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This is the original home of Joy Job.
Built c.1754.
June 18, 1781 General Rochambeau marched with 6000 troops from Providence along Cranston Street( Monkeytown Road) to
Knightsville, then west on Phenix Avenue to Scituate Avenue. The Nathan
Westcott House, The Joy Homestead, the Nicholas Sheldon House and the
Knight Farm, small gambrel-roofed houses are still standing.
Joy Homestead History2
Joy Homestead History3
Joy Homestead History4
Joy Homestead History5
Joy Homestead History6
Joy Homestead History7
Joy Homestead History8
Joy Homestead History9
Old Cranston Families Research
Sprague Data
base
Sprague Family forum
Knight Family
Fenner Family
The Randall Family
Find a Grave
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Island Cemeteries Database
Do you have any pictures of the Joy Homestead before 1960 when Scituate Avenue was moved or any photos of the Major Fenner House before the area was platted with the new houses. If so please the Cranston Historical Society at:
joyhomesteader@verizon.com


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Joy Homestead

Joytown and the Joy Homestead
Gladys W. Brayton
The name Joy is what we call a "place name" and comes from a section in
northern France called Jouy. In the early days when people began to use
surnames, some distinguished themselves by using the name of the place
where they lived, and thus Jouy became a family name. It was later taken
to England and Ireland by the Normans and, although it appears spelled
many different way, it came to America in 1635 as Joy.
That year Thomas Joy (1) – and we will call him Thomas one – said to be
the progenitor of all New England Joys, sailed from Gravesend England
for Virginia on the ship Constance. From Virginia he made his way to
Massachusetts, Boston where he arrived soon after that town's
settlement. There he married Joan Gallop in 1637 and became the owner of
considerable property.
He was an architect and builder by profession and
constructed houses, wharves, bridges and warehouses at Boston, and was
most successful. But he was a man of great independence and seems to
have gotten into trouble with the authorities thereby. Only church
members could vote at that time in Boston and apparently Thomas Joy was
not a member of the church, so was not eligible to vote. He voiced his
opinions of these narrow minded restrictions and finally found himself
in irons for his non-conformity.
When released he moved to Hingham around 1646, brought land there, built
a grist and saw mill and a bridge and other buildings and stayed there
until Boston's views became more liberal.
By 1656 he had resumed his social and business relations with Boston in
1657 he was commissioned to built the first town house there. This was
said to be the most ambitious architectural undertaking in New England
at that time and was made possible by a legacy from Capt. Robert Keanye,
augmented by popular subscriptions. The contract called for a very
substantial and comely building 61 ft. in length and 36 ft. in breadth.
Thomas Joy completed it in 1658 on a site at the head of the present
State Street near his property. (There is still a Joy Street in Boston,
which runs off of Beacon Street close by the present state house, which
was named for this Thomas Joy and which marks the location of his Boston
property.)

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