Discover 300 Years of History on Great Road Day

The annual Great Road Day offers visitors the unique opportunity to take a journey through 300 years of history along one of the oldest highways in the country, the Great Road in Lincoln, RI.  Several historic sites are open for free on this day.  Visitors may select any of the sites to visit or create their own tour and visit all.  It's a chance to get a glimpse of what each site has to offer. Some will have special features or exhibits for the one-day event.  

Participating sites include:

.         Historic New England’s Arnold House (1693) Learn about Lincoln’s founding family.  

This rare stone-ender house has one of the largest fireplaces you’ll ever see.  487 Great Road

·         Saylesville Friends Meeting House (1703) One of the earliest and longest continuously used Quaker meeting houses in New England.  Final resting place of the Arnold family. 374 Great Road

The Great Road Heritage Campus at Chase Farm Park 671 Great Road: At the center of the Great Road Historic District (Moshassuck) the picturesque meadows of the former dairy farm, Chase Farm (1867), are open to explore or bring a picnic.  Here you'll find the Visitors Center with Restrooms.  While there, view an outdoor artist’s mural of Great Road in the 19th Century, and visit four historic sites listed below. Pick up the Campus Shuttle Van that brings visitors back and forth to Moffett Mill & Hearthside in the parking lot:

·         Pullen’s Corner Schoolhouse (1850) Lincoln’s last one-room schoolhouse, recently relocated, restored, and preserved.  Experience this fully-furnished 19th c. classroom museum, and see how well you would do in learning the lessons of the day.   

·         Hannaway Blacksmith Shop (1880) Watch the blacksmith at the forge and anvil forming hot metal into household objects, just as it was done during the 19th c. in this original shop.

·         Moffett Mill (1812) This rare relic from the early industrial era was a versatile former machine shop and is frozen in time with its original equipment and tools.  Accessed only through Campus Shuttle Bus transport.

·         Hearthside House Museum (1810) This majestic stone mansion is known as "The House That Love Built."   Stories of the 11 families who lived at the home come to life through the costumed docents in 19th c. attire. The museum is filled with interesting antiques and artifacts representing the lifespan of the home. 677 Great Road (parking across the street or shuttle from Chase Farm Park

.            Mt. Moriah Masonic Lodge (1804) One of the oldest masonic lodges in the state that included the town's most notable citizens as its members.  It is still in use today and opens to the public exclusively once a year for this event. 1093 Great Road           

.            Northgate (1807) Home of the Blackstone Valley Historical Society, this original toll house for the Louisquisset Turnpike and later a Grange where social activities for residents of Lime Rock. Downstairs at Northgate, there will be an exhibit on the lime kilns in Lime Rock.  At 1:00 p.m. Rod Haynes, who grew up in Lime Rock, will give a talk about his book “Unauthorized Disclosures: A Navy Memoir of the 1980s” in which he reflects on navy life, Reagan-era politics, and coming of age in the 1970s and 1980s.      

Great Road Day is a collaborative effort between the different historic sites, held annually on the third Saturday in September.