Rhode Island Residents Get Free Admission To Loeb Visitors Center

NEWPORT, RI —The Ambassador John L. Loeb Jr. Visitor Center at the Touro Synagogue is marking its 10th anniversary this year. To celebrate, Rhode Island residents are invited to visit the center for free, now through Dec. 31. The Loeb Visitor Center, a historic site in Newport, tells a story of religious liberty and and tolerance, according to the center's officials.

At the core of the center's exhibits is former President George Washington's 1790 letter to the Hebrew Congregation of Newport, which worshiped at the Touro Synagogue. The synagogue is the nation's oldest, was dedicated in 1763. And in his letter, Washington promised that the U.S. government would give "to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance."

Those who visit the center tend to learn how religious liberty and separation between church and state in colonial America originated in Rhode Island. The movement, unique to the world at that time, set the stage for the adoption of America's Bill of Rights, adopted and ratified in 1791.

The Loeb Visitors Center is also a gateway to guided tours of the Touro Synagogue, welcoming about 15,000 guests each year. Many of the guests hail from outside of Rhode Island or from overseas.

Now through the end of the year, Rhode Island residents will be able to visit the historical site for free. Those who are unable to visit the center are invited to take a virtual tour.

The Loeb Visitors Center was built by the George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom. Loeb, the institute's founder, has made available a limited number of Melvin I. Urofsky's prize-winning book, A Genesis of Religious Freedom: The Story of the Jews of Newport, RI and Touro Synagogue, available for free, including shipping.

To request a copy of the book, email with "Book Request" in the subject line to info@gwirf.org and include your name, address and phone number. To request the book by mail, write to The George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom, P.O. Box 670, Purchase, NY, 10577.

The George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom is a nonprofit organization.