Welcome to Reservoir of Memories!

This site began as part of an oral history project conducted by Brown University students in Anne Valk and Holly Ewald’s fall 2011 course Oral History and Community Memory. It is a digital collection of oral history interviews, images, and research that have connections to the Mashapaug Pond/Reservoir Triangle area in Providence, Rhode Island.

We hope this site will:

-help continue the conversations about these neighborhoods beyond our classroom and build on the community collection exhibit we installed at the Church of the Mediator in Providence in December of 2011, as well as our ongoing Reservoir of Memories traveling bus exhibit.

-allow a wider audience to learn about the history of these neighborhoods, the story of the Gorham Manufacturing Company, and present-day efforts to clean up Mashapaug Pond.

-provide an opportunity for visitors to our exhibit to take a second look at the objects on display, or spend some more time with the vivid stories that our interviewees have shared.

Find out more about our project and learn how to navigate the site.

This site is still under construction. Please check back often and look for new materials. We invite you to share your questions, comments, or memories of the area with us at memoryreservoir@gmail.com.

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Recently Added Items

Tracing Mashapaug mini-exhibit, Knight Memorial Library, December 1, 1-4pm

Do you have stories of Mashapaug Pond, the Gorham Manufacturing Company, and Providence's Reservoir Triangle and West End? What was there before the…see more

Interview with Scott Molloy

Gorham's later years were marked by increased conflict between employees and management. Scott Molloy, a professor of labor and industrial relations…see more

Interview with Wilbur Jennings

Wilbur Jennings, the Councilman for Ward 8 (Elmwood, Reservoir, West End) on the Providence City Council, is a long-time resident of the neighborhoods…see more

Conversations

Class meeting

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