as "Butler's Folly" for many years because of its distance from the retail districts. This changed when a fashionable hat shop opened next door which attracted wealthy female customers to the neighborhood. After that, Westminster Street and downtown developed into a major shopping area.

In June 1843, President John Tyler toured New England while considering a potential third-party bid for re-election. One of Tyler's several Providence stops was at the Westminster Arcade, where he reportedly shook hands