Activities that are fun involve the rich history of the Bucklin family in Rhode Island

We went grave site hunting!  First stop was the gravesite of Joseph Bucklin in the historic North Burial Ground of Providence, RI.   Take a look at some of the photos on that by clicking here.

We had lunch at the Bucklin Arcade Building ---an 1828 building designed by James C. Bucklin and discussed in many architectural history books as being the first indoor shopping mall in the Americas.  See the splendid photos and write ups in the May, 1981 issues of the Architectural Record [Robert Alexander, The Arcade in Providence, Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Oct, 1953.]  When the Arcade was built in 1828, its 22 foot granite columns that support its entrances were the largest in the country. The Metropolitan Museum of Art has called it one of the finest examples of 19th century commercial architecture in the nation. Both as a building project and as one of the over 300 architectural projects of James Bucklin, it is impressive.

We spent hours at the research facilities of the Rhode Island Historical Society, and we had a tour of the Aldrich House, learning about John Brown.

We met new Bucklins.  It is fun to meet other Bucklins.  (Bucklins are interesting and friendly people!)

Photo on left has Bucklins from Delaware, Montana, and Rhode Island.

We went to the Bucklin Point Waste Water facility. Why?  Because Bucklin Point was an important landmark in 1640 - 1799.  The point (then known as Bucklin's Island) was named for William Bucklin who claimed the Island before 1650. . The land has a lot of history, and we were interested in the location. (Besides, it has a big sign that says "Bucklin Point....." And, because engineer Karen Bucklin designs waste water plants and got a royal tour from the project manager, John Oatley of USFilter. Karen Bucklin Sanchez is an environmental engineer.  She is the author of The characteristics of initial effluent quality and its implications for the filter to waste procedure,   which is not exactly what readers of poetry would be looking for. On the other hand, her research is quoted in the federal rule for drinking water filters for water plants. She served 1999-2000 as the President of the Montana Water Environment Association; and was the 2001 recipient of the Arthur Sidney Bedell Award. The award, named for a noted Chief of the Bureau of Sewage and  Waste Disposal of the New York State Department of Health,  is granted annually by the national Water Environment Federation to acknowledge extraordinary personal service in water environmental efforts.

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