[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 163 (Wednesday, October 16, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H8171-H8172]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   ELIZABETH BUFFUM CHACE POST OFFICE

  Mr. ROUDA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 2451) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 575 Dexter Street in Central Falls, Rhode Island, as 
the ``Elizabeth Buffum Chace Post Office''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2451

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. ELIZABETH BUFFUM CHACE POST OFFICE.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 575 Dexter Street in Central Falls, Rhode 
     Island, shall be known and designated as the ``Elizabeth 
     Buffum Chace Post Office''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Elizabeth Buffum Chace Post Office''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Rouda) and the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Gosar) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.


                             General Leave

  Mr. ROUDA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. ROUDA. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Cicilline).
  Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

[[Page H8172]]

  Mr. Speaker, I am honored to stand before you today to memorialize 
the remarkable life and legacy of Elizabeth Buffum Chace, a leader of 
the abolitionist and suffrage movements in Rhode Island, by naming a 
post office in her honor in the city of Central Falls.
  Born in 1806, Elizabeth Buffum Chace was raised by Quaker parents 
outspoken about their opposition to slavery, often harboring fugitive 
slaves in their home seeking refuge in Rhode Island. Elizabeth soon 
became an activist herself, passing around petitions, organizing groups 
of abolitionists, and even later opening her own home as a station in 
the Underground Railroad.
  Chace spent most of her life in Smithfield, Rhode Island, and was 
steadfast in her dedication to advancing women's rights, prison reform, 
and the abolitionist movement. She became known as the Conscience of 
Rhode Island for her passion for creating social change and her 
leadership in the face of adversity.
  During her later years, she settled down with her husband in Valley 
Falls, near the present-day city of Central Falls.
  She was committed to bettering the lives of others, serving as 
president of the Rhode Island Women's Suffrage Association, and helped 
organize a Female Anti-Slavery Society in Massachusetts. She also 
served on the Ladies' Board of Visitors to the Penal and Correctional 
Institutions of the State, which examined conditions in the State 
prison.
  Chace's tireless, lifelong activism embodies the best of Rhode 
Island's values and remains an inspiration for progress still to come.
  Elizabeth Buffum Chace continued fighting for women's rights and 
prison reform in her later years. She eventually passed away on 
December 12, 1899, and was buried in Providence, Rhode Island. Her 
legacy was memorialized in 2002, when a bronze bust of Chace was 
displayed at the Rhode Island State House, the first woman to receive 
this honor, in recognition of her extraordinary accomplishments.
  The dedication of the Central Falls Post Office will serve to 
commemorate her impact and advocacy for women, children, and 
communities of color. Her legacy lives on today through the Elizabeth 
Buffum Chace Center, founded in 1977 by the Warwick Junior League 
Women's Club to serve as a shelter offering support and services for 
women and children suffering from domestic violence.
  Rhode Island has been forever changed by Elizabeth Buffum Chace and 
her life's work creating social change. She was a legendary suffragist 
and abolitionist in the 19th century, and her importance to the State 
of Rhode Island should be honored by dedicating the Central Falls Post 
Office in her name.
  I am proud to have had the opportunity to honor such an icon as 
Elizabeth Buffum Chace. I would like to extend my gratitude for the 
support from my friend and colleague Congressman  Jim Langevin and also 
to thank the mayor of the city of Central Falls, Mayor James Diossa, 
who generated this idea, for his leadership.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
  Mr. GOSAR. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2451, introduced by my friend, 
Representative   David Cicilline. This bill names a post office located 
in Central Falls, Rhode Island, in honor of Elizabeth Buffum Chace.
  Ms. Chace was born to a Quaker family in 1806 in Providence, Rhode 
Island. She would spend her life as a civil rights activist and 
eventually be known as the Conscience of Rhode Island.
  She played a crucial role in the antislavery movement. She opened her 
home as a stop on the Underground Railroad and was a key organizer for 
the abolitionists.
  Ms. Chace was also a fierce advocate for women's rights and served as 
the president of the Rhode Island Women's Suffrage Association.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. ROUDA. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Rouda) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 2451.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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