Rhode Island History A RHODE ISLAND HISTORICAl, SOCIETY PUBLICATIO N r------
To Our Readers: II0 ~1lbu Street Provi Preoi Exec.urh>e Directot Bernard P. Fishman In an effort to cut costs without sacrificing quality, begirming with the next volume the Rhode Island Historical Society will John Brown Hoose publish Rhode Island His fOIJ' twice rather than three times Musrum a year, thus providing considerable savings on postage. At 52 Power 5c=r the same time, the number of pages in each individual issue I~RI02906 td 401.273.7507 will increase substantially, not only enabling us to continue fax 401.75 I .2307 providing our readers with the same amount of high-quality scholarship as before but perhaps even allowing us to introduce IJbrary more variety into the publication. 121 HopeSm:et Providence, Rl 02906 rd 401.273.8107 We sincerely hope that you, our readers, will understand the fax 401.751.7930 change, and we thank you for your continuing support. Museum of Work & Culrure Luther Spochr, Ph.D. 42 South Main Stteet Chairman WOClfi. L_____ -- Cleattl People's govmror ill April1842, ·n,omas Wilso11 Dorr scmgiJt to wls.qy bis iusurgalt govcmmeut by sciziug cJ,e state arscmll iu Providmcc the followi»g IIJ<>Ilth. l).,gllerrco tn>e, .1842, R/,oclc lsl,wd Stn t<: ArciJi vc;. Rhode Island History f!all2006 Volume 66, Number 3 Published by The Rhode Island Historical Sociery 110 Be Robert]. Man11i11g, president A Call to Arms: WilliamS. Simmo>~s, first vice president Thomas Wilson Dorr's Forceful Effort llarbora]. 1 l>onttcm, ,,ccund vice pr PuRr.tCATIONS CaMMJTTH Lr }t~mes Fi11dlay Ro&rrt Allm Grunt Robert W H ]. Sta11lcy Lemons William McKc>IZi< Woodward S·ri\H Elizal~etiJ C. Scet•r.ns, editor llillit~rd Beller, copy editor Silvia Rus, publicarions assistant T11e R11ode Island Historical Sociery ~ssuntcs no responsibility for the opinions of contributors. RHODE ISLAND HISTORY is publisbed three times a year by the Rhode Island Historical Society at 110 Bc1tcvole.\! Street. Providence. Rhode Isbnd 02906-3152. Postage is paid at Providence, Rhode Mand. Society members receive ea In the spring of 1842 Rhode [s/and wa.s tom bcttvcen pmmise of military assistance from supporters HOWARD .ll. RR.NS'l' competi11g lcg<~l systniiS, rival governors, aiJI~ scpn in New York, Thomas Wilson Don returned to 1 Iowm·d R. t:nHt ;j lHI ll.SSf'd ~Jh.' p,·~fcs5i.1f c.1j' mte legislative assemblies. Tlw People's govcmment Rhode 1sland to settle unfinished business. The politic-.ol S€iencc .or t/,,• United Src!I~J N~o•al Jloc>demy ''' Allluopolis. Morylan.l. He ~Vould wm kd by ThomllS Wilsou Don: Dorr cmd his People's governor departed the Empire State likr to tl!ll>lk N.11!5(1/ J. Dc8imPIIt, Bill McQumlt•, f r Iavi ng ftiled tO win the 5upport of Pn:sid<.-nt Roger Ptlttcr, held an arrest warrant for Dort; John Tyler in W.tshington, bur granted rhe but he dared not execute it; along with orher 60 A CALL TO ARMS Charter officials, he viewed the procession from elections, one in favor of the People's Consritlltion a safe distance. 4 Armed men were now defi and anorher in favor of d1e People's government, antly parading through the ciry's streets, and che and they had indirectly supported rhe ideas in a state's established authorities appeared power· rhird statewide election, one in which a m,Yoriry less to stop them. "When 1 saw Dorr himself uf the state's voters rejected the Charterite-dra.fted surveying wirh cool arrocicy, streets through Landholders' Constitution. which he had determined to spread dismay and Dorr restated the case that legitimate govern· death-when I saw all this and no hand to pre· mental authority is derived &om the consent of vent it, I confess that my faith in Rhode Island the governed and that the majoriry of the states courage and love of liberty nearly failed me," population had d1osen co replace the Charter said one Charter supporter. "My blood boiled government wirh the democratically elected wirh indignation:·s People's government. H e recounted the ills Doer's parade ended at the home of Burrington suffered under the old regime, including malap Anthony, a former federal marshal who had portionment ofthe General Assembly and limited been elected as the People's sheriff of Provi suffi·age. He condemned the Assembly for enact· dence. Anthony's home, which Dorr's men ing the so-called Algeiine La\\~ which directed made their headquarters, was located on Arwells harsh penalties against those who participated Avenue on Federal Hill, a short distance west in elections, or claimed office, under the People's of the town center. '[be home enjoyed both the Constitution. and he denounced the Charter tactical advantage that comes with height and authorities for resisting the will of the people rhe additional advantage of being just outside wirh the threat of Federal troops. He asserted that the heart of town, a safe distance from where there were numerous supporters of expanded the Charter government mer. It was also dose suffiage throughout the nation, and that in places to the .state arsenal on Cranston Street, a half like New York and Pennsylvania, they were mile to the southwest. Should the Charterices preparing to assist the Rhode Island reformers. attempt to obtain the arms at the arsenal, they He explicitly stated that he had been promised would have ro pass near Dorr's men; and should five thousand men from New York. Should d1e Dorr decide to take the arsenal, his forces would hired fOrces of the federal government enter the have unimpeded access to it. fray, he promised, "the contest will then become After hours of travel and covered in dust, Dorr national and our State che battleground oF stood in his raised ca rriage outside Anthony's American frecdom:'7 home and delivered an impassioned forcy-6ve Dorr had good reason to mention d1e support minute speech. One Charter supporter recalled from surrounding states, as he had been given a that while Dorr spoke, he was 'one of the most hero's welcome by the leading figures of Tam fierce looking men 1 ever saw:'6 No transctipc of many Hall in New York.8 His excursion there the speech has survived. but most accounts rehce had ended with a parade in which an estimated that Doer reiterated his now ~:omrnon themes of five hundred supporters, accompanied by a band popular sovereignty and expanded suffiage. His and a company of volunteer firemen, encouraged supporters had read the arguments in The Nine him co continue Rhode Island's consrirurional Lawyers' Opinion, of which Doer was one of the struggle, and he was presented with a letter, co authors, and in dozens of articles in rhc N~w Age authored by two New York military leaders. Col. 1md Constitutional Advocate, a Providence sultrag Alexander Ming and Lt. Col. Abraham Crasto. isc newspaper. They had hean.{ Don· and ochers d1at offered him the service of"several military make similar speeches at mass rallies, at the Peo companics:'9 Levi D. Slamm, che editor of the ple's Constiwrion;tl Convention the previous f:ill, New Em, a New York newspaper that strongly and at the People's inauguration on May 3. 1l1ey backed rhe suffragist cause, informed Dorr that had dirccdy supported the ideas in two statewide he had chartered a steamboat to carry a thou· A <.;ALL TO ARMS 6J sand armed supporce•·s co Rhode island should intimidation, a letter pledging federal support. Dorr mndr 1Jis 1mulq•t•Utet> at Rt~rringtou fighting erupr. 10 These pledges were added to "Should the rime arrive (and my fervent prayer A11tbo»y's i>o«sc. on F~lia11l Hill. Rh~>de commitments char Dorr had already received is that it may never come) when :1.n insUI·rection lslm><{ Sf,llc Arc1Jiv!:s. &om Allan Smiffcn, a supporter who promised shall exist against rhc government of Rhode Is him that New Yorkers by the hundreds stood land, and a rcquisicion shall be made upon the ready to back his came; &om Louis Lapham, an Executive of the United Sure.~ co litrnish d1at abolitionist from Ma.~sachusetts who pledged the protection which is guaranceed ro each Scare by backing of three hundred armed men; and from the C.onsrimrion and laws, I shall nor be found still other supporters in Pennsylvania." to shrink from the pcr.hmnance of a dury;' Tylec The likelihood that the federal government wrote.12 '1 hus President Tyler had taken sides in would enter the conflict and that the Dorritcs the dispute, a fact that was reprinted i11 the press would require outside assi:.rancc was quite real. and was widely known throughout the srate.13 A month earlier, on Aprilll, 1842, President Beyond his lerrcr, Tyler's actions suggc:stcd John Tyler shocked rhc suffragists by grant that he was prepared rn make good. on his threat. ing Governor King rhe ultimate instrument of On April 25, 1842, Col. A. C. W ranning, in 62 A CALL TO AltMS command of U.S. troops at ~ort Monroe, Vir also placed cwo companies more, equally effec ginia, was ordered to fill cwo companies and co tive, and pn:pared for active service, within ren report to New York harbor, within striking dis hours' sail, and in striking distance of the stare; tance of the (]Uickly escalating Rhode Island con and had escabl ished a military esp1onage over the Rict. One day later the War Department ordered people of d1e stare:'16 It was in this climate, with Col. James Bankhead, the commanding officer the reality of federal involvement. materializing of U.S. forces at Fort Columbus, New York, to and che hope of outside support growing. t:h.'!t fill cwo additional companies and co prepare for Thomas Dorr addressed his supporters. 'Ciecached service:'H Colonel Bankhead and the What distinguished rhe speech from oth· two artillrry companies arrived at Fort Adams in ers that he had delivered was that Doer's usu Newport, Rhode Island, on May 2, 1842. ally thoughcful manner had been replaced by Tile federal government kept abreast of the raw passion. Ar one point Dorr raised a sword latest developments in che crisis through the use in the air, a sword that had been given tO him by of espionage. A letter from army headquarters supporters in New York, and announced that it in Washington, signed by the assistant alljunct had been "dipped in blood once, and rather tl.an general (ironically named Freeman), authorized yield rhe rights of rhe people of Rhode Island, Maj. M.urhew M. Payne, commanding officer of it should be buried in gore to its hilt:' A wit the federal troops at Fort Adams, to "(e)mploy ness to the speech recalled Dorr s:.ying char"he any means in your power to obtain accm:atc it\· was willing to die with rhat sword in his hand, formation as to the probability of a conflict be if need be, to sustain the Constitution of the tween the t\Vo political parties now understood .State:· The .Providwcc Expr<'.SS, a pro-Dorr pub to be ready to resort co arm.~ foe the possession lication, reported Dorr declaring "his readiness of the governmenr of Rhode Island." Well aware to die in the cause in which he had sacrificed ev of the controversy that might erupt should rhe erything bur his life" and vowing that che sword's use of federal spies be made public, officials at "cnsanguined blade should be again imbued with anny headquarters quickly followed tl1is letter blood, should the people's cause require it:'17 with a second letter by Freeman: "In reference Dorr's emotions ran hot, and his heated to my letter to you of yesterday, I am instructed rhetoric would soon demand corresponding by Major General Scott to desire you to hesitate actions. lhe People's governor was preparing much about ~;e nding an officer for the purpose of rhe crowd, and perhaps himself, tOr rh e battle obtaining intelligence in Providence, and not to to come, with rhe speech serving as the bridge do so if you can obtain the services of any other from words to deeds. Peaceful rneans fo r re discreet, intelligenr citizen; because the purpose solving this irreconcilable conflict had been ex of the detached officer, whether in uniform or hausted. ror those who lacked the desire or will not, would be liable to be suspected-which ~or armed struggle, rhe time had come to depart might do much harm in the present excited scare the cause; for those willing to fight for political of public feeling in Rhode lsland:••s rights, it was now rime to rake up arms. 1 he congressional report of the 1844 in vestigation inro the federal government's role in supp ressing rhe People's govemment sum Tuesd11y, May 17, 1842, early afternoon. At 1 marized the simarion this way: ''He [President P.M. on May )7, the day ~fter Dorr's arrival in lyler) senr a military officer as requested, to Providence, his followers fi red their signal guns, Rhode Island, who was to ace in concert with calling his supporters to assemble ar Dorr's the Charrer authorities. l-Ie had delivered two headquarters on Federal Hill.'~ Dorr gave rhe companies of artillery, with ~ full compliment of order for mili ti~ companies from Woonsocket, effective men, ready for active and Cletached' ser Pawtucket, and Glocester to report ro Provi vice, to enter tl1e territory of Rhode Island. He dence tor military duty,"' and as he waited 6.)r A CALl. T(.l ARMS 63 the arrival of reinforcements from the north, his goddess of wisdom and warfare.22 But the deco supporters in Providence sprang into action. rative cannons were old and their working con Around eighty of Dorr:~ men marched to dition was unknown. Moreover, being rclarivdy the heart of Providence and seized two cannons small, and therefore mobile, rhey were capable from the basement of che headquarter.~ of rhe of firing only modest six-pound balls, and thus United Train of Artillery, one of the city's militia they were relatively weak weapons. groups rhat were somewhat b-ymparhetk co the The bronze artillery piece.<> were not the only I )on·ire cause.· l11e men were led by Josiah Reed, cannons at Governor Dorr'.~ disposal; at least the captain. of the United Independent Com four additional cannons were stationed outside 2 pany of Volunteers, a band of Dorr supporters. his headquarters in a defensive position. ·' These, and included men from another such group, the however, were less reliable iron guns, f.1r hea\•ier Fourth Ward Volunteers. The weapons were in than their bronze cousins and more prone co a building direcrly across a small alley from the misfiring. which could cause them to explode Cadet Am1ory on Benefic Street, where men Like bombs. The weight of rhe iron guns and from che Marine Corps of Artillery and Cadets their inherent danger made them useful pri Companies, borh militia companies loyal to the marily for defensive purposes, but nor for Charter side, were stationed. Despite che pres launching an assault. ence of this riv~l force, Reed and his men rook Before the bronze guns had been delivered possession of the rwo bronze cannon.~ without to Dorr's headquarters, word about them was resisrance.20 1he weapons were rushed down on its way to Governor King. who ar the time College Street's steep hill, past a small crowd of was only a few miles away from Dorr and his pro-Charter supporters at the intersection of men. Fearing that Dorr would usc the cannons College and Sourh Main, and .safely delivered to to attack the .scare arsenal, which was then Dorr's headquarters by early afternoon. guarded by only twenty hired laborers, King These were no ordinary Clllnons, though iris gave the order to reinforce it with two milirar·y highly tmlikely that the Dorrites were aware oftheir companies. The Charter official in charge of storied past. The guns were a gift to the United the arsenal was Quartermaster General Samuel Train of Artillery !Tom George Washington, who Ames, who was not only the highest-ranking had borrowed and lost similar cannons from official at the site and a future chief justice of that unit during rhc Revolutionary War. The the state's Supreme Court; he was also 11wmas cannons that Dorr's men seized had bet>n cap Dorr's broth er-in-law.21 tured by Washington's troops during rhc 1777 BefOre the confrontation would run irs course, 13att!e of Saratoga, an American victory that other members of Dorr's immediate family many consider rhe turning point in the nation's would also :mswer rhc call to defend the Charter struggle for independence. Having played a authority, including his younger brother Sulli role in the Revolutionary War, the cannons van Dorr Jr., his father, Sullivan Dorr St., and would now take center .stage in rhe state's revo his uncles Zachariah Allen and Crawford Al lutionary cri~is.21 len. Dorr's family were nor unaware of Thomas By the spring of 1842 the cannons were an· Dorr's involvement when chey were drawn to tiqucs, relics of a bygone era. Cast in rhe 1760.s the battlefield; on the contrary, one of their in Srrasbourg, France, at the renowned foundry primary motivations for joining the Charter of John Ftant;ois Beringet; they pos.~essed all side was the knowledge d1ar the Peoples gov the attention to detail that one would expect ernor would lead the attack. Dorr's relatives from a Beringer cannon- decorative scrolls and were defending their family name as much as dolphin-shap.:d handle.~. a~ well as inscriptions they were defending the exi.~ rin g authority.?> bearing the n;lmes Tantae and Pallas, che latter Zachariah Allen later r·ecallcd char when most likely referring to Pallas Athena, the Greek he arrived at rhc arsenal in the early afternoon, 64 I< CA L L TO ARMS TIJ,, Dorr fn mil)' home, 0 11 Bcll~fir nu.J he found "not a single volunteer loyal citizen of being used for an immediate attack, however, B<:>tVCII St1wts i11 Prot•itlwu, tV l•uilt by was there"; moreover, there was no "supply of rhe cannons wen: positioned in front of Dorr's 1 711('"'"' \\ ilso11 Dorri .f.u],.,r, prc>~uiuwt water for extinguishing fire in case combus· headquarters at Burrington Anthonr's house, ,,,1·/Mm ntullmsiu ~;s mom S11lliumr D.,,.,. ribles were thrown in or upon the building:·!o and Dorr and his advisors assembled to dercr· Sr., ;,. 1809. R/,,•de lsl.m.l St.tre Arrllil'~.i. f Iad the Oorrites moved their newly aCt]Uircd mine their strategy. cannons directly to the arsen:d and launched At contentious discussions throughout an attack that afternoon, th ~ only defenders the day and into the evening, several attempts they would have fac<·d were Zachariah Allen, were mad(• ro dissuade Dorr from his current Samuel Ames, and a sm:1ll group of hired men. aggressive course. 21 Many of his closest friend:>, Gn:ady t1Utnumbere.d, rhe Charter force would induding strong supporters of the sufli·age have had litdc hope of defending its position, cause and members of rhe Peoplt''s legislature, and the sizable stock of we;1pons that it guarded strongly opposed a din.·ct confrontation wirh would have been lost to the insurgcncs. Instead rhe Cham:.r side and argued again:ot the use of A CAU TO ARMS 65 force. Moderates like Duree Pearce, a former voting rights was based entirely on principle. congre.~~ man, supported the People's govern In the end, Dorr puc his f .suggested, 'lhomas Dorr would be rbe first to offer his hlood. In the end, Dorr sided wirh rhe Early evening. By early evening C1overnor King more extreme element among his supporters, and his war council had what they believed was people like the radical labor reformer Seth Luther, reliable information char Dorr planned to arrack who had long advocated che use of force in pur the arsenal. n A man named Able Oaks, who suit of the insurgents' cause. had been a Oorrite up to t.hat point, revealed to One by one rhe moderates left Dorr's side; his employer, Almond Hodges, a Charter sup le.aving him surrounded by a less-refined lor. porter, that Dorr planned ro scrike rhe arse nal Those who remained in his camp tended co be rhat very evening. Oaks's story was corrobo working-class people, those who would directly rarc.d by Charter spic~, who made regular visits benefic from the expansion of suffi·age, rather ro Dorr's headquarters. ;2 than elected members of the People's govern Dorr's camp, where volunteers came and ment and ocher sulfr:~gists whose: support of left as they pleased, proved highly smcepcible 66 A CALL TO ARMS to espionage. Since the outcome of the pending to Providence. Elisha Dyer, the adjutant general conflict was far from clear in early May 1842, it of the Ch now patrolling the streets and disarming Char· bur they r·emrned with no new intelligence. All tcr supporters. With removal of rhe weapons no that: was now left to do was co wait: and hope longer an option, Carrington and Clarke left the that reinforcement:s :tl'rived before Dorr's can· arse11al in search of reinforcements.~; non .~ did. "If I fall here," Zachariah Allen later Meanwhile, at Dorr:~ camp efforts to dis recalled a frightened defender saying, "they rt he suade the People's govemor from attacking the man's family) have no one tO look to. I shall now arsenal continued well into the evening. There feel calmed to do my dury if you will promise is evidence to suggest chat Sullivan Dorr Sr. vis· to have them cared for." To this plea, Allen re ired the headquarters to argue against d1e usc sponded, "Provided that I survive:'11 3 of force. " While no record of a conversation The Charter forces were not the only ones there between Dorr and his father exists, one waiting for reinforcements and chinking about can imagine the intensity that such a discussion the possibility of dying in battle. Remembering would have had. in the end, no one could con· the rhousands of people who had voted in favor vince Thomas Dorr to call off the attack. Later of the People's Constitution, Oorr hoped fo r the char night Sullivan Dorr Sr. rook his place among arrival of f.ar more men than rhe few hundred the Charter supporters, joining the hrsr Light who waited for orders outside his headquar Infantry on reserve ar the armory in downtown ters. With a thousand men his force would be Providcnce.l9 The conAict that divided a state overwhelming, but with only a few hundred and c.1prured the attention of the nation also the outcome was uncertain. What Dorr did not .c;plir the Dorr family to its core. know was that had he arracked the arsenal with out further delay, his troops would have outnum Lite Evening. By 10:00 P.M., wirh the promised bered the defenders by nearly ten to one. As time Charterire reinforcements yet to arrive at the passed, more men arrived at Oorr's headquarters arsenal, the sin1ation seemed bleak co the nvency and ochers returned to their homes, having lost or so men in the building. ·lhe call tO defend the rheir nerve for combar.41 With rhe over.ill num· arsenal had been issued, and there certainly had bers re maining f.tirly constant, the envisioned been enough rime for gathering the troops. Did overwhelming force failed to materiruize. the Charter government lack sufficient support Oorr meanwhile prepared himself for d1e co withstand the insu rgents~ Worse yet, had wo rst:. Recognizing that he might be killed in Governor King made a strategic decision ro al barrle, he summoned Walter S. Burges, a long low the rebels to rake rhe arsenal~ Such a move rime friend and well-respected memher of the would have provided time for the Charter mili General Assembly. who had supported the rc· tias to arrive from the south, and it would also formers in their effOrt to enact change through have provided Governor King the evidence he established channels, and he entrusred him wid1 needed to bring President Tyler into the conflict. his legal and private papers.41 With th c.~c now in "The troops were promised to be sent here before safe hands, Dorr was prepared to take to the field, dark, and it is now late in rhe night, and they arc but he remained certain that more men would not come;· exclaimed Col. Leonard Blodget of arrive chan those currently at the headquarters. the arsenal's Charter force in a near panic.''Can it Not wanting to attack before the arrival of these be possible we arc left here to be sacrificedt'40 reinforcements, he waited a while longer. Fearing the worst, the defenders of 'the At 11:00 P.M. Charceritc sentinels reported arsenal spent their time loading and priming seeing armed men moving along Cranston Street hundreds of muskec.c;. They fastened the lower toward the arsenaL The defi:nders, including doors and windows wich the building's iron one of Don-'s younger brothers, Sullivan Dorr shutters, leaving the upper shutters slightly open Jr., cook their posts in preparation for the ap to provide room for firing. Sentinels and scouts proaching attack. Men removed their coats and wer·e sent into the dark to gather inrormarion, cocked their weapons. Samuel Ames, Dorr's 70 A (;AI.L TO ARMS ~ ----...... r- . ' . -..___-- ·--.... -.,-..;'· . ---- . ,..,.,.. ---- - ·-- ..--1' Most of tiJr ChMterite defemlen prepared lo the chance ofa successful ambush. Maneuvering cided nor by ballots bur by bullets, and rhar the meer rbe arrack from the arsenal:< upper .floor. the cannons through Federal Hill's best srreeD> determination would rake pl.acc under a heavy Sketcl! by f.. L. l'rckh.mt. RIHS Collection was a difficult enough task, but attempting to fog. One Charterite recalled the tension, surely bring them through the area's narrow alleys in experienced on hoth sides: "Many a coward, in pitch darkness would have been far more dif· the light of day, amid the serried ranks of a dis licult. Moreover, the circuitous route provided ciplined host, encouraged by the stirring strains I )orr'.~ men wirh an additional fifteen minutes of martial music, and animated by the action to prepare themselves mentally for the coming and the din of rhe conllict has rushed upon the encounter after a long night of anxious waiting. cannon's mouth-but how much more awfully It now seemed inevitable rhat the outcome sublime the scene, when men leave their homes of the states governmenral crisi.~ would be de· in the darkness of night, and go forth, with none A CALL TO ARMS 71 fog also provided a cloak for the timid, behind which they could hide their natural fears and through which they could anonymously retreat should things go badly. The Charter men assumed their defensive posicion in che arsenal Most of the defenders, including Colonel Blodgcr, stationed themselves near the windows on the arsenal's second level. This elevated position had two advantages: it gave rhe defenders an unobstmcted line of fire, and since Dorr's cannons would most certainly be aimed at the iron doors on the lower level, through which the attackers would then attempt to msh, the men on the second story would be away from the insurgents' cannon lire and ini tial charge. 'lhe more vulnerable lower level was manned by Quartermaster General Samuel Ames and the arsenal's regular guards.r.1 The order was given inside the arsenal co "wait unci[ you hear the sotmd of cannon on the outside before you open firc:162 This order would not be easy co follow for many of che anx ious Charterites, especially those on the gmund floor. One of the men in command of the arse nal's cannons, Bill Cameron. found it particu larly difficult to hold his fire. De.scribed as "an old privatcersman, who had served on a vessel in che War of 1812, and had rather fight than saw wood;' Cameron"had been grossly insulted by some of the Dorritcs and was burning for re vcnge:'63 Bill Cameron had fired cannons before and was anxious for another opportunity. Havi1\g arrived ac che arsenal Dorr initially positioned his cannons about rwo hundred ya rds away, surrounded by a small stand of trees.61 True to form, he announced the pres of the pomp and circumstance of war, in a si ence of his troops not by cannon fire but by a lence to be felt, to meet black hearted con spica formal declaration. Col. Charles Carter, an of· tors, they know not how numerous, through ficer in Dorr's force and a member of the Fourth they know not what snaresP9 Ward Volunteers, a militia group that had as To the insurgents, the pervading fog seemed · sisted in seizing the cannons the day before, a blessing. as it provided cover for their attack was ordered co approach che arsenal under a on a battlefield that afforded few natural protec white flag of truce. With a white handkerchief tions. According to one Dorrire, "The night was attached to his sword, Carter moved co the ar· not chosen because it was dark; che fog came senal, knocked on its iron door, and delivered up late; it seemed like an interposition of Divine a message from Col. Jonathan M. Wheeler, the Providence:'60 Divine Providence or noc, the commanding officer of Dorr's force, demand- 72 A CAJ.I. TO ARMS r 11Jr cJII~III}Jt OIJ tiJ~ arwJ torch was raised, the order· was give::n to fire the Chappell reiterated his original claim in sworn first cannon, and the cannon flashed- bur it testimony at Dorr's trial for treason:"! stared be fJiled co discharge. The:: order was given to lire fore the Commissioners that I plugged the can the second cannon, and it too flashed, but it non on the night of the 17rh of May. I did plug f.liled co fire as well. ''I am betrayed;' exclaimed the two brass pieces, with pine plugs, about one Dorr; and he and his men, now fully exposed to inch in length. It was done about eleven o'clock d1e Charter !Urce, had no choice but co retreat ar night. I did not communicate ir to any one at from the ficld.6~ the time; [should have been foolish co have done 'l11e insurgents scattered, some retreating so. I went out to the arsenal plain and remained to Dorr'.~ headquarters while the m:l;iority sim under the shed rill morning. I might have said to ply returned to their homes. Tired and hungry, some of the prisoners whom I was wirh in jail in most had lost their desire to fight. 'The confron 1842, that I did not plug the cannon, but I did it tation had ended without a single shot being only co put them off.'69 fired, and no one lay dead or dying. The Charter All chat is known for cerrain is chat at some forces had retained control of the arsenal, and point Hiram Chappell lied, either co Charter of reinforcements from the sourhcm part of the ficials and in court te.<>timony or to fellow prison· smte would soon arrive. ers during his incarceration. There is reason to ,. believe chat Chappell was not, in fact, the culprit, for he never offered a reason for his claimed plug Had the insurgents' cannons fired, Dorr and his ging of the cannons, nor did Charter authorities rem:.ining men would almost certainly h:.ve been apparently believe his story, since he was impris killed. Without sufficient numbers to succes&fi.Uiy oned for his role in the attack. Moreover, Chap attack after the initial cannon fire, they would pell stayed loyal to the.- su.flragisr cause after the have been fully exposed to the return fire of the episode at the arsenal, joining Dorr's men on arsenal's defenders, who now outnumbered them Federal!: Iill d1e next morning and rejoining Dorr by more than five to one. 'Ibe fog, which only in June at C hepachec, where Dorr attempted to momenrs earlier had provided the insurgents reconvene the People's legislature.7\l More d1an with strategic cover fOr their attack and perhaps his words, Chappells actions suggest that Hiram prevented their guns from firing, now mercifully Chappell did not plug the insurgents' cannons. provided them with a. means of escape. Many others had the opportunity to sabo No one knows with certainty why the can· tage the cannons on the night of the attack. lc nons failed. One theory suggests that a Judas would have been relatively easy to douse the figure, Hiram Chappell, caused the misfires by gunpowder with water, leaving the guns inoper betraying Dorr and plugging the cannons. A day able; dUs could have been done by a Charterite after he had served as an escort co Dorr during spy who had infiltrated the insurgents or by a Doer's rentrn co Providence on May 16, Chap· Dorr supporter who was leaving the cause in pell was instructed co purchase four or five kegs disgust as things turned potentially violent. of powder with twenty-five dollars worth of Natural forces could also have been re.~ponsihle gold quarter-eagles that Dorr had given to him. foe the misfire that night. By lace evening the fog Wben questioned by Charter commissioners was so thick that people standing within arms' following the failed attack, Chappell claimed length could not recognize each ocher. The fog that he had plugged the bronze cannons; later, covered the city and everything it couched with while being haras.~ed in prison by Dorr's sup a sheet of moisture. If the powder was left ex porters, he recanted and denied plugging the posed, either through neglect or through saba guns.(•S Two years after the £tiled attack, no lon rage, it would turn to a useless paste. ger fearing further imprisonment by rhe Charter Colonel Carter, the officer who most likely authorities or rhreats from Dorr's .supporters, attempted to nrc chc cannons, insisted chat they 74 A CALl. TO ARMS were nor .~ahoraged: " [ marched them [the can· too. Men began to doubt the rrurh of rheir cause, nons) on the ground, unlimbered them, primed and the right we had to rake life, in support of and touched the right piece; it flashed. lhe left: our cause.... [T]he whole moral force of the one was rhen primed and touched; it Ra.~hed Revolution was broken at that time:'73 also. I tried the priming wire; it would not go Whatever the cause of the failure-weak down. 'fhe powder was very poor and very nne. leadership, sabotage, fog, the threat of federal lt was wet and became hard like cement. The troops, arrests, delay, poor planning-the aborted pieces were not plugged, other than the plug attack proved to be a decisive blow to the in ging of the atmosphere by the Almighry:· Joshua surgents. Eleven members of the People's legis Hathaway, a Dorr supporter who claimed to lature resigned their positions on the morning have bored our rhe cannons upon their return after the dchacle, and .~even additional resigna· from the arsenal, reported that "rhere were no tions followed in the following days.'1 Nor only plugs in the vent. l11e powder had become very did these men resign their offices; many of them hard from being wet:'71 condemned Dorr's attack as deplorable and dc , srrucrive?' And just as the People'.~ cause was unraveling. Charter forces were being reinforced Ultimately ir mattered little why the cannons by their allies from the south. The steamship failed, for in reality the light was already lost prior rhar had departed the previous day rentrned to the order to lire. Profounclly disappointed with to Providence, filled with Charter loyalists who the niglu's events, Dorr later remembered that awaited their orders fi:om Governor King. ''the people were called, and they did not come:· The suffi-agists' much-anticipated outside and that those few who did heed the call did not assistance was nowhere to be found. 1l1e fail stay long. "The people as a body, Lee ir be said, ure of rhe military effort at the arsenal virtually were unwilling, or unable; they were deterred by guaranteed char outside supporr, specifically the threats of rhe President, or debarred by the fi:om New York, would not materialize. Don-'s mailed hand of a military despotism. Be it as it supporters in New York had in fact been pre may, rhey did not come:· For a man who drew paring to move aggressively in his behalf; just his strength from the support of the masses, the hours before news of rhe arsenal fiasco arrived abandonment was almost more than he could there, l.evi Slamm's Ntw Em printed a decla endure." Jt was our friends. and not our enemies, ration signed by those who, 'appealing ro Di who conquered us;· he concluded in despair.72 vine Providence for the purity of our motives, One Don·ire who was on the barrlclicld rhar do pledge our 'sacred honor' to hold ourselves night placed the blame not on "rhe people" bur in readiness, to be organized into companies on the movement's leaders: "Nearly all who had of 'Patriotic Volunteers; under such officers been elected to office under the People's Consti· as shall by ourselves be elected, and upon the turion; all who had spouted in public meetings, requisition of Governor Dorr, ro march at the and all who had resolved on war to the knife, shortest notice to the aid of our Republican like cowards as they were, dared not show rheir brethren of Rhode Island, in the event that any faces at that momentous rime! Do not blame armed iHtcrfrrence he made hy d1e Federal Gov the people; let the disgrace go where it ought, on ernment to d1e jeopardy of their inalien,lblt and chose who set the hall in motion. I know the ef. i ndefcasible rights:· 7~ feet of such baseness at the time we were on the But when news of the failed arrack reached ground before the Arsenal, when it began ro be New York, support for Dorr's e.ffort, which only whispered abour fi·om one to another, that such hours before had reached irs pinnacle, melted in and such persons were not there, to share the an insranr. "'lhe flag which had been flying for dangers of the nghr. Our men, one after another, several daysac'Etmmany Hall, in honor ofDorr soon began to leave the ground, and with reason, and his proceeding.~. wa.~ .~truck, and all looked A CALL TO AR.MS 75 as sad a.s though 'melancholy had marked them struggle carried out by each generation. The for her own;" one paper reportcd.77 If the Rhode reformers also underestimated the strength of Island suffragists lacked the will to defeat the the Charter resistance, ignoring one of d1e few state'~; Charter forces, as it now appeared, sup· truisms in politics-that there is nothing more port from New York .seemed futile. Just as New dangerous and unprcdicrable than a clique of Yorkers would not toler:Jte the federal govern· gray-haired men with rides, lighting for their ment imposing its will on Rhode Island, neither political survival. would they impose their own views on their re· Dorr's greatest error in judgment was in Luctanr neighbors to the nonh.11: overestimating the willingness of the suffragists After their failure at rhe arsenal, Doer and co me force. Dorr never h1lly understood why his his remaining followers recreated to the in· support grew weaker as the crisis reached its pin· surgent stronghold in the northern village of nacle. Many moderate reformers rejected the use Woonsocket. Later that summer they would at· of force, believing d1at success meant incremen tempt co reconvene the People's legislature in the tal improvement on rhe suffrage issue, something village of Chepachet in friendly Glocester, only chat they believed was wid1in their grasp by chc to have that effort puc down by the emboldened spring of 1842. It wa.~ not that they necessarily Charter government, which declared martial law adhered to lesser principles or held weaker con· throughouc Rhode Island. In time Oorr would vicrions, as Dorr lamented. If the price of a total rcmrn ro Providence, where he would be tried, victory-victory without compromise- was the convicted of treason against the stare. and im· shedding of blood, many of d1e moderates were prisoned. For ail concerned, it appeared chat content to settle fOr a less definitive ourcome. For Dorr's rcvolucionary movement had failed. them, the threatening rhetoric of their campaign wa.~ jmt that, words co be used as a catalyst !:Or r 1 change; and if change was co come slowly and 1l1e annals of history are strewn with tales of incrementally but peacefully, so be it. They were men who were willing to kill and die in rhe heat confident chat the momennun of history was of pa.~~ion. Far fewer arc d1e tales of men will· moving in their direction, making patience not ing to kill and die in the cool pursuit of a jusr a weakness but a virrue. cause, and fewer yer of those willing ro risk their The Charterites made mistakes of their lives for a cause promising no personal gain. But own. 1bey were dearly emboldened by the the rarest of all, perhaps for good reason, arC! promise of federal support and the strength of accounts of those willing co lead such an effort their military position, bur they underestimated when opposed by rhe full force of established the reform movemem, believing it to be another authority, respected fi-iends, and close relatives. fleering locofoco cat1.~e that might burn bright Such was the case of Thomas Wilson Dorr, for a moment but would soon return co a con· making him, depending on one's perspective, trollable smolder. Finding themsclv c.~ on the either a fool or a hero. wrong side of history, they undertook a Strategy The competing camps faced distinct chal of delay, deception, and imimidation. Their ri· lenges, and both sides made critical mistakes. gidit:y incited the radical element of the reform ·nle suffragist leaders, increasingly isolated and movement and threatened the social order that marginalized, remained con fidem in the justice the conserV'.ttivcs held dear. of their cause and the inevitability of their sue· In June 1842 che Cha1ter govemmcnt easily cess. 'The reformers would learn firsthand that put down Dorr's second and final attempt at ex the rnacro-levcl narrative of democracy, which ercising policical power, a desperate :Jttempc to as often makes the spread of democracy appear semble supporters in the village ofChepa chet. Like inevitable, is far different from the micro· the Failed arsenal attack, d1e Cht'Pachet episode level narrative, which reveals an unpredictable ended without a battle. as Dorr wisely disnussed 76 A CAJ.L '1'0 AII.MS his disappointingly .~mall band of anncd sup· liberation becoming a potent political i.~sue, porters when faced with overwhelming military candidates for office were forced to either pledge strength. The Charterites continued their show of their support for freeing Dorr or be held ac fOrce by declaring martial law, arresting suspected countable by the electorate. Fearing the political Dorr supporters, and causing Dorr to flee che fallout from the growing liberation movement, state. When he eventually retumed to Providence, rhe General Assembly agreed to free Dorr if he he was arrested, tried on a d1arge of high treason pledged allegiance co the state; hur having risked against the state, and, in June 1844, senccnced to everything tOr principle, Dorr refused anything life at hard labor in solitary confinement. bur an unconditional release. He was granted The Charter government eventually learned chat release by the Assembly in june 1845 after rhat its military campaign, while successfial in che spending cwency months in prison. In 1g51 the shore run, could not stop rhe stare's democratic Assembly, now controlled by pro-Dorr Demo reform movemem. Despite its military prowess, crats, voted to resr01·e Dorr's political right.~, and the conservatives ultimately lost the political ir later annulled his treason conviction.~11 battle in Rhode Island, as they had in ocher .~rates. When Dorr died in 1854, the state was In1843 conservatives replaced the state's flawed governed hy a consrinttion, sultrage had been royal cluner with a flawed constitution, and al expanded, the prohlem of rhe legislature's though it would take many decades, rhe scare nulapporrionment had been meaningfully ad eventually corrected the malapportionmenc of dressed, and Dorr himself had been cleared of the legislantrc and removeed the last of the vot all wrongdoing. 'lhe People's governor died ar ing resrriccions?9 Rhode Island's constitutional the age of forcy·nine, physically broken from struggle reveals another political truism: the his time in prison but with his principles intact. river of democracy grows wider and stronger as His small disturbance had successfully shaken ir flows coward irs source, the sovereign people, the .~race our of its political slumber and moved eventually eroding all barriers. the country one small step forward in its jour Dorr proved far more powerful as an im · ney toward democratic governance. prisoned martyr than he had a.~ a military com mander. A Don Liberation Society was quickly For 111or~ i11fo1'111<1tion cmd t•duccltioJwl mmai(lls 011 formed to agitate for his release, and with his this subje,·t, go to www.rihs.org. I H,:::REBY CERTIFY, ~ · co-t~l ~ ~b~t~ ~m\1 C&en.l;t, to tf% ~()-tit, ~;£~-i~on· mm~. fc-t, t~w ,, ,t~A-jli~~ ~ o~ C PrP.3ideut of the Dorr l.ib. Soe • .. Above 'The Dorr Ulwmtion Society eJ~lblr. TIJomns Wils(liJ Dorris buried 111 Swmr Poiut Cr.111etery, Providen.:e. Photograph by tht IH 1. J~coh Fri~e, Concise History of tl>c Fjj'o m Hodges, Al111o11 D.uofortll Hodges mod H1 s en Obto i11 mo ExteowotJ ofSs'./fragc ;,. Rhod• Ntighbors: An Acrtobiogmpllical SkrtciJ of lslmrd (Providence, 1842). 83. ,, 1)1>icnl Old Ntw linglrrmlcr (13ost<>n: 2. Foo· tht mosc detailed account of Dorr:< priv•cely prinred. 1909), 183. There is an 3n·ival, sec Arthur Mar Mowry. 1/,e /)oa excellent analysis of various inrerprer•tions War, o>· tl"' Collltitutiomtl Struggle;, 'Rhode of rhe .,pcccl! in Mow''}\ The D,,, War. l. Pitman, Rtport 011 tiJC Tri.rl of J l>omtls Pitman, Tri,r/, 27; re,timouy of Edwa•-d H. Wilso 11 Dorr fo r 'lrnHc>ll (Boston: Tapp~11 I lanrd, in Burke's Report. 878; Pro•·idcnce & Denner, 1844), 2/l, 25. Express, May 17, I !!42; Mowry, 'J IJ< Dorr War. 176-77. 5. Jewett, Lntr Rebdlimr. 4. 18. Jewett, L 7. For chis and other quorarinn• from 20. Elisha Dyer, 'Rrmi11isw•w of RIJode Isl.wd Don 's spe~..:h. see U.S. Congress, House, in 1812: Ar Couneatclovitl, th,• Do•·r lllteif and f.rie:z:e, Ext~IJJio" ~(SuJfmgc, 87. f-rieze Conley. Demomtcy ;,, Dedi11~: RIJode 39. Hodges, Allllon L>mifortl> Ho,lgcs, 189. describe.< rhe C:l.lllto n~ a.< •ix·pouttdcts. lslmrd$ Coustitution.JII'uiod,l776 . /,~41 40. Allcll, "The Dorr War:' Alnton Hodges's later account, which (Providence: Rl10de hbnd HistllricOll borrow~ hea~·ily though sdccrively from Soci«y, 1977), 340; Hodges, J\1111011 41.lbitl. t-:ri~e·s, cl.ims rhey were ninc·pounders Dtutjotth Ho.lge;, 189. 42. McDougall, Migl.r mul Right, 243. (I lodges. AltJtnn l>111iforrl> Hotlgcs, 181). 26. Allen, ... !he Dorr War:· S•veral account.< describe the gu"" •s 43. '[~srimony ofWalrer S. Burges, in l!rrrke's hrass, though they were in 6,t lmmze. 27. l'rieze, Excensio11 ofSrlffi·,,~:~. 88-fl9. Rrport, 916. 21. Mowr}\ 1l1c Dnrr Wtor, 181 n. 1 hr strartge 28. Testirnony of Ouree J. Pc~rce, in Pitm~n. 44. Allen, "The DmT War:· life of thc.~c cannons did not end with Trial, 25-26. 15. Ibid. rhr Oorr Rebellion. After that epi~Qdr 29. Mowry, 'J.he no,,. War. 182; l·lt>dges. 46. T~.-,rimony of Edward ll. Hazard, in rhey were grvcn tl> rhe Warr~n Artillery Almon DarifortlJ I lodges, 185. Pitm>rt, Trial, 29. Militia as a rcw•rd for its loy.tl ><...-vice to 30. Mowty, ~ Dorr War. J75. rhc Ch:trrcr srdc. This, of 'ours.!, •ngcred 47. Allw. "'Tire Durr W:rr"; frk-zc, F..,umitm the United Tr~in ofArcilfe ry. which 3 I. Ar least on£' source chims that Dnrr'~ ~( Srr.ffragi, 88; Hndges, Almou Dmifortl> nghtfully owned the 8'1115 but had IJ<:en inrenr ro atrack the ar~nal was knuwn ro Hodges, 189. less snpportiw of rhc Charter government Governor King as early as rhe rnornmg 411. At leas! lhrcc men brought reports from dunng th• confli.:t. When rhe Warren nfMay 17: Fri~zc. H.~rcrr. Trial, 68. Though smaller chan Dorr nineteenth century; tht guns were actually desired, his force was sciU considerably bron2e.) For annthcr account of Chappell's larger than the Charter rorce in che an;enal testimony, ~ee Report of the Trial of at the time. Edward H. Hazard, who was Thomas Wilson Dorr, in Burltr's Report, in rhe arsenal, repor!:"d that the defenders 882. numbered roughly 70 men from the Cadet 70. Testimony 1lf Hiram Chappell, in Pitman, Company militia, 70 from the Marine 1'ri<~1, 35. Artillery militia., and 20 others, or about Turimonies and 160 ~altogether. Testimony of Edward 71. ofChari•,. W Cartee H. Ha%ard, in Pitman, Trial, 29. Joshua Hathaway, in Pitrnan, Trial, 69, 75. 58. See testimony of Hiram Chappell, in 72. Governor Dare's Addrcu to the People of Pitman, Trial, 35. Lo,., Lane's current Rhode !&land (August1843), 757-58. name is Knight Strtott. 73. Anonymous letter, in McDougall, Might 59. Jewett, Late Rebelliom, 9. ""d Right, 246·47. 60. Testimony ofCharles W. Carter, in Burkes 74. Mowry, The Dorr W4r, 190. &port,907. 75. Handbill, reprinted in McDougall, Might 6J. Allen, "The Dorr Wu"; Mowry, The Dorr and Rigl>t, 247. W4r.184. 76. Mowry, 1ht Dorr War, 194. 62. AUcn, "The Do,. War." 77. New York Co111mrrcia/ Adverloo, copied 63. Hodges, Almon Danforth .Hodgrs, J 89. in NatiMal Inrdligenctr, May 24, 1842, in Mowry, 194-95 n. 64. Ibid.. 187. 78. Not all the New Yorkers abandoned. Doer 65. Mow•y, The Dorr W11r, t84; testimony of and his cau•c. One supporter in particular, Lronard Blodger, 38. Mike Walsh, known as the "Captain of 66. Testimony of Charles W. Carter, in the Sparran Band;' joined Dorr's men at Pitman, Trial, 69. Por a nearly identical Chepachet. Some reports suggest Walsh account of the ev Rhode fsiM1d Book Notes: A Selection of Rerent T itles Gerald M. Carbone, Nathanael Grcc11c (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008). A popular biography of the Rhode Island Revolutionary War general that draws substantially on The Papers of General Nathm1ael Gree11c, the 13-volume series sp Eric G. G rundser., cd., Forgotten Patriots: African American and American Indian Service in the Revolutionary War (Washington, D.C.: National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, 2008). This extensive reference work (872 pagcs)-a greatly expanded second edition of a volume chat originally appeared in 2001-contains a 64-pagc chapter on Rhode Island. Scott Molloy, Irish Titan, irish Toilers: Joseph Banig11n and Nineteenth-Century New Engla11d Labclr (Durham: University of N ew Hampshire Press, 2008, published by University Press of New England, Hanover, N.H.). A biography of the n ineteenth-century Rhode Island inventor and entrepreneur, Joseph Banigan. Banigan's story is sec within rhe larger framework of che history of rhe Irish in nineteenth-century Rhode Island. Eugenia Poulin, ed., T.o~~ Gazette Franfoise, 1780-1781 (Salve Regina University Press in association with the University Press of New England, 2007), translated and annotated by Claire Quintal. A translation, with commentary, of a newspaper primed in Newport from November 17, 1780, to January 2, J781, by and for French troops who were occupying the city. Rockwell Stensrud, Newport: A Lively F!xpcrim ent, J 639-1 969 (Newport: Redwood Library and Arhanaeum, 2007). A comprehensive illustrated history of Newport. Bryant E Tolles Jr. Summer by the Seaside: The Architecture of New F.ngl John Torgan and Richard Benjamin. Narragan se tt Bay (Beverly, Mass.: Commonwealth Editions, 2008). A photographic essay and commentary on Narragansett Bay, with photographs by Richard Benjamin and text by John Torgan. Index Brown Univ.rsity St rhe College Edifice: Buildi11g Flruwo1 University's Corvs: 1-'ouo· Photogr~phs from~ Moment of G loq·:· Uniwrsity H ~ll in 1770."35·4S; 81 23-32,53 Aldrich, Ndson, 53 Butler Hospital (Providence), 7 Alger inc l~w. 60,69 Allen, Cwvfoni. 63 <.:Od<'t Armory (Providence). 63 Allen, George 1'., 66 c~me ron. tlill, 7 1 Allen, Za..:h~riah, 63-64, 66, 67, 68 c~rbone, Gerald M., 8J American Medical J\,,.xiarion, S, 11.14, 15 Carrington, F.,h.,ard. 66- Ames, S•mud, 63, 64, 67-68, 71 c~tholics, 9, 15 Andrew.,, Zcphani•h, 40 Ccnu-.U l'alls, 8 At1gell, Hope, <10 Ch~pin. Clwb V., 5-6 Atmapolis, Md., 26 Chappell, IIiram, 73 And1onr, Burrington, 60 Chatter of ) (>63, Rbo.t e (,J.,nd , 59,76 Amhony, Henry B., 53 Chattanooga, Tern>., battle at, 23 Antie-tam, b~tt!e. at, 23 Chcp~chet {Gioccsrer), 73, 7S Amisult"o~gists, 9 Child health, - n,e Shepp.1rd-Townor Matemiry and Army o fNortherol Virginia (Civil War), 27 lnfat\(y Ar.t and Its Reception in R.hode Island;' 3-21 Army of rhc Potomac (Civil W~r), 21, 24, 27-28 Child H)•giene, Providence Divisioo\ of, 5 Arnold, Eli: Arsenal. stare ( Providence), "A Call to Arms: Thonoas Children's L.1w Commission, Rhode b land, 10 Wil~on Dorr's Forceful Elforr to Tmple.mr.nt the Chiropractors, I I Pe.:.ple'$ Constitution;· S9-80 Civil Volar, "Aonbrusc Burnsidc and the Ninth Corps: f-our Photograph• fmm a Moment of G lory," 23-32; 49. 50 F\~nigan, joseph. 81 Clarke,Jolll> H .,l'l6-67 Bankhead, James, 62 Clinton, H enry, 47 Baptists, 36, 42 Coa~rers Harbor r, J~n d, SO, 52, 53, 54 Benjamin, Kichard, 81 Cold Harbor, v~ .. battle at, 27 Heringer, john f.un{ois, 63 College Edi6ce, tlrmvn Uoliversiry, "Slave J. ;ohor .It .H bcks, 23.26-27, 28: "Slave Labor at the College Edifict: rhe \.olkge lidili ~ e: Building Brown Oniversiry's Building Brown Ut>iversity's Uniwrsity Hall in Universit)' Hall in 1770;'35-4'5 1770; 35-4S; 81 Condon, Fran,·i$, !i, 9, 10, 12 Bladensburg. Md.. 26 Cong~css, U.S., 3, 5, 8, 10,14, 23, 26, 30, 48, 49, 50, Blake, G(orgc, SO 52-53, '54 Blodger, leonard, 67, 71,72 Con.titurioolal amcndmenrs, U.S., 4, ] S llt•clies P.>liuc: N~gotuoti"g R11a ;, tiJ< Amuicn " Nol'ciJ, Co~" "• Abrah~on. 60 1730·1830 (Sweet), 3S Crar~ r, Batrle. of rhe, 2B, 29 Booth, John Wilke..s, 2H Currie. Se:III (?), 40 Boston, 47, 48.49 Bradford Coaling Stotinn (Portsmouth), 54 D~ughtcrs of rhe American Revolution, 1 S Br.,dy. M•thcw, 23-24, 2S-26, 28-29, 30 De Grasse, rr~~ois Joscph Paul, 48 Bristol. 12, 66 Democratic P~ny and Democrats, 3, S, S, 9- I 0 Orown University, "Sl~vc Labor "' the College Edifice: D eWolf, 1-hl.cy, 11 Building Brown University's Uni\'U$iry H.1U in Dex\ er, lih<:ncur Knigh\, 68 1770:' 35·45; 6S Dcxtc.r Training (jrounds (ProvidctK~). 68 Brown Uni>·crsiry Libr.uy's c~mcr for Digital Initiati,•cs, 42 Digit:U Initiatives, i{mwt> University Libr~ry's C:colter fno-.42 INOBX 83 Dispe~u .John S., 72 Hoclges, Almond, 65 l)orr, Sullivan, Jr., 63.67 Hooker, Jmcph ·Fighting Ju.-,• 2-1 !)orr, Sullivan, Sr., 63, 67, 68 Hopkins, Samue.l, '12 Dorr, Thomas Wil Anns: 1hom>G Wilson Don-:~ Forceful 1\ffim to Hocds, New England cu•sral rcsnrr, l!l Cmp[ement rhc People's Con,titution," 59 -!!0 House of Rcpresent;,tivcs, Rhocle Island, 6, 8. 9·10, 12 Dorr Libn~tion Society, 76 House of Represenratives, U.S .. H, I U Dwiu, Patrick, 36, 37 Hmnphrcys.joshua, 4S Dyer, Eli$h.1 , 66 Indentured suvants, 3'5, 39 brk Willi om. 39, 40 Indian.~. Amerkan, 35, 42, 81 E.1st Gree>>wich, 14, 29, 66 Irr)Wwre ofStor J>owu "f"'" History, 1660-1783. Th• Em len, Rohcrt P., ''Slave /.ohor at rh~ College Edifice: (Mahan), 54 I\uilcling Brown University's University H:ill in Irish, 9, 37, 81 177o;· 3S-4S Iri;S, Fiwn, Irish Toiler;: ]osrpl> l!tlllig.m mul Niii Dorr'$ Purccful Effi.>rt to Implement the People's Constitution;' 59-80 JeffCrsun, TI1omas, 48 John C.ancr Brown Library. 42 r~nni11g. A. C. W., 61·62 Johnson, Andrew, 28 f.crrero, Edword, 27, 28 Johnson, Rcverdy, 51 f.irs< Light Infantry Company, 67, 68 f.im Rhocle Island Rcgimr.nt (Civil Wao·), 21, 28 Kf-"my, Philip, 24 rirst Wodd War, 7 Kentish Guards, 66 rlynn, William, 9 King, Samuel Ward, 59. 61. 63, 65, 66, 67, 74 l'orgotfrll Patriots: Afriam Jlm fr~nklin, Asa, 40 Lathmp,Julia, 5·6 fredmcksburg. bottle at, 23 League nf Women Voter~. 4 1-'reeman, W. G., 62 Ledlie,Jamc.~. 28 hench Revolution, 65 Lee., Robert E., 27,28 hies's R~bdlion, 65 Lincoln, Ahr~harn, 23, 26, 27. 28, 29 hochingh:un. Harriet A .. 8-9 Lucc, Srcphcn B., ·Rar Adnoiral Srcphcrl B. Lur.c, U.S.N.. and the Coming of the Navy ro Narr~gamett Bay." 47-56 Gainer, Joseph. 6 Luther, Seth, 65 Galbtin, Albcrr. 48 Gardiner, Elizaberh, 6-7, 8, 11·1 2, 14, 15 Mahan, Alfred Th~ycr, 54 Gazett (~n~ral Assembly Marin~ C.orps of Artillery. 63. 68 Gl Goat !. Grim~s.James W .. SO, 51 Ma Huding. w~rrcn, 4-5, 8 M,-ckcl RichArd, 4 Hath:tiVay, Jnshua, 7tl M~dk:1l Women's N;trion.>l Association, 11 HiJI~fJ' •!( Hnm•ll Urriv...->iiJ' (Guild), 42 tvldville, Gcnrgc, 47 84 INDBX Michel, Sonya, 4 Pawrucker, 62, 69, 72 Ming, Alexander, 60 Payne, Matthew M., 62 Mingo, William, 37, 38-39, 42 Peartt, Duree, 65 Molloy. Scott, 81 Peck , f.~dcriclc, S, 9 Muncy, Robyn, 11 People'., Constitution, 59, 60, 67, 69, 74 People'• Constitutional Convention, 60 Narragansett Bay, "Rear Admiral Stephen fl. Luce, U.S.N., Peoplc'•lcgislature, 64, 73, 74.75 .md the Coming nf ~Navy to Narrag:msctt Bay; 47-56 Perry, Matthew C., 50 Narrt~gansett Bay (Torgan a.nd Benjamin), !II Per.er.hurg, Va .• battle or, 27 Narragansett Indians, 35 Porrer, David Dixon, 51-52, 53 Nt~rht~uad Gruuc (Carbone). 81 Pommourh, N.H., 48 National Cadets, 63, 68 Purrsmoud1, R.I., 54 National Congrus of Morher& and Parent-Teacher Pothier, Arant, 10 Associ~ non•, 4 Potter, Roger, 59-60 National Consumcrs'lcague. 4 Poulin, Eugenia. 81 Native Americ:m.•, 35, 42, 81 Pro.idence, 3. 5-6, 7, 10, 14;"Siave Ltbor ar rhc: College Naval Academy. U.S., 49-51. 52 Edi(ICe: Building Brown University's Univcr$ity Hall Naval Apprentice Sy.~tcm, 50, 52 in 1770:'35-45; 49;"A Call to Arms: 'lhomas Wilsott Naval lnstirute, United SLates, SO Dorr's Forcefull.iffi>rr to Implement rhe People's Naval Torpedo Statinn (Newport), 51-52 Cunnttutxm: 59-80 Naval Training Statinn (Newporr}, 50, 52-53,54 Providence Counry !:'Mill Bureau, 14 Naval War College, SO, 51, S'3-5il, 55 Providen'e District Nu rsing Asso,iation, 5 Navy, U.S.,"Rear Admiral Srephert B. Luce, U.S.N., and Providence Divisiort of Child Hrgiene, 5 rhc Coming of thr Navy ro Narr:tgansctt Bar; 47-56 Pro~idr11rt &pJY5S (newspaper), 62 New Age mtd Comtitu1Jo11al Advoce~tr (Providence Pro~in Nim l.nwycrs' Opittiou, 'Jhe (DoCT CL al.), 60 Re.volutionory War, 47-48, 63, 6S, ill Ninth \.orps (Civil War), "Am bco.~e Burnside and the: Rhode bland charter of 1663, 59, 76 Ninth \.orps: Four l-'hotographs from a Moment of Rhod~ Island Division of Child Wdfm~. 4, S, 6. 8, 10, J I, Glury;' 2'l-32 12· 13. 14, l'i NortiJ Caroliua, llSS, 50 Rhode Jsland General Assembly, 3-4, 6, 7, 8, 9-11, 12, 13, North Cuolina E~dition and the Ninth Ac·my Corps, 60,67,76 Society of the., 30 Rhode hland Medical ~ociecy, 11 Noyes, Boutelle, 53 Rhude Island State Board of Hc~lrlt, 3-4. 5. 6, 7, J J, 12 Rhode Island Stare fed~t:~tion of Women's Cluh•, 6, 10 Oaks, Able, 65 Richards, Byron, 6 O'Mcara.john.1J Roanoke Isl~nd, N.C. battle at, 23 O'Neill. Isabelle Ah c~rn, 10 Robertson, Alice, 8, HI Rochambeau,jean Bapti•tc de, 47-48 Pager. Henry, 37-38,40.41.42-43 Rodney. George, 47 Pagett, Pero, 37,38-39. 41.42-43 Rooscvtlt, franklin D., S4 Pagett, Sylvia, 4 'l Roosev~lt, 'J hcodorc, S4 Parke, John, 23 Rose Milk Flill for lnfanrs. 10 Rusen, Robyn, 4 Torgan.John, 81 Rose nktan<~. B.arbar~. 9 Towner, Horace, 3. 5 Tyler, .John, 59,61. 62, 65, 67,69 St. John'• Church, Providence, 38 S:~.raroga, 6 mle of. 63 UnircJ lndepcndenr Company of Volunteers (Dorr SramaHship (Luce), 50 Rebellion), 63 Senate, Rhode Isl~nd . 10 United S cares Child ren's Bureau, 4, 5, 6, 7. II, 14-15 ~nare, U.S., 8, 50 United &.res Congress, 1, 5. 8, 10, I4, 21, 26, 30 Sh~ys's Rci>dlion, 65 United States con.•ritutional ~mendntenrs, 4, 15 Sheppanl. Morris, 3, 5 United $<:{res Navallnsdtute, 50 Sheppard-Towner Act, "1 he Sheppard-Towner United Scares Public Hralch Sen•ic c, 5 Maternity and fnfancy Act and Tts Reception in Unired Tr:lin of Artillery, 63, 69 Rhode Island." 3·21 Sbmm. Levi ()., 60·61, 74 Van Zandr. Charlc.< C .. 53 Slavery,"Sbvc Labor at the Collrg.- F.difice: Building Vort Wahl de. Urb.n C.,•Ambrose Burnside and rhe Rmwn University's University H all in 1770;' 35-45 Ninth Corps: f.o ur Photographs from a Mo ment of Sl.avcry and Jurtice, Brown University Steering Glory; 23-32 Commrttus conflicting report< Rrporr, 659. regording rh e si2e and nature of D<> r r:~ welcoming parry in Pro•idence.'fhe actual 13. '1he letter was reprinted in rhe Prot•i,lc,cc number of supporte.:• was somewhcn! Dtrily Jauru,r/ on Apr. IS. 1842. between 1.200 and 3,000, while the 14. Burke:< Rcpcm. 55. number of men under arms reon>iM less 15. W G. Fteem>n toM. M. 1-'~yne, 1\pr. 25 de~r. The number' cited in my t