Publisher's Synopsis
Hannah Robinson, beautiful and strong-willed, was the celebrated beauty of her day. Her father Rowland wanted her to marry Harry Hopkins, a war hero of the French-Indian War and the owner of hundreds of acres of land in what is now North Kingstown and South Kingstown, Rhode Island. Hannah had her own idea of who she wanted to marry and eloped with Peter Simons, her French teacher at a Newport finishing school. Hannah and Peter lived 25 miles north in Providence.
Rowland rode his horse to Providence several times to demand to know who helped her elope. Hannah refused. Peter became a successful importer of French silks and was away from home for months at a time. Hannah became ill with consumption and finally consented to return to the planation. She died on the way home. Whippoorwills signaled her death. This is a famous legend in South Kingstown. People visit the Hannah Robinson Tower and Rock that is located on Tower Hill Road. You can see the Hannah Robinson House, which is still standing, from the Tower. Her gravestone is close by on Boston Neck Road, but it is overgrown. Few people know where it is.
