EXHIBIT 10

                         Washington Trust Bancorp, Inc.
                       Annual Performance Plan Description

The following is a description of the Corporation's Annual Performance Plan (the
"Incentive  Plan",  formerly  known as the "Short Term Incentive  Plan"),  which
provides for incentive  bonuses to executive  officers and all other officers of
the Registrant and its subsidiary bank:

The Incentive Plan provides for the payment of additional  cash  compensation to
officers  based  on  the  Corporation's   performance   ("Corporate  Performance
Component")  and  the  performance  of  each  individual   officer   participant
("Individual  Performance  Component")  in  order  to  provide  a  link  between
performance and compensation.

The total target payout for participants varies by level of responsibility,  and
ranges  from 40%  (for the  Chief  Executive  Officer)  to as low as 10% of base
salary.  The  percentage  of total  incentive  allocated  between the  Corporate
Performance Component and the Individual  Performance Component also varies with
level of  responsibility,  and ranges  from 70% and 30%,  respectively  (for the
Chief  Executive   Officer  and  Chief  Operating   Officer)  to  40%  and  60%,
respectively.

In  determining  the  Corporation's  performance,  the  Incentive  Plan  focuses
primarily  on three  financial  metrics - Net Income,  Earnings  Per Share,  and
Return On  Equity,  with each  metric  receiving  equal  weighting.  The  actual
performance  for each of the financial  metrics is measured  separately  against
performance  targets  as  established  at the  beginning  of  each  year  by the
Compensation  and  Benefits  Committee  of the Board of  Directors.  Performance
exceeding  a  threshold  of  80%  of  the  performance  target  will  result  in
progressively  accelerating  payment  levels,  ranging  from  50% to 150% of the
officer's target payment for the Corporate Performance Component.

In order for payments under the Individual Performance Component to be made, the
Corporation  must  meet a  threshold  performance  level of at least  80% of the
financial  metrics on an aggregate basis. Once that threshold level is achieved,
actual  payments  will  be  based  on  the  manager's   assessment  of  employee
performance against performance expectations and objectives set at the beginning
of each year.  The  Compensation  and Benefits  Committee  establishes  personal
performance  expectations  and  objectives for the Chief  Executive  Officer and
Chief Operating  Officer,  and evaluates their  performance to determine payment
level.

Any amounts not paid to a participant as a result of the  participant  not fully
meeting  individual goals or performance  expectations may be reallocated to any
employee who demonstrated extraordinary  performance.  These additional payments
are at the discretion of executive  management,  and subject to overall approval
of the  Compensation  and  Benefits  Committee.  Regardless  of the actual award
levels  determined  by  the  plan  parameters,   executive  management  and  the
Compensation and Benefits Committee have the authority to decrease any award.