PROVIDENCE, RI -- One of the most historic moments in state history will come to life at Tollgate High School this Tuesday when Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis visits Tuesday to mark “R.I. History Month.”
Students are expected to pack the school’s auditorium for a voter registration drive and the opportunity to see the 238-year-old proclamation from Royal Governor William Wanton, which put a bounty of “ONE HUNDRED ENGLISH POUNDS” on the heads of the colonists who burned the British warship Gaspee in Narragansett Bay on the night of June 9, 1772.
Mollis will talk with students about the significance of the historic document and the importance of learning lessons from Rhode Island’s history. The stop at Tollgate High School is part of a plan to get more young people to the polls in 2012. Mollis plans to register voters at every Rhode Island high school and college leading up to the 2012 elections.
WHEN AND WHERE: Tuesday, May 24, 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., Tollgate High School, 575 Centerville Rd., Warwick
HIGHLIGHTS: See the historic proclamation from 1772. Talk with students about their reactions to this piece of Rhode Island history. Ask students why registering to vote is so important. Listen as students talk with Mollis about the importance of voting and serving their community.
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MEDIA CONTACT: Chris Barnett at 222-4293 or cbarnett@sos.ri.gov