Portsmouth Asylum - Interview With WRNI

Portsmouth Asylum
Interview with WRNI 'Focus RI'

"Focus Rhode Island" -
Interview with WRNI AM1290

Due to the cold weather, interviews started in the Nimitz Conference Center.

From left to right: Bill Saslow, Brenda Bibb, Deb Becker, and Jim Moses)
© 2004, Raytheon

Listen Now: (9:12)

Click here to download Real Player.

Over the holiday break, we received an e-mail from Jim Moses, producer of "Focus Rhode Island" for WRNI (National Public Radio in RI). He expressed interested in producing a segment about our project on the Portsmouth Asylum. He had found our website while searching the internet for Poor Farms.

After consulting Carolyn Beaudry, our corporate communications point of contact, we contacted Mr. Moses and set up an interview and trailwalk which was held on 1/7/04. Deborah Becker, the show's host asked a series of questions which were answered by REWHC's Bill Saslow and Brenda Bibb. Audio was recorded on a mini-disk player over the hour and a half including a visit to the Poor Farm Site down the Poor Farm Ramble trail. Kevin Petit was on-hand to take photos.

Brenda describes the poor farm cemetary.

From left to right: Brenda Bibb, Deb Becker, and Jim Moses)
© 2004, Raytheon

The segment was aired on AM 1290 with the following schedule:
Friday, 9 January: Between 3PM and 4PM
Saturday, 10 January: Between 6PM and 7PM
Sunday, 11 January: Between 8PM and 9PM

They also placed the audio on their website: http://www.wrni.org/ along with a link to REWHC.

We walked briskly down the Tower Trail to the Poor Farm Ramble recording all the way.

From left to right: Deb Becker, Brenda Bibb, Jim Moses, and Bill Saslow)
© 2004, Raytheon

Bill describes the features of the Poor Farm site.

From left to right: Bill Saslow, Deb Becker, and Jim Moses)
© 2004, Raytheon

Portsmouth Asylum Links
  Introduction
  Historical Context
  Timeline
  Act Establishing (1832)
  Inventory Report (1833)
  Rules & Regulations (1838)
  Committee Report (1840)
  Committee Report (1857)
  The Portsmouth Cripple (1848)
  Produce Sold (1849)
  Meat Sold (1849)
  Town Council Excerpts
  1865 Census Excerpts
  1875 Census Excerpts
  1892 Account Book
  Committal Letters (1867)
  Oakum and Idle Hands
  Newport Daily News Clips (1851)
  Site Mapping (10/5/01)
  NPR Interview

Historical Texts:
  Report on Poor & Insane (1851)
  Fales Memoir (1851)
  Peterson's History (1853)

Selected Biographies
  Thomas R. Hazard -1
  Thomas R. Hazard -2
  Seth R. Anthony
  William R. Fales

Fun and Games
  A Day at the Portsmouth Asylum

Other Poorhouse Links
  The Poorhouse Story

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