Benefit Street Memorial Fundraiser

In the mid-1880s a group of Tillinghast descendants organized to raise a sum of money for the erection of a monument to Pardon Tillinghast in the Tillinghast Family Burial plot (established 1668) located at the south end of Benefit Street in Providence, Rhode Island. Their efforts were successful. Improvements were made to the site, and the current obelisk monument was erected c1890. Nearly 130 years later, due to decades of weathering, the wall that surrounds that plot has deteriorated and is in urgent need of stabilizing. There is also the need for extensive repair of the cast iron fence that sits astride that wall. The total cost of repairs and refurbishments has been estimated to be in excess of $40,000.00.

According to an agreement with the city of Providence in the 1880s, the burial ground and monument belong to the descendants and heirs of Pardon Tillinghast. Consequently, as Pardon’s progeny and heirs, we have the responsibility to maintain and repair this property in order to prevent deterioration or loss, and to preserve our heritage. Over the years the monument and grounds have been periodically maintained by local Tillinghast family volunteers, however, there is currently a dire need for major repair work and permanent landscaping. As such, it will be necessary to create a perpetual maintenance fund to provide ongoing preservation. Our mission establishes that we will further preserve the Tillinghast legacy through the digital preservation of our genealogical archives, which currently hold thousands of data files.

The Tillinghast Society, Inc. is undertaking a fund-raising campaign to protect and preserve the Tillinghast Burial Plot and our genealogical archives. Our hope is to achieve funding for essential property repairs and erosion-protective landscaping, a perpetual maintenance fund, and a digital archive preservation process. We have obtained 501(c)3 tax-exempt public charity status under IRS rules, which gives contributors the opportunity of tax-exempt donations as allowed by law, and gives our organization the opportunity to apply for public and private grants as a further means of meeting our needs.

The Tillinghast Burial Plot is located in the nationally listed College Hill Historic District of Providence, Rhode Island, and, of important historical significance, it is the only remaining family burial plot in that town. The restoration and maintenance to protect this property from deterioration rests directly upon us as Tillinghast heirs.

We are writing to you and other Tillinghast descendants to seek financial support for this worthy and urgent project. May we also request help to notify and/or provide names and addresses (email and/or postal) of other Tillinghast family descendants and heirs who might consider supporting this effort? Help from you and your family will prevent the loss or further deterioration of the Tillinghast Burial Plot and allows us to retain and renew our shared heritage. Our efforts to preserve this unique site will not only contribute to maintaining our heritage in the College Hill Historic District, but in the history of Providence and our country. Your generosity will also help us safeguard our genealogical archives.

We welcome gifts in any amount, and thank you in advance for considering our request. With your help we can raise the necessary funds to provide preservative repairs and landscaping, establish a perpetual maintenance fund for the Tillinghast Burial Plot, and protect our genealogical database.

You may use the safe secure PayPal or credit card option below, or you may make a check payable to Tillinghast Society, Inc., and mail to Jane Roberts at the address below:

Sincerely,
W B Tillinghast
Bruce Tillinghast, President of the Tillinghast Society, Inc., on behalf of all board members.