The Cabinet

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Record 1 of 1

Accessibility:
Title:
  • First Light Infantry Company Records
Author/Creator:
  • United States. Army. Rhode Island Infantry Regiment, 1st (1818)
Call Number:
  • MSS 673, Sub Group 5
Record Level:
  • Subgroup
Physical Description:
  • 5 ft.
  • 3 RB, 2 AB, 6 vol., 1 OF in LB
Inclusive Dates:
  • 1818-1952
Bulk Dates:
  • 1818-1952
Cataloged By:
  • Rick Stattler, September 1997
Summary:
  • Militia company, Providence, R.I.

  • Minutes, membership records, treasurer's accounts, historical material and order books.

Historical Note:
  • The First Light Infantry Company was formed in 1818 as a state militia company based in Providence, R.I., and was affiliated with the Second Regiment of the Rhode Island militia. It became the First Light Infantry Regiment in 1863. In 1879, Infantry Hall was built by the regiment's Infantry Building Association on South Main Street. When this building was torn down in 1952, a time capsule was found in the cornerstone, the contents of which have been added to this collection. Like most militia units, the regiment never saw active duty, and frequently resembled a social club more than a military regiment. However, it did play an important role in providing trained soldiers when circumstances required. It helped suppress the Olney's Lane riots in 1831, and the Dorr Rebellion in 1842. Many of its members served in the Civil War in Companies C and D of the First Regiment, Rhode Island Detached Militia. Similarly, many of its members served in the Spanish-American War in 1898.
Bibliographic References:
  • NUCMC 1973
Subjects:
Accession Number:
  • 1926.6.1-
  • 1944.65.1.1-
  • 1967.85.3
  • 1968.106
  • 1969.36.1-5
  • 1972.70.3.1-
  • 1978.8.13
Provenance:
  • Many of these records were donated by Nino Scotti in 1972. Another substantial portion was donated by Mrs. John W. DeWolf in 1926. Smaller portions were purchased from Frances Edwards in 1944, the Lincoln Book Shoppe in 1967, and Nino Scotti in 1969. The photocopy of the 1861 roll was donated in 1968 by Prof. Robert George, who made it from the original at the Infantry's offices in Cranston, R.I. The provenance of some items is unknown.
Inventory:
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