Birthplace of Governors and the setting of Rhode Island Legal History The Sprague Mansion on Cranston Street has seen its share of Rhode Island history. It was the home of William Sprague II who was one of the first men to print calico cotton cloth in abundance at affordable prices. During the American Civil War the A. & W. Sprague Manufacturing Company and the Sprague brothers were the richest textile company in America. It was the setting for the funeral of Amasa Sprague after his battered body was discovered in Johnston on New Year's Eve 1843. His murder changed capital punishment in Rhode Island when a rush to judgment may have put the wrong man to death on the gallows. This was the home of Col Amasa Sprague. He and his brother William Sprague 4 were the richest men in America at the time of the American Civil War. The A. & W. Sprague Company was printing calico cloth in the millions of yards. The Bell of Washington Kate Chase and her father. Salmon P. Chase, Secretary of the Treasury (later Chief Justice of the Supreme Court) visited here before she married Senator William Sprague. This house was the site of the where Col Amasa Sprague thought of incorporating the Union Horsecar Railroad the fore runner of the Rhode Island Transportation Bus Line and here he decided to build the Narragansett Trotting Park because he did not like the corruption and gambling that was happening to the sport of the trotting horses at Washington Park. After the fall of the A. & W. Sprague Company in 1873 the Narragansett Park changed hands many times and served Rhode Island well as a back drop for much history including the Rhode Island State Fair until 1899. With all this history and politics and murder at the mansion some say the house is haunted. It could be
Exhibits
This year we are dedicated to the history of the relation between Governor Sprague and Abraham Lincoln. Our Governor Sprague artifacts will be on display. We have a few letters from Kate Chase during the last months of her life.
Museums and cultural venues participate in Museum Day voluntarily. Smithsonian magazine encourages museum visitation, but is not responsible for individual museum content or participation.
