I 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 6660 

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 

FEBRUARY 9, 2022 

Mr. CICILLINE (for himself, Ms. ADAMS, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Ms. BONAMICI, 

Ms. BROWN of Ohio, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Mr. CARSON, Ms. CHU, Mr. 

COHEN, Mr. COSTA, Ms. DEAN, Ms. DEGETTE, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. 

EVANS, Ms. LOIS FRANKEL of Florida, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. GARAMENDI, 

Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. JACOBS of California, Mr. KAHELE, Ms. KELLY of 

Illinois, Mr. KHANNA, Mrs. KIRKPATRICK, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. LIEU, Mr. 

LOWENTHAL, Mrs. LURIA, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. MCGOVERN, Ms. MOORE of 

Wisconsin, Mr. NADLER, Mr. NEAL, Ms. NORTON, Mr. PAPPAS, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. PAYNE, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. 

SUOZZI, Mr. TAKANO, and Mr. WELCH) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services 

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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

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

3 Regiment Congressional Gold Medal Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

5 Congress makes the following findings: 

6 (1) During the winter at Valley Forge, from 

7 1777–1778, the Continental Army had difficulty re8 cruiting the necessary quotas of men set by the Con9 gress. 

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

11 was ordered to supply two battalions while faced 

12 with the occupation of the City of Newport by the 

13 British. 

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

15 General James Varnum, General George Washington 

16 wrote to Governor Nicholas Cooke of the State of 

17 Rhode Island requesting assistance recruiting men 

18 for the Continental Line. 

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

20 General Assembly voted to allow the enlistment of 

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

22 slave’’. 

23 (5) In addition, the Rhode Island General As24 sembly provided that any enlisted slave ‘‘upon his 

25 passing muster before Colonel Christopher Greene, 

26 be immediately discharged from the service of his 


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1 master or mistress, and be absolutely free as though 

2 he had never been incumbered and be incumbered 

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

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

5 June 1778, Colonel Christopher Greene, Lt. Colonel 

6 Jeremiah Olney and Major Samuel Ward recruited 

7 almost 200 men of African heritage and Indigenous 

8 descent who formed the core of the First Rhode Is9 land Regiment. 

10 (7) The First Rhode Island Regiment became 

11 among the first units in American History in which 

12 men of every race and ethnicity were recruited to 

13 serve. 

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

15 Rhode Island, following an attempted siege of Brit16 ish-occupied Newport along with the newly allied 

17 French fleet, the First Rhode Island Regiment acted 

18 heroically in holding back Hessian forces and caus19 ing them to retreat. 

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

21 First Rhode Island Regiment’s losses included three 

22 killed, nine wounded and eleven missing soldiers. 

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

24 Island Regiment fought bravely to win American 


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1 independence including at Fort Oswego, Saratoga, 

2 and Yorktown. 

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

4 Rhode Island Regiment was demobilized. 

5 (12) Their commander, Colonel Jeremiah 

6 Olney, praised the Regiment for ‘‘faithfully pre7 serving in the best of causes, in every stage of serv8 ice, with unexampled fortitude and patience through 

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

10 (13) Afterwards, some veterans of the First 

11 Rhode Island Regiment had to consistently resist ef12 forts at re-enslavement and fought for back wages 

13 from the Rhode Island General Assembly. 

14 (14) According to the Rhode Island State Ar15 chives, the First Rhode Island Regiment included at 

16 least the following soldiers: Babcock, Priamus (Pri17 mus); Bent, Prince; Bours, Cato; Brown, Priamus 

18 (Primus); Burk, Africa; Burroughs, John; Car19 penter, Cudgo; Champlin, Dick; Champlin, Jack; 

20 Champlin, July; Champlin, Newport; Champlin, 

21 Sharper; Champlin, York; Clark, James; 

22 Coddington, Jack; Fones, Jack; Gardner, Cuff; 

23 Gardner, Hercules; Gardner, Minkl; Gardner, 

24 Preamus (Primus); Gardner, Rutter; Gray, Ebe25 nezer; Green, Cuff; Greene, Cato; Greene, Jack; 


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1 Greene, Pero; Greene, William; Hammond, Prince; 

2 Harriss, Cesar; Hazard, Backus; Hazard, Jabin; 

3 Hazard, Jacob; Hazard, Peter; Hazard, Peter; 

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

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

6 Perry, Ganset; Phillips, Philow; Pierce, Titus; Pot7 ter, David; Randall, Prince; Rhodes, Bristol; Rhodes, 

8 Priamus; Rhodes, Richard; Rhodes, Samuel; Rich9 mond, Ebenezer; Robinson, Mingo; Rodman, Isaac; 

10 Rodman, Mingo; Rodman, Prince; Rose, Cesar; 

11 Saltonstall, Brittain; Saunders, Sampson; Sheldon, 

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

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

14 Updike, Cesar; Updike, Moses; Vaughan, Prince; 

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

16 Wickes, Nat; and Willbour, Boston. 

17 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

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

19 House of Representatives and the President pro tempore 

20 of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the 

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

22 of appropriate design to the First Rhode Island Regiment, 

23 collectively in recognition of their dedicated service during 

24 the Revolutionary War. 


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

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

3 Treasury (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Sec4 retary’’) shall strike the gold medal with suitable emblems, 

5 devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Sec6 retary. 

7 (c) RHODE ISLAND STATE LIBRARY.— 

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

9 gold medal in honor of the First Rhode Island Regi10 ment of the Revolutionary War under subsection (a), 

11 the gold medal shall be given to the Rhode Island 

12 State Library, where it will be displayed as appro13 priate and made available for research. 

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

15 Congress that the Rhode Island State Library 

16 should make the gold medal received under para17 graph (1) available for display elsewhere, particu18 larly at other appropriate locations associated with 

19 the First Rhode Island Regiment of the Revolu20 tionary War. 

21 SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

22 Under such regulations as the Secretary may pre23 scribe, the Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in 

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


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

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

3 SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS. 

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

5 this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 

6 of title 31, United States Code. 

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

8 5134 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck 

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

10 SEC. 6. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF 

11 SALE. 

12 (a) AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS.—There is 

13 authorized to be charged against the United States Mint 

14 Public Enterprise Fund such amounts as may be nec15 essary to pay for the costs of the medals struck under 

16 this Act. 

17 (b) PROCEEDS OF SALE.—Amounts received from the 

18 sale of duplicate bronze medals authorized under section 

19 4 shall be deposited into the United States Mint Public 

20 Enterprise Fund. 

Æ 


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