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3. Provenance 5. Inventory 6. Subjects |
Moshassuck Valley Rail Road
Saylesville, R.I. Business records, 1876-1931 Size: 1 ft. Catalog number: MSS 6 sg 21 Processed by: Harold E. Kemble, Jr., August 1977 ©Rhode Island Historical Society Manuscripts Division |
Historical note:
The charter for the Moshassuck Valley Rail Road was issued on 11 June 1874, by the Rhode Island legislature. The original shareholders were William F. and Frederick C. Sayles with 244 shares each; their father Clark Sayles held 10 shares; Charles O. Read, and Willliam G.R. Mowry each owned a single share. The Sayles brothers were, respectively, president and treasurer. Both were directors as were Clark Sayles and Mowry. S. O. Read, who three years earlier had been named superintendent of the Moshassuck Bleachery, was "Clerk" of the company. George H. Colby was the first agent. The line went into service in 1876 on a 2.5 mile track running between Sayles Bleacheries to the Woodlawn station of the Providence and Worcester Rail Road in Pawtucket. It was originally intended that the line should carry only freight - goods from Sayles Bleacheries to be rushed to market, and raw materials coming in. Within a few months service was expanded to meet an increasing demand for passenger service, which continued until 31 May 1921. The line itself was sold in December 1967 to Standard Transportation Company and continues in operation to date.
Scope and content:
Employment records comprise the bulk of the collection. Especially interesting are the letters of L. S. Minot, a Boston civil engineer who supervised construction of the line.
Provenance:
Gift of Sayles Finishing Plants, 25 December 1971.
Inventory:
Item 1. Pay Rolls Dec 1876 - Dec 1877, Apr-Dec 1903, Jan-Sep 1904, Apr-Jul 1909,
Jan 1911 - Dec 1912
Item 2. Labor Account for the week ending... 18 May 1895
Item 3. Settlement Book Oct 1903 - Oct 1907
Item 4. Settlement Book Nov 1907 - Mar 1910
Item 5. Time Book Jan 1926 - Aug 1931
Item 6. Miscellaneous Pay Records 1924 - 1930
Schedule of distribution
Item 7. Miscellaneous Pay Records 1918 - 1931
Lists of employees, pay rates, etc.
Item 8. Petty Cash Book Jan 1883 - Aug 1894
Item 9. Bills, Letter, etc. Book 1 Jun 1876 - Dec 1877
Item 10. Switching Records Jan - Nov 1911
Item 11. Freight Reports Feb - Apr 1877
Subjects:
Colby, George H.
Minot, L. S.
Mowry, William G. R.
Railroads - Rhode Island - Building.
Railroad companies - Rhode Island - Saylesville.
Read, Charles Otis, 1846-1926.
Sayles, Clark, 1797-1885.
Sayles, Frederic Clark, 1835-1903.
Sayles, William Francis, 1824-1894.
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RIHS1822