R.I. recovers 19th-century prison ledger

PROVIDENCE – The state has successfully recovered a 19th-century prison ledger to add to the R.I. State Archives, R.I. Attorney General Peter F. Neronha and R.I. Secretary of State Nellie M. Gorbea announced Wednesday.

The book was donated by a Connecticut-based antiquarian bookseller, after reaching a resolution with the state. Under Rhode Island law, certain types of state property cannot be sold to private persons or entities, including public records of designated state agencies such as maps, documents, recordings, or other material.

The state became aware of the ledger in October, after an archivist saw the document listed for sale on the internet, the departments said. The archivist then contacted the R.I Office of the Attorney General to prepare potential actions to recover the document. The volume was donated several weeks later. 

“On its face a nearly 150-year-old ledger of state prison inmate records may not raise any eyebrows, but this document and other historical documents like it are important pieces of our state history that illuminate our understanding of our identity as Rhode Islanders,” said Neronha. “This is a unique primary source that should be available to historians and researchers to support their meaningful work. Through the help of a member of the public, we’ve been able recover a valuable piece of our history.”

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The volume is 526 pages and includes inmate incarceration records from 1888 through 1905. It will be stored at the state archives.