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River relocation in progress. Waterplace Park is being developed with its bridges (Exchange St., Francis St., and pedestrian walkways) built or under construction. Memorial Boulevard is for now a construction site. The Westin Hotel is being erected…

The relocation of Providence

This image shows the transformation of Capital Center in progress. Francis Street construction is complete up until the over-passed train tracks and the bridge over the Woonasquatucket River. The former train tracks have been removed, but the land…

Providence's first railroad station was Union Railroad Depot, a brick edifice built in 1847 and designed by Thomas A. Tefft for the Providence and Worcester, Providence and Stonington, and Boston and Providence Railroads. This building was lost to…

Rhode Island State House, Providence Station, Waterplace Park, Union Station as seen from the Providence Biltmore Hotel. Waterplace Park and the Riverwalk linked to it have a welcoming, well-thought-out design, which has become a focal point of the…

Prior to the construction of Waterplace Park railroad tracks and parking lots separated the different districts of downtown Providence. This barrier was locally referred to as a, "Chinese wall." This 1977 view shows Providence before its dramatic…

Union Railroad Depot, by Thomas A. Tefft, was opened in 1847. It was considered "a brilliant example of Romanesque architecture" in its time, and the longest building in America. As the city continued to grow, so too did the need for terminal space,…

Here we see how the former Chinese Wall of train tracks had prevented the downtown development from reaching the capital. The center of the city is essentially a parking lot along the parameter of the downtown financial district. What we see is the…