About

Project History

The Dorr Rebellion project was conceived by Dr. Erik Chaput and Christiane Marie Landry in April of 2010. The project site was launched in September of 2011 with an aim to develop an authoritative online educational resource on the Dorr Rebellion and to engage in new forms of discourse. The site currently includes a short-form documentary, a gallery of select images, lesson plans, a database of select letters to and from Thomas Wilson Dorr, and links to articles, educational materials, and Dorr-related events. It is the intent of the developers to expand the content over time to further elucidate the historical event.

Biographies

Headshot of Dr. Erik J. Chaput.

Erik J. Chaput

Erik J. Chaput, Ph.D., teaches American history in the School of Continuing Education at Providence College and at Western Reserve Academy in Ohio. He is the author of The People’s Martyr: Thomas Wilson Dorr and His 1842 Rhode Island Rebellion (University Press of Kansas, 2013). He is a contributor to Small State Big History and has written for numerous academic journals, including Rhode Island HistoryThe New England Quarterly, and Commonplace

Contact: echaput@providence.edu

Headshot of Mr. Russel DeSimone.

Russell J. DeSimone

Russell J. DeSimone is an independent scholar. He is the compiler of Broadsides of the Dorr Rebellion (1992), and author of The Dorr Rebellion Chronicled in Ballads and Poetry (1993), A Survey of Nineteenth Century Rhode Island Billheads (2002), Rhode Island Election Tickets: a Survey (2007), Rhode Island’s Rebellion (2009) and Remarkable Women of Rhode Island (2014). As a native Rhode Islander he has been a lifelong student of its history having written numerous articles about it. Now retired from both the defense industry and as an adjunct professor at the University of Rhode Island library where he curated numerous exhibitions drawn mainly from his collecting interest including “A Survey of 19th Century Rhode Island Billheads”, “Rhode Island Lotteries – Three Centuries of History”, “Voting and the Spirit of Democracy”, “Picturesque Rhode Island” and in 2005 “Thomas Wilson Dorr – A Bicentennial Birthday Tribute”.

Contact: russbook1@cox.net

Production and Maintenance

The Dorr Rebellion project is the resulting collaboration of the Phillips Memorial Library (Providence College)Dr. Erik Chaput and Mr. Russell DeSimone.

Partners

John Hay Library, Brown University
Finding Aid to the Thomas Wilson Dorr Papers, Brown Archival & Manuscript Collections
Rhode Island Historical Society
Rhode Island School of Design Museum

Terms of Use

The Thomas Wilson Dorr Web site was developed for non-commercial educational and scholarly uses only. All uses of Web site content should provide proper site attribution. Use or display of Web site materials for purposes other than education or scholarship should be requested through dps@providence.edu. This Web site includes some materials for which Providence College does not have authority to grant permissions or which are not in the public domain. Digital Projects & Metadata (dps@providence.edu) will facilitate requests for use of these materials by providing 3rd party contact information.