so through a cut and the unfavorable terrain does not permit a nexus.

Spotlight on Cranston