Roberta Humble is the president of the Westerly Armory, and an authority on the state’s 18 surviving historical armories. Many of them are associated with historical militias, which were created in the Colonial era. She and Col. Howard F. Brown wrote a book on the armories, “The Historic Armories of Rhode Island,” in 1999. She spoke to the Providence Business News about her effort to bring more attention to the needs of armories that still need to be repurposed.
PBN: How did you become involved with the armories of Rhode Island?
HUMBLE: I began volunteering with the military back in the mid-1980s. I got to see a lot of the National Guard troops, as well as the militia units. I got exposed to it. I had been in the Westerly Armory as a kid. I used to go there for antique shows, and poultry shows and the like. It was a community building.
When I went in after all of those years away from it, it was in really poor shape. So, I pressed my hand against the granite and the brick, and said, “I will restore you.” I’ve spent 27 years with that.
PBN: On the 18 armories, was this the number Rhode Island historically had or have we lost some?
HUMBLE: Oh, we’ve lost a lot. Pawtucket had four others. We decided in the book not to go back to the ones that had gone. We wanted to focus on the ones that were existing, in order to promote them.
PBN: The militias were local groups of people?
HUMBLE: Yes, they would have served you just like the U.S. Army now serves you. The Newport Artillery is 1741. It’s our oldest one in the state. We have three who are 1774. One that is 1778, and so on.
PBN: How many of the armories are in good shape and occupied?
HUMBLE: [Sixteen] of the 18 are in pretty good shape.
PBN: In a recent presentation on public access television, you said the Cranston Street Armory in Providence is probably the state’s most significant building architecturally. Can you elaborate?
HUMBLE: It’s probably the largest piece of architecture in the state, especially if you include the cellar area. It’s enormous. That we would lose this grand piece of architecture, which really stands in reverence to all the military who have served us in Rhode Island – the state anchor is everywhere in that building – these things can be useful.
Mary MacDonald is a staff writer for the PBN. Contact her at macdonald@pbn.com.
