After vote, Rhode Island to begin inventory of all state buildings that display word 'Plantations'
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — So what now for the smallest state with the longest name no more?
Well, a concrete facial, of sorts.
A day after voters chose to strike from the state's official name "and Providence Plantations," the state Department of Administration said work would begin on an inventory of all places "where 'and Providence Plantations' is inscribed or otherwise permanently placed on state property."
For starters, the centuries-old moniker appears on the marble facade of the State House, the outside of the old Registry of Motor Vehicles building across Smith Street and the bronze state seal on the floor of the State House rotunda.
The inventory will be done over the next few months by the Division of Capital Asset Management & Maintenance, said Department of Administration spokesman Robert Dulski, "so we can take the necessary steps for removal."
In June, Gov. Gina Raimondo signed an executive order removing the word plantations from future executive orders, citations, and the governor's office website.
It also instructed agencies under the governor's control to remove the word from their websites and letterhead and replace it with an alternative state seal.
With passage of Question 1 on Tuesday, the attention will turn to bigger things, literally.
State Rep. Anastasia Williams, who advocated for the name change, said the state will have to be conscious of the cost of removing the words from state buildings — but remove them it must.
"We are going to be very practical about the matter, but we want to be very clear about the matter as well," she said Wednesday.
_The Providence Journal (Providence, R.I.)
