Washington Trust Hires New Mortgage Lending Officer

January 21, 2009 (Westerly, RI). . .Thomas J. Carroll, of Cranston, R.I., has joined Washington Trust as a mortgage lending officer, and will be located in the Bank’s Reservoir Avenue branch office in Cranston. He will be responsible for originating mortgage financing for single family to four family residential properties, as well as FHA and first time homebuyers loans.

Carroll has more than 10 years of mortgage loan experience, most recently as a senior loan officer. He has an Associates degree in Theology from the Way College of Emporia in Kansas.

The Washington Trust Company is a subsidiary of Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc., a $2.8 billion corporation headquartered in Westerly, Rhode Island. Founded in 1800, Washington Trust is the oldest community bank in the nation and is the largest independent bank headquartered in Rhode Island. A state-chartered bank, Washington Trust offers a full range of financial services, including business banking, personal banking, and wealth management and trust services, through its offices located in Rhode Island, southeastern Connecticut and Massachusetts. The Corporation's common stock trades on The NASDAQ Stock Market under the symbol WASH. Web site address: www.washtrust.com.Corporation's common stock trades on The NASDAQ Stock Market under the symbol WASH. Web site address: www.washtrust.com.