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Note: REFN16 These are notes from local newspapers of the day:
In a death notice it says that he was born in Pawtucket and was in his
83rd year.
He was a policeman for many years in Pawtucket, R.I. He was President of
the Police Relief Association.
He took several vacations (as noted in newspaper accounts), and on one (called a "circular trip) to New York, Washington, D.C.,, Norfolk,
Baltimore, Philadelphia, he wrote back that police in Baltimore were
using umbrellas and that this should be tried by Pawtucket police.
George W. Porritt, a member of the bicycle squad, hit a tin can, fell
down, and fractured his collar bone.
George W. Porritt resigned from the Police Department.
These are notes sent by Betty Jean Martin Lees, George W.'s niece on
April 18, 1998:
He was a Pawtucket policeman for 20 years retiring in 1918. He then worked for J. & P. Coats 1918-1938 in the shipping department. His
affiliations were:
Leah Rebekah Lodge and Enterprise Lodge-I.O.O.F.
The Veteran Odd Fellows Assn. of R.I.
Knights of Pythias.
Pawt. Police Relief Assoc.
The King's Daughters and Sons of Woodlawn Baptist Church, Pawt.
(Above info from his obituary)
When he was laid off from Coats, he and Etta continued to live at 291
Lonsdale Ave. until their savings were depleted. Then they moved to the
3rd floor apartment at 62 Conant St. (in the house where I lived on the
first floor). When your father got a job for GWP working on the night
shift at Industrial Trust cleaning offices, George and Etta moved down to
the second floor which was much more spacious.
Etta never threw anything away and must have had many personal papers
pertaining to their life together. Your father must have received these
when Etta went into the nursing home. The only thing that my mother had
was Etta's scrapbook of clippings that Etta started as a girl in Arctic.
From a letter from Betty Jean Lees dated April 20. 1998: About your grandfather. I didn't know if you knew about the drinking. The way Mama
told me the story was this. When he was on the "force" the policemen
"walked a beat". (Later he rode a bicylce, fell off, and was injured). In those days the police were respected--in fact, all in authority were. He
knew all the storekeepers and they, in turn, liked to keep on the good
side of the officers. So---when the weather was freezing, they would
offer the "men in blue" a little "snort to warm the vitals"! Apparently, GWP's vitals needed warming too often, and he was dismissed. I can
imagine how humiliating this was to him, but even more so to your
grandmother. She was so proud to have her husband in a respected
profession. I think that was why she was such a dedicated member of the
WCTU.
From a Christmas card from Betty Lees, December 12, 1999:
A Christmas Memoir--
Place: 291 Lonsdale Ave.
Time: Late 20's, early 30's
"After breakfast and opening of the gifts, we 5 Martins would go up to
your grandparents (In the early years we walked. After that we rode in
our Essex sedan!).
We would all go down to the first floor and watch young Walter Rogers
open all his presents. His father, Frank, would pound out, "It is
Christmas Day on the river" on the piano. Later we would go back upstairs where we would have Christmas dinner together. In later years Etta and
Uncle George would come and spend the day with us on Conant St.
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