Tuesday, September 7, 1993 - Providence,RI

Dorr Mansion, one of the estates owned by the lady who raised mom.
Ginny picked me up at 11:30 and took me to the Dunes Club in Narragansett. The Dunes Club is an ultra exclusive beach club for the socially elite and the financially secure. I had heard of the Dunes Club when I lived in Rhode Island, I might even have driven by it a time or two, but never in my wildest imagination had I ever dreamed of setting foot inside its sacrosanct gates, so I was surprised and impressed when Ginny took me there. Apparently, she has been a member just about all her life. The guard at the gate recognized her without hesitation, and she has her own cabana. We didn't go into the club house itself, but the cabanas were surprisingly Spartan. The outside was weathered, unpainted wood, and they certainly weren't luxurious, but they had a nice view of the beach and the ocean.
Connie Allen and Eleanor Whitney met us at the club. (I'm using their maiden names, because those are the names I'm familiar with.) We enjoyed a good lunch and then went for a swim. At least, Ginny and Connie went for a swim; I waded in the surf, and Eleanor, who hadn't brought a suit, watched from the beach.
It was fun meeting some of my old classmates after all these years. I'd been wondering if I'd recognize any of them, and if they'd recognize me. I'm sure we'd never have recognized each other if we'd passed on the street, but since we knew whom to expect, there was some recognition. Ginny had a nice scrapbook she'd prepared, with pictures and notes from most of the class, so we enjoyed looking at that.
Got back to the boat a little after three. Roy and I walked to the bus stop and caught the four o'clock bus to Providence. The fare was $1.40 each. We found out seniors can ride free between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. and after 6, but they have to have an ID card issued by the bus company; no other form of identification is accepted, so tomorrow morning we'll go to the bus company office and get a card.
Providence looked surprisingly familiar after all these years. The name of Exchange Place has been changed to Kennedy Plaza, and it's now a bus transfer instead of a car parking place, but other than that, it's still the same big open space in downtown Providence. The old railroad station is still there but no longer functioning as a train station. The main post office has moved to a new location, but the old building is still there, and so is City Hall, which is still being used as city hall. The Industrial Trust Building, which always dominated the skyline, is right where I left it, although modern buildings have been built nearby. The "new" courthouse, built when I was a child, is still being used as a courthouse, and of course the historic buildings and homes are still where they were. The world-famous Rhode Island School of Design has spread all over the map, and so has Brown University.
Roy and I took the bus to the new main post office to see if there was any General Delivery mail for me, but there wasn't. Then we walked down Benefit Street to the Dorr Mansion, which had been Aunty Margarethe's house. I was hoping it would sometimes be open to public tours, but it's not. The Maurans live there now. Ginny Arnold told me yesterday she knows them and has been to the Dorr Mansion. In fact, Mrs. Mauran was at the Dunes Club when we were, but I didn't know it until later. If I'd known, I'd have asked Ginny to introduce us, and perhaps would have been able to wangle an invitation to visit the house. Roy would like to see it, too. When we return to Providence next year, I'll phone Mrs. Mauran and see if I can talk her into letting us see the house. I'm curious to know if the inside still looks the way it did when I was a child.
We strolled farther along Benefit Street and saw the old Athenaeum, which unfortunately had closed about an hour before we got there. Edgar Allen Poe used to write there. The fountain in front still runs pure spring water continuously. We both took a drink. Then we walked past the Stephen Hancock house (also closed) and down the hill to Kennedy Plaza, where we caught the last bus back to East Greenwich.