William Greene

Who was William Greene?

William Greene was the second governor of the state of Rhode Island, serving in this capacity for eight years, five of which were during the American Revolutionary War. From a prominent Rhode Island family, his father, William Greene, had served 11 terms as a colonial governor of Rhode Island. His great grandfather, John Greene, Jr. served for ten years as deputy governor of the colony, and his great great grandfather, John Greene was a founding settler of both Providence and Warwick.

Greene served the colony for many years as a Deputy to the General Assembly, a justice and chief justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court, and then as governor. As a governor during the American Revolutionary War, his biggest concerns were the British sacking of the Rhode Island towns of Bristol and Warren, and the British occupation of Newport, which lasted for three years. After eight years as governor, Greene, who supported the use of hard currency, was defeated in the May 1786 election by John Collins who was an advocate of paper money.

Greene married a second cousin, Catharine Ray of Block Island, and the couple had four children, of whom Ray Greene became a United States Senator and Rhode Island Attorney General. Governor Greene died at his estate in the town of Warwick in 1809, and is buried in the Governor Greene Cemetery in Warwick, where his parents are also buried.