I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 363 

To award a Congressional gold medal, collectively, to the First Rhode Island 

Regiment, in recognition of their dedicated service during the Revolutionary War. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 14, 2015 

Mr. CICILLINE (for himself, Mr. BECERRA, Ms. BORDALLO, Mr. 

BUTTERFIELD, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Mr. COSTA, Ms. EDWARDS, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. MEEKS, Mr. POLIQUIN, Mr. 

RANGEL, and Ms. SEWELL of Alabama) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on House Administration, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 

provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To award a Congressional gold medal, collectively, to the 

First Rhode Island Regiment, in recognition of their 

dedicated service during the Revolutionary War. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘First Rhode Island 

5 Regiment Congressional Gold Medal Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress makes the following findings: 

3 (1) During the winter of Valley Forge, from 

4 1777–1778, the Continental Army had difficulty re5 cruiting the necessary quotas of men set by the Con6 gress. 

7 (2) At the same time, the State of Rhode Island 

8 was ordered to supply two battalions while faced 

9 with the occupation of the City of Newport by the 

10 British. 

11 (3) In January 1778, at the urging of Brigadier 

12 General James Varnum, General George Washington 

13 wrote to Governor Nicholas Cooke of the State of 

14 Rhode Island requesting assistance recruiting men 

15 for the Continental Line. 

16 (4) On February 14, 1778, the Rhode Island 

17 General Assembly voted to allow the enlistment of 

18 ‘‘every able-bodied negro, mulatto, or Indian man 

19 slave’’. 

20 (5) In addition, the Rhode Island General As21 sembly provided that any enlisted slave ‘‘upon his 

22 passing muster before Colonel Christopher Greene, 

23 be immediately discharged from the service of his 

24 master or mistress, and be absolutely free as though 

25 he had never been incumbered and be incumbered 

26 with any kind of servitude or slavery.’’. 


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1 (6) As a result, between February 1778 and 

2 June 1778, Colonel Christopher Greene, Lt. Colonel 

3 Jeremiah Olney and Major Samuel Ward recruited 

4 almost 200 men of African and Native American de5 scent who formed the core of the First Rhode Island 

6 Regiment. 

7 (7) The First Rhode Island Regiment became 

8 among the first units in American History in which 

9 men of every race and ethnicity were recruited to 

10 serve. 

11 (8) On August 28, 1778, at the Battle of 

12 Rhode Island, following an attempted siege of Brit13 ish-occupied Newport along with the newly allied 

14 French fleet, the First Rhode Island Regiment acted 

15 heroically in holding back Hessian forces and caus16 ing them to retreat. 

17 (9) During the Battle of Rhode Island, the 

18 First Rhode Island Regiment’s losses included three 

19 killed, nine wounded and eleven missing soldiers. 

20 (10) For an additional 5 years, the First Rhode 

21 Island Regiment fought bravely to win American 

22 independence including at Fort Oswego, Saratoga, 

23 and Yorktown. 

24 (11) On June 13, 1783, at Saratoga, the First 

25 Rhode Island Regiment was demobilized. 


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1 (12) Their commander, Colonel Jeremiah 

2 Olney, praised the Regiment for ‘‘faithfully pre3 serving in the best of causes, in every stage of serv4 ice, with unexampled fortitude and patience through 

5 all the danger and toils of a long and severe war’’. 

6 (13) Afterwards, some veterans of the First 

7 Rhode Island Regiment had to consistently resist ef8 forts at re-enslavement and fought for back wages 

9 from the Rhode Island General Assembly. 

10 (14) According to the Rhode Island State Ar11 chives, the First Rhode Island Regiment included at 

12 least the following soldiers: Babcock, Priamus (Pri13 mus); Bent, Prince; Bours, Cato; Brown, Priamus 

14 (Primus); Burk, Africa; Burroughs, John; Car15 penter, Cudgo; Champlin, Dick; Champlin, Jack; 

16 Champlin, July; Champlin, Newport; Champlin, 

17 Sharper; Champlin, York; Clark, James; 

18 Coddington, Jack; Fones, Jack; Gardner, Cuff; 

19 Gardner, Hercules; Gardner, Minkl; Gardner, 

20 Preamus (Primus); Gardner, Rutter; Gray, Ebe21 nezer; Green, Cuff; Greene, Cato; Greene, Jack; 

22 Greene, Pero; Greene, William; Hammond, Prince; 

23 Harriss, Cesar; Hazard, Backus; Hazard, Jabin; 

24 Hazard, Jacob; Hazard, Peter; Hazard, Peter; 

25 Lefavour, Thom; Mason, Warsen; Mawney, Cyrus; 


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1 Minturn, Jack; Mowrey, Pero; Nichols, Thomas; 

2 Perry, Ganset; Phillips, Philow; Pierce, Titus; Pot3 ter, David; Randall, Prince; Rhodes, Bristol; Rhodes, 

4 Priamus; Rhodes, Richard; Rhodes, Samuel; Rich5 mond, Ebenezer; Robinson, Mingo; Rodman, Isaac; 

6 Rodman, Mingo; Rodman, Prince; Rose, Cesar; 

7 Saltonstall, Brittain; Saunders, Sampson; Sheldon, 

8 Cesar; Slave; Slave; Smith, Juba; Sweeling, Query; 

9 Talbot, Sigby; Tanner, Quam; Tillinghast, Cuff; 

10 Updike, Cesar; Updike, Moses; Vaughan, Prince; 

11 Vernon, Cato; Watson, Fortune; Wells, Cesar; 

12 Wickes, Nat; and Willbour, Boston. 

13 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

14 (a) AWARD AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of the 

15 House of Representatives and the President pro tempore 

16 of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the 

17 award, on behalf of the Congress, of a single gold medal 

18 of appropriate design to the First Rhode Island Regiment, 

19 collectively in recognition of their dedicated service during 

20 the Revolutionary War. 

21 (b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purposes of the 

22 award referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the 

23 Treasury (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Sec24 retary’’) shall strike the gold medal with suitable emblems, 


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1 devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Sec2 retary. 

3 (c) SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the 

5 gold medal in honor of the First Rhode Island Regi6 ment of the Revolutionary War under subsection (a), 

7 the gold medal shall be given to the Smithsonian In8 stitution, where it will be displayed as appropriate 

9 and made available for research. 

10 (2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 

11 Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should 

12 make the gold medal received under paragraph (1) 

13 available for display elsewhere, particularly at other 

14 appropriate locations associated with the First 

15 Rhode Island Regiment of the Revolutionary War. 

16 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

17 Under such regulations as the Secretary may pre18 scribe, the Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

19 bronze of the gold medal struck under section 3, at a price 

20 sufficient to cover the costs of the medals, including labor, 

21 materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses. 

22 SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS. 

23 (a) NATIONAL MEDALS.—Medals struck pursuant to 

24 this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 

25 of title 31, United States Code. 


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1 (b) NUMISMATIC ITEMS.—For purposes of section 

2 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck 

3 under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items. 

Æ 


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