[Senate Hearing 110-480]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 110-480
CURRENT NATIONAL PARKS BILLS
=======================================================================
HEARING
before the
SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL PARKS
of the
COMMITTEE ON
ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED TENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
ON
S. 1633 S. 2502
S. 1993 S. 2512
S. 2207 H.R. 2197
S. 2254 H.R. 2627
S. 2262 H.R. 3332
S. 2329 H.R. 3998
__________
APRIL 9, 2008
Printed for the use of the
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
----------
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Washington, DC 20402-0001
COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES
JEFF BINGAMAN, New Mexico, Chairman
DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico
BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota LARRY E. CRAIG, Idaho
RON WYDEN, Oregon LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska
TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota RICHARD BURR, North Carolina
MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana JIM DeMINT, South Carolina
MARIA CANTWELL, Washington BOB CORKER, Tennessee
KEN SALAZAR, Colorado JOHN BARRASSO, Wyoming
ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey JEFF SESSIONS, Alabama
BLANCHE L. LINCOLN, Arkansas GORDON H. SMITH, Oregon
BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont JIM BUNNING, Kentucky
JON TESTER, Montana MEL MARTINEZ, Florida
Robert M. Simon, Staff Director
Sam E. Fowler, Chief Counsel
Frank Macchiarola, Republican Staff Director
Judith K. Pensabene, Republican Chief Counsel
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Subcommittee on National Parks
DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii, Chairman
BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota RICHARD BURR, North Carolina
MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska
KEN SALAZAR, Colorado BOB CORKER, Tennessee
ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey JOHN BARRASSO, Wyoming
BLANCHE L. LINCOLN, Arkansas JEFF SESSIONS, Alabama
BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont GORDON H. SMITH, Oregon
JON TESTER, Montana MEL MARTINEZ, Florida
Jeff Bingaman and Pete V. Domenici are Ex Officio Members of the
Subcommittee
C O N T E N T S
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STATEMENTS
Page
Akaka, Hon. Daniel K., U.S. Senator From Hawaii.................. 1
Alexander, Hon. Lamar, U.S. Senator From Tennessee............... 7
Burr, Hon. Richard, U.S. Senator From North Carolina............. 2
Corker, Hon. Bob, U.S. Senator From Tennessee.................... 8
Menendez, Hon. Robert, U.S. Senator From New Jersey.............. 9
Moe, Richard, President, The National Trust for Historic
Preservation................................................... 27
Scarlett, P. Lynn, Deputy Secretary, Department of the Interior.. 3
Stevenson, Katherine H., Acting Assistant Director, Business
Services, National Park Service, Department of the Interior.... 9
Surkamp, James T., Commissioner, Jefferson County Commission,
Charles Town, WV............................................... 24
APPENDIXES
Appendix I
Responses to additional questions................................ 39
Appendix II
Additional material submitted for the record..................... 47
CURRENT NATIONAL PARKS BILLS
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Wednesday, April 9, 2008
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee on National Parks,
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:33 p.m. in
room SD-366, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Senator
Daniel K. Akaka presiding.
OPENING STATEMENT OF DANIEL K. AKAKA, U.S. SENATOR FROM HAWAII
Senator Akaka. Good afternoon, everyone. The Subcommittee
on National Parks will come to order.
We have a long list of bills to consider today including
the following and let me describe each one.
S. 1633, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to
study the suitability and feasibility of including the
battlefield and related sites of the Battle of Shepherdstown as
part of the Harpers Ferry National Park in West Virginia or
Antietam National Battlefield in Maryland.
S. 1993 and H.R. 2197, to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to modify the boundaries of the Hopewell Culture
National Historical Park in the State of Ohio.
S. 2207, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to study
the suitability and feasibility of designating Green McAdoo
School in Clinton, Tennessee as a unit of the National Park
System.
S. 2254, to designate the Mississippi Hills National
Heritage Area in the State of Mississippi.
S. 2262, to authorize the Preserve America and Save
America's Treasures Historic Preservation Programs.
S. 2329 and H.R. 2627, to re-designate the Edison National
Historic Site in the State of New Jersey as the Thomas Edison
National Historical Park.
S. 2512, to designate the Mississippi Delta National
Heritage Area in the State of Mississippi.
H.R. 3998, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to
conduct special resource studies of several sites throughout
the country.
The final bills on agenda are S. 2502 and House companion
measure H.R. 3332 which would authorize a memorial to be
established at Kalaupapa National Historical Park in Hawaii.
For those who do not know the Kalaupapa community is
located on a remote peninsula on the Island of Molokai. For
over 100 years from 1866 to 1969, Kalaupapa was the community
where patients with Hansen's disease, also known as leprosy,
were forced to live. Many of the older patients continue to
live out their lives at Kalaupapa today.
S. 2502, which I sponsored along with Senator Inouye and
H.R. 3332, which was sponsored by Congresswoman Hirono and
Congressman Abercrombie would authorize a non-profit
organization consisting of Kalaupapa residents and their
families and friends and known as Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa to
establish a memorial at a suitable location in the park to
honor the memory of the 8,000 residents who lived at the
Kalaupapa and Kalawao communities.
The memorial has strong local support. I'm not aware of any
opposition or controversy. I hope we will be able to move the
bill through the committee quickly.
It appears that most of the other bills on the agenda today
are also not controversial. I will work with Senator Burr to
see if we can't move those forward as well with amendments
where necessary.
At this time I would like to recognize Ranking Member
Senator Burr for his opening statement.
Senator Burr.
STATEMENT OF HON. RICHARD BURR, U.S. SENATOR FROM NORTH
CAROLINA
Senator Burr. Mr. Chairman, thank you. You and I have spent
way too much time together today. Senator Akaka and I started a
hearing this morning.
I think we had just enough time for a lunch break. Now
we're back in another one. And I'm sure this one will be as
enlightening as the first hearing that we had.
Senator, I'd like to thank you for convening this. It seems
like every time we get together we've got 10 or 12 bills that
we're addressing. It is my belief that we will be able to work
out something to move a majority, if not all of the
legislation. I'd like to thank Deputy Secretary Lynn Scarlett
for being with us today.
Mr. Chairman, I'd like to highlight one bill in particular.
It's S. 2262, which would firmly establish Preserve America and
Save America's Treasures as Federal programs. The two programs
complement one another in providing support for cultural and
historic resources. Practically every State has benefited from
Preserve America and Save America's Treasures and mine has as
well. As co-sponsor of this bill I hope that we can get it
reported out of the committee as soon as we possibly can.
I'd like to thank all of our witnesses who are here today.
I pledge to the Chairman to work with him diligently to make
sure that not only we move, but we clear as many pieces of
legislation as we possibly can. I yield back.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Senator Burr. We've
been so working closely together as well as spending most of
the day in hearings today here.
We have two witnesses testifying before this committee and
they're here testifying on behalf of the Administration. Lynn
Scarlett, the Deputy Secretary of the Interior and Kate
Stevenson, the Acting Assistant Director for Business Services
of the National Park Service. Secretary Scarlett and Ms.
Stevenson, I want to welcome both of you, officially, here. We
will start with your statements on all of the bills and then
turn to questions after you have finished.
Secretary Scarlett, please proceed with your testimony.
STATEMENT OF P. LYNN SCARLETT, DEPUTY SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF
THE INTERIOR
Ms. Scarlett. Thank you very much, Senator Akaka. Thank
you, Senator Burr for your remarks. Thank you to the committee
for holding this hearing. I am pleased to present the
Department of the Interior's views on the Preserve America and
Save America's Treasures Act. I will also present views on
legislation to establish the Thomas Edison National Historical
Park and legislation to establish a memorial within Kalaupapa
National Historical Park.
The Preserve America/Save America's Treasure's Act, Senate
bill 2262, would authorize both the Preserve America and the
Save America's Treasures Programs. Since their creation,
administratively, both programs have been funded through the
annual appropriations process. The legislation would
institutionalize the Preserve America and Save America's
Treasures Program. The Administration strongly supports
enactment of Senate bill 2262.
I'd like to personally thank Senator Bingaman, Senator
Domenici, Senator Burr and Senator Clinton for co-sponsoring
this legislation and advancing it. Established in 2003, the
Preserve America initiative supports community efforts to
preserve America's cultural and natural heritage. We now have
608 Preserve America communities designated encompassing all 50
states. Preserve America supports heritage tourism, adaptive
re-use of historic and cultural resources and living history
programs that strengthen educational opportunities in history.
Today through the Grant Program we have had 184 grants
totaling nearly $13 million supporting Heritage Trails,
cultural resource inventory and mapping, Heritage Tours, some
in economic development through using historic assets. John
Nau, Chairman of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation,
who's here today, has also prepared a statement for the record
and has asked that you consider reviewing that testimony.
The legislation under consideration today also
institutionalizes the Save America's Treasures Grant Program.
The SAT Program preserves and celebrates America's historic
legacy through a grant program that funds bricks and mortars,
improvements to important cultural and historic landmarks and
historic collections. The Program has provided over 1,000
grants to date, totaling $278 million.
Dollars matched by the private sector and other support
have been put forth. This national effort created by
anExecutive Order in 1998 recognizes and protects America's
threatened cultural and historical treasures. Both of these
programs have demonstrated significant on the ground successes
in fostering preservation, partnerships, leveraging private
dollars with public funds and sustaining efficient resource
management to preserve our heritage assets.
I'd like to now turn to two other bills under consideration
today. H.R. 3332 and Senate bill 2502 direct the Secretary of
the Interior to authorize Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa, a non-profit
organization, to establish a memorial at either the Kalaupapa
settlement or Kalawao. The memorial would display the names of
the first 5,000 individuals sent to the Kalaupapa peninsula
between 1866 and 1896. It would also display the names of
approximately 3,000 individuals who arrived at Kalaupapa in the
second part of its history. Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa includes
patient residents at Kalaupapa National Historical Park and
their family members and friends.
We support the goal of remembering all that has happened at
Kalaupapa. In many respects the entire park is a memorial to
the history and injustice that occurred on the peninsula. We
applaud the purpose of this bill.
We recognize that the remaining patients and other
interested parties support a memorial to Hansen's disease
patients. The Department prefers the language in H.R. 3332 with
one minor amendment. The language clarifies the fund raising
requirements by Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa.
While both bills reference the Secretary's role in
approving the location for the memorial in the general section,
the House bill references approval of location in the approval
section of the bill. We include a proposed amendment with our
written testimony, and we would be very pleased to work with
you on the bill.
I'd like to turn to one additional bill under consideration
today and that is S. 2329 and H.R. 2627, which would re-
designate the Edison National Historic Site as the Thomas
Edison National Historic Park. We believe this re-designation
is appropriate for two reasons.
First, the term ``National Historical Park'' generally
applies to parks that extend beyond single properties or
buildings. This unit of the National Park System includes both
the laboratory in West Orange and Edison's home in nearby
Llewelyn Park, one mile away. They are two distinct units with
different interpretive themes, resource management issues and
operational challenges.
Second, with completion of the current rehabilitation
project at the laboratory complex and at Edison's home, the
unit's complexity will increase. Educational and interpretive
programs linking the laboratory and the Edison home will become
more sophisticated and are better represented, we believe, by
the term ``National Historical Park'' to reflect these non-
contiguous parcels with a shared link to Thomas Edison.
I'd like to note that the Park Service is preparing an
updated legislative map to more clearly show the exact
boundaries of the park. Once completed, the bills would need to
be amended to include this map reference. Thank you again for
the opportunity to testify on these bills, and I know Kate
Stevenson has remarks on other bills. I'd be happy to answer
any questions.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Scarlett follows:]
Prepared Statement of P. Lynn Scarlett, Deputy Secretary, Department of
the Interior
s. 2262
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, thank you for inviting
me to appear before you today to present the Department of the
Interior's views on S. 2262, the Preserve America and Save America's
Treasures Act. I would also like to thank the sponsors of the bill in
both in the Senate and the House for introducing this important
legislation. The administration strongly supports enactment of S. 2262.
The historic and cultural structures and sites in communities
throughout the country serve as the backdrop to the stories of our past
and inspire the future. To help ensure that future generations will
have the opportunity to experience our past and appreciate our identity
as communities and as a Nation, across America people are adapting
places once used in bygone eras to modern purposes, as community
attractions, places of work, and educational centers. With these
efforts, we are preserving our Nation's culture, history and identity
both for the benefit of future generations and for the enjoyment of
citizens and visitors today. Citizens in communities across America are
the engine behind this historic preservation. Through a variety of
Federal stewardship programs, these efforts have expanded and
flourished. Chief among these programs are the complementary Preserve
America and Save America's Treasures programs.
Established in 2003, Preserve America is an Administration
initiative that encourages and supports community efforts to preserve
and enjoy the country's cultural and natural heritage. Preserve America
fosters reuse and interpretation of cultural resources that form the
social, educational and economic fabric of communities. The goals of
the initiative include a greater shared knowledge about our Nation's
past, strengthened regional identities, and increased local
participation in preservation efforts.
Consider just a few examples of how communities throughout the
country are putting these grant dollars to work. In Fort Smith,
Arkansas, local leaders and organizations are developing a marketing
plan to promote the historically significant central city area to
developers, investors, business, and tourists sparked by a $47,000
Preserve America grant. Organizers in Gastonia, North Carolina are
applying a $29,500 Preserve America grant to the Preserving and
Promoting Gastonia's Heritage project. With these funds, Gastonia will
produce wayfinding signs, a walking-tour brochure and updated Gastonia
Downtown website to promote Gastonia as a heritage and cultural tourism
destination. The people of Burlington, Vermont are developing a web-
based guide to Burlington's cultural and historic resources for
travelers, planners and educators with a $94,000 Preserve America grant
to promote their unique heritage.
The Preserve America program has been well received by States and
is generating tangible preservation outcomes. For example, communities
in Colorado's southeastern plains, devastated by job loss, are looking
to heritage tourism as a means of revitalization. A $130,000 Preserve
America grant to the Colorado Historical Society (in association with
the statewide nonprofit, Colorado Preservation, Incorporated) created a
partnership among several counties to develop a regional planning and
marketing program. The effort has helped connect a host of local
historic and prehistoric sites, including the largest dinosaur track
site in North America, and fostered cooperation among federal, state,
and local officials, business owners, and non-governmental
organizations. In addition, the participating counties have been
designated as a pilot project for Colorado's newly created Heritage
Tourism Initiative. The Preserve America funding, matched by the State
of Colorado, has also leveraged additional $355,500 in financial
support from local foundations, the counties, and other entities.
Preserve America does not fund construction, rehabilitation, or
restoration of historic resources. Rather, it supports planning and
development of activities and programs in heritage tourism, adaptive
re-use, and ``living history'' programs that may be usefully replicated
across the country. Perhaps most important, it helps to provide needed
support for communities (including municipalities, urban neighborhoods,
counties, and tribal communities) to fully realize and sustain
preservation's benefits.
Six years ago, the Preserve America initiative was a concept on
paper. Today, thanks, in part, to the tremendous efforts of John Nau,
Chairman of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation and co-chair
of Preserve America, over 600 Preserve America communities representing
all 50 states enhance their historic and cultural assets through
heritage tourism, education, and preservation. Through John's
creativity, the initiative now includes a grant program to support
heritage tourism, an award program to honor outstanding partners in
historic preservation, and a national history-teacher-of-the-year
award. These accomplishments could not have occurred without John Nau's
vision, tireless focus on implementation, and ability to inspire
partners across the Nation. While we recognize that in the interest of
time Chairman Nau is not testifying before you today, the ACHP has
prepared a Statement for the Record that I urge you to also carefully
consider as you review this important legislation.
The Save America's Treasures (SAT) grant program is dedicated to
the preservation and celebration of America's priceless historic
legacy. The program also complements the planning and development
support of preservation offered by Preserve America. The SAT grant
program funds ``bricks and mortar'' improvements to important cultural
and historic landmarks and irreplaceable collections in every corner of
the country. This national effort, created by Executive Order in 1998,
recognizes and protects America's threatened cultural treasures,
including historic structures, collections, works of art, and maps and
journals that document and illuminate the history and culture of the
United States.
These competitive grants encourage sustainable historic resource
management and make these enduring symbols of the American tradition
more accessible to scholars and the public through exhibits,
traditional publications, and websites. The Save America's Treasures
grants have educated the public on preservation challenges at the
buildings, sites, monuments, objects and documents that represent
America's diverse cultural legacy and supported preservation of
historic collections and properties.
Over 1,000 Save America's Treasures matching grants have been, or
are in the process of being, awarded to Federal agencies, State, local
and tribal governments, and nonprofit institutions. Administered by the
National Park Service, grants are awarded competitively, with
individual projects only eligible for one grant, and with all grants
requiring a dollar for dollar local match.
Among the accomplishments of the Save America's Treasures grant
program is rehabilitation of the Sheridan Inn in Sheridan, Wyoming,
once leased by William F. (``Buffalo Bill'') Cody, and which served as
an audition and planning venue for many of his Wild West shows.
Numerous other notables have stayed at the Inn, including Herbert
Hoover, Ernest Hemingway, Will Rogers, and Bob Hope. The 1892 inn, a
National Historic Landmark, received a 2006 SAT grant of $400,000 from
the National Park Service's Historic Preservation Fund to correct
structural deterioration.
In 2007, the Old Mississippi State Capitol, Mississippi Department
of Archives and History, in Jackson, Mississippi received a 2007 SAT's
grant of $525,000 to restore the roof and repair water damage, both
results of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The Old Capitol is a
masterpiece of 19th-century Greek Revival architecture and is the
oldest building in Jackson.
Finally, Schooner Ernestina, in New Bedford, Massachusetts,
received a SAT's grant of $500,000 to rehabilitate the ship and return
her to sailing condition. The vessel will operate as a sailing school
and passenger ship. This National Historic Landmark ship is the oldest
surviving Grand Banks fishing schooner and one of only two surviving
19th century Gloucester-built fishing schooners.
Together, these programs generate community partnerships, economic
and educational opportunities, and the promotion of historical and
cultural tourism. Both Preserve America and Save America's Treasures
promote better coordination and, therefore, greater efficiencies in
meeting existing preservation needs. They also expand future
opportunities by allowing local stakeholders to determine which
strategies best meet their goals.
S. 2262 would authorize both the Preserve America and the Save
America's Treasures programs, making them permanent resources for
citizens and civic organizations engaged in historic preservation
activities. Since their creation, both programs have been sustained
through the annual appropriations process. However, without permanent
authorization, they lack the foundation for sustained success. Without
the ``stamp of legitimacy'' achieved by the Congressional legislative
process, both programs, despite their records of success, remain
vulnerable to termination. The legislation would institutionalize the
Preserve America and Save America Treasures programs and cement them as
permanent tools for protecting our Nation's cultural resources.
The results are clear. Both programs have demonstrated significant
on-the-ground success in fostering preservation partnerships,
leveraging private dollars with public funds, and sustaining efficient
resource management strategies and sound business practices in the
preservation of our heritage assets. These grants and designations give
citizens in communities across the country good reason to say ``Welcome
to my town!'' They provide communities greater opportunity to realize
economic development through historic preservation and the celebration
of the rich heritage and unique stories of the American experience.
Thank you again for the opportunity to testify on these programs and
this legislation. I would be happy to answer any questions.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much. Now I'd like to call on
a member of the committee, Senator Corker for any statement he
may have.
Senator Corker. Mr. Chairman, thank you. If you don't mind
I like to get along really, really well with our senior
Senator. So I might defer and let him speak first if that's ok.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much. We'll hear now from
Senator Alexander.
STATEMENT OF HON. LAMAR ALEXANDER, U.S. SENATOR FROM TENNESSEE
Senator Alexander. That's very generous of Senator Corker.
I was prepared for him to go first since he is a member of the
committee and because of his leadership on this issue. But I'm
happy to do this.
I'm here in support of S. 2207 which is the Green McAdoo
National Historic Site study, which directs the Secretary of
the Interior to study the feasibility of designating the site
of the Green McAdoo School as a unit of the National Park
System. Congressman Wamp and Congressman John Lewis, a civil
rights hero, have introduced similar legislation in the House.
Let me try to give a little personality to this Green
McAdoo School. Most of us, who are old enough, remember what
happened as school began in the year 1957. I remember it
because I was a senior in high school then.
The Supreme Court had ordered schools across America to be
segregated, and the Federal District Courts across the country
were implementing that. Desegregation was attempted at Little
Rock Central High School. Governor Orval Faubus and the
community resisted.
President Eisenhower literally had to send the paratroopers
in to make certain that the African American children could
attend Little Rock Central High School. We remember that and I
was glad to co-sponsor, with Senators Lincoln and Pryor,
legislation commemorating the 50th anniversary of that in 2007.
What we don't know as much about is what happened a year
earlier. It's a very different story. In the fall of 1956, the
Federal District Judge in Knoxville--Judge Robert Taylor, whose
grandfather and great uncle had been Governor of Tennessee, and
whose daughter, Ann Taylor is on National Public Radio
delivering the news very often--ordered the Green McAdoo School
to be integrated. Judge Taylor's order meant that the students
from Green McAdoo would be allowed to go to Clinton High
School. Clinton is the small town just outside of Knoxville
near Oak Ridge.
On August 27, 1956, 12 students from Green McAdoo School,
who became known as the Clinton Twelve, met at the school and
walked to Clinton High School, becoming the first African
American students to integrate a southern State supported
school. Now the difference between what happened in Clinton in
1956 and Little Rock in 1957 was that the judge, the Governor
and the community did what the law required them to do.
President Eisenhower didn't have to send the paratroopers into
Clinton.
There were problems. There were outside agitators. I
remember John Kasper was one of them. There was some violence
as a result of that. But the community and the students in that
school, who are now my age, said they thought it was their job
to enforce the law. They did. The Governor of Tennessee then,
Governor Frank Clement, whose son, Bob, later served in the
U.S. Congress, courageously sent in the National Guard in
September to make sure that the outside agitators were not able
to cause a problem.
So, I think it was appropriate last year to recognize the
50th anniversary of the desegregation of Little Rock Central
High School as a step forward in the progress of America's
attempt to give every student equal justice under the law. I
think it's equally or even more important to honor the story of
the Clinton Twelve and what the Clinton, Tennessee community
did a year before Little Rock because they did it earlier. They
did it without the Federal government having to send in the
paratroopers.
The citizens did what they should have done. The Governor
acted courageously in support of the local citizens. The
Clinton Twelve attended the formerly all-white school and the
first African American to graduate from a public high school in
the south was Bobby Cain in the late spring of 1957, who was
the oldest of the Clinton Twelve.
The State of Tennessee has contributed money to have
statues of each of those twelve in front of that school. I was
there not long ago. The Federal Government has spent about
three-quarters of a million dollars helping make a museum of
that.
It's a place every American should really go to in the same
way you would go to see the Underground Railroad Museum in Ohio
to learn about atrocities and discrimination and failure of
citizens in communities to live up to the goals of our country.
This is an opportunity to create a historic site to show how a
community lived up to the principle of equal opportunity in
America. So I'm glad to join Senator Corker and Congressman
Wamp and Congressman Lewis and others in support of this.
I thank the Senator for allowing me to go before him even
though he's a member of the committee and has been one of the
most active leaders for this legislation since it was first
introduced.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Senator Alexander for
your personal account and statement on this. Are there any
questions?
STATEMENT OF HON. BOB CORKER, U.S. SENATOR
FROM TENNESSEE
Senator Corker. Mr. Chairman, if I could just add a few
remarks. As Senator Alexander always does, I think he's
communicated very well about this site and the reason that we
have brought this legislation together with Members of
Congress. I have visited the site, although I haven't visited
since they completed the work.
But I think it's extraordinary that these community leaders
have come together to honor the Clinton Twelve, which has a
great deal to do with the history and certainly what occurred
during Brown vs. Board of Education in 1954 and as Clinton,
Tennessee did during those days, as Lamar just mentioned,
community leaders are showing leadership again by honoring what
occurred, which is such a historic part of what our country's
progress has been built on. The Clinton Twelve were truly
pioneers. It was amazing what they did.
I just want to, again, express hope that members of
Congress will support this legislation. I'm happy to join
Senator Alexander, Wamp and Lewis in regards to this and thank
you for letting me speak for a few minutes on behalf of this
legislation.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Senator Corker. Now
Senator Menendez for your statement.
STATEMENT OF HON. ROBERT MENENDEZ, U.S. SENATOR FROM NEW JERSEY
Senator Menendez. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Let me thank you
and the Ranking Member for holding this hearing. Particularly I
want to speak in support of the Thomas Edison National Historic
Park.
Thomas Edison is the greatest inventor in our Nation's
history. His work revolutionized our Nation's communications.
He brought us light, electricity, music and motion pictures.
The name of Edison is synonymous with the word inventor.
His legacy has inspired generations of American inventors,
scientists and engineers. His light bulb was an incandescent
symbol of our Nation's technological leadership, innovation and
progress.
One of Edison's early innovations was the very idea of an
industrial research laboratory aimed at producing and applying
knowledge. His facility in West Orange, New Jersey is a
national treasure. It is preserved in the Thomas Edison
National Historic Site, which encompasses Edison's home of 45
years, his laboratories, his offices and a vast collection of
irreplaceable artifacts and documents.
The laboratory complex is nearing the end of extensive
renovations. It is estimated that the number of visitors will
triple when it reopens. We hope that nearly 300,000 people a
year will visit this unique, historic, educational and
inspirational facility, which is why we've introduced S. 2329
with my colleague Senator Lautenberg, the lifetime innovations
of Thomas Edison or the LITE Act which will re-designate the
current National Historic Site as a National Historical Park.
This nomenclature is more consistent with the National Park
Services guidelines and reflects the many improvements and
enhancements achieved during this renovation. I believe, I
arrived a little late, but I'm sure that the Park Service
testimony is in line with it, which hopefully will make life a
little easier here on the committee. So therefore I hope our
colleagues will join us in supporting the LITE Act and our
efforts to preserve a site of enormous historical significance
to both America and for that fact, the rest of the world.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I look forward to working with
you.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Senator Menendez. Now
I'd like to call on Director Stevenson for your testimony.
STATEMENT OF KATHERINE H. STEVENSON, ACTING ASSISTANT DIRECTOR,
BUSINESS SERVICES, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE
INTERIOR
Ms. Stevenson. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you again for
the opportunity to appear before you to offer the views of the
Department of the Interior on several of the bills before you.
I would like to summarize my testimony and submit the entire
text for the record.
S. 1633 would authorize the Secretary to conduct a special
resource study for the Battle of Shepherdstown in West Virginia
as part of the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park or
Antietam National Battlefield. We support this bill. We believe
that any funding requested should be directed first to our
completing previously authorized studies.
S. 1993 would modify the boundary of Hopewell Culture
National Historical Park and would also allow acquisition of
lands only from willing sellers. We support this bill and its
House counterpart H.R. 2197.
S. 2207 would direct the Secretary to study Green McAdoo
School for its feasibility and suitability as a unit of the
National Parks System. The Department supports S. 2207 with two
technical amendments.
S. 2254 would establish the Mississippi Hills National
Heritage Area. The Department cannot support S. 2254 unless the
bill is amended to be a feasibility study for the proposed
area, as we require every potential heritage area to have such
a study. Such a study would evaluate the components of the
proposal against the interim criteria for heritage areas. The
area would need to demonstrate evidence of place based
resources that tell a nationally significant story, that has
the support and involvement of the local community, has
boundaries and has a useable business plan.
S. 2512 would establish the Mississippi Delta National
Heritage Area. Again, the Department cannot support the bill
unless the bill is amended to be a feasibility study for the
area. While there have been other studies that covered this
area, these studies did not address the criteria for national
heritage areas and covered a much larger geographic area.
H.R. 3998 directs the Secretary to conduct nine special
resource studies to determine the appropriate means for their
preservation, use and management. The Department supports the
authorization of six of the studies. The Battle of Matewan, the
Battle of Camden, the Mississippi River, Fort San Geronimo, the
Rim of the Valley, and the Butterfield Overland Trail.
The Department does not object to the authorization of a
study for the Harry S. Truman birthplace site and the Eastern
Legacy sites of Lewis and Clark trail. But the Department must
oppose authorization of the study of the Wolf House as we have
testified before.
This concludes my testimony and I would be happy to answer
any questions you might have.
[The prepared statements of Ms. Stevenson follow:]
Prepared Statement of Katherine H. Stevenson, Acting Assistant
Director, Business Services, National Park Service, Department of the
Interior
h.r. 3332 and s. 2502
Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to present the views of
the Department of the Interior on H.R. 3332 and S. 2502, bills to
provide for the establishment of a memorial within Kalaupapa National
Historical Park, located on the island of Molokai, in the State of
Hawaii, to honor and perpetuate the memory of those individuals who
were forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula from 1866 to 1969.
The Department does not object to the concept of establishing a
memorial at Kalaupapa National Historical Park. The Department does,
however, prefer the language in H.R. 3332, with one minor amendment, as
it clarifies the fundraising requirements by Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa and
the Secretary's role in approving the final location for the memorial.
H.R. 3332 and S. 2502 direct the Secretary of Interior to authorize
Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa, a non-profit organization, to establish a
memorial at either the Kalaupapa Settlement or Kalawao. The memorial
would be designed to display the names of the first 5,000 individuals
sent to the Kalaupapa Peninsula between 1866 and 1896, and to also
display the names of the approximately 3,000 individuals who arrived at
Kalaupapa in the second part of its history. Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa
consists of patient residents at Kalaupapa National Historical Park,
and their family members and friends.
Kalaupapa National Historical Park was established in 1980 to honor
and preserve two tragic histories: the removal of indigenous people
from the area in 1865 and 1895, and the forced relocation and isolation
of Hansen's Disease (leprosy) patients to the peninsula from 1866 until
1969. The park contains the physical setting for these stories,
including the Hansen's Disease settlements of Kalaupapa and Kalawao,
and the churches of Siloama and Saint Philomena associated with the
work of Father Damien and Mother Marianne Cope. Today the community of
Kalaupapa is still home for some Hansen Disease patients, whose
memories and experiences are of integral value to the Park.
The National Park Service works cooperatively with several
organizations to manage the site and preserve the stories of residents.
Partners include the State of Hawaii, Department of Health; the
Catholic Diocese of Honolulu; the United Church of Christ; State of
Hawaii, Department of Land and Natural Resources; and the Department of
Transportation. The land owner, State of Hawaii, Department of Hawaiian
Homelands, maintains a lease agreement (65 year) with the National Park
Service. In addition, the State of Hawaii, Department of Health would
need to approve the release of names of patients that are not already
available to the public for inclusion in a memorial. Each of these
groups would need to be consulted. The National Park Service is
committed to working with the patients, partners, and friends' groups
to best honor the stories of those for whom the park was founded.
The Department supports the concept of remembering all that has
happened at Kalaupapa and believes that the entire park is a memorial
to the history and injustice that has occurred on the peninsula. Still,
we recognize that the remaining patients and other interested parties
support a memorial to the Hansen's Disease patients.
We recommend the legislation be amended to clarify that the
memorial be located in the Kalaupapa Settlement, where patients
continue to live today, and not at Kalawao. Kalawao is a beautiful and
remote location on the peninsula where few structures exist. Few
visitors see this area other than in the distance. The Kalaupapa
Settlement is a fitting area for such a memorial--it is where patients
and visitors will have a lasting reminder of what occurred at
Kalaupapa. The proposed amendment is attached to this testimony.
That concludes my testimony. I would be happy to answer any
questions you or other members of the committee may have.
h.r. 3998
Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to present the views of
the Department of the Interior on H.R. 3998, a bill that authorizes the
Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) to conduct nine special resources
studies of certain lands and structures to determine the appropriate
means for their preservation, use and management, including possible
inclusion within the National Park System or the National Trails
System.
The Department supports the authorization of six of the studies:
for the Battles of Matewan and Camden, the Mississippi River, Fort San
Geronimo, the Rim of the Valley, and the Butterfield Overland Trail.
The Department does not object to the authorization of two of the
studies: for the Harry S Truman Birthplace site and the Eastern Legacy
Lewis and Clark trail sites. The Department opposes the authorization
of the study of the Wolf House. However, the Department feels that
priority should be given to the 32 previously authorized studies for
potential units of the National Park System, potential new National
Heritage Areas, and potential additions to the National Trails System
and National Wild and Scenic River System that have not yet been
transmitted to the Congress.
Title I of H.R. 3998 authorizes the Secretary to conduct a special
resource study to determine the suitability and feasibility of adding
the Harry S Truman Birthplace State Historic Site, located in Lamar,
Missouri, to the Harry S Truman National Historic Site or designating
the site as a separate unit of the National Park System. The study
would also determine the methods and means for protection and
interpretation of the site by federal, state or local government
entities or private or non-profit organizations.
The Department does not object to the enactment of Title I.
President Harry S Truman was born in the house in Lamar, Missouri, and
lived there with his family until he was approximately 11 months old.
The birthplace is currently a State Historic Site operated and
maintained by the Division of Parks and Recreation of the State of
Missouri. Harry S Truman National Historic Site operates two units, the
Truman Home in Independence and the Truman Farm Home in Grandview, from
the operational center in Independence. The birthplace site in Lamar is
approximately 120 miles from the national historic site in
Independence. Mr. Truman's birth in Lamar is currently being included
in interpretive programs at both the Truman Home and the Truman Farm
Home as part of the larger Truman story.
Title II of H.R. 3998 authorizes the Secretary to conduct a special
resource study to determine the suitability and feasibility of
extending the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail to include
additional sites associated with the preparation and return phases of
the expedition. These sites are commonly known as the ``Eastern Legacy
sites'' and are located in Virginia, the District of Columbia,
Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky,
Tennessee, Indiana, Missouri and Illinois. The study would also
determine the methods and means for the protection and interpretation
of these sites by federal, state or local government entities or
private or non-profit organizations. The Department testified on a
similar bill, S. 1991, earlier this Congress.
While we have some concerns about the need for the study, the
Department does not object to the enactment of Title II. There have
been many discussions in recent years between scholars and interested
individuals concerning whether the Eastern Legacy sites and routes
merit inclusion in the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail.
Arguments against extending the trail have focused on the common
historical understanding of where the expedition itself began.
Additional concerns include what impact the inclusion of the Eastern
Legacy sites would have on those sites and on tourist visitation to the
western half of the trail, and whether extending the trail would dilute
attention to and importance of the existing trail. The issue of whether
this area is suitable and feasible as an administrative unit of the
National Trails System has not been addressed. Title II would provide
that authority.
Title III authorizes the Secretary to conduct a special resource
study of the sites associated with the ``Battle of Matewan'' in
Matewan, West Virginia to determine the suitability and feasibility of
designating these resources as a unit of the National Park System, and
to determine the methods and means for protection and interpretation by
federal, state or local government entities or private or non-profit
organizations.
The Department supports enactment of Title III. The ``Battle of
Matewan'' was a pivotal event in the eventual end of coal company
control in the southern Appalachians, and a seminal event in the
history of organized labor. The conflict was precipitated by striking
coal miners who demanded the company recognize the legitimacy of the
United Mine Workers of America. The coal companies retaliated by
bringing in armed guards to evict miners from local mines and their
families from company housing, sparking an armed confrontation on May
19, 1920 that left ten people dead. Resources related to this period
are still extant in the Town of Matewan and its surrounding areas.
Title IV authorizes the Secretary to conduct a special resource
study of the site of the Battle of Camden and the site of Historic
Camden in South Carolina to determine the suitability and feasibility
of designating these sites as a unit or units of the National Park
System, and to determine the methods and means for protection and
interpretation by the federal, state or local government entities or
private or non-profit organizations.
The Department supports enactment of Title IV. The Battle of
Camden, fought on August 16, 1780, was a key battle in the southern
campaign of the American Revolutionary War. The battle decisively ended
American hopes of a quick victory in the south. A 2003 reconnaissance
study of the Camden battlefield recommended that a Special Resources
Study be completed. Historic Camden is a National Park System
affiliated area within the City of Camden, which is one of the oldest
towns in South Carolina.
Title V authorizes the Secretary to conduct a special resource
study along the route of the Mississippi River from its headwaters in
the state of Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico to evaluate the route for
potential addition to the National Trails System. The study would also
determine the methods and means for the protection and interpretation
of the route by federal, state or local government entities or private
or non-profit organizations. Title V gives the Secretary the authority
to conduct the study in accordance with the National Park System
General Authorities Act or the National Trails System Act, as
appropriate.
The Department supports the enactment of Title V. The Mississippi
River corridor is one of the richest in America's history. It traverses
along the edges of 10 states, linking six National Park Service areas
and up to 40 federal properties. A special resource study would allow
for an analysis of current conditions, river issues and activities,
historic issues, current and potential partners, interested state
agencies, affected communities, related planning projects, and previous
studies, and would help determine the best designation and coordinating
role for this important set of resources.
Title VI authorizes the Secretary to conduct a special resource
study to determine the suitability and feasibility of including Fort
San Geronimo in Puerto Rico as part of San Juan National Historic Site.
The study would also determine the methods and means for protection and
interpretation of the site by federal, state or local government
entities or private or non-profit organizations.
The Department supports enactment of Title VI. Fort San Geronimo is
one of four forts surrounding the old, colonial portion of San Juan,
Puerto Rico that were built by Spanish troops beginning in 1539. Fort
San Geronimo is the only one of the four forts in the original
fortification system that is not included in San Juan National Historic
Site.
Title VII authorizes the Secretary to conduct a special resource
study of the Wolf House in Norfork, Arkansas, to determine the
suitability and feasibility of designating the house as a unit of the
National Park System. The study would also determine the methods and
means for the protection and interpretation of the house by federal,
state or local government entities or private or non-profit
organizations. The Department testified on a similar bill, S. 1941,
earlier this Congress.
The Department opposes enactment of Title VII. The Wolf House is a
two-story dogtrot structure dating back to 1829 and the oldest
territorial courthouse west of the Mississippi River. While the Wolf
House is an impressive historical structure, it is not distinguished
beyond many other historical log structures in cities all over the
United States. Even though the Wolf House has significance for the
political history of the state of Arkansas, we believe it may be more
suited for inclusion in the State Park system.
Title VIII authorizes the Secretary conduct a special resource
study of the area known as the Rim of the Valley in southern California
to determine the suitability and feasibility of designating all or a
portion of the corridor as a unit of the Santa Monica Mountains
National Recreation Area. The study would also determine the methods
and means for the protection and interpretation of the corridor by
federal, state or local government entities or private or non-profit
organizations. Section 802 (b) requires the Secretary to document the
process used to develop the existing Santa Monica Mountains National
Recreation Area Fire Management Plan and Environmental Impact
Statement, and to document all activity conducted pursuant to the plan
designed to protect lives and property from wildfire.
The Department supports enactment of Title VIII. The proposed study
would explore ways to involve a wide range of Federal, state, local,
and private entities to protect and interpret important natural and
cultural resources, and to provide more access to outdoor recreational
opportunities for the diverse urban communities in the Greater Los
Angeles Metropolitan Area. While the Department does not object to the
language in Section 802 (b), the documentation that this section
requires is already a part of the public record and is not relevant to
the Rim of the Valley Corridor Study.
Title IX authorizes the Secretary to conduct a special resource
study and evaluation of the ``Ox-Bow Route'' of the Butterfield
Overland Trail in the states of Missouri, Tennessee, Arkansas,
Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California for potential
inclusion in the National Trails System. The study would also determine
the methods and means for the protection and interpretation of the
corridor by federal, state or local government entities or private or
non-profit organizations.
The Department supports the enactment of Title IX. The Butterfield
Overland Mail Route was the scene of biweekly stage coach and mail
service between St. Louis, Missouri, and Memphis, Tennessee to San
Francisco, California between 1858 and 1861. When the category of
``national historic trail'' was first added to the National Trails
System in 1978, the Department of the Interior developed a file of
potential trails, including the Butterfield Overland Mail Route, but a
formal study was never completed.
Mr. Chairman, that concludes my testimony. I would be pleased to
answer any questions you or the other members of the subcommittee may
have.
s. 1633
Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to present the views of
the Department of the Interior on S. 1633, a bill to authorize the
Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study to
determine the suitability and feasibility of including the battlefields
and related sites of the Battle of Shepherdstown in Shepherdstown, West
Virginia, as part of Harpers Ferry National Historical Park or Antietam
National Battlefield in the National Park System.
The Department supports S. 1633. However, the Department feels that
priority should be given to the 32 previously authorized studies for
potential units of the National Park System, potential new National
Heritage Areas, and potential additions to the National Trails System
and National Wild and Scenic River System that have not yet been
transmitted to the Congress.
S. 1633 would authorize the Secretary to carry out a special
resource study to determine the national significance of the
Shepherdstown battlefield and related sites in Shepherdstown, West
Virginia associated with the Civil War. The study would examine whether
the area could be included in the Harpers Ferry National Historical
Park or the Antietam National Battlefield. The bill also requires the
Secretary to submit a report to Congress no later than 3 years after
the date on which funds are made available to carry out this study.
General Robert E. Lee invaded the North, with the intention of
bringing Maryland into the Confederacy. Lee had a number of strategic
reasons for the move. First, Lee's troops were in much need of military
aid and supplies and Maryland's lands were rich in crops and untouched
by battle. Second, Lee saw Maryland as a stepping stone to
Pennsylvania, where he could draw the Union Army into a battle on
ground of his own choosing. He could then threaten the cities of
Washington, Baltimore, and Philadelphia and perhaps end the war in a
short time. Finally, General Lee hoped that another Confederate
victory, this time on Union soil, might also persuade Great Britain and
France to grant diplomatic recognition to the South.
As he had done before, Lee divided his army and sent ``Stonewall''
Jackson in to capture the Federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, with its
huge store of supplies. But the people of Maryland looked on the hungry
troops as invaders who had come to plunder their land. Another
unfortunate thing happened. A Union private was resting near Frederick,
Maryland and noticed an envelope in the grass. It was a copy of General
Lee's order to his generals outlining his plans. The paper was soon in
the hands of General George B. McClellan.
The Battle of Shepherdstown, also known as the Battle of Boteler's
Ford, was fought on September 19 and 20, 1862. There were over 600
casualties. General Lee had moved most of his army back across the
Potomac River into Virginia leaving 44 cannons to form an artillery
reserve to protect the vital crossing point on the Potomac. General
McClellan had given orders to pursue the enemy across the Potomac. In
the confusion of battle, General Lee received an erroneous report that
his cannons had been captured. Reacting to this misinformation, the
Confederates sent a force back to recover the artillery. In the
skirmish that followed on the bluffs of the Potomac, a large number of
inexperienced Union troops with faulty equipment were killed. This
convinced General McClellan that the Confederate Army was still full of
fight and he decided to delay any further effort to pursue until
reinforced. The battle was considered a Confederate victory.
The Battle of Shepherdstown was the final engagement of the
Maryland Campaign of 1862 that included the battles of Harpers Ferry,
South Mountain, and Antietam and ended the Confederacy's first invasion
of the North. The National Park Service has provided information and
interpretation on the Shepherdstown site at Harpers Ferry National
Historical Park and Antietam National Battlefield for over 20 years.
A special resource study would provide alternatives for the
appropriate way to preserve, to protect, and to interpret the Battle of
Shepherdstown sites and resources. We estimate that the costs of
completing this study would be approximately $250,000 to $300,000.
That concludes my testimony. I would be happy to answer any
questions you or other members of the subcommittee may have.
s. 1993 and h.r. 2197
Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, thank you for the
opportunity to present the views of the Department of the Interior on
S. 1993 and H.R. 2197, bills to authorize the Secretary of the Interior
to modify the boundary of Hopewell Culture National Historical Park
(NHP) at the Seip Earthworks unit to conform with recognizable property
lines and landscape features, and to add the Spruce Hill Works unit to
the park.
The Department supports S. 1993 and H.R. 2197 as passed by the
House. S. 1993 and H.R. 2197 authorize the Secretary of the Interior
(Secretary) to modify the boundaries of Hopewell Culture NHP and
acquire lands only from willing sellers.
Spruce Hill is an interesting and unique monumental ceremonial
archeological site built approximately 2,000 years ago by the Ohio
Hopewell culture. The site encloses the top of a hill on the edge of
the Appalachian Plateau and overlooks Paint Creek near the town of
Bourneville in Ross County, Ohio. Of the forty or more large monumental
Hopewell culture earthworks, less than a dozen are hilltop enclosures.
Spruce Hill is one of the larger examples of a hilltop site; its walls
enclose 140 acres. It is one of three Hopewellian earthwork sites in
the Eastern Woodlands where stone is used to construct its enclosing
walls. It also is the only hilltop enclosure in the extensive complex
of Hopewell earthworks in the Scioto valley around modern-day
Chillicothe. All of the other sites in the vicinity are built on the
valley floors. The site also has ``enigmatic iron pit furnaces,'' which
continue to generate ardent discussions among archeologists.
The interest in preserving the Spruce Hill Works dates back to the
1970s. In 1972, the site was added to the National Register of Historic
Places. In 1980, Public Law 96-607 added a threatened earthwork site to
the park and called on the Secretary to study other Ohio Hopewell
culture sites and recommend sites for inclusion in the park. Spruce
Hill was considered in this comprehensive study; however, since there
had been limited modern archeology done at the site, Spruce Hill was
recommended for further study. As a result, when Public Law 102-294
established Hopewell Culture National Historical Park by combining the
existing Mound City Group National Monument with three new units, it
directed the Secretary to study several other prehistoric Hopewell
culture sites as potential additions to the park, including Spruce
Hill.
Between 1995 and 1998, NPS archeologists were allowed access to
Spruce Hill by the landowner. They conducted investigations and
prepared preliminary findings and a summary report by 1998. This report
found the site significant and suitable for addition to the park. The
report concluded that Spruce Hill is an outstanding example of a
particular type of Hopewell culture monumental architecture, the
hilltop enclosure, of which about a dozen are known and only one other,
Fort Ancient State Memorial, a National Historic Landmark, compares to
it in size. The site also is associated with early developments in
American archeology and specifically with discussions of the origin and
builders of the monumental earthworks in the eastern United States. The
site has important natural resources as well, including vernal pools,
breeding habitat for grassland birds whose populations are in decline
in Ohio, and will help preserve the watershed of Paint Creek, a stream
designated as Outstanding State Waters. The site offers outstanding
opportunities to yield important scientific information on Hopewell
hilltop sites, a type of feature that has not been well studied and is
not represented in the park.
The estimated land acquisition cost for the Spruce Hill site is
$450,000 to $600,000. The property was purchased on June 12, 2007 by a
coalition of local and national conservation groups headed by the Arc
of Appalachia Preserve and the Archaeological Conservancy. These
partners are willing sellers. One of the partners, the Arc of
Appalachia Preserve, is interested in holding the property outside of
the earthworks and managing the site cooperatively with the NPS. This
would reduce the acquisition cost for the government. Public
facilities, including parking, hiking trails, and wayside exhibits,
would be relatively inexpensive, with visitor center and museum needs
being served by the Seip Earthworks unit. The cost to develop these
facilities would be approximately $250,000. The Ross County Parks
Department has expressed an interest in cooperating with the
development of these facilities. However, Federal funding for any new
land acquisition and development would be subject to the budget
prioritization process of the National Park Service.
S. 1993 and H.R. 2197 authorize boundary adjustments at the Seip
Earthworks unit, allowing for alignment of the boundaries with features
that are readily recognizable such as streams and fence lines. The
boundary changes also would help preserve additional riparian habitat
along Paint Creek, and forestall the need to surplus excess lands and
provide easements across or near the principle resource of the park.
Most of the land in the proposed boundary modification at the Seip
earthwork has already been purchased by the Federal government as
uneconomical remnants or is owned by the Ohio Historical Society. These
changes would provide more opportunities for research into habitation
and craft production archeological sites and provide the earthwork
remains with a greater buffer. Also, inclusion of all of the Ohio
Historical Society-owned land at Seip Mound State Memorial would
facilitate joint management agreements with the Society. The estimated
cost to purchase the remaining private properties is $250,000 to
$300,000. These properties would be purchased from willing sellers.
Passage of S. 1993 and H.R. 2197 would allow the National Park
Service to preserve these unique earthworks, a distinctive form of
ceremonialism and monumental architecture that involved constructing
long earthen walls to enclose very large spaces. These earthworks,
developed by an American Indian culture in the Ohio River valley around
200 B.C. to A.D. 500, form a significant example of our nation's
heritage.
That concludes my statement. I would be glad to answer any
questions that you or other members of the subcommittee might have.
s. 2207
Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to present the views of
the Department of the Interior on S. 2207, a bill to authorize the
Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) to conduct a study to evaluate
the national significance and the suitability and feasibility of
designating the Green McAdoo School in Clinton, Tennessee, as a unit of
the National Park System.
The Department supports S. 2207 with two technical amendments
described later in this testimony. However, the Department feels that
priority should be given to the 32 previously authorized studies for
potential units of the National Park System, potential new National
Heritage Areas, and potential additions to the National Trails System
and National Wild and Scenic River System that have not yet been
transmitted to the Congress.
The Secretary would use the criteria for the study under section 8
of Public Law 91-383. Studies of this type typically cost approximately
$250,000 and take three years to complete after funds are made
available.
S. 2207 would direct the Secretary to carry out a study of the
formerly segregated African-American Green McAdoo School. The Green
McAdoo School and the nearby all-white Clinton High School played an
important role in school desegregation that preceded and followed the
Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.
The Federal District Court in Tennessee issued an order on January
4, 1956, requiring desegregation of Anderson County schools no later
than the fall term, 1956. On Aug. 25, 1956, 12 students from the Green
McAdoo School, later dubbed the ``Clinton 12'' became the first
African-American students to effect the integration of a southern,
state-operated school. On September 1, 1956, Clinton was the first
southern town to be occupied by National Guard troops in an effort to
suppress violence sparked by protestors that were opposed to school
integration. In 1958, the newly integrated Clinton High School was
destroyed by explosives.
Anderson County rebuilt Clinton High School. Green McAdoo and
Clinton High are the only remaining schools associated with the
historic Clinton desegregation crisis. After closing as a segregated
school, the Green McAdoo School was reopened as a museum and cultural
center in 2006. The Green McAdoo School is listed on the National
Register of Historic Places.
We recommend amending the short title of the bill on page 1 line 5
by striking ``National Historic Site'' and inserting ``Special
Resource'' before ``Study'' in order to not appear to have already
determined the outcome of the study. We also recommend making a similar
amendment on page 4 line 8 by inserting ``special resource'' before
``study'' to use the term for the proposed study that is normally used.
That concludes my testimony. I would be happy to answer any
questions you or other members of the subcommittee may have.
s. 2254
Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the
opportunity to appear before you today to present the views of the
Department of the Interior on S. 2254, a bill to establish the
Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area in the State of Mississippi.
The Department cannot support S. 2254 unless the bill is amended to
be a feasibility study for a Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area
in the State of Mississippi. The Department believes that a feasibility
study should be required for every proposed national heritage area and
the study should be evaluated against our interim criteria before
designation. The standards for evaluating areas proposed for national
designation are an essential element prior to establishing a national
heritage area. A study should be prepared that demonstrates evidence of
place-based resources that tell a nationally important story, which has
the support and involvement of the local community.
Although the Mississippi Hills Heritage Area Alliance has completed
a ``Three-Year Strategic Plan for the Mississippi Hills Heritage Area''
and an impressive array of partners and potential funders has been
assembled, fundamental questions have yet to be formally addressed
regarding the region's eligibility for designation as a national
heritage area.
The Department is willing to provide advice or assistance in the
completion of a study that meets applicable standards and provides
Congress with the necessary information and assessment upon which to
base its decision regarding designation in the future.
With 37 national heritage areas designated across 27 states, and
more heritage area legislative proposals forthcoming, the
Administration believes it is critical for Congress to enact national
heritage area program legislation. This legislation would provide a
much-needed framework for evaluating proposed national heritage areas,
offering guidelines for successful planning and management, clarifying
the roles and responsibilities of all parties, and standardizing
timeframes and funding for designated areas. Program legislation would
also clarify the expectation that heritage areas would work toward
self-sufficiency by outlining the necessary steps, including
appropriate planning, to achieve that goal.
S. 2254 would establish the Mississippi Hills National Heritage
Area in northeast Mississippi. The area would encompass all or part of
30 counties. It would also include the Delta National Forest. The bill
designates the Mississippi Hills Heritage Area Alliance as the
management entity. The Alliance is a non-profit organization registered
by the State of Mississippi, with the cooperation and support of the
University of Mississippi. The bill provides for the development of a
management plan that would inventory resources of the area, recommend
conservation measures, identify sources of funding, and consider public
involvement mechanisms.
The bill would authorize Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area
to promote and help conserve a number of important natural and cultural
resources. Included within its proposed boundaries are the sites of
important Civil War battles, the birthplaces of a number of noteworthy
Americans, the first public college for women in the United States, the
Mississippi University for Women, and Rust College, founded in 1866,
which is one of the oldest black colleges in the United States. The
proposed Mississippi National Heritage Area would encompass the Natchez
Trace Parkway; the Holly Springs and Tombigbee National Forests; the
Sardis, Enid, and Grenada Lakes; the Strawberry Plains State Audubon
Center; the Tishomingo State Park; and the Noxubee National Wildlife
Refuge.
Mr. Chairman, the Department is prepared to work with the
subcommittee on amending S. 2254 to authorize a feasibility study for a
Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area, in the State of Mississippi.
This concludes my prepared remarks. I would be pleased to answer
any questions you or any members of the Subcommittee may have.
s. 2329 and h.r. 2627
Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, thank you for the
opportunity to appear before you to present the views of the Department
of the Interior on S. 2329 and H.R. 2627, bills to establish the Thomas
Edison National Historical Park as the successor to the Edison National
Historic Site.
The Department supports enactment of these bills.
Thomas Alva Edison was a prodigious inventor who revolutionized how
the Nation communicated, harnessed and distributed power, and
translated pure technology into commercial products. Edison National
Historic Site, located in West Orange, New Jersey, was Thomas Edison's
second research and development facility. After closing his first
operation in Menlo Park, Edison established the West Orange laboratory
in 1887. The hub of Edison's manufacturing operations until his death
in 1931, the laboratory was the most productive of all in terms of
sheer quantity of inventions. In fact, more than half of Edison's 1,093
U.S. patents were developed at this location including his improved
phonograph, the nickel-iron-alkaline battery, and a fluoroscope used in
the first x-ray operation in America. It was here, too, that Edison
established his motion picture studio, the ``Black Maria'', in 1893.
In 1962, Congress designated the Edison Laboratory National
Monument and Edison Home National Historic Site as the Edison National
Historic Site. Glenmont, the home Edison purchased in 1886, and lived
in with his second wife, Mina Miller Edison, is located in nearby
Llewellyn Park. The 29-room mansion is built of wood, brick and stone
and typifies the eclectic Queen Anne style popular in the 1880s and
1890s. Both Edison and his second wife are buried behind Glenmont.
S. 2329 and H.R. 2627 would redesignate the Edison National
Historic Site as the Thomas Edison National Historical Park. We believe
this redesignation to be appropriate for two main reasons. First, the
term ``National Historical Park'' generally applies to parks that
extend beyond single properties or buildings. This unit of the National
Park System includes both the laboratory in West Orange and the
separate home established by Edison in nearby Llewellyn Park, one mile
away. They are two distinct units with different interpretive themes,
resource management issues, and operational challenges.
Second, with completion of the current rehabilitation project at
the laboratory complex, the unit's complexity will increase and the
term ``National Historic Site'' no longer adequately reflects the
nature of the various themes that will be interpreted to serve the
expected increase in visitation. Educational and interpretive programs
linking the laboratory and the Edison home will become more
sophisticated and are better represented by the term ``National
Historical Park'' to reflect these non-contiguous parcels with a shared
link to Thomas Edison.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my statement and I will be happy to
answer any questions that you or members of the Committee may have.
s. 2512
Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the
opportunity to appear before you today to present the views of the
Department of the Interior on S. 2512, a bill to establish the
Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area in the State of Mississippi.
The Department cannot support S. 2512 unless the bill is amended to
be a feasibility study for a Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area.
The Department believes that a feasibility study should be required for
every proposed national heritage area and the study should be evaluated
against our interim criteria before designation. The standards for
evaluating areas proposed for national designation are an essential
element prior to establishing a national heritage area. A study should
be prepared that demonstrates evidence of place-based resources that
tell a nationally important story, which has the support and
involvement of the local community.
Various congressionally mandated studies have previously gathered
information on the Mississippi Delta region, including the Lower
Mississippi Delta Region Heritage Study and the Mississippi River
Corridor Study. While these studies have confirmed the importance and
significance of the Mississippi Delta region, they were undertaken
before generally accepted criteria for designating heritage areas had
been established, and were directed at a much larger region than the
area encompassed by this bill.
The Department is willing to provide advice or assistance in the
completion of a study that meets applicable standards and provides
Congress with the necessary information and assessment upon which to
base its decision regarding designation in the future.
With 37 national heritage areas designated across 27 states, and
more heritage area legislative proposals forthcoming, the
Administration believes it is critical for Congress to enact national
heritage area program legislation. This legislation would provide a
much-needed framework for evaluating proposed national heritage areas,
offering guidelines for successful planning and management, clarifying
the roles and responsibilities of all parties, and standardizing
timeframes and funding for designated areas. Program legislation would
also clarify the expectation that heritage areas would work toward
self-sufficiency by outlining the necessary steps, including
appropriate planning, to achieve that goal.
The Mississippi River's role as a major transporter of goods and
people has long influenced the Delta's history and character. Since the
earliest days of human habitation, the Mississippi River has been
essential for transportation, communication, and commerce. The river
and associated ecosystems are part of North America's largest wetland
area and provide habitat for a wide variety of flora, fauna, and
aquatic species. Archeological sites across the Delta attest to the
thousands of years of human occupation. The Mississippi Delta's
cultural traditions are rich and diverse; it is a land of converging
cultures. The Delta has also been the site of a number of important
historic events, such as the Great Flood of 1927 and the Civil Rights
Movement.
S. 2512 would establish a Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area
along the lines outlined in the Lower Mississippi Delta Region Heritage
Study, but covering a substantially smaller area, located entirely in
the State of Mississippi. It would include some 18 counties in the
State located within the alluvial floodplain of the Mississippi River.
It would also encompass the Delta National Forest.
The bill designates the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area
Partnership as the coordinating entity of the heritage area. The
Partnership is to be governed by a board of directors composed of 15
members. The members are to be appointed by various entities, including
the Governor; various universities, councils, and commissions; and
County boards from the heritage area.
Mr. Chairman, the Department is prepared to work with the
subcommittee on amending S. 2512 to authorize a feasibility study for a
Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area.
This concludes my prepared remarks. I would be pleased to answer
any questions you or any members of the Subcommittee may have.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Director Stevenson.
Secretary Scarlett, with respect to the Kalaupapa bill and just
to make sure I understand your position. The Park Service
doesn't oppose a memorial at the park, but you think it should
be built somewhere in the Kalaupapa community and not in a more
remote area of the park. Is that correct?
Ms. Scarlett. Senator, as I noted, we certainly support the
purposes of the bill and acknowledge the importance of the
memorial. We want to affirm that we think it's important that
the Secretary have final approval on the location. There are
considerations such as access by the public to the memorial
which we think at the Kalaupapa settlement might be more
feasible than elsewhere.
But we certainly would like to work with you as we move
forward should this bill pass and the memorial actually be
constructed.
Senator Akaka. I understand that there may be concerns that
the Park Service has already made up its mind about where the
memorial should be located. From what you just said, we can
still work on it.
Ms. Scarlett. We would very much like to work with you on
that, yes. I do want to, again affirm, the Park Service
operating the many units that it has always is concerned about
public access, and that certainly has resulted in their having
some thoughts on this that we'd like to work with you on.
Senator Akaka. There are some considerations that we want,
for the reasons that we want to keep it open. That is that a
group called Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa has recommendations into the
consideration of the place. The specific details of the
memorial and especially if they are responsible for financing
and building the memorial we'd like to certainly keep that open
and work together on that.
Secretary Scarlett, my next question is on S. 2262 and the
Preserve America Program. Section 103 of that bill states that
marketing projects are one of the activities eligible to
receive a grant to the Preserve America Program. Could you
explain why marketing research and plans are an appropriate use
of limited historic preservation funds and could those funds be
better spent preserving nationally significant structures?
Ms. Scarlett. Senator, the Preserve America Program
complements other historic preservation programs that invest in
protecting buildings, bricks and mortars and so forth, and one
of the key purposes of Preserve America is to link historic
structures in places through economic development and through
heritage tourism. A key part of that is serving and
inventorying places, creating signage and then doing other
activities that make people aware of the opportunities, for
example, to come to and visit historic places in a community.
So we have done several rounds of grants. We have five
categories. Marketing is one of them.
But marketing is very much tied to adaptive re-use of
locations, weaving them into the economic opportunities of
those communities. I think that is an unfulfilled or otherwise
unmet need with respect to Federal resources for these
nationally important places.
Senator Akaka. Ms. Stevenson, in your testimony, S. 2254.
On this 2254, you state that you cannot support designation of
the Mississippi Hills Heritage Area until a feasibility study
is first completed. My understanding is that the Mississippi
Hills Heritage Area Alliance has completed a strategic plan for
the proposed area.
Has the Park Service reviewed this plan? Do you know
whether it meets the standards for heritage area studies?
Ms. Stevenson. Sir, we have reviewed the plan. It does not
meet the criteria. As you know, the criteria for heritage areas
have a requirement to have several components. I believe there
are seven elements that are identified as heritage area
components.
Those heritage area components make up things like the
significance, the individual significance of nationally
significant areas. It talks about the boundaries of a heritage
area. It talks about the financial feasibility. It talks about
the involvement, the community involvement, and other elements
like that.
The strategic plan presented for the Mississippi Hills
National Heritage Area doesn't really cover all of those areas.
So we can't evaluate clearly whether or not it meets the
criteria for a National Heritage Area. The study that we
propose would meet such a criteria. We'd be very happy to work
with the Mississippi Hills supporters in order to help them
develop such a study.
Senator Akaka. After now that you've reviewed it, let me
ask what additional information could a feasibility study
provide that is not included in the alliance's strategic plan?
Ms. Stevenson. I talked about those seven criteria. Those
are the ones that are essential to be covered. I haven't myself
read the strategic plan, so I can't identify for you which of
those is missing in the plan.
But it's a study of 30 counties. So it's a pretty big area
to be studied. We'd have to focus on what makes the area of
national significance, what specific sites lead to that
national significance, and how they would be developed along
with an economic plan, a marketing study, and a financial plan.
Senator Akaka. My final question is on S. 2207, the Green
McAdoo School study. As you know approximately ten years ago
the National Park Service completed a special resource study
regarding Charleston, Arkansas. Subsequently, Congress
designated Charleston a national commemorative site to
recognize the Charleston School District as the first
previously segregated public school district to integrate
following the Supreme Court's decision in Brown vs. the Board
of Education.
What do you expect to add to the story of school
integration with the Green McAdoo School Study?
Ms. Stevenson. Senator, in Charleston, the Charleston
School Study showed that in 1954, the Charleston School Board
willingly allowed black students to attend the school. So that
was a very early recognition of the significance of
integration. In the Green McAdoo School situation, initially
the community opposed integration. They sued to keep
integration from happening.
In 1952 the Federal judge, Federal Judge Taylor, upheld the
local school board and determined that the school would not
have to be integrated. Then when Brown vs. the Board of
Education passed, the U.S. Court of Appeals reversed Judge
Taylor's determination and returned it to the Federal district
court. The school board delayed opening the school in 1955 and
then finally Judge Taylor told them they would have to
integrate the school.
So when that happened, as Senator Alexander said, the
school board acquiesced. In the fall term of 1956, the school
was integrated. So the significance of the McAdoo School has to
do with the implementation of the Brown vs. the Board of
Education by the Federal courts as opposed to the Charleston
Schools, which willingly went along and obviously did a very
noble thing in doing that without any Federal pressure.
But they're two different kinds of sides of the coin of the
Federal Government taking an active role in making sure that
the Supreme Court decision was upheld. So they will be compared
and contrasted.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much for your responses.
Ms. Stevenson. You're welcome.
Senator Akaka. Senator Burr.
Senator Burr. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Ms. Scarlett, how
much funding does Congress typically appropriate for each of
the programs? I'm referring to America's Treasures and Preserve
America's----
Ms. Scarlett. Senator, that has varied over time. The
Preserve America Program is new. The overall initiative began
in 2003 with the President's Executive Order on Preserve
America. The funding by the appropriators of grants did not
begin until about 2 years ago. So I believe total funding to
date has been approximately $13 million, so, incrementally the
grant program has gotten larger over the last several years.
Save America's Treasures, which got underway in 1998-99,
has had a longer track record. We have several hundred, $260
plus million that have been expended for the purposes of
restoring buildings of historic significance.
Senator Burr. The purpose of this is the permanency of the
two programs.
Ms. Scarlett. That's correct.
Senator Burr. Ok, great. Ms. Stevenson, S. 1633, about the
Shepherdstown, West Virginia feasibility study. How much of the
proposed area remains currently undeveloped and in a condition
to accurately interpret its significance?
Ms. Stevenson. The Civil War sites report of 1993 said that
it was a priority three site, which means that it's important,
but that the integrity is fair. However, the core to the
property, which is 17 acres, I understand is significantly more
preserved than some of the rest of the property. So that would
be the highest priority.
Senator Burr. Is any of that property currently owned by
the Department of the Interior?
Ms. Stevenson. I don't believe so.
Senator Burr. Ok.
Ms. Stevenson. But I would have to provide an answer to you
after.
Senator Burr. It's my hope we will handle that
expeditiously. If I could move to S. 2329. What's the advantage
to being designated a national historic park instead of a
national historic site?
Ms. Scarlett. Senator, in the National Park System we have
a number of different kinds of designations, and typically a
National Park is a site with greater complexity, multiple
sites, multiple buildings, multiple interpretive stories to
tell, whereas something designated as a National Historic Site
would be a single location.
In the particular instance of the Edison Legacy with the
residence and the lab, it really aligns with our definition of
a park in that it is two units, two separate sets of
infrastructure and we believe that it gives it both an elevated
recognition and also recognition of the extent of history at
that particular site and the multiple stories told there.
Senator Burr. Just because somebody has to ask this
question. Has the Park Service run the numbers on what it will
cost just to change the signage to re-designate it a national
park vs. a national historic site?
Ms. Scarlett. I'm sure we can get you those numbers, but we
strive to be extraordinarily efficient at our signage. So we'll
let you know what that costs.
Senator Burr. I'm sure you will. I would appreciate it just
for the record.
Ms. Scarlett. We will get that for you.
Senator Burr. Senator Akaka and I would expect to be asked
that at some point or for somebody to look for that in the
testimony today.
S. 2512, the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area
designation. I heard what you said and the need for a study.
Let me ask you how many American Heritage Areas currently exist
and how many of those were designated without a study?
Ms. Stevenson. I don't know the correct answer to how many
are presently designated although I'm sure I could look that
up.
Ms. Scarlett. Senator, there are 37.
Ms. Stevenson. Thirty-seven.
Senator Burr. Thank you.
Ms. Stevenson. Ok. How many were designated without a
study? Very few.
What happened early on was that as we were developing the
criteria for heritage areas the studies that were produced, and
they were probably in the first few heritage areas that were
done, led the way for us to understand what kind of criteria
were necessary. Once those areas were designated, we began to
work actually with the Senate in trying to identify which
criteria were the elements that needed to be studied. We then
took the stand that unless the potential heritage areas met all
of the criteria, we would oppose them. So I think it's a very
small number that have been designated without meeting the
criteria.
Ms. Scarlett. Senator, I believe that it's about, three.
Senator Burr. Yes, I asked the question for a very specific
reason because I wanted to hear the Service restate exactly
what collectively we were after. That's a set of guidelines for
the future. The purpose of guidelines are not to find new ways
to circumvent them, but to encourage everybody that if they
want to have that designation to go through that study so that
we can fully understand the value of it, the need for it.
More importantly we can cherish, you know, that it's part
of the inventory because we did our homework first. So I thank
you for restating those guidelines.
Ms. Scarlett. Thank you, Senator.
Senator Burr. H.R. 3998, the Special Resource Study on
certain lands. The bill directs the Secretary of the Interior
to conduct special resource studies on nine sites, a combined
nine separate House bills and a single piece of legislation.
I've received emails and calls from private property rights
groups expressing concern on one of the provisions, the Rim of
the Valley Corridor Study. Specifically what role will the
public have in the studies authorized by 3998?
Ms. Stevenson. The National Park Service has very strong
guidelines on public involvement. We are going to involve the
public at great length in any study that's authorized. As you
know, Santa Monica Mountains has an enormous amount of land. I
think it's more than 50 percent that's privately owned within
its boundaries.
We acquire land only from willing sellers. Even if we were
to authorize it as a unit of the National Park System, we are
committed to hearing the public and to working with them.
In the area now designated within Santa Monica Mountains,
the property owners are very supportive. They found that it's
led to a quality of life that supports the type of life they
want. We would like to keep the relationship positive with them
as well as with any potential landowners within a new boundary.
Senator Burr. So I could take from that that they will be
notified of the studies. More importantly, any comments they
would like to make would be submitted as part of the record?
Ms. Stevenson. Yes, sir.
Senator Burr. Thank you. Mr. Chairman, let me say my lack
of questions on any other piece of legislation is not
indicative of any lack of support. It's my belief that those
who have presented and the pieces of legislation we have before
us are relatively easy for us to look at and understand that
this is something that we should do.
There are several that I think the Park Service and the
Interior have expressed concerns on. I think the committee
should take that to heart as we decide how we proceed. But I
certainly look forward to expeditiously handling many of these
pieces of legislation. I thank the Chair.
Senator Akaka. Thank you, Senator Burr. It's correct that
we're asking these questions to understand what your testimony
is all about. We will certainly try to move this as
expeditiously as we can.
So, I want to thank both of you very much for your
testimonies today. You've been very helpful for the committee.
Thank you.
Ms. Scarlett. Thank you.
Ms. Stevenson. Thank you very much.
Senator Akaka. Now I'd like to call on our next panel. I
want to welcome Honorable Jim Surkamp, Commissioner, Jefferson
County Commission, Charles Town, West Virginia. Welcome.
Yes, and Richard Moe, President, National Trust for
Historic Preservation. Welcome. We look forward to your
testimony. Commissioner, will you please begin.
STATEMENT OF JAMES T. SURKAMP, COMMISSIONER, JEFFERSON COUNTY
COMMISSION, CHARLES TOWN, WV
Mr. Surkamp. Ok. I'm here today to speak not only for
myself, but for the other county commissioners in Jefferson
County. I'd like to add my voice to such renowned historians as
James McPherson to preserve a pivotally important, pristine,
but endangered battlefield, called the Shepherdstown
Battlefield.
The 2-day battle of Shepherdstown, just 2 days after the
bloodiest day of American military history at Antietam and
Sharpsburg, had a major impact on the outcome of the Civil War
that far exceeded its tactical implications. Instead of
continuing with the plan to re-invade Maryland and fight on,
General Robert E. Lee, ordered his army south and what the
world saw as a defeat. The world included the governments of
England and France, who were likely to recognize the
Confederacy if a military victory could have been accomplished.
Moreover, Lee's retreat on September 20, 1862, convinced
President Abraham Lincoln. He did indeed finally have, the
battlefield victory that he believed was a necessary
precondition for the announcement of the Emancipation
Proclamation. What America stood for was thus changed forever.
By many historians the army of Northern Virginia, September
1862, Maryland campaign, is regarded as the most pivotal and
perhaps turning point of the Civil War. The campaign involved
three battles: South Mountain in Maryland on September 14,
Antietam and Sharpsburg on the 17th and Shepherdstown and then
Virginia on September 19 and 20. The campaign's goal was two
fold. A major military victory in the North might No. 1,
convince the citizens of Maryland to secede from the United
States. Two, obtain recognition of the Confederate governments
legitimacy from England and France.
Moreover, President Abraham Lincoln was hoping for a
victory by General George McClellan's Army of the Potomac so
that he would be able to announce the aforesaid Emancipation.
After the Battle of Antietam General Lee ordered the Army of
Northern Virginia to retreat across back into Virginia, across
the Potomac River at Bottler's Ford about a mile from
Shepherdstown. It was his intention to continue the Maryland
campaign by re-entering Maryland by crossing the river at
Williamsport further up the river.
He ordered General Jeb Stuart's cavalry to ford the river
at Williamsport and to screen the fort from Union observation.
In two dispatches to Jefferson Davis, General Lee revealed his
intention to ford the river at Williamsport and continue the
Maryland campaign. However, early on the afternoon of September
19, General Lee left Major General William Pendleton on the
bluffs overlooking Bottler's Ford with 34 artillery pieces and
about 600 infantry to cover the retreat and guard the movement
of Lee's army through Martinsburg, Virginia to the ford at
Williamsport.
Pendleton had never commanded troops in battle. When the
Union artillery devastated his gunners and the Union infantry
started to cross the Potomac, he panicked. He left the
battlefield looking for help and found Lee near midnight.
His report was that he had lost all his artillery and the
Union army had captured the south bank of the Potomac.
Ironically, his troops were better behaved than their commander
and 30 artillery pieces were saved. While the Confederates had
retreated from the Potomac, the Union forces after capturing
South Bank returned to the Maryland side in the early evening.
This is a battle that involved famous generals. Lee ordered
General Stonewall Jackson to send troops back to the ford. He's
refocusing away from Williamsport. Jackson was to stem the tide
of the Union army. Jackson with A.P. Hill and his light
division consisting of numerous units from North Carolina and
South Carolina started a march to the forded dawn on September
20.
At about the same time the Union army sent 3,000 troop
reconnaissance and force south of the river in order to locate
the Confederate Army. The two armies clashed at about 10 a.m.
approximately a mile and a half south of the river. The Union
Army was out manned by two to one and began a retreat back
toward the river. Two armies fought for 5 hours as the Union
troops made their way back to Maryland. In total about 9,000
troops took part in the Battle of Shepherdstown incurring 677
casualties equally divided.
What is the importance of the Battle of Shepherdstown? It's
not just because it was the most important Civil War battle in
the State of what was now called West Virginia. The
consequences of the Battle of Shepherdstown are far more
important for the entire Nation than just the military action.
This is because Lee believed Pendleton's report and assumed he
was being pursued aggressively by General McClellan.
The Confederate Commander changed his plans. On September
20 orders his troops south toward Winchester. Had he not
revised his plan, a way for him to go back into Maryland, the
Battle of Gettysburg might have occurred in September of 1862
with a vastly different result compared with a year later.
In 1862 Stonewall Jackson is still alive. Jeb Stuart's
cavalry was in the right place and Lee's opponent would have
been the ever cautious General McClellan. Perhaps the
Emancipation Proclamation would have been delayed or never
issued by Lincoln.
As a result the Battle of Shepherdstown, Maryland remained
a border State. England and France did not recognize the
Confederacy. Abraham Lincoln announced the Emancipation
Proclamation.
About 4 years ago the Shepherdstown Battlefield Association
was formed with support from numerous historians such as Mr.
McPherson to save and protect about one half of the
Battlefield's 640 acres. Conservation easements have been
placed on 84 acres of the site that are owned by members of the
SBPA. Two years ago a transportation enhancement grant of
$100,000 was secured to help purchase battlefield land.
The Civil War Preservation Trust agreed to provide matching
funds. As I said earlier the Jefferson County Commission
believes very strongly in preserving this pristine battlefield
amidst a lot of growth pressures, allocated 100,000 to help
purchase the Battlefield. Thank you for the opportunity.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Surkamp follows:]
Prepared Statement of James T. Surkamp, Commissioner, Jefferson County
Commission, Charles Town, WV
introduction
The two-day Battle of Shepherdstown--just days after the bloodiest
day in American military history at Antietam--had a major impact on the
outcome of the Civil War that far exceeded its tactical implications.
Instead of continuing with a plan to re-invade Maryland and fight on,
General Robert E. Lee ordered his army south in what the world saw as a
defeat. The world included the governments of England and France which
were likely to recognize the Confederacy, if a military victory could
have been accomplished. Seeing Lee retreat on September 20, 1862
convinced President Abraham Lincoln that he did, indeed, finally have
the battlefield victory that he believed was a necessary precondition
for the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation. What America
stood for was thus changed forever.
the maryland campaign
By many historians, the Army of Northern Virginia's September 1862
Maryland Campaign is regarded as the most pivotal, and, perhaps the
turning point of the Civil War. The Campaign involved three battles:
South Mountain on September 14; Antietam on September 17; and,
Shepherdstown on September 19-20. The campaign's goal was two-fold. A
major military victory in the north might: 1) convince the citizens of
Maryland to secede from the United States; and, 2) obtain recognition
of the Confederate government's legitimacy from England and France.
President Abraham Lincoln was hoping for a victory by General George
McClellan's Army of the Potomac so that he would be able to announce
the Emancipation Proclamation.
After the Battle of Antietam, Lee ordered the Army of Northern
Virginia to retreat across the Potomac River at Boteler's Ford, about 1
mile east of Shepherdstown. It was his intention to continue the
Maryland Campaign by reentering Maryland by crossing the river at
Williamsport. He ordered JEB Stuart's cavalry to ford the river at
Williamsport and to screen the ford from Union observation. In two
dispatches to Jefferson Davis, Lee revealed his intention to ford the
river at Williamsport and continue the Maryland Campaign. These
dispatches can be found in The WAR OF THE REBELLION: A Compilation of
the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series I--
Volume XIX, Part I--Reports.
Late on the afternoon of September 19, Lee left Major General
William Pendleton on the bluffs overlooking Boteler's Ford with 34
artillery pieces and about 600 infantry to cover the retreat and guard
the movement of Lee's army through Martinsburg to the ford at
Williamsport. Pendleton had never commanded troops in battle and when
the Union artillery devastated his gunners and the Union infantry
started to cross the Potomac, he panicked. He left the battlefield
looking for help and found Lee near midnight; his report was that he
had lost all his artillery and the Union Army had captured the south
bank of the Potomac. Ironically, his troops were better behaved than
their commander and 30 artillery pieces were saved. And, while the
Confederates had retreated from the Potomac, the Union forces, after
capturing the south bank returned to the Maryland side in the early
evening.
Lee ordered General ``Stonewall'' Jackson to send troops back to
the ford to stem the tide of the Union Army. Jackson, with A.P.Hill and
his ``Light Division'' started a march to the ford at dawn on September
20. At about the same time, the Union Army sent a 3000 troop
reconnaissance in force south of the river in order to locate the
Confederate Army. The two armies clashed at about 10:00AM,
approximately 1 1/2 miles south of the river. The Union Army was out-
manned by about 2 to l and began a retreat back toward the river. The
two armies fought for about 4-5 hours as the Union troops made their
way back to Maryland. In total, about 9,000 troops took part in the
Battle of Shepherdstown incurring 677 casualties about equally divided
between the two armies.
conclusion
The importance of the Battle of Shepherdstown is not just because
it was the most important Civil War battle fought in what was to become
the state of West Virginia. The consequences of the Battle of
Shepherdstown are far more important for the entire nation than just
the military action. Lee, because he believed Pendleton's report,
assumed that he was being pursued aggressively by McClellan. The
Confederate commander changed his plans and, on September 20, ordered
his troops south toward Winchester. Had he not revised his plan, the
Battle of Gettysburg might have occurred in September 1862 with a
vastly different result when compared with July 1863. In 1862,
``Stonewall'' Jackson was still alive, JEB Stuart's cavalry was in the
right place, and Lee's opponent, would have been the ever-cautious
McClellan. Perhaps the Emancipation Proclamation would have been
delayed or never issued by Lincoln.
As a result of the Battle of Shepherdstown: 1) Maryland remained a
border state within the Union; 2) England and France did not recognize
the Confederate government; and, 3) Abraham. Lincoln, with the total
withdrawal of the Army of Northern Virginia could claim a Union victory
and announce the Emancipation Proclamation.
battlefield preservation
About 4 years ago, the Shepherdstown Battlefield Preservation
Association Inc. (SBPA) was formed to save and protect about one-half
of the battlefield's 640 acres. Conservation easements have been placed
on 84 acres of the site that are owned by members of SBPA. In 2006, a
Transportation Enhancement Grant of $100,000 was secured to help
purchase battlefield land and the Civil War Preservation Trust agreed
to provide the matching funds. In addition, last year, the County
Commission of Jefferson County allocated $100,000 to help purchase
battlefield land.
STATEMENT OF RICHARD MOE, PRESIDENT, THE NATIONAL TRUST FOR
HISTORIC PRESERVATION
Mr. Moe. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. My name is Richard Moe
and I'm the President of the National Trust for Historic
Preservation. I appreciate your ongoing commitment to historic
preservation, Senator, in particular your leadership for the
Tomb of the Unknowns.
Senator Burr, thank you for your leadership, the commitment
to the historic preservation and for your sponsorship of this
bill that I'm speaking about today, S. 2262 that would
authorize both the Preserve America and the Save America's
Treasures Programs. I also wanted to thank Senator Bingaman and
others who have joined in supporting this legislation.
The National Trust joins the Administration in supporting
this measure and is very grateful to Senators Clinton and
Domenici for their leadership in sponsoring the bill. Let me
just say from the outset that while each of these historic
preservation initiatives apply to projects of a different
nature, Save America's Treasures for bricks and mortar and
Preserve America for heritage education and outreach, it's very
important in my view that they should be seen as mutually
supportive and complementary of each other in order to maximize
Federal resources and goals in saving the Nation's historic
assets. We already know that Preserve America and Save
America's Treasures are working together at specific locations
throughout the country. This is as it should be. As Secretary
Scarlett so ably apprised you of this Administration's new
program, Preserve America and the National Trust is a principle
private partner of Save America's Treasures.
I'm just going to say a few words this morning, this
afternoon about Save America's Treasures. It's correct to
assume however that a very large inventory of Save America's
Treasures bricks and mortar recipients would benefit greatly
from Preserve America awards that provide funds for the
planning process needed to qualify for Save America's Treasures
support and essential education and outreach activities to
increase the value of Save America's Treasures funded
restoration. Save America's Treasures was established a decade
ago as has been stated.
It had been basically to celebrate the millennium and to
highlight the importance of history as we entered the 21st
century. With broad bipartisan support in Congress and the
leadership of two first ladies initiated by the Clinton
Administration and continued by the Bush Administration, Save
America's Treasures has provided more than $264 million in
Federal challenge grants to 1,024 historic preservation
projects through 2007. These funds have helped to bring new
life to irreplaceable historic treasures including buildings,
documents and works of art in virtually every State, the
District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
Each dollar from Washington is matched one for one by non-
Federal contributions in every one of these projects. Creative
partnerships are the backbone of Save America's Treasures.
Enable it to leverage millions of additional dollars from
foundations, corporations, and individuals. That has literally
made the difference in saving hundreds of historic sites and
collections around the country.
Now with all of this tremendous success and support,
however, Save America's Treasures and Preserve America are
unauthorized and funded on a year to year basis through the
annual appropriations process. So the national trust and the
Administration and others would like to see Congress authorize
these two programs with a long term programmatic and funding
vision that would enable both programs to work in harmony with
the other components of the national historic preservation
program, which as you know is quite extensive. Authorization
would qualify the successful implementation and practices of a
10-year-old initiative along with its newer partner. I think
this is a step in the right direction.
Now there are many examples of wonderful Save America's
Treasures projects all over the country. But I picked out one
here that I wanted to tell you about. I just picked the State
at random.
This happens to be in Hawaii, Senator Akaka. I know you're
familiar with this project. It's Kawaiahao, if I have that
correct. If I don't I know you'll correct me.
But this is 1842 church, known as the West Minister Abbey
of Hawaii. It's the first Christian Church in Hawaii. It
received a $500,000 Save America's Treasures grant just last
year for its archives and its collection. That's illustrative
of the kind of grants that have been made throughout its
history. Save America's Treasures and Preserve America really
reflect in my view, the bipartisan commitment that is
characterized historic preservation policy in Congress and the
White House over the years. I think that's as it should be.
SAT was created during a democratic administration and
embraced by the Bush Administration and Congressional
Republicans. Likewise, Preserve America was created during a
Republican Administration. It's now supported by members up
here on both sides of the aisle. This is the strongest possible
signal that authorizing both programs makes sense when
bipartisanship is sometimes an elusive quality.
With your permission, Mr. Chairman, I'm attaching to my
written remarks a more comprehensive description of the
statistical information on these programs. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Moe follows:]
Prepared Statement of Richard Moe, President, The National Trust for
Historic Preservation
s. 2262
Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, good morning. My name
is Richard Moe and I am the President of the National Trust for
Historic Preservation. For more than 50 years, the National Trust has
been helping to protect the nation's historic resources as a
Congressionally chartered, private, nonprofit membership organization
dedicated to protecting the irreplaceable. Recipient of the National
Humanities Medal, the Trust provides leadership, education, and
advocacy to save America's diverse historic places and revitalize
communities. With over a quarter-million members and thousands of local
community groups in all 50 states, the Trust is the leader of a
vigorous preservation movement that is saving the best of our past for
the future. Its mission has expanded since its founding in 1949 just as
the need for historic preservation has grown. When historic buildings
and neighborhoods are torn down or allowed to deteriorate, we not only
lose a part of our past forever, we also lose a chance to revitalize
our communities.
I am here to speak to you today about S. 2262 that would authorize
both the Preserve America (PA) and Save America's Treasures (SAT)
programs. The National Trust supports this measure and is grateful to
Senators Clinton and Domenici for their leadership in sponsoring the
bill. Let me say from the outset that, while each of these historic
preservation initiatives apply to projects of a different nature--SAT
for ``bricks and mortar'' preservation and PA for heritage education
and outreach, it is important that they should be mutually supportive
of each other to maximize federal resources and goals in saving the
nation's historic assets. I am particularly pleased that Sections
103(c) and 102(c)(2) of S. 2262 would foster and encourage this
partnership where it is suitable.
We already know that PA and SAT are working together at specific
locations throughout the country. Since Ms. Scarlett so ably apprised
you of the Administration's program, and the National Trust is the
leading private sector partner in SAT, my statement will focus on the
latter. But, it is correct to assume that a very large inventory of SAT
bricks and mortar recipients would benefit greatly from Preserve
America awards that provide funds for the planning process needed to
qualify for SAT support and essential education and outreach activities
to increase the value of a SAT-funded restoration. This relationship
between both programs heightens the power of Federal funding to
leverage additional resources and enable history to come alive through
the natural relationship between preservation of buildings or artifacts
and informing the public about these resources.
SAT was established a decade ago to celebrate the millennium and
highlight the importance of history in marking the 21st century. With
broad bi-partisan support in Congress and the leadership of two First
Ladies, initiated by the Clinton Administration and continued in the
Bush Administration, SAT has provided more than $264 million in federal
challenge grants to 1,024 historic preservation projects through 2007.
These funds have helped bring new life to irreplaceable historic
treasures--including buildings, documents and works of art--in every
state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Midway Islands.
Each dollar from Washington is matched one-for-one by non-Federal
contributions in all of these projects.
Creative partnerships are SAT's backbone and enable it to leverage
millions of additional dollars from foundations, corporations and
individuals--this has literally made the difference in saving hundreds
of historic sites and collections around the country. The original
thinking behind the program was that raising public awareness and new
resources for nationally significant preservation projects would
stimulate a response at the state and local levels and inspire people
to recognize and support historic and cultural resources in need of
preservation/restoration. In recognition of its success in fulfilling
that mission, in 2007, the American Architectural Foundation presented
its prestigious Keystone Award to the Save America's Treasures
partnership for its extraordinary efforts to protect and preserve the
architectural, artistic, and cultural legacy of the United States.
With all of its tremendous success and support, however, SAT is
unauthorized and funded from year-to-year though the annual
appropriations process. The National Trust would like to see Congress
authorize SAT and PA with a long-term programmatic and funding vision
that would enable both programs to work in harmony with the other
components of the national historic preservation program. Authorization
would codify the successful implementation and practices of a ten-year
old initiative along with its newer partner, and I think that this it
is a step in the right direction. While much has been achieved since
SAT was established, the need remains great and we must look to future
needs. In just the first eight years of the program, 2,702 grant
applications were received, representing requests for more than $1.17
billion in critical preservation assistance. SAT funds have made a huge
difference, but without Congress' ongoing commitment to the program, it
would be virtually impossible to stimulate private matching
contributions and hard to imagine where else the money would come from
to preserve our national heritage.
I would like to highlight some of SAT's very timely contributions
to historic preservation projects that are now receiving a lot of
attention from Congress related to the National Park Service (NPS) and
some renewed attention to these places resulting from the upcoming
centennial. SAT has provided tremendous benefit to iconic NPS sites
such as Ellis Island, Valley Forge, Gettysburg, Thomas Edison's
Invention Factory, Mesa Verde, Eleanor Roosevelt's Val-Kill Cottage,
Longfellow House, Boston's African Meeting House and Dr. Martin Luther
King's Ebenezer Baptist Church. More than 20 percent of SAT's private
funding--nearly $12 million--has been designated for NPS historic
resources in dire need of support beyond what Congress can provide.
This virtually matches SAT's federal support for our national park
system. In addition, more than $7 million in SAT matching grants has
been awarded to over 30 nationally significant religious sites,
including Boston's famed Old North Church, Touro Synagogue in Rhode
Island and Socorro Mission in Texas.
The Save America's Treasures program helps ensure that our legacy
from the past will remain intact so that future generations can live
with it, learn from it, and be inspired by it. Its benefits are clearly
visible in cities, towns and rural areas all over America and it
continues to be one of the most tangible ways that Members of Congress
can get directly involved in local preservation projects. Authorizing
SAT will help ensure that this program will continue to have a
prominent role in preserving America's historic and cultural treasures.
In fact, both SAT and PA reflect the bipartisan commitment that has
characterized historic preservation policy in Congress and the White
House over the years. SAT was created during a Democratic
administration and embraced by the Bush Administration and
Congressional Republicans. Likewise, PA was created during a Republican
administration and is now supported by Members on both sides of the
aisle. This is the strongest signal that authorizing both programs
makes sense when bipartisanship is sometimes an elusive quality.
The following statistics and examples show why Save America's
Treasures--both its public and private sides--has become one of the
most valued and successful preservation partnerships in history. With
your permission, Mr. Chairman, I am attaching to my written remarks a
more comprehensive description with statistical information of SAT's
benefits nationwide. Thank you.
save america's treasure--program overview
The Value and Contributions of Save America's Treasures
The goal of Save America's Treasures is to create a national
preservation ethic by increasing visibility and raising new
resources for our national and local treasures. Save America's
Treasures shines a spotlight on these treasures in several
ways--it designates Official SAT Projects, publicizes and
educates the public about our country's unmet preservation
needs through various events and media strategies, and
generates both private and federal funds to preserve America's
treasures. SAT also seeks to educate the public about the
benefits that preservation holds as a stimulant to historic
tourism and economic development. According to the American
Travel Industry Association, heritage tourism is the number one
reason Americans give for leisure travel. But the long term
effects of this program are much more than economic--SAT seeks
to preserve the irreplaceable fragments of our nation's past,
so that they may continue to inform and inspire future
generations of Americans.
Too many of our nation's historic sites and collections are
deteriorating or in danger of being lost to age, exposure,
natural disasters, urban sprawl, improper conservation, misuse
and even vandalism. These testaments to our rich diverse
American experience found in communities across the country
urgently require conservation and restoration. Many of these
treasures suffer from scant funds and lack of organized
interest in the community. Without intervention, their
condition will be seriously compromised or they will be lost
forever.
Very little funding is available for the kind of bricks and
mortar preservation this SAT program provides. And the backlog
is enormous--just in the first eight years of the program
through 2006, the National Park Service received competitive
applications from 2,702 projects totaling requests of $1.17
Billion in preservation needs. Through 2007, $264 million had
been awarded--a very substantial contribution made much more
significant given the matching gifts it stimulated. If lost, it
is hard to imagine where comparable funds would come from.
The competitive grants are critically important to the
program because they even the playing field, giving an
opportunity for support to small and large projects in every
size community. They also help ensure the quality of projects
receiving federal support because applications are vetted
initially by our major cultural agencies, and finally by a
panel of preservation experts.
Awards and Events
SAT's contribution to preserving our national heritage earned the
recognition of two major national organizations in 2007:
American Architectural Foundation Honors SAT with its 2007
Keystone Award February 9th.--At a black-tie gala, The American
Architectural Foundation (AAF) presented its 2007 Keystone
Award to the Save America's Treasures partnership for its
extraordinary efforts to protect and preserve the
architectural, artistic, and cultural legacy of the United
States. This prestigious award is given annually to an
organization or individual outside the profession in
recognition of outstanding leadership in the fields of
architecture and design. Mrs. Laura Bush sent a congratulatory
letter and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton provided a videotaped
message. The head of each partnering agency was on hand to
accept the award, and House Appropriations Chair Norm Dicks (D-
WA) delivered formal remarks on behalf of the public and
private partners.
SAT Director Honored with IFDA's 2007 Trailblazer Award May
5th.--At the 2007 International Furnishings and Design
Association's (IFDA) gala in Atlanta, the prestigious
Trailblazer Award was presented to SAT at the Trust Director
Bobbie Greene McCarthy for her leadership of SAT's partnership
with the design community. She joins a select group of previous
honorees including Lady Bird Johnson, Philippe Starck, Adrianna
Scalamandre Bitter, Michael Graves and Bob Timberlake. Over the
past few years, IFDA and SAT have joined forces on several
important projects, including NPS' Eleanor Roosevelt's Val
Kill; one of the country's premier women's history sites, the
Sewall-Belmont House; and the New Orleans Cemeteries.
Save America's Treasures Generating Public and Private Dollars for
Preservation
Thanks to the broad bi-partisan Congressional support for
Save America's Treasures, over the past nine years, $264
million has been awarded in federal challenge grants to 1024
nationally significant preservation projects in every state,
Puerto Rico and the Midway Islands. The 2008 round will grant
in the coming weeks $25 million more to a few hundred
additional projects across the country.
Because the federal program requires a one-to-one match,
these grants have leveraged another $264 million in non-federal
and private contributions for historic preservation projects
across the country.
SAT at the National Trust has raised over $56 million in
preservation dollars for 100 federal grantees and other
significant preservation projects, often leading the way with
private funds subsequently applied to meet a federal challenge
grant.
A very substantial part of this effort has benefited
National Park Service projects--from Ellis Island to Valley
Forge to Edison's Invention Factory, from Mesa Verde and White
Grass to George Washington's Tents at Yorktown, from the Sewall
Belmont House and Val-Kill Cottage to Ebenezer Baptist Church
and Longfellow House. More than 20% (almost $12 million) of the
SAT private funding has been designated for NPS sites; and more
than $12 million in federal SAT challenge grants has been
awarded to national parks.
Each SAT federal grantee is designated an Official Project
by SAT at the National Trust and provided the corresponding
benefits and public association with this national program.
This grant program, included in the Historic Preservation
Fund, is the largest pot of federal money available to address
the preservation/restoration needs of our nationally
significant sites. In addition, it is unique in also providing
support for nationally significant collections: documents,
photos, sound recordings and works of art, including the Star-
Spangled Banner, the personal papers of the Founding Fathers,
the New York Philharmonic Leonard Bernstein collection, the
Lewis Clark Herbarium Collection, the only existing
architectural model of the World Trade Center, and the Apollo
Space Program Artifacts. Each of these federal SAT grants
provides ongoing opportunities to promote the specific project
AND illuminate its chapter in the American story, while raising
awareness of the overarching need for responsible stewardship
and new resources to preserve our collective memories.
Save America's Treasures at the National Trust, in
conjunction with the National Trust's Public Policy and Legal
departments, was an integral player in the 2003 lifting of a
ban on SAT federal grants to faith-based organizations. Since
this announcement and through the 2007 grant round, over 30
nationally significant historic projects of a religious nature
have been awarded more than $7 million in federal SAT matching
grants, including Newport's Touro Synagogue, Boston's Old North
Church, and San Antonio's Socorro Mission.
Save America's Treasures Leverages Support and Stewardship in the
Private Sector through the Creation of National Partnerships
Thanks to the program's reputation, visibility and broad bi-
partisan Congressional support, SAT at the National Trust has
successfully leveraged invaluable national partnerships through
corporations, foundations, and individuals who have supported
the program financially, in-kind and/or through media
campaigns, shining a national spotlight on the importance of
preserving our nation's heritage. Just a few of these include:
The J. Paul Getty Trust contributed $1 million in matching grants
to SAT for critical planning re-grants to 37 Save America's
Treasures projects in 29 states. Projects used the money to
plan the preservation, conservation and ongoing care of their
historic sites, buildings and districts. Many have been
subsequently awarded federal SAT grants for the actual
preservation/conservation work. (see attached list)
Polo Ralph Lauren Corporation provided over $10 Million to SAT to
conserve the iconic Star-Spangled Banner at the Smithsonian's
National Museum of American History. An additional $3 Million
in in-kind advertising also was provided to raise awareness for
the project and for Save America's Treasures.
Home & Garden Television has contributed over $2 million to
``Restore America: A Salute to Preservation,'' a dynamic
national partnership between HGTV, the National Trust and Save
America's Treasures. $1.3 Million of these funds has been
awarded directly to preservation efforts at 24 participating
Restore America sites, virtually all of which are SAT federal
grantees. An additional $3.9 Million has been provided in on-
air and on-line exposure through HGTV and its parent company,
Scripps Networks.
Restore America Gala: In appreciation of Congress' strong bi-
partisan support for SAT, the National Trust and HGTV have
honored a number of government and congressional leaders as
Restore America Heroes at their annual star-studded gala.
Honorees have included: Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and
Representative Ralph Regula for their founding support of the
program; Senator Mike DeWine and Representative John Lewis for
their championship of SAT preservation programs. Each year, SAT
Honorary Chair First Lady Laura Bush has also served as the
gala's Honorary Chair--except this past year, when she was
honored with a Restore America Hero Award for her role as
Honorary Chair of both Save America's Treasures and Preserve
America and for her work establishing the Texas Main Street
program and restoring Texas' historic courthouses. The star-
studded events have attracted substantial attention to SAT as a
model public-private partnership aimed at ensuring a brighter
future for our past.
Procter & Gamble: Ivory Soap announced in September that it would
mark its 125th anniversary with an advertising campaign to
benefit Save America's Treasures and raise awareness for its
work on behalf of our nation's heritage. SAT was featured in a
national promotion with 10% of its personal care line sales
benefiting SAT at the National Trust. The launch event was
widely covered in the press and on television, including Fox
News and the New York Post. This is Proctor & Gamble's second
national promotion on behalf of Save America's Treasures-the
first generated $100,000 and early national exposure.
Alcoa: Save America's Treasures raised $62,000 from Alcoa to match
a Federal SAT grant for the conservation of the only remaining
architectural presentation model of the World Trade Center
complex. This grant came from the Alcoa Relief Fund established
immediately following 9/11. SAT approached Alcoa for the match
because of its strong connection to the WTC. In the late
1960's, the company designed a new alloy for the building, then
under construction, creating a unique aluminum ``skin'' and
novel cladding system that gave the Twin Towers their signature
shiny, graceful appearance.
Goldman Sachs & Company has been a model corporate partner to Save
America's Treasures' projects. Of particular note, Goldman
Sachs is playing an instrumental role in bringing new attention
and additional resources to the Weeksville Society, Bedford-
Stuyvesant's early-19th century settlement built by freed New
York slaves. SAT presented the project to Goldman Sachs, which
contributed $500,000 and leveraged that contribution for one of
equal value from another corporate donor. Then, Save America's
Treasures helped the project secure a $400,000 federal SAT
matching grant in 2001. In addition, Goldman Sachs remains
intimately involved in the project, placing one of its senior
partners on Weeksville's Board of Directors and encouraging the
city to build a muchneeded community center adjacent to the
restored houses. When completed, this complex will breathe new
life into a long-neglected but historically significant
American community.
Partners in the Tourism Industry: Save America's Treasures has a
strong and productive partnership with Tourism Cares (formerly
the Travelers Conservation Foundation). This leading travel
industry association and its constituent partners have long-
recognized the critical relationship between the tourism
industry and the preservation of our historic treasures,
particularly in our national parks. They are committed to
shining a bright spotlight on the work of Save America's
Treasures and have provided over $716,000 for such significant
SAT projects as Mesa Verde, Valley Forge, Val-Kill, Ellis
Island, Lincoln Cottage, Orchard House and the National Trust's
Katrina effort. In addition to this financial support, TC and
its partners have committed hundreds of volunteers from the
tourism industry through annual Tourism Caring for America
weekends, planned in cooperation with Save America's Treasures.
Each year, an outpouring of enthusiastic volunteers have spent
a weekend cleaning, refurbishing and helping to restore some of
our most important federal SAT grantees and Parks, including
Mesa Verde, Ellis Island, Valley Forge, New Orleans' St. Louis
Cemetery and Mount Vernon. This spring, the travel industry
will once again embrace the spirit of New Orleans by helping to
clear up, paint and beautify Louis Armstrong Park.
At their request, SAT has also joined forces with Tourism Cares and
Smithsonian Magazine in their jointly-sponsored annual
Sustainable Tourism Awards. This program that began in 2001
solicits nominations from around the globe for projects that
are significant to the tourism industry and exemplify the
highest degree of commitment to environmental conservation and
historic preservation. Each prize, one for conservation and one
for preservation, is $20,000 but generates very substantial
public attention. After an extensive outreach by SAT staff to
its official projects, over 80% of the preservation applicants
hear about the award through our efforts and many of the
strongest applications come from SAT projects. Final choices
are made by the general public on the Sustainable Tourism
Awards website.
Leveraging Support from State and Local Governments: Commitment
from the federal Save America's Treasures program has been a
critical tool in spawning interest and support from state and
local governments for their significant SAT projects/federal
grantees. Most notably, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has
committed over $750,000 to first stabilize and then help
restore the iconic Revolutionary War-era Winter Encampment
buildings at Valley Forge. In addition, former US
Representative (and former Pennsylvania Senator) Jim Gerlach
secured another $250,000 in federal funds for the buildings'
ongoing restoration. The Commonwealth of Virginia also fully-
matched a $162,500 federal SAT grant to Yorktown's Washington
Tents project. Additional contributions at the state and local
level have included a $2 million commitment from the City of
San Francisco for SAT's Conservatory of Flowers project and a
$50,000 grant from Pennsylvania's Historical and Museum
Commission to help match the Paul Robeson House's federal SAT
grant.
Save America's Treasures Success Stories
A more hands-on view of how the Save America's Treasures program
directly-assists important historic sites and collections in
communities across the country--and helps stimulate local awareness and
resources--is provided below.
In May 2007, Save America's Treasures joined the National
Trust, the National Park Service, members of Congress and State
officials in the official re-opening of the Ellis Island Ferry
Building and the exhibition ``Future in the Balance.'' SAT's
public and private contributions totaling over $2.17 million
launched this project and heightened awareness of the need to
fully-restore this gateway to America.
Lincoln Cottage (Washington, DC)--Presidents Day 2007-SAT
joined the National Trust to celebrate the grand opening of
President Lincoln's Cottage after an 8-year restoration effort.
Mr. Lincoln's summer home, where he spent a quarter of his
presidency and drafted the Emancipation Proclamation, is the
most important site to understand the Lincoln presidency, other
than the White House. An SAT federal challenge grant of
$750,000 SAT federal challenge jump-started this campaign in
2000, and was matched by almost $600,000 in contributions
through SAT at the National Trust. This exciting day was a
culmination of efforts from a wide variety of federal, city and
private partners. SAT also arranged a special preview tour for
the First Lady a few months before the grand opening.
Save America's Treasures was an honored guest at the
rededication of Baltimore's newly-restored Mount Royal Train
Station. We were proud to have provided major support for the
adaptive reuse of this National Historic Landmark, transforming
it into the new home of the Maryland Institute College of Art,
a model project's helping to revitalize the surrounding
neighborhood by fusing an appreciation for the historic fabric
with the forward-thinking of contemporary art studies.
American College of Building Arts (Savannah, GA)--The
American College of the Building Arts is the only centralized,
comprehensive university in the nation for the study of
building arts, digging its roots deeply into the local
community and spreading its branches across America. Located in
the Historic Old City Jail in Charleston, South Carolina, and
at the newly acquired the MacLeod Plantation that will become
its campus, the college engages and trains the next generation
of skilled craftsmen in how to create successful communities of
tomorrow by preserving the best of our past. The 200-year old
Jail currently is under restoration, thanks in part to a
$500,000 Federal SAT grant and matching assistance from SAT at
the National Trust.
Orchard House (Concord, MA)--SAT visited Orchard House,
Louisa May Alcott's home, with Mrs. Bush in June 2002, her
first public appearance as Honorary Chair of Save America's
Treasures. Led by SAT at the National Trust, the fundraising
effort around the event generated almost $150,000 in individual
and corporate contributions. These funds helped match the
$400,000 federal Save America's Treasures challenge grant
awarded to Orchard House in 2000. SAT continues to work closely
with Orchard House to guide and support its preservation needs.
Cornerstones/Acoma (New Mexico)--Cornerstones Community
Partnerships was designated an official project of Save
America's Treasures in 1999, the only grassroots preservation
organization among our 1,200 projects. We have worked very
closely with Cornerstones over the years, particularly on the
giant church of San Esteban del Rey at the Acoma Pueblo. The
project received a $400,000 Federal grant in 2001, and we have
worked with them to raise the required matching funds,
including generating a lead $75,000 gift towards the
restoration.
Weeksville (Brooklyn, NY)--Save America's Treasures at the
National Trust has been integral to making a 30-year-old dream
come true for this early 19th century settlement built by freed
New York slaves in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn.
Working with Joan Maynard, SAT helped raise almost $800,000 and
win a $400,000 federal Save America's Treasures grant. Once
restoration is complete, the Center will be a premier cultural
institution offering an innovative, socially conscious
discovery and learning experience presented through history,
art, technology and the environment, and rooted in the
preservation of African American history.
Valley Forge (Valley-Forge, VA)--Since its earliest days,
SAT at the Trust has worked closely with Valley Forge National
Historical Park. To date, almost $1.5 million in private SAT
funds and a $450,000 federal SAT grant have been contributed to
stabilize and restore the six houses that will become an
important element in the planned Center for the American
Revolution.
Lincoln Cottage (Washington, DC)--Restoration at Lincoln
Cottage, President Lincoln's summer home, where he spent a
quarter of his presidency and drafted the Emancipation
Proclamation, is underway and the $750,000 SAT federal
challenge grant has been matched by almost $500,000 in
contributions through SAT at the National Trust. We hope that
the Cottage and Visitors' Center will be the premier center for
the study of the Lincoln Presidency.
Louis & Clark Herbarium (Philadelphia, PA)--Because of a
Federal SAT grant in 1999, the Louis & Clark Herbarium, the
plant specimens collected on their journey 200 years ago, have
been saved through state-of-the-art conservation methods. No
other collection of North American plants is so important from
both historical and scientific points of view. Not only do the
specimens survive in relatively good condition, but so do
records relating to where they were collected and how the
plants were used at the time.
Conservatory of Flowers (San Francisco, CA)--In September
2003, the Conservatory of Flowers reopened to an eager public
after a $25 million restoration, of which $11 million was
funded through private contributions raised by SAT at the
National Trust. Recently, the Conservatory was awarded the
prestigious American Institute of Architects Honor Award, the
highest recognition for works that exemplify excellence in
architecture.
Liberty Theatre (Astoria, OR)--The Liberty Theater received
a $399,000 SAT earmark in 2001. The federal funds were matched
by several private grants including $25,000 through Restore
America. Its restoration serves as a magnet for other
preservation efforts, commercial activity and professional
development in Astoria's historic downtown.
Mesa Verde National Park (Mesa Verde, CO)--Mesa Verde
National Park preserves spectacular remains of the thousand-
year-old ancestral pueblo culture, including elaborate stone
cities built in the sheltered recesses of the canyon walls.
Over $1.7 in private donations through SAT at the National
Trust more than matched a $1.5 million federal SAT grant
awarded in 1999.
Ebenezer Baptist Church (Atlanta, GA)--An anonymous gift of
$500,000 solicited by SAT at the Trust helped match the
$620,389 federal Save America's Treasures challenge grant
awarded in 1999. Ebenezer was also featured in the Restore
America campaign and received a $50,000 grant for the interior
restoration work.
Hulett Ore Unloaders (OH)--Restoration of Cleveland's Hulett
Ore Unloaders, landmarks on the Lake Erie shoreline since the
turn of the century, was sparked by a $20,000 Getty planning
grant from SAT at the Trust in 1999. The project successfully
leveraged this grant and national exposure for additional
support from the City of Cleveland and other private
contributions. The grant was followed by a listing on the
National Trust's 11 Most Endangered Listing the same year.
Socorro Mission (Socorro, TX)--SAT at the Trust advised and
assisted Cornerstones Community Partnerships in its application
for Socorro Mission, the 1842 adobe church that was the
centerpiece of the Socorro village founded by Spanish and Piro
Indian refugees in 1680. Socorro Mission received a $200,000
SAT earmark in 2005 to complete the restoration.
Tennessee Theatre (Knoxville, TN)--Thanks in part to a
$46,000 SAT earmark, the Tennessee Theatre reopened in January
15, 2005 after a complete restoration that has transformed the
movie palace into a performing arts venue while retaining its
historic splendor. The Theatre serves as a centerpiece of the
revitalization of historic downtown Knoxville.
Robie House (Oak Park, IL)--This 1909 home is considered the
masterpiece of Frank Lloyd Wright's Prairie style. A one
million dollar contribution from SAT at the Trust more than
matched a $250,000 Federal grant in 2000. As part of its
participation in Restore America, Robie House also received a
$62,500 grant for its continued restoration.
B & O Railroad Museum (Baltimore, MD)--The Baltimore & Ohio
Railroad Museum is dedicated to the preservation and
interpretation of American railroading through the history and
legacy of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, the Chesapeake and
Ohio Railway, the Western Maryland Railway, and the regional
railroads of the mid-Atlantic. After a winter snowstorm in 2003
collapsed the historic roundhouse and damaged most of its train
collection, SAT at the Trust advised and assisted the Museum in
winning a $500,000 Federal grant to restore and conserve the
locomotive collection.
North Dakota Prairie Churches (Statewide)--Often founded by
first-generation settlers from Germany, Poland, Iceland, Russia
and Scandinavia, these simple prairie church were usually the
first building to go up when a town was settled--and the last
to close its doors if the community died out. Of North Dakota's
2,000 church structures, more than 400 are vacant and
threatened by inadequate maintenance and demolition. Listed as
one of the 11 Most Endangered Historic Places in 2001,
Preservation North Dakota received a $100,000 Federal SAT grant
in 2002 to restore several of the most threatened structures.
10th Street Bridge (Great Falls, MT)--SAT at the Trust
worked with Great Falls city officials to win a successful SAT
grant for the restoration of the 10th Street Bridge. The
$250,000 SAT federal grant awarded in 2001 funded the repair of
deteriorating stringers, floor beam columns, piers, and end-
walls.
Travelers' Rest (Lolo, MT)--Preservation efforts at Lewis
and Clark's Travelers' Rest Campsite, where they rested at this
site for several days on their westward and eastward journeys,
include protecting the site from development and urban
encroachment. Restoration work at the site has been funded by a
$40,000 grant from SAT at the National Trust.
First Ladies' Library (Canton, OH)--Upon restoration and
renovation, the City National Bank Building, built in 1895,
will serve as the Education and Research Center at the National
First Ladies' Library. SAT visited the site in 1999 and it
later received a $2.5 million Federal SAT earmark in 2000.
Addendum of Richard Moe, President, The National Trust for
Historic Preservation
Mr. Chairman, I would like to correct some information I provided
you and the Subcommittee that was not included in my written testimony.
I used the Kawaiaha`o Church as an example of a Save America's
Treasures (SAT) project that HAS received an award under this program.
I meant to say that this is the type of nationally significant historic
resource that WOULD BE eligible for an SAT grant. In fact, at this time
the church has not been the beneficiary of this program and I hope that
changes soon.
In terms of historic resources in Hawaii that have already received
SAT grants--there are numerous examples and I'd like to cite a few for
your information and the hearing record.
The 16th-century Kaloko Fishpond, located within the National
Historic Landmark Koloko-Honokohau Settlement, represents the best
extant example of traditional Hawaiian fishponds found along the west
Hawaii coast and is an extraordinary example of engineering skills. SAT
funds have been used to restore the fishpond wall to its original
condition. The project is also training a new generation of Hawaiian
stone masons and will allow native Hawaiians to operate a traditional
fishpond. All of this will help foster a better understanding and
appreciation of Hawaiian culture through the preservation of this
historic resource. SAT at Trust raised $75,000 towards the match. This
came from our tourism partner--Tauck World Discovery.
In addition to the $75,000 grant from Tauck, the project was
awarded a sizeable $99,040 grant from the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.
Other wonderful SAT grants include $310,000 to the Chamberlain House in
Honolulu; $75,000 to the Hawaiian Cultural Collection at Honolulu's
Bishop Museum; $300,000 for the USS Missouri in Honolulu; and $50,000
for the Bishop Museum's Moving Image Collection.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much for your testimonies.
Senator Burr. Mr. Chairman.
Senator Akaka. Yes.
Senator Burr. If I could interrupt the Chairman. I want to
apologize because I have a scheduling conflict and I want to
say to our witnesses if you won't take offense that I don't ask
you any questions I pledge to support a quick action on both
your pieces of legislation.
Mr. Moe. It's a deal.
[Laughter.]
Senator Burr. Thank you very much. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator Akaka. Thank you very much, Senator Burr.
Commissioner Surkamp, we've heard a lot this afternoon about
the historical significance of the Battle of Shepherdstown. The
Department of the Interior has recommended that we give
priority to previously authorized studies.
Can you tell us what kind of timeframe, time sensitivity
we're facing. For example, are there development pressures or
are other threats to the battlefield site a problem?
Mr. Surkamp. Thank you, Senator.
Senator Akaka. Yes.
Mr. Surkamp. Thank you. If for, speaking hypothetically, if
the other projects are on this list of projects, if all of them
are in a county that is next to the fastest growing county in
the United States, then we would all be equal. We're a small
county. Our weekly meetings are in the trial room of John
Brown.
Much of the character remains, but we're next to Loudoun
County. Just the mere growth pressures from that, where we are,
threaten the character of the county and will threaten the site
as the Shepherdstown Battlefield. We as a county commission
have probably some of the most advanced zoning ordinances to
protect these things, but we're facing the juggernaut of growth
pressures with thousands of applications for houses.
Senator Akaka. Mr. Moe, in your written testimony you state
that the Preserve America Program provides funds to help pay
for historic preservation planning activities. My understanding
is that these plans are then used to help organizations apply
for funding through the Save America's Treasures Program. Could
you elaborate on the types of plans that are necessary for an
organization to have in hand prior to applying for a Save
America's Treasures grant?
Mr. Moe. Thank you, Senator, that's a very good question.
Because sometimes the communities say, for example, if it wants
to preserve its local train station as many do. That requires a
certain planning activity because there are a lot of different
segments of the community that must come together to be part of
that.
Not only to plan for what the train station will become, if
it's no longer a train station, how it will serve the community
and how the rest of the funds are to be raised to restore it
and to adapt its use to a new purpose. Because the Save
America's Treasures grants only cover typically a small
portion, significant, but small portion of the total cost of
restoring a historic structure. So that's the kind of planning
that is necessary to put the financing together, to put the
architectural plans together and to put the overall strategy
together.
So these Preserve America planning grants are very
important. In that sense, as I said in my testimony, complement
the Save America's Treasures Program.
Senator Akaka. Do you support the specifics of Preserve
America Program as listed in S. 2262 or do you have any
suggestions to either delete or add activities that would be
eligible for Preserve America funding?
Mr. Moe. No, I support the legislation as it's written,
Senator. We've spent a lot of time going over this with the
Administration and with other partners. We support the
legislation as it's written and introduced.
Senator Akaka. I want to thank you both very much for what
you're doing for our country, really. I want to thank you for
mentioning the Kawaiahao project there. I want to thank both of
you for testifying before this committee this afternoon. Your
testimony, without question, will help us better understand
these issues.
Mr. Surkamp. Thank you, sir.
Senator Akaka. Some members of the committee who were not
able to attend this afternoon may submit additional questions
in writing. If we receive any we will forward them to you and
ask you to respond to them so that we may include both the
questions and the responses in the official hearing record.
Again, thank you very much for being here and helping us in
this respect.
Mr. Surkamp. Thank you, Senator.
Senator Akaka. Committee hearing is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 3:37 p.m. the hearing was adjourned.]
APPENDIXES
----------
Appendix I
Responses to Additional Questions
----------
Responses of Richard Moe to Questions From Senator Burr
s. 2262
Question 1. What is the role of the National Trust for Historic
Preservation in the Preserve America and Save America's Treasures
programs?
Answer. The National Trust has a direct role in SAT as the leading
private sector partner. We amplify, reinforce, and support SAT at every
stage by, expanding and strengthening the applicant pool, assisting
with the grant applications; providing help with Federal projects,
particularly through fundraising advice and solicitations on the
required matches; and creating an array of promotional and media
opportunities on grantee projects. We have no similar direct role in
Preserve America, but welcome partnerships whenever possible.
Here are some specific examples of the National Trust's role in
SAT:
Providing direct guidance, counsel, advice and fundraising
assistance to hundreds of successful SAT applicants with
spectacular results, such as adding over $56 million to the
Park Service's Federal $264 million: this includes direct
contributions to more than 100 SAT projects and grantees;
including almost $12 million to NPS sites.
Creating major corporate partnerships that increase national
visibility of the program and the need to preserve our historic
resources, while generating substantial matching funds. A great
example of this is the Trust securing a $13 million gift from
Polo Ralph Lauren Corporation for the restoration of the Star
Spangled Banner.
Reinforcing and amplifying the Federal SAT program's efforts
to attract a larger and more diverse pool of applicants,
especially those from west of the Mississippi.
Working to eliminate the prohibition of SAT grants to
historic religious properties, which ended in 2003. Now, over
$7 million has been awarded to more than 30 historic religious
sites such as Boston's Trinity and Old North Churchs, Newport's
Touro Synagogue, and the Eldridge Street Synagogue in New York.
Question 2. What do you consider the greatest success story from
each of these programs?
Answer. I will defer to Ms. Scarlet on the greatest success story
from Preserve America, but on SAT, the greatest achievement is what
began as an initiative to celebrate the new millennium has evolved into
a highly effective public-private partnership about to commemorate its
first decade. In ten years, SAT has become the largest and most
successful federal bricks-and-mortar preservation program in history.
It has identified and helped restore more than 1,000 national treasures
by providing $289 million; its matching requirement will have leveraged
over $300 million in private resources, more than $56 million of which
has been generated by SAT's private partner at the National Trust. The
program also has raised the national profile of historic preservation,
through creative corporate and media partnerships, and it continues to
motivate and inspire community involvement and local awareness of the
need for shared responsibility and good stewardship of our cultural
heritage.
Question 3. Preserve America and Save America's Treasures have
existed as special programs within the Administration for several
years. Why is this legislation needed?
Answer. With all of its tremendous success and support, however,
SAT is unauthorized and funded from year-to-year though the annual
appropriations process. The National Trust would like to see Congress
authorize SAT and PA with a long-term programmatic and funding vision
that would enable both programs to work in harmony with the other as
components of the national historic preservation program. Authorization
would codify the successful implementation and practices of a ten-year
old initiative along with its newer partner and I think that this it is
a step in the right direction. While much has been achieved since SAT
was established, the need remains great and we must look to future
needs. In just the first eight years of the program, 2,702 grant
applications were received, representing requests for more than $1.17
billion in critical preservation assistance. SAT funds have made a huge
difference, but without Congress' ongoing commitment to the program, it
would be virtually impossible to stimulate private matching
contributions and hard to imagine where else the money would come from
to preserve our national heritage.
______
Responses of James T. Surkamp to Questions From Senator Burr
s. 1633
Question 1. How much of the land involved in the study is currently
in private ownership?
Answer. All the 300 acres are in private ownership. The 300 acres
we are trying to preserve are shown within the blue rectangle in
attachment designated as Cons Esmts. Through 3 conservation easements
we have preserved 84 acres that are still in private ownership and have
2 private residences; those acres are shown as blue x's in the last
map. While there are six residences on the 300 acres; one is a 200
year-old farmhouse that has a cannon ball in a wall from the Battle of
Shepherdstown. Except for the other 5 houses, most of the acreage is
not very different from what is was in 1862. It is still either being
farmed or is woodland. The Save Historic Antietam Foundation is
negotiating to purchase a 13 acre tract that is on the south bank of
the Potomac River; this acreage includes the remnants of a cement mill
and kilns that were built in 1827. A 122 acre farm, including the
aforementioned farmhouse, is owned by a real estate developer who has
offered it for sale within the last 2 years although it is not being
marketed presently. Given the current state of the real estate market,
the owner is likely to accept any reasonable offer. Two parcels that
approximate 60 acres are part of larger farms and contain no houses. We
assume that those parcels could be purchased. The remaining
approximately 20 acres are 3 separate lots each with a house but are
located on the fringe of the battlefield site. One is a 10 acre lot in
the southwest corner of the site and the other 2 are in the northwest
corner of the site.
Question 2. How much of the area is currently undeveloped and in a
condition to accurately interpret events associated with the battle?
Answer. The battle covered about one square mile or 640 acres. The
most southern 40 acres of the site have been fully developed as
residential subdivisions. The remaining 600 acres of the battlefield
are bisected by Trough Road, which was named Charlestown Road in 1862.
The 300 acres west of Trough Road is where most of the battle took
place. East of Trough Road was basically a hasty retreat to the ford.
We are trying to preserve the 300 acres west of Trough Road.
Question 3. How much of the study been completed and will the
National Park Service be allowed to use that information?
Answer. The site of the battle has been mapped by: 1) the American
Battlefield Protection Program of the National Park Service (shown
within an irregular circle in attachment designated as Map 1); and, 2)
the state historian from the West Virginia Division of Culture &
History (shown as red rectangle in attachment designated as Color Map
2). This information could be made available to the National Park
Service.
______
Responses of the National Park Service to Questions From Senator Akaka
We must remember that the memorial is NOT just for those living
today, but for individuals that have already passed on. Kalawao and
Kaulapapa have been identified as potential sites for a memorial to be
established. Kalawao is recognized as the first isolation settlement
where as many as 5,000 people were sent and Kaulapapa the second
isolation settlement.
The Senate and House bill language authorizes Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa
``to establish a memorial at a suitable location or locations approved
by the Secretary at Kalawao or Kaulapapa...'' Given the proposed
amendment you included in your testimony, I am concerned that the
organization will not truly have a voice in determining the final site.
Question 1. Ms. Scarlett: To what extent will the Secretary of
Interior take Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa's recommendations into
consideration, especially given that the I House bill states that the
organization, ``shall be solely responsible for acceptance of
contributions for payment of expenses associated with the establishment
of the memorial?''
Answer. The Secretary will work with Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa to find
an appropriate location within Kalaupapa National Historical Park for
the memorial. NPS works cooperatively with several organizations to
manage the site, including the State of Hawaii, Department of Hawaiian
Homelands, which owns the land. If Congress authorizes this memorial,
the National Park Service is committed to working with the patients,
partners and friends' groups to find an appropriate location for the
memorial.
Question 2. Ms. Scarlett: As the Secretary of the Interior must
approve the size, design, and inscriptions, as well as the location or
locations of such memorial; why should the options for sites be
limited, at this time to Kaulapapa only?
Answer. We recommend that the bill be amended to delete any
reference to a specific location within the park where the memorial is
to be located. Our suggested amendment, attached to the testimony,
would allow the memorial to be located ``at a suitable location or
locations approved by the Secretary within the boundaries of Kalaupapa
National Historical Park.'' While Kalaupapa Settlement may turn out to
be the best location for the memorial, we feel the law would he most
effective if it allowed the Secretary, the patients, the partners, and
friends' groups the flexibility to work collaboratively to find the
best location within the park for the memorial.
Responses of the National Park Service to Questions From Senator Burr
s. 2262
Question 3a. How much funding does Congress typically appropriate
for each of these programs in a given year?
Answer. Preserve America Funding Levels--
FY 2008--$7.383 million
FY 2007--$4.926 million
FY 2006--$4.926 million
FY 2005--$0
Save America's Treasures Funding Levels--
FY 2008--$10 million
FY 2007--$8.074 million
FY 2006--$24.6 million
FY 2005--$29.5 million
FY 2004--$30 million
FY 2003--$30 million
FY 2002--$30 million
FY 2001--$34.923 million
FY 2000--$30 million
FY 1999--$30 million
Question 3b. Why is it necessary to enact legislation if both of
these programs have been around for several years?
Answer. If enacted, the Preserve America and Save America's
Treasures Act (S. 2262) would, for the first time, formally codify the
Preserve America and Save America's Treasures programs. Both are grant
programs that were started through Presidential Executive Orders.
Formal congressional authorization oithe two programs would work to
ensure their long-term viability.
Question 4a. What is the advantage to being designated a National
Historical Park instead of a National Historic Site?
Answer. In recent years, Congress and the National Park Service
have attempted to simplify the nomenclature used for park units. The
term ``national historic site'' has been the most commonly applied by
Congress when authorizing the addition of such areas to the National
Park System. However, when a park includes two non-contiguous parcels
with two distinct interpretive themes, the term ``national historical
park'' more adequately characterizes the type of unit. Besides being a
more descriptive name, there is no specific benefit to being called a
national historical park as opposed to a national historic site.
Question 4b. How much will it cost the National Park Service to
update signage, brochures, and other references to the name of this
site as a result of the name change?
Answer. Given the recent renovations at the Edison laboratory
complex and his home, new exhibits arc presently in the design and
fabrication phase. If the bill is enacted, there will be no additional
cost to change the name on the exhibits. New park brochures are also
being designed and no additional cost will result from the name change.
In terms of the directional or other signs, we believe the cost will
not exceed $50,000.
Question 5a. Has a proposed memorial been designed for the site?
Answer. The National Park Service is not aware that a specific
design has been proposed by Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa.
Question 5b. How will design and construction of the memorial be
funded? Who will pay for it and what is the estimated cost?
Answer. Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa has committed to finding the funds to
pay for design and construction of the memorial. S. 2502 does not
specify how the design and construction of the memorial would be
Funded. H.R. 3332 clarifies that Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa shall be solely
responsible for the payment of expenses associated with the
establishment of the memorial, and for this reason we prefer H.R. 3332.
Until there is a design proposed, there is no way to determine the
associated costs.
Responses of the National Park Service to Questions From
Senator Barrasso
Question 6. Please provide the total number of and total
expenditures in Save America's Treasures grants awarded each year to
each of the 50 States through a competitive process since the inception
of the Save America's Treasures program.
Answer. (see below)
FY 1999--$26.5 million awarded to 60 projects in 24 States
FY 2000--$15 million awarded to 47 projects in 31 States
FY 2001--$13.2 million awarded to 55 projects in 27 States
FY 2002--$15 million awarded to 79 projects in 36 States
FY 2003--$14.15 million awarded to 63 projects in 29 States
and
FY 2004--$14.5 million awarded to 60 projects in 24 States
FY 2005--$14.3 million awarded to 61 projects in 29 States
FY 2006--$7.6 million awarded to 42 projects in 24 States
FY 2007--$7.6 million awarded to 31 projects in 25 States
Question 7. Please provide the total number of and total
expenditures in Save America's Treasures grants awarded each year to
each of the 50 States through a process other than a competitive
process since the inception of the Save America's Treasures program.
Answer. (see below)
FY 1999--$3.5 million earmarked by Congress for 2 projects
FY 2000--$15 million earmarked by Congress for 24 projects
in 15 States
FY 2001--$21.7 million earmarked by Congress for 49 projects
in 25 States
FY 2002--$15 million earmarked by Congress for 62 projects
in 33 States
FY 2003--$14.9 million earmarked by Congress for 59 projects
in 33 States
FY 2004--517.8 million earmarked by Congress for 99 projects
in 39 States
FY 2005--$14.8 million earmarked by Congress for 83 projects
in 34 States
FY 2006--$16.5 million earmarked by Congress for 91 projects
in 35 States
FY 2007--$0 earmarked by Congress
FY 2008--$13.6 million earmarked by Congress for 70 projects
in 36 States
Question 8. If Save America's Treasures grants are not awarded
through a competitive process, please describe and explain in detail
the process or processes by which the grants are awarded.
Answer. Roughly half of the Save America's Treasures appropriations
have been earmarked for specific projects. The list of earmarks appears
in the appropriations bills for the Department of Interior.
Question 9. Please describe and explain in detail how the Secretary
determines the value of contributions made in the form of donated
supplies and related services under the Preserve America and Save
America's Treasures programs.
Answer. Volunteer services furnished by professional and technical
personnel, consultants, and other skilled and unskilled labor may be
counted as cost sharing or matching if the service is an integral and
necessary part of an approved project. Rates for volunteer services
must be consistent with those paid for similar work in the recipient's
organization. In those instances in which the required skills are not
found in the recipient organization, rates must be consistent with
those paid for similar work in the labor market in which the recipient
competes for the type of services involved. In either case, paid fringe
benefits that are reasonable, allowable, and allocable may be included
in the valuation.
When an employer other than the recipient furnishes the services of
an employee, these services must be valued at the employee's regular
rate of pay (plus an amount of fringe benefits that are reasonable,
allowable, and allocable but exclusive of overhead costs), provided
these services are in the same skill for which the employee is normally
paid.
Volunteer services must be documented and, to the extent feasible,
supported by the same methods used by the recipient for its own
employees' time and attendance records.
Donated supplies may include such items as office supplies,
laboratory supplies, or construction materials such as bricks and
lumber, needed to perform the grant-assisted work. Value assessed to
donated supplies included in the cost sharing or matching share must be
reasonable and may not exceed the fair market value of the supplies at
the time of the donation.
The value of donated equipment may not exceed the fair market value
of equipment of the same age and condition at the time of donation.
The value of donated space may not exceed the fair rental value of
comparable space as established by an independent appraisal of
comparable space and facilities in a privately owned building in the
same locality.
Question 10. Please explain why S. 2262 mandates that the Secretary
``ensure that the non-Federal share for an eligible project...shall be
available for expenditure before a grant is provided to the eligible
project'' under the Preserve America program, but only ``ensure that
each applicant for a grant has the capacity and a feasible plan for
securing the non-Federal share for an eligible project...before a grant
is provided to the eligible project'' under the Save America's
Treasures program.
Answer. The Preserve America's grant program was developed six
years after the establishment of the Save America's Treasures grant
program. Both programs were established to encourage similar
partnerships. It was thought that many of the grant recipients from the
Preserve America's program would he small communities that may have
found it difficult to raise the required matching funds. Therefore, the
idea to require a mandate was designed to ensure that the matching
funds are in place prior to the award being made.
Responses of the National Park Service to Questions From Senator Burr
s. 1633
Question 1a. How much of the proposed area remains undeveloped and
in a condition to accurately interpret its significance?
Answer. There are 640 acres in the proposed area; 300 acres are
undeveloped. The 300 acres are open fields, similar to the ``stubble
fields'' that existed at the time of the battle. There are six houses
in the outlying area, one of which dates hack to the time of the
battle. They do not impact the open fields.
Question 1b. Is any of the battlefield currently owned by
Department of the Interior?
Answer. The Department of the Interior owns none of the primary
battleground where the actual fighting took place.
s. 1993 and h.r. 2197
Question 2a. How many acres will the boundary adjustment add to the
unit?
Answer. Seip Unit: Approximately 1 80.2 acres; Spruce Hill Works
Unit: Approximately 176.8 acres.
Question 2b. How many private property owners will be affected by
the boundary adjustment?
Answer. Seip Unit: WGM Enterprises, Ltd. and Nancy I. Arthur, et.
al.; Spruce Hill Works Unit: The Archaeological Conservancy and
Wilderness East (land trusts); Adjacent land owners: E. Marie Browning,
Raymond .lones, Tommy Shoemaker, Joy Shoemaker, and Charles Zehnder.
Question 2c. What is the anticipated cost of the land acquisition
associated with this boundary adjustment?
Answer. Seip Unit: Approximately $300,000; Spruce Hill Works Unit:
Approximately $609,000.
s. 2207
Question 3a. Could the outcome of the study be a recommendation
that the site be designated as an Affiliated Area?
Answer. As authorized by S. 2207, the study would determine if the
Green McAdoo School possesses nationally significant natural, cultural
or other resources and is a suitable and feasible addition to the
National Park Service system, There are alternatives to National Park
Service management that may adequately protect resources even if they
meet the preceding criteria. An Affiliated Area, a Congressional
designation for a unit managed by others under terms of a cooperative
agreement with the National Park Service, is a potential management
option.
Question 3b. Has any local group begun preliminary work on the
study?
Answer. The Green McAdoo Cultural Organization currently manages
the McAdoo school site as a museum and cultural center. However, to the
best knowledge of National Park Service staff, neither this
organization nor any other local group has begun preliminary work on a
special resource study related to the Green McAdoo School.
s. 2254
Question 4a. We have 2 bills on the agenda today to designate
National Heritage Areas within the state of Mississippi. What are the
differences between the Mississippi Bills National Heritage Area and
the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area?
Answer. The differences are geographic. The proposed Mississippi
Hills National Heritage Area lies in the northeast corner of the state,
encompassing the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. The proposed
Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area lies in the alluvial
floodplain of the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers, which comprises the
northwest sections of the state.
Question 4b. How many National Heritage Areas currently exist
within the state of Mississippi?
Answer. The Mississippi Gulf National Heritage Area is the only
national heritage area in Mississippi.
Question 4c. Has the National Park Service or anyone else conducted
a study to determine the suitability and feasibility of designating
this area as a National heritage Area?
Answer. The National Park Service has not conducted a national
heritage area suitability and feasibility study for the Mississippi
Hills region. The Mississippi lid's Heritage Area Alliance, a local
advocacy organization, has created a concept plan for the proposed
national heritage area. .However, the plan was not designed to address
the suitability and feasibility criteria used by the National Park
Service for heritage area designation.
s. 2512
Question 5a. Has the National Park Service or anyone else conducted
a study to determine the suitability and feasibility of designating
this area as a National Heritage Area? If so, what did the study
recommend?
Answer. The National Park Service has conducted a study of the
Lower Mississippi Delta region. Released in 1998, the study was very
broad in both its scope and recommendations. The area examined
stretched across all or part of seven states and 308 counties and
parishes and centered on the Mississippi River drainage system. The
almost 200-page study inventoried and analyzed significant natural,
recreational and cultural resources in the Mississippi Delta region.
From this information, the authors developed general recommendations
for a series of museums, historic sites, driving routes, heritage sites
and festivals, among others. However, local coordinating entities,
boundaries, and conceptual business and financial plans were not
examined. These are all critical elements used by the National Park
Service in an actual national heritage area study.
Question 5b. How many National Heritage Areas currently exist and
how many of those were designated without first having a study
completed?
Answer. There presently are 37 national heritage areas (NHAs). The
majority of recently authorized NHAs underwent a feasibility study
process prior to designation. Feasibility studies can be conducted by
either the Department of the Interior (Department), if directed by
Congress, or by other parties. If the study is done by a party other
than the Department, consultation with the National Park Service is
strongly recommended during the study process. After the study is
completed, by the other party, the Department reviews the study to
determine if it meets the interim criteria used by the National Park
Service for such studies, including whether the proposed heritage area
has an assemblage of natural, cultural or historic resources that
together represent distinctive aspects of American heritage, whether
there is strong local support, and if a viable management entity has
been identified. The Department has requested that Congress pass NHA
program legislation, such as language included in S. 278, to establish
a system of NHAs that include criteria for the study and designation of
these areas.
h.r. 3998
Question 6a. The bill directs the Secretary of the Interior to
conduct special resource studies of 9 sites. It combined 9 separate
House bills into a single piece of legislation. We have received e-mail
and calls from a private property rights group expressing concern for
one of the provisions, Rim of the Valley Corridor Study.
What role will the public have in the studies authorized by H.R.
3998?
Answer. H.R. 3998 requires that the authorized studies be completed
in accordance with either section 8(c) of Public Law 91-383 or section
5(b) of the National Trails System Act. Section 8(c) of P.L. 91-383
states that ``each study under this section shall be prepared with
appropriate opportunity for public involvement, including at least one
public meeting in the vicinity of the area under study, and alter
reasonable efforts to notify potentially affected landowners and State
and local governments.'' Section 5(h) orthe National Trails System Act
states that ``Such studies shall be made in consultation with...
interested interstate, State and local governmental agencies, public
and private organizations, and landowners and land users concerned.''
Question 6b. Will the public he informed of these studies and given
an opportunity to submit comments?
Answer. The public will be informed of special resource studies
occurring in the area by appropriate means (newspapers, announcements
to stake holders, etc.). The public is invited to comment on the
proposed study area during initial scoping meetings and throughout the
process. The public may submit comments for the record during the
studies' official comment period(s). In accordance with NPS Management
Policies 2006, section 1.3.3, in determining the feasibility of the
study area, the NPS will assess the level of local and general public
support for the study area, including landowner opinion.
Appendix II
Additional Material Submitted for the Record
----------
Statement of Hon. Sherrod Brown, U.S. Senator From Ohio, on S. 1993
Mr. Chairman, I want to thank you for holding this hearing. I
appreciate the subcommittee's dedication to protecting our national
parks and historic areas. I'm particularly pleased that today the
committee will be considering S. 1993, the Hopewell Culture National
Historical Park Boundary Act.
Ohio is home to numerous archaeological sites of significant value
in our ongoing efforts to better understand our nation's pre-history.
President Warren G. Harding realized the importance of these mounds and
earthworks by establishing the Mound City National Monument in 1923.
The surrounding park, now known as the Hopewell Culture National
Historical Park, is the only one of its kind in the nation dedicated to
the protection and preservation of land forms and artifacts from the
beginnings of the Hopewell era over 2000 years ago.
Subsequent additions to the monument over the past thirty years
reflect our continued understanding and appreciation of the area. The
bill introduced--and reported--by my colleagues in the House and the
bill that I have introduced in the Senate adjusts the boundary of the
park to include the nearby Spruce Hill area. This isn't a land grab, or
a case of eminent domain; the bill simply allows the Secretary of the
Interior to purchase land from willing sellers. The National Park
Service has issued reports in the past on the significance and
desirability of adding Spruce Hill site into the Hopewell Culture
National Historical Park.
When most think of the Mound Builders of the Ohio valley who built
these historic sites, they think of geometric wonders like Serpent
Mound in Adams County, Ohio, or the dome shaped mounds at Ft. Ancient,
Ohio. Yet, unlike these earthworks, the Spruce Hill site is set on a
hilltop overlooking the Paint Creek Valley. The 140 acre enclosure is
unlike anything currently at the Hopewell Culture National Historical
Park. Archaeologists are still studying this site and we ought to
continue our commitment to further understanding our heritage by
protecting this irreplaceable site from vandals, looters, and future
development. I am glad the committee will have the opportunity to
consider the merits of this legislation.
______
Statement of Hon. Thad Cochran, U.S. Senator From Mississippi
Members of the Senate Energy Committee, I thank you for your
allowing me to make a statement in support of legislation creating the
Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area and the Mississippi Delta
National Heritage Area.
The history of the State of Mississippi is one of struggle and
redemption, of literature and arts. It is a unique area of America, and
its story has affected the entire country. I am pleased to speak on
behalf of two areas of my State that have contributed greatly to this
history. I am hopeful that you as a Committee will look favorably upon
my efforts to have these areas recognized.
North Mississippi's Hills were the inspiration for William
Faulkner's Nobel Prize winning literature, and Faulkner's hometown of
Oxford, Mississippi, continues to be one of the most beautifully
preserved town squares in the American South. Elvis Presley grew up in
these Hills, and it was here he learned the sounds that transformed
American music.
Just to the West of the Mississippi Hills is the Delta region, the
famed birthplace of the blues. B.B. King first strummed a guitar in the
Mississippi Delta, and the rich Mississippi River soil deposits made
for a storied agricultural past. From juke joints to catfish farms, the
Mississippi Delta stands out as one of the most culturally distinctive
area in America.
I understand the Department of Interior is hesitant to encourage
passage of these bills without an officially sanctioned review by the
National Park Service. The alliances behind the creation of the
Heritage Areas have worked hard to produce documents they and I feel
are as worthy as any the National Park Service might produce, and I am
happy to provide copies to any of you.
I hope that additional funds will not be needed to reproduce these
studies. Further review of the areas will be unnecessarily costly and
time-consuming, and the National Park Service is not equipped with
enough staff to make this process easier. Undoubtedly, legislation to
create a more substantial National Heritage Area program is needed.
I hope that my colleagues in the Senate will understand the
importance of these regions to the cultural fabric of America, and I
hope that the creation of these two Heritage Areas will encourage an
understanding and appreciation of how much Mississippi has to offer.
______
Statement of Hon. Roger F. Wicker, U.S. Senator From Mississippi, on S.
2254 and S. 2512
I would like to express my support for legislation to establish two
national heritage areas in Mississippi, the Mississippi Hills National
Heritage Area Act of 2007 (S. 2254) and the Mississippi Delta National
Heritage Area Act of 2007 (S. 2512). I was an avid supporter of this
initiative when I served in the House and was a cosponsor for the House
companion legislation introduced by Congressman Bennie Thompson. At
that time, I represented mostly the Hills area. Now in my role as
Senator, I am glad that I have the opportunity to represent both areas
and continue to believe both are worthy of the National Heritage Area
designation.
As elected officials, we in Congress work hard to bring economic
development to our states. In recent years, Mississippi has seen some
aggressive industrial development, and we are proud of what these
efforts are doing for job creation and the economy. However, in the
midst of the changes that these efforts are bringing to the economic
landscape, I believe it is important that we work simultaneously to
protect our historic and cultural landscape. National Heritage Areas
are designed to do just that.
National Heritage Areas commemorate and promote locations that
contain important natural, historic, cultural, or recreational
resources. There are unique stories of cultural and historical
significance all across the state of Mississippi. Gaining heritage area
designation for the Mississippi Hills and the Delta would enable those
stories to be promoted and shared with a larger audience. In addition,
this initiative will work to benefit Mississippi's economy by boosting
tourism opportunities.
The Mississippi Hills Heritage Area represents distinctive aspects
of American heritage worthy of recognition, conservation,
interpretation, and continuing use. The landscape contains numerous
resources related to American literature and music; major events and
persons that contributed substantively to the Nation's history and
folklore; transportation routes that played central roles in important
military actions, settlement, migration, and commerce; and, social
movements that substantively influenced past and present day society.
Not only does the Mississippi Congressional Delegation believe in
this initiative, but there is public participation from local
governments, businesses, non-profit organizations, and residents. The
Mississippi Hills Heritage Area Alliance was formed as the management
entity for this initiative and has worked to involve a broad spectrum
of groups. The impressively high levels of participation are proof of
the merits of this trusted organization and its ability to manage this
initiative. In addition, the University of Mississippi established the
Mississippi Hills Institute for Heritage Resource Management to assist
the Alliance in the development and management of the heritage area.
These groups are evidence of the National Park Service's goal of using
heritage area as a vehicle for locally initiated protection and
interpretation of natural, cultural, scenic and historic resources.
The landscape of Mississippi is diverse, and the Mississippi River
delta region is home to a rich culture. The river provided suitable
land for settlements of Native Americans and was the stage for notable
Civil War battles. Some of the rich history of the Mississippi Delta
has been written in many ways by events that could not be controlled by
humans, as with the Great Flood of 1927.
The Delta Council, a regional economic development organization
that represents business and agricultural leaders, has worked with
numerous public officials in the region. This group recognizes these
and other events of cultural importance and is working to preserve this
national landmark story. The designation of National Heritage Area
would go along way in aiding that effort.
I strongly support both of these groups and believe both the
Mississippi Hills and the Delta are worthy of the designation of
National Heritage Areas.
______
Statement of Phyliss Ann Archibald, Mesquite, NV
As a previous resident of the Island of Molokai, (by the way, I was
born at Kapiolani Hospital and raised on the Island of Molokai) I fully
support a memorial site within Kalaupapa National Historical Park.
If you have never lived on the Island of Molokai or visited
Kalaupapa settlement at all, you have missed a sad documented years of
history of the lepers and the works of Father Damien. These
individuals, for years, have been ostracized from the public due to
their ignorance of the disease itself. During the late fifties and
sixties, the Catholic Churches on the Island of Molokai held
conferences at this peninsula. At this time, there were active
patients, so those of us who wanted to make the trip for the convention
had to be examined by the Board of Health making sure you had no open
cuts, sores, and other things before given a clean health certificate.
My experiences with this peninsula was a saddened one for those
patients that were scarred for life. They were scarred so badly that
when they were cured they did not want to live with us up above on the
island. Also, the cured patients were so energetic as to beautify this
peninsula and they were very proud of themselves. I believe, we, of the
United States of America and the State of Hawaii established this
memorial to honor and perpetuate the memory of those individuals who
were forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula from 1866 to 1969
and their purposes to survive. I could go on and on about this subject,
but I trust our dedicated members of Congress and Legislators of Hawaii
will do the appropriate thing.
______
Statement of Sally-Jo Keala-o-Anuenue Bowman, Springfield, OR, on S.
2502
I write to support Senate Bill 2502, to establish a memorial
monument at Kalaupapa National Historical Park, Moloka`i, Hawai`i.
I am a native Hawaiian, part of the Pa family from the Hilo and
Puna districts on the Big Island. I was born in 1940. For decades I
have wondered why my father and his siblings, born between 1902 and
1910, could not remember their grandfather. Recently, through document
research in the Hawaii State Archives and Hawaii State Board of Health,
I found out why. Elemakule Pa was sent to Kalaupapa in March of 1907,
at the age of 52. His death certificate In 1913 states that he was
cremated, but does not say what was done with his ashes. We know only
that he was born in 1854 as a subject of the Hawaiian Kingdom, and died
a citizen of the United States, Territory of Hawaii. On his diagnostic/
intake document he dictated ``My father died of leprosy many years ago
at the Kakaako Hospital,'' which functioned on O`ahu in the late 1880s
and early 1890s. Along with a Hawaiian Kingdom registration of his
marriage in 1854, that mention of his death in the 1880s is ALL the
information we have about Ha`alipo Pa, my great-great grandfather.
I have always been inspired by Elemakule's daughter, my
grandmother, who died in 1911 some 30 years before I was born. But I
knew nothing of Elemakule, or his father. Now that I have discovered
their enforced exiles to Kalaupapa and their deaths in Hawaii's other
quarantined leprosy hospitals of that time period, I am inspired by
them as well, as I seek the meaning of what it is to be Hawaiian in the
21st century.
We have no picture of Ha`alipo, but I look often at the photo of
Elemakule from the Archives, taken the day of his commitment in March
1907. He stands with arms crossed over the chest of his checkered
shirt, in the manner of all intake photos. His neat beard is white, his
hair graying. He looks straight at the camera, serious, maybe
reluctantly, perhaps resigned. It is the only picture we have. Until I
found it In 2006, we had none at all.
We are grateful to know these small but important facts about these
men. But our family has no place to honor them, my great-grandfather
and great-great grandfather, whom we could not mourn until now, not
knowing of their deaths. It would mean a great deal to us to have their
names on a memorial monument at Kalaupapa, along with the other 8,000
people who were ``apprehended'' as it as called, sometimes in round ups
in which bounties were paid just as for criminals at large. Then, like
criminals instead of sick people, they were permanently exiled.
Hawaiian culture, like many other cultures, places much emphasis on
guiding ancestors, and on reverence for them. Elemakule and Ha`alipo
were never able to fulfill the role of kupuna--elder--in our family. A
memorial monument would give us a tangible way of being able to honor
them now as ancestors.
Mahalo--thank you--for your kind consideration.
______
Statement of Dayton Kupele
I Dayton Kupele grandson of David Kupele Sr. on behalf of my
grandfather who was incarcerated to Kalawao due to leprosy known as
classified Hansen disease give this testimony.
Being sent to Kalawao by the state government was a cruel life.
Grandfather was a young lad at the time, and took heed to adjust
quickly to his new life. Learning of grandpa's illness was awkward for
me. I didn't understand why I couldn't be with him when he came to
Honolulu for treatments. We weren't able to spend much time as
grandfather to grandson; that's the part I missed growing up. As I got
older I was able to go to Kalaupapa where my grandfather settled after
Kalawao. There he was the Post Master of Kalaupapa peninsula. My father
David Kupele Jr. took me to Kalaupapa to visit my grandfather. I
remember staying at visitors' quarters and grandfather keeping us
company. Then my dad and I would go to grandfather's house, but I
couldn't enter his home. Upon listening to my family share stories
about grandfather it brought the reality of leprosy to my
understanding. Leprosy was never to be spoken of back then, and was
looked at shamefully by society. My dad the late David Kupele Jr. was
born in Kalawao also and was separated from my grandfather for X amount
of years, because all children born there were taken away. Due to this
they weren't able to spend much time as father and son. My grandpa
missed my dad's entire childhood.
Over 30 years had pasted before I returned to Kalaupapa. I was
breathless when I landed, and shed many tears as if I were here with my
grandfather. I was introduced to a few patients who are still in
kalaupapa who knew my grandfather well. They shared with me stories of
his life as a Postman, paniolo (cowboy), and overall genuine human
being. It was very cruel what society did to our people of Hawaii.
Incarcerated and exiled from society they had each other to share the
hardships of leprosy. Thank God for Father Damien and his ministry
outreach to the leprosy patients. He gave hope and added strength to
our people. I believe the patients are entitled to a memorial monument
for the pain and suffering they endured due to state government
actions.
______
United Church of Christ,
April 10, 2008.
Hon. Jeff Bingaman,
Chairman, Energy and Natural Resources Committee, 304 Dirksen Senate
Office Building, Washington, DC.
RE: S. 2502 ``Kalaupapa Memorial Act''
Dear Senator Bingaman: As Conference Minister of the Hawai`i
Conference of the United Church of Christ, I am supportive of S. 2502,
which would authorize Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa to establish a memorial
``to honor and perpetuate the memory of those individuals who were
forcibly relocated to Kalaupapa Peninsula from 1866 to 1969.''
The United Church of Christ (UCC) and its predecessor denominations
have been active and present on the Kalaupapa peninsula from the
beginning of the forced relocation of Hansen's disease patients through
the Siloama (Kalawao) and Kana`ana Hou (Kalaupapa) churches, which have
merged over time to become what is known today as the Kana`ana Hou-
Siloama United Church of Christ.
The UCC is also active as a supporting member of Ka `Ohana O
Kalaupapa, consisting of patients and their families and friends, which
advocates for the needs and rights of the patients and works closely
and cooperatively with the National Parks Service and State of Hawai`i
Department of Hawaiian Homelands.
With the numbers of patients at Kalaupapa declining, our own
members at Kana`ana Hou-Siloama along with the members of Ka `Ohana O
Kalaupapa have become increasingly concerned about the future. In
particular, will the memories and histories of the thousands of
patients survive after the last one has died? How will the tales of
injustice, as well as stories of courage and survival, be shared that
they may teach and inspire future generations?
Together we are addressing these questions, but we are convinced
that at the very least a memorial of some kind would be a positive and
encouraging step toward honoring the dignity and perpetuating the
legacy of all those who lived in this special place at a unique time in
U.S. history.
Support for such a memorial is broad-based, but most importantly
the idea was conceived by and receives overwhelming support from the
patients themselves. The UCC believes strongly that those most likely
to be silent or silenced are the ones whose voices we as a society most
need to hear. For this reason, I urge you to hear the wishes of the
patients and to give due consideration to the establishment of a
memorial.
Sincerely,
Charles Buck,
Hawai`i Conference Minister.
______
Statement of Tom Gresham, Chairman, Development Department, Delta
Council, National Heritage Area, Mississippi Delta
In recognition of the significant role which the U.S. Department of
Interior and the National Park Service have historically played in
administering the programs important to capturing the cultural history
of our Nation, the 18 Delta and part-Delta counties of Northwest
Mississippi have engaged in dialogue with the National Park Service to
request assistance and advice in efforts to highlight the unique
history of this Mississippi Delta region which has been endowed with
events and people that have changed the culture of our country.
Although many in the Nation associate the Mississippi Delta with
the Old South and the Civil War, a closer study of the region clearly
defines it as a post-Civil War development in the country, due to the
harsh living conditions which were commonly underscored by yellow
fever, malaria, and other maladies which accompanied the development of
the Nation's largest alluvial floodplain.
Also, more than a thousand years before the discovery of America by
its earliest European settlers, the Mississippi Delta was inhabited by
Native Americans who were mound builders. This advanced civilization of
Native Americans almost vanished without notice in the 13th Century,
leaving nothing but the large earthen mounds and buried cities mostly
scattered along the high banks of the Mississippi River in this Delta
region.
From the early days of mound builders, the region's cultural and
historic significance fast forwarded to the siege of Vicksburg and
General Grant's campaign to invade Vicksburg through the Mississippi
Delta. The series of failed attempts to seize the river town of
Vicksburg from Confederate hands is studied by military experts even
today, because of its naval, infantry, and artillery feats which were
exhibited by both the Union and Confederate military.
Without dispute, the region of the Nation influenced most by the
waters of the mighty Mississippi River is the Mississippi Delta. The
Mississippi Delta has always been about water, the management of this
Nation's greatest water body and the conflicts between man and nature.
The Great Flood of 1927, which began with a levee break in the heart of
the Mississippi Delta, awakened the Nation to the Federal
responsibility for floodwaters which annually inundated the Lower
Mississippi River Valley, gathering waters from 31 states and two
provinces of Canada each year as it meandered across the Mississippi
Delta on its way to the Gulf of Mexico. It was the Great Flood of 1927,
taking the lives of thousands of people, and its destruction of
property spanning more than 15 million acres, that aroused the soul of
the citizenry of the area and contributed toward the founding of the
blues and literary genius of legendary proportion.
Many of the most prominent Civil Rights figures in the movement for
voter registration and social justice germinated from the agricultural
fields and the one-room tenant houses of farms scattered across the
Mississippi Delta. The infamous Fannie Lou Hamer and the more
contemporary Unita Blackwell, were the matriarchs of the early Civil
Rights movement.
Even today, visiting scholars, graduate student classes from the
Far West, Midwest, Northwest, and New England, make their journeys to
the Mississippi Delta to ``connect to The River'', the streets,
nightclubs, and juke joints which birthed the Delta blues. These people
desire to engage in literary enlightenment about the environment which
inspired powerful writers like William Alexander Percy, Shelby Foote,
and the numerous other artists whose writings were not only from the
Delta, but were the Delta.
Delta Council, a regional economic development organization
representing business and agricultural leaders, combined with public
officials in the region who recognized the importance of preserving
this national landmark story, feel that it is appropriate to request
that the Congress adopt the necessary steps to engage the United States
Department of Interior, National Park Service, and the Mississippi
Delta in the formation of a National Heritage Area in the Mississippi
Delta. Without the expertise and history of success of the federal role
of the National Park Service, the rich cultural and heritage-based
significance of this unique region of the country is almost certain to
fade over time. Like the mound building Native Americans who are the
earliest account of settlers in this region, this history will
evaporate without an organized and professional effort to brand and
package it.
The Mississippi Delta has been a laboratory for federal, State,
university, and private foundation studies aimed at the impacts of the
land, the water, the music and the writings of the Mississippi Delta on
the conscience and the soul of our Nation.
Specific and well-defined cultural and heritage resource analyses
have been performed by experts during the past decade, to emphasize the
importance of preserving the historical events that shaped this place
called the Mississippi Delta. Conferences which have attracted scholars
from all parts of the Nation as well as Inter-Continental visitors,
have focused on the cultural and heritage resources. Published
proceedings of these conferences have suggested methods to develop
resource coordination which will be needed in order to properly
document the rich history of this region. It is for these reasons that
Delta Council, acting in cooperation with local public officials, the
Mississippi Development Authority and local elected officials has
chosen to forego yet another cultural and heritage resource analysis.
Unless it is prerequisite and holds promise for a separate outcome, in
terms of its content for acceptance by the Congress, we have opted to
forego another analysis of issues which remain unchanged.
We respectfully request the assistance of the United States
Congress in establishing a National Heritage Area in the 18 Delta and
part-Delta counties of Northwest Mississippi and we look forward to the
opportunity to engage in a Federal-State-local partnership for the
purpose of recovering and properly documenting the sense of place which
is so profoundly enunciated in the Mississippi Delta.
______
Statement of Karen M. Holt, Esq., Kaunakakai, HI, on S. 2502 and H.R.
3332
I am writing in support of Senate Bill 2502, which would authorize
the construction of a memorial containing the names of all who were
sent to die on the isolated peninsula at Kalaupapa, on the island of
Moloka`i, after being diagnosed with Hansen's Disease (commonly known
as leprosy).
Please support the creation of this monument. I have family members
who were sent to Kalaupapa with the disease, and it was a cruel fate.
The Hawaiians called the disease ma`i ho`oka`awale, ``the separating
sickness,'' because loved ones were torn from their families as soon as
they were diagnosed. My great aunt's two small children came home from
school one day in the early 1930's to find their mother gone and the
entire family wailing in grief. She never came home, and she died in
Kalaupapa without seeing her children again.
I have been to the Vietnam Memorial in Washington and read the
names engraved there. That memorial is a deeply affecting monument not
only to those who were lost, but also to the nation's respect for their
ultimate sacrifice. We need such places to reflect on the past and to
learn from its tragedies. A monument to the Kalaupapa patients would
create an enduring record of thousands who died less celebrated deaths,
and it would also be a comfort to families who were never permitted to
give their loved ones a proper burial. In addition to providing solace
for these families, a monument would also provide a place to consider
the courage and dignity of these outcasts, and to strengthen our
compassion for all those who are afflicted with burdens not of their
own choosing.
In the names of the thousands who perished at Kalaupapa, including
my own family members, I hope that you will support the establishment
of this monument.
______
International Association for Integration, Dignity and
Economic Advancement,
April 8, 2008.
Hon. Daniel K. Akaka,
Chairman, Subcommittee on National Parks, Historic Preservation and
Recreation, 141 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.
Dear Senator Akaka: Please find our testimony in support of S2502--
the Kalaupapa Memorial Act.
As individuals who have been involved in preserving the history of
Kalaupapa for over 30 years, we strongly support the creation of this
Memorial.
Kalaupapa is still in its historic period and we are still learning
a great deal about the estimated 8,000 people who were sent there. This
Memorial is clearly the will of the remaining residents and we also
knew many people, who are no longer with us, who also supported this
effort to recognize the people of Kalaupapa.
We particularly remember David Ono Kupele, who had five generations
of his family at Kalaupapa. The first, a man named Kupele, was sent to
Kalaupapa shortly after the arrival of Father Damien in May, 1873.
David Kupele, sent to Kalaupapa in 1915, was determined that his family
should be remembered. There are no identifiable graves for three
generations of his family representing both the Kupele and Pulehu
sides.
We thank you for your efforts to ensure that these 8,000 people, of
whom at least 90% were native Hawaiians, are brought out of anonymity
and back into the history of Kalaupapa.
With best wishes,
Anwei Skinsnes Law,
Kalaupapa Historian.
Henry G. Law,
First Superintendent.
______
Statement of Paul Mange Johansen, Cambridge, MA
I strongly join your plea urging Congress to allow the construction
of a memorial honoring the names of the thousands of sufferers from
Hansen's Disease (leprosy) who died anonymously at the Kalaupapa
Settlement on Moloka`i (``Memory on Molokai,'' March 2).
Similar, far smaller monuments have been erected at the former US
Public Health Hospital in Carville, Louisiana and on Penikese Island in
Massachusetts. The memorial at St. Jorgen's Hospital in Bergen, Norway
has an emotional impact similar to that of the Vietnam Memorial.
Hawai`i took a historic step toward honoring its infamous legacy of
Hansen's Disease control by passing the ``Patient Dignity Act'' (SB
1713 SD1) in April, 2005 stating that ``the legislature declares its
intent to ensure that all residents at Kalaupapa are treated with
dignity, respect, courtesy, and sensitivity.''
It is time for the federal government to extend that dignity to
those unlucky people, long since forgotten, whose lives were
effectively taken from them by a bacterium.
Note: The author has researched Hansen's Disease-related topics for
over two decades and most recently produced the exhibit, ``Hansen's
Disease (Leprosy): A Feared Infection.''
______
Statement of Leimomi Khan, President, Association of Hawaiian Civic
Clubs, Honolulu, HI, on H.R. 3332
Thank you for this opportunity to testify in strong support of H.R.
3332, which would provide for the establishment of a memorial within
Kalaupapa National Historical Park located on the island of Molokai, in
the State of Hawai`i, to honor and perpetuate the memory of those
individuals who were forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula from
1866 to 1969, and for other purposes.
The Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs is a growing national
confederation of fifty-three Hawaiian Civic Clubs, located throughout
the State of Hawai`i and in the States of Alaska, California, Colorado,
Illinois, Nevada, Utah, Virgnia and Washington State. It initiates and
works to support actions that enhance the civic, economic, educational,
health and social welfare of our communities, and in particular, the
culture and welfare of the Native Hawaiian community.
On October 28, 2006, the Association passed Resolution No. 46,
``Urging the United States (U.S.) Congress to Provide for the
Establishment of a Memorial Within Kalaupapa National Historical Park
Located on the Island of Molokai, in the State of Hawai`i, to Honor and
Perpetuate the Memory of Those Individuals Who Were Forcibly Relocated
from 1866 to 1969''.
The Association coordinated its support efforts with Ka `Ohana O
Kalaupapa, a non-profit organization established in August of 2003
whose membership consists of patient residents at Kalaupapa, as well as
their family and friends, to honor the memory and to promote the value
and dignity of the more than 8,000 individuals, an estimated 90% of
whom were indigenous Hawaiian, forcibly separated from their families
and relocated to Kalaupapa.
In addition to its debilitating symptoms and the social stigma
associated with Hansen's disease, these more than 8,000 individuals and
their families, each with a unique and distinct story, experienced
profound traumatic loss, abandonment and permanent separation from
their immediate and extended families and communities. Many who died on
the peninsula were buried in unmarked graves.
It is altogether fitting to honor and remember these more than
8,000 individuals, forced into exile, through a Memorial at Kalaupapa,
which would be the only one of its kind in the world. Every person
taken from their family and sent to Kalaupapa will be duly recognized
with honor and dignity as part of Kalaupapa National Historical Park.
Such a Memorial would also provide future generations with the
opportunity to restore family ties that were severed, not by disease,
but by society's misunderstanding of the disease.
On behalf of the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs, I strongly
urge favorable action on H.R. 3332.
Thank you for this opportunity to submit written testimony.
______
Statement of Elizabeth Kuulei Bell, President, Ka` Ohana O Kalaupapa
I am writing in strong support of the bill that would establish a
Monument on the Kalaupapa peninsula in honor of the thousands of Hawaii
residents who were taken from their families, forced to relocate there
and start new lives.
I am one of those people. So was my father, my grandfather, my
father's twin sister, my husband and many more family members. I was
taken from my mother as a child. Once I was diagnosed with leprosy, she
could no longer hold me. When I gave birth to my children, I could not
hold them as babies. Only because of our love of `family did we remain
close, if not physically, in spirit. We always remained in each other's
hearts.
I want to see everybody's name on the Monument, everybody who was
sent to Kalaupapa. The Monument will be a permanent way to honor all of
us who were sent here and give our descendents pride. I want my
children and grandchildren great-grandchildren to know that we were
here.
Since Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa was organized five years ago, I have
served as president and have been a member of the Monument Committee.
The Monument has been a priority of the `Ohana from its inception. Last
summer, we raised enough money to have two people familiar with the
history of Kalaupapa compile the list of the names of the first 5,000
people who were sent there. These 5,000 names will serve as the basis
of the first phase of the Monument.
Several months ago, I was asked to give a presentation about the
Monument at the Conference for Native Hawaiian Advancement in Honolulu.
As I spoke, the hall fell silent as everyone seemed to hang on my every
word. When I was finished, I received a standing ovation from hundreds
of my fellow Hawaiians, many with tears in their eyes. Some people
spontaneously called out that they, too, had family at Kalaupapa and
wanted them to be remembered. A man began chanting. After the
presentation, the group made the Kalaupapa Monument one of its
priorities to support. It was one of the most moving days of my life.
Please help us make the Monument a reality. We want our names to be
remembered, we want our lives to be remembered.
______
Statement of Henry G. Law, on S. 2502
My first connection with Kalaupapa was in 1977 when I was working
with the National Park Service on the new area study for Kalaupapa. I
moved there in 1982 as the first National Park Service employee and
from 1984-1988, I served as the first Superintendent of Kalaupapa
National Historical Park. Thus, I have had the opportunity to develop
close relationships with many of the people of Kalaupapa for close to
30 years. I strongly support the idea of a Memorial at Kalaupapa, which
will greatly aid in the Park's mandate of preserving Kalaupapa's
history for the education and inspiration of present and future
generations.
Unlike most other sites managed by the National Park Service (NPS),
Kalaupapa is still in its historic period. Its residents, past and
present, are the most significant resource in the Park. With this in
mind, we undertook a major oral history project at Kalaupapa so that
the memories and wisdom of the residents could be integrally
incorporated into present and future interpretation of this most
significant history. While we were able to document the experiences of
people who had been sent to Kalaupapa as early as 1914, we also
realized that at least three-fourths of those sent to Kalaupapa had
arrived prior to this time. Interpreting their role in Kalaupapa's
history was extremely difficult since all that was left at Kalawao, the
site of the first leprosy community, was Father Damien's Church, some
building ruins and a few graves where previously there had been more
than 2,000. At present there simply is no way to adequately convey to
visitors or family members the enormity of the toll that the isolation
policies took on the people of Hawaii.
In looking at Kalaupapa, one must think beyond the traditional NPS
policies if the mandate of the Park is to be truly realized. Though
erecting memorials is generally against NPS policy, again, it has to be
remembered that Kalaupapa is still in its historic period. The Memorial
is clearly the wish of the remaining residents and so many of those who
have passed away who were actively involved in the establishment of
Kalaupapa as a National Historical Park in order that their history and
the history of all who came before them would be remembered.
I still remember Harry Yamamoto, one of my closest friends, stating
that he wanted to be buried in Honolulu because he didn't think that
anyone would maintain his grave if he was buried at Kalaupapa. This was
not unusual when one understands the number of burial markers that have
been lost to neglect and the natural elements, including a tsunami.
Although preserving the graves became a priority for the National Park
Service, the current inventory of graves only represents approximately
one sixth of the total number of people that were forcibly isolated
because of a much misunderstood and feared disease.
We are living in a time when people can be proud of having endured
what most of us cannot even imagine. We have a responsibility to these
individuals to remember the sacrifices they made so that the public
could feel safe. They are Kalaupapa's most important resource. The
proposed monument represents a way in which each person can be afforded
their rightful place in history.
______
Statement of Cynthia Molina, on S. 2502 and H.R. 3332
Chairperson Bingaman, Ranking Member Pete Domenici and Members of
the Senate Subcommittee on National Parks. Thank you for this
opportunity to testify in support of the Kalaupapa Memorial Act,
introduced as S. 2502 and H.R. 3332.
I am the granddaughter of Leon Nono who was a long time resident of
Kalaupapa, Moloka`i. I first met my grandfather nearly 37 years ago,
when I was but 10 years old. At that time, my siblings and I were not
allowed to touch him as he was shielded from us (like a prisoner) by a
glass in a visitors shack at the old Hale Mahalo in Pearlcity. At the
age of 16, along with my older sister's and brother, I was allowed to
visit my grandfather in Kalaupapa but could only stay until the sun
set. At the age of 18, I revisited and continue to visit until today.
I am fully aware of the history behind Kalaupapa and my
grandfather's exile and wish not to voice these things that are done
already. Rather, I would like to share the beauty that has resulted
from this tragedy. Have you ever ate at the same table with a leper, or
shared the same bowl, or slept aside a leper, or kissed and hugged and
loved a leper? I and my siblings have, and if not for my grandfather, I
would be feeble minded to the differences this world possesses. Instead
of hatred and anger and all the traits that fit this malevolent
disease, from it came a deep benevolence that is conceivable only to
those who know its traits. I am loved by a leper and not just one--but
by many. Kalaupapa will never be the same when the few patients left
are no more. The patients are what made Kalaupapa what it is today:
spiritual, untouched (yet an exile to the untouchables). But I have
touched and have been touched many times over and have been healed from
narrow-mindedness, biasness, prejudice, discrimination and all that fit
these traits.
Though the roads are newly paved and the houses freshly painted,
all but a few love and laughter remain. ``Blessed are the meek, for
they shall inherit the earth'', and the patients of Kalaupapa have
inherited this flat leafed peninsula on Moloka`i. And though I ask that
their names be engraved in stone, what is more priceless is that their
names be engraved in our hearts. Let them not be ``forgotten'' no more.
Through my grandfathe'rs tragedy, my siblings and I were blessed to
have been loved by and to have love so many.
Mahalo Kalaupapa--Thank you for this opportunity to submit my
testimony in support of the Kalaupapa Memorial Act. Please vote yes and
support S. 2502 and H.R. 3332
______
Statements of Support for a Monument at Kalaupapa That Were Given to
Valerie Monson in Late September and Early October of 2006 at Kalaupapa
I want to see a monument honoring the people of Kalaupapa
before I die. I want to see all the names. These people are my
friends--even though many of them died before I came here and I
didn't know them personally, in spirit we are all together. I
know their hearts and souls.
--Olivia Breitha, 90, who was sent to Kalaupapa in 1937 and
is the author of the book, ``Olivia: My Life of Exile in
Kalaupapa.'' Olivia spoke these words barely a week before she
died on Sept. 28, 2006.
I think we deserve to be remembered. We are part of this
world. The people outside of Kalaupapa should know that we did
one great thing: we were incarcerated here just for their sake
because they thought we were contagious. We didn't want to be
sent here. It was for the safety of other people that we were
put away. Greater love hath no man than to give up his life for
a friend. That's what we did.
--Cathrine Puahala, sent to Kalaupapa on May 15, 1942, a
few years after being taken away from her family at age 7
because she was diagnosed with leprosy. Three brothers and a
sister of Cathrine were also sent to Kalaupapa where they died.
Cathrine gave this statement on Oct. 4, 2006.
I was taken from my family on the Big Island of Hawaii at age
10 and sent to Honolulu after I was diagnosed with leprosy, now
called Hansen's disease. This was not the first time that our
family was torn apart by the disease. My two older sisters were
shipped to Kalaupapa in 1929 and 1932, respectively. Because I
was only six years old when my second sister left, I never
understood why she went away.
After they were sent to Kalaupapa, I never saw my sisters
again. Even though I, too, was sent to Kalaupapa in 1941, they
had already died. I never could find their graves. I don't know
how many years I searched and searched for them. I used to walk
the graveyards from one end to the other looking for the graves
of my sisters. Until today, I cannot find them.
I'd like to see the names of my sisters on a memorial at
Kalaupapa--I'd like to see the names right next to mine.''
--Henry Nalaielua, who was sent to Kalaupapa in 1941 and is
the author of the book, ``No Footprints in the Sand.'' Henry
gave this statement on Oct. 5, 2006.
Sign for my aunt. Sign for Uncle Frank. Sign for my dad. Sign
for Eddie (his brother),
--Richard Marks, a longtime businessman and activist at
Kalaupapa. After Richard authorized the signature of his name
to the petition supporting a monument, on Oct. 5, 2005, he
asked that the signatures of members of his family buried at
Kalaupapa also be added.
______
Statment of John L. Nau, III, Chairman, Advisory Council on Historic
Preservation, on S. 2262
summary statement
The Preserve America and Save America's Treasures Act (S. 2262)
would provide legislative authorization for two existing programs that
are important sources of support for the preservation and productive
use of our nation's historic properties. The Advisory Council on
Historic Preservation (ACHP), an independent federal agency, has been a
leader in administering the Preserve America program over the five
years of its existence. We can attest to the success of Preserve
America in helping communities across the nation. Preserve America,
with its emphasis on public-private partnerships to promote heritage
tourism and economic vitality through historic preservation,
complements the work of the Save America's Treasures Program, which
helps to fund the rehabilitation and conservation of America's most
significant historic resources. The ACHP supports S. 2262, since
legislative authorization will ensure the continued existence of these
important programs.
background
Title II of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA)
established the ACHP. NHPA charges the ACHP with advising the President
and the Congress on historic preservation matters and entrusts the ACHP
with the unique mission of advancing historic preservation within the
federal government and the national historic preservation program. The
ACHP's authority and responsibilities are principally derived from the
NHPA.
The ACHP plays a pivotal role in the national historic preservation
program. Founded as a unique partnership among federal, state, and
local governments, Indian tribes, and the public to advance the
preservation of America's heritage while recognizing contemporary
needs, the partnership has matured and expanded over time. The ACHP
promotes consistency in federal preservation efforts and assists
federal agencies in meeting their preservation responsibilities.
The ACHP also plays a key role in shaping historic preservation
policy and programs at the highest levels of the Administration. In
that capacity, the ACHP created an initiative for the White House
designed to stimulate creative partnerships among all levels of
government and the private sector to preserve and actively use historic
resources for a better appreciation of America's history and diversity.
The initiative is known as Preserve America.
The components of Preserve America complement the work of the Save
America's Treasures program. Save America's Treasures grants fund
preservation and/or conservation work on nationally significant
intellectual and cultural artifacts and historic structures and sites.
The Preserve America and Save America's Treasures Act (S. 2262) would
provide legislative authorization for both the Preserve America
initiative and the Save America's Treasures program.
preserve america
First Lady Laura Bush, Honorary Chair of Preserve America,
announced the Preserve America initiative on March 3, 2003. On the same
day, President George W. Bush issued Executive Order 13287, ``Preserve
America,'' to improve federal stewardship of historic properties and to
foster recognition of such properties as national assets to be used for
economic, educational, and other purposes.
Preserve America encourages and supports community efforts to
preserve and enjoy our priceless cultural and natural heritage. The
goals of the initiative include a greater shared knowledge about the
nation's past, strengthened regional identities and local pride,
increased local participation in preserving the country's cultural and
natural heritage assets, and support for the economic vitality of our
communities. Preserve America promotes these objectives through the
following:
Recognition programs: The ACHP administers the Preserve
America Communities program (discussed in detail below) and the
Preserve America Presidential Awards program. Through the
Presidential Awards program, four awards are given annually to
organizations, businesses, and government entities for
exemplary accomplishments in the sustainable use and
preservation of cultural or natural heritage assets;
demonstrated commitment to the protection and interpretation of
America's cultural or natural heritage assets; and integration
of these assets into contemporary community life.
Financial assistance for local communities: The National
Park Service manages the Preserve America Grants program
(discussed in detail below).
Educational outreach: The Preserve America History Teacher
of the Year Award, established by the Gilder Lehrman Institute
of American History, recognizes outstanding American history
teachers and the crucial importance of American history
education. As Honorary Chair of Preserve America, First Lady
Laura Bush has presented this annual award.
Preserve America Summit: To celebrate the 40th anniversary
of passage of the NHPA, the ACHP convened the Preserve America
Summit in October 2006. With First Lady Laura Bush as the
keynote speaker, more than 450 invited participants gathered to
consider historic preservation's past and future. Based on
issues discussed at the Summit, the ACHP issued recommendations
on actions the federal government should take to promote
continued growth and improvement in the federal preservation
program, and enhanced use and appreciation of America's
invaluable heritage assets. The ACHP is working with federal
and non-federal partners to advance implementation of these
recommendations.
Executive Order 13287, ``Preserve America'': The Preserve
America Executive Order mandates a number of actions that are
intended to encourage better accountability for the use of
federally owned historic properties. Every three years, each
agency with real property management responsibilities must
prepare and submit to the ACHP and the Secretary of the
Interior a report detailing the progress the agency has made in
identifying, protecting, and using historic properties in its
ownership. Based on these reports, the ACHP prepares a report
to the President on the state of the federal government's
historic properties and their contribution to local economic
development.
The ACHP co-chairs (with the Department of the Interior) a Preserve
America Steering Committee comprised of 13 departments and agencies.\1\
In coordination with the White House, the Preserve America Steering
Committee identifies policy needs and oversees the initiative. At the
operational level, ACHP staff works with partner federal agencies and
others as appropriate to carry out specific Preserve America
activities.
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\1\ Federal agencies represented on the Preserve America Steering
Committee are the ACHP; the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Commerce,
Defense, Education, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, and
Transportation; the General Services Administration; the Institute for
Museum and Library Services; the National Endowment for the Humanities;
the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities; and the
President's Council on Environmental Quality.
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Preserve America Communities
S. 2262 would codify the current process for designating Preserve
America Communities. The ACHP, in cooperation with the National Park
Service, administers the Preserve America Community program.
Designation recognizes communities that protect and celebrate their
local heritage. Communities eligible to apply include municipalities,
counties, Indian tribes, and neighborhoods in large cities. Since the
program began, Mrs. Bush has designated 608 communities in all 50
states and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Preserve America Communities use their historic assets for economic
development and community revitalization and encourage people to
experience and appreciate local historic resources through education
and heritage tourism programs. To be designated, an applicant community
must demonstrate that it recently supported a historic or cultural
preservation project that promotes heritage tourism or fosters economic
vitality and which involves a public/private partnership. The community
also must indicate its commitment to the preservation of heritage
assets and meet criteria within three broad categories: discovering
heritage through historic places, protecting historic resources, and
promoting historic assets.
Currently designated Preserve America Communities are richly
varied. Some are iconic historic places, like New Orleans, Gettysburg,
and Williamsburg. Some are major metropolitan areas, such as
Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Miami. In contrast, Preserve America
Communities can also be very small, like Medora, North Dakota,
(population 100) a gateway community for Theodore Roosevelt National
Park that has become a popular tourist attraction in large part because
of preservation of its frontier heritage.
Neighborhoods in large cities can apply to become Preserve America
Communities, and the 14 designated to date are diverse. Among them are
Honolulu's Chinatown Historic District, San Diego's Little Italy, and
The District, the historic heart of Nashville, Tennessee. Counties are
also eligible for designation. Among those designated are six rural
counties in southeastern Colorado--Baca, Bent, Crowley, Kiowa, Otero,
and Prowers Counties--that became Preserve America Communities as part
of a regional strategy to promote heritage tourism and economic
revitalization.
Indian tribes as well as Native Alaskan villages and corporations
are also eligible to become Preserve America Communities. Two have
applied to date, resulting in designation of the White Mountain Apache
Tribe and St. George Island in Alaska's Pribilof Islands.
Designation as a Preserve America Community provides national
recognition for the grass-roots efforts of communities both to preserve
their heritage and to use it in support of their economic vitality. In
addition to intangible benefits such as enhanced community visibility
and pride, Preserve America Community designation also makes
communities eligible for Preserve America Grants.
Preserve America Grants
S. 2262 would provide legislative authorization for the existing
Preserve America Grant Program. Since 2006, Congress has appropriated
almost $17 million for Preserve America Grants. Administered by the
National Park Service, in cooperation with the ACHP, these grants offer
a new type of federal preservation funding that supports heritage
tourism initiatives, promotion/marketing programs, and interpretive/
educational initiatives.
While other programs address physical rehabilitation, Preserve
America Grants provide critically needed up-front planning and
associated assistance to communities looking for ways to preserve their
local heritage in a self-sustaining manner. No other federal funding
program has this specific focus. Preserve America Grants support
planning, development, implementation, or enhancement of innovative
activities and programs in heritage tourism, including interpretation/
education, planning, marketing, training, and research/documentation of
cultural resources. Funded projects involve public-private partnerships
and serve as models to communities nationwide for heritage tourism,
historic preservation, education, and economic development.
Preserve America Grants are awarded through a competitive process.
Grants require a dollar-for-dollar, non-federal match, which can be
cash, donated services, or use of equipment. Eligible recipients are
designated Preserve America Communities; Certified Local Governments\2\
that have applied for Preserve America Community designation; State
Historic Preservation Offices (SHPOs); and Tribal Historic Preservation
Offices (THPOs). The minimum grant request is $20,000 federal share
(resulting in a total project cost of $40,000). The maximum grant
request for any project is $250,000 (resulting in a total project cost
of $500,000).
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\2\ A Certified Local Government (CLG) is a community whose local
preservation program has been certified by their State Historic
Preservation Officer as meeting established standards for the
protection of historic properties. CLGs are eligible to receive a
portion of the federal Historic Preservation Fund funding provided to
the states.
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Some communities, like the historic textile center of Gastonia,
North Carolina, have received grants to develop multi-faceted marketing
campaigns--using wayfinding signs, walking tour brochures, Web sites
and other materials--to promote themselves as heritage and cultural
tourism destinations. Others are using Preserve America Grants to plan
for the reuse of historic properties for heritage tourism. For example,
Brattleboro, Vermont, received a Preserve America Grant to create a
master plan for the rehabilitation and adaptive reuse of the historic
Estey Organ Factory Complex as a museum. Similarly, Silver City, New
Mexico, is using a Preserve America Grant to plan for the adaptive
reuse and rehabilitation of the historic Silver City Waterworks.
Twenty-five SHPOs have received Preserve America Grants. Some, like
Arkansas and South Carolina, have established subgrant programs to
assist local communities in promoting heritage tourism. Others,
including Montana and Wyoming, are using Preserve America Grants to
fund preservation and heritage tourism training for local communities.
Some SHPO grant recipients are focusing their efforts on specific
historic properties. For example, Pennsylvania is creating a living
history program to increase the visibility of Underground Railroad and
Civil War resources in several counties, while Georgia has launched a
campaign to protect and interpret the state's historic cemeteries.
Several states--Arkansas, Colorado, Kentucky, Montana, North Carolina,
and Pennsylvania--are using Preserve America Grant funds for survey and
planning initiatives aimed at revitalizing rural areas through heritage
tourism.
Preserve America Grants do not fund ``bricks and mortar''
rehabilitation of historic resources, but rather their productive
continued preservation and use. Thus, the program complements rather
than duplicates other federal funding programs, including Save
America's Treasures.
save america's treasures
S. 2262 would provide legislative authorization for the Save
America's Treasures program, which was created in 1998 as a Millennium
initiative. The program has evolved to become one of the largest and
most successful sources of federal funding for historic preservation.
Since FY 1999, 967 grants (469 earmarks and 498 competitive grants)
totaling $264.5 million have been awarded. All 50 states, the District
of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Midway Island have received grants.
Save America's Treasures funds preservation and/or conservation
work on nationally significant intellectual and cultural artifacts, and
historic structures and sites. Intellectual and cultural artifacts
include artifacts, collections, documents, sculpture, and works of art.
Historic structures and sites include historic districts, sites,
buildings, structures, and objects. Reflecting the scope of the
program, Save America's Treasures grants have helped to conserve both
the Star-Spangled Banner and the house in Baltimore where the flag was
created, as well as the original draft of the national anthem it
inspired.
Federal, state, local, and tribal government entities, and non-
profit organizations are eligible to apply for the competitive
matching-grant component of the program. A dollar-for-dollar, non-
federal match is required. The minimum grant request for collections
projects is $25,000; the minimum grant request for historic property
projects is $125,000. The maximum grant request for all projects is
$700,000.
First Lady Laura Bush is the Honorary Chair of Save America's
Treasures. The grant program is administered by the National Park
Service in partnership with the President's Committee on the Arts and
the Humanities. Collaborating on the selection and oversight of the
grants are the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment
for the Humanities, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is the program's private
partner, and its fundraising efforts help projects secure the required
private match.
Save America's Treasures has been instrumental in helping to
preserve some of America's most significant historic resources. Many
are associated with famous Americans, like the Dexter Avenue King
Memorial Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, where Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr. began his quest for civil rights, and Thomas Edison's letters
and lab notes at the Edison National Historic Site in New Jersey.
Others are places where uniquely important historic events occurred,
from Boston's Old North Church, starting point of Paul Revere's famous
ride, to the Manhattan Project Buildings in Los Alamos, New Mexico,
birthplace of the atom bomb. Architecturally significant properties
receiving grants run the gamut from ancient sites like the cliff
dwellings of Mesa Verde, to important 20th century properties like the
Liberty Theatre in Astoria, Oregon, which is one of the best examples
of a motion picture palace in the Pacific Northwest.
conclusion
For five years and 10 years, respectively, Preserve America and
Save America's Treasures have evolved to provide vitally needed support
for the preservation and productive use of our nation's heritage
assets. Across the country, in communities large and small, these
programs have a proven track record of supporting heritage tourism, and
the rehabilitation and conservation of historic resources. We hope the
Subcommittee will favorably consider S. 2262, which will provide the
legislative authorization needed to ensure the future continuance of
Preserve America and Save America's Treasures.
We appreciate the Subcommittee's interest in these issues, and
thank you for your consideration and the opportunity to present our
views.
______
Statement of Pamela Parlapiano, Professional Photographer, Brooklyn,
NY, on H.R. 4529
I have devoted 15 years of my twenty year photography career to
photographing people all over the world affected by Hansen's Disease/
leprosy in order to help ensure that history depicts the character of
people who had previously been solely defined and photographed based on
their illness.
Most people, including people who lived and continue to live in
Kalaupapa, were taken from their families to live in exile, yet they
created lives that included friends and family and helped one another
as they faced tragedy and deep personal loss.
A Memorial to honor these individuals and their courage is not only
due the people who were forcibly sent to Kalaupapa, it is a vital part
of history that our society needs to acknowledge and remember.
We acknowledge places like Auschwitz and focus on issues like
slavery in museums all over the world, because we hope never to repeat
such situations where humanity is so compromised. We make movies about
individuals who were slaves and individuals who made a difference in
the Holocaust because it is vital that society acknowledge as heroes
those individuals who are able to triumph over inhumanity.
I had the honor to meet and photograph Bernard Punikai`a, IDEA's
President for International Advocacy, who at the age of six was
forcibly taken from his mother because he had leprosy. At the opening
of the Quest for Dignity Exhibit at the United Nations in 1997, he gave
the keynote speech at the dinner reception and reflected on the
photograph taken of him when he entered Kalihi Hospital, prior to being
sent to Kalaupapa. He said that he could feel the pain of this young
boy and wanted to tell him that, yes, one day there would be dignity,
but that it would take a lifetime for that to occur.
Bernard has helped create affordable housing for people who are
physically challenged and senior citizens. He has composed music and
educated school children. He has gotten to know and won the respect of
most of the politicians in Hawaii. Bernard is one of those heroes who
need to be acknowledged. We owe it to him; we owe it to his mother.
The story of Kalaupapa and people affected by Hansen's Disease is
full of pain, ignorance, kindness and heroes. No one can take back what
happened to the people of Kalaupapa in the past, but we can make sure
that the people who lived out their lives at Kalaupapa are not
forgotten in the future. The story of Kalaupapa and the people who
lived it must be told, must be acknowledged, and must be honored. A
memorial with the names of all those individuals who were forced to
give up so much, and who sadly experienced so much rejection, is a most
fitting way to respect and honor the people of Kalaupapa and the lives
they lived.
______
Statement of Bernard K. Punikai`a, on S. 2502
I wish to express to you today my strong support for S 2502,
establishing a monument which would recognize thousands of
individuals--many of them long forgotten--who have been sent to
Kalaupapa over several generations. These men, women and children not
only suffered the physical and social effects of Hansen's Disease, but
also the pain of enforced separation from family and friends. Their
lives and contributions--no less than those of our beloved Father
Damien and Mother Marianne, known and celebrated for their dedication
to the people of Kalaupapa--deserve to be memorialized for posterity.
Diagnosed with Hansen's Disease at the age of six, I was taken from
my family and isolated at Kalihi Hospital. When I was eleven, I was
sent with other children to Kalaupapa, where I lived for many years,
until moving to Hale Mohalu in Pearl City. I am presently staying at
Leahi Hospital in Kaimuki, but maintain a residence in Kalaupapa, to
which I hope to return one day.
My support for this bill does not come from any deep urge to see my
own name carved in stone. Along with my contemporaries in Kalaupapa and
elsewhere in the community, I have been fortunate to receive
considerable recognition and generous support from friends and
neighbors everywhere. Those that preceded us were not as fortunate. It
is their names and memories that I look forward to seeing on the
proposed monument. It is their names that will be part of the
historical record left for future generations.
While we are grateful for whatever the government can do, we
residents of Kalaupapa--along with our friends and supporters--wish to
do our part as private citizens. I, as Honorary Chair of Ka `Ohana O
Kalaupapa, have already made a monetary pledge and urge others to do
the same.
Thank you for this opportunity to offer my testimony.
______
Statement of Anwei Skinsnes Law, M.P.H., International Coordinator,
IDEA, on S. 2502
On January 6, 1866, J.D. Kahauliko, listed on Hawaii's leprosy
registers as #1, boarded the small sailing schooner Warwick, bound for
a remote peninsula on the north shore of the island of Molokai. With
him were eight men and three women--J.N. Loe, Liilii, Puha, Kini, Lono,
Waipio, Kainana, Kaumoana, Nahuina, Lakapu and Kepihe, along with a few
family members who refused to have their sick relatives sent off alone.
They were the first of approximately 8,000 people who, over the next
century, were separated from all they held dear--family, friends,
community, and life as they knew it--because they had a disease that
was deemed by some to be a threat to society. The isolation policies,
were in stark contrast to the philosophy of the Hawaiian people, who
placed love before fear and for whom separation from family was far
worse than leprosy.
It was January and the voyage across the rough seas of the Molokai
Channel must have been traumatic, especially for people who were in the
advanced stages of what was, at that time, a devastating, incurable
disease. Those who made the trip in later years, on boats far larger
than the Warwick, described high waves, constant seasickness and an
overwhelming longing for home. Thus began the massive forced relocation
of thousands of people, at least 90% of whom were Kanaka Maoli, native
Hawaiians. The only justification for their removal from society was
that they were believed to have leprosy.
The history of Kalaupapa and those individuals who were isolated
there provides powerful insights into the importance of considering the
long term social implications of public health policies that will
persist long after a particular medical crisis is over. Today, more
than140 years after the first 12 people were relocated to Kalaupapa and
67 years after a cure was discovered for leprosy, family ties are only
beginning to be restored and individual identities fully appreciated.
As has been true for millions of people around the world who have
contracted leprosy, the first 12 people sent to the Kalaupapa peninsula
and the thousands who followed have been largely left out of
traditional histories. It is only recently that an international effort
has been launched to return people who have had leprosy to their
rightful place in their own histories. The history of those individuals
who were sent to Kalaupapa is at the forefront of this effort.
IDEA, the International Association for Integration, Dignity and
Economic Advancement, is the largest international advocacy
organization and network of support for individuals whose lives have
been challenged by leprosy. In 2006, IDEA was granted special
consultative status with the Social and Economic Council of the United
Nations. IDEA's leadership is primarily made of up individuals who have
themselves personally faced the challenges of leprosy, including
Bernard Ka`owakaokalani Punikai`a from Hawaii, who has been a leader in
promoting dignity and human rights, not only for people affected by
leprosy, but for every human being on this earth. In 2003, IDEA
launched a Global Campaign to Eliminate the Stigma Associated with
Leprosy. Two major steps identified as necessary to eliminate the 3,000
year old stigma are Restoring People to Their Rightful Place in Their
Own History and The Restoration of Family Ties.
IDEA strongly supports the establishment of a Memorial at
Kalaupapa, which will be the only one of its kind in the world, where
every person taken from their family and sent to Kalaupapa will be duly
recognized with honor and dignity as part of Kalaupapa National
Historical Park. At the same time, the Memorial will provide future
generations with the opportunity to restore family ties that were
severed, not by a disease, but by society's misunderstanding of it.
Some people who are trying to learn about their family
history will come to find out they had relatives at Kalaupapa.
If they feel at all the same way that we do, they will be proud
that their family was part of the `aina, part of the soul of
this land.
--Bernard Ka`owakaokalani Punikai`a
______
Statement of Laura L. Tollefson
My name is Laura L. Tollefson and I am the great granddaughter of
Benjamin and Rose Pe`a. Both of these people were members of a
wonderful group of people who lived in Kalaupapa and had Hansen's
disease.
Unfortunately I never got to know my great grandma Rose Kahalione
Na`ilau Pe`a, but I did get to know my Grandpa Ben. I started writing
letters to my great grandpa when I was 12 years old; this was also the
first time that I got to meet him. I knew very little about the
Hawaiian side of my family because my dad was killed in action in
Vietnam in 1967, I was only 4 and a half years old.
Therefore, when my Great Grandpa Ben came up to the topside of
Moloka`i and met with me my Auntie Francis Manuel and her children;
William, Faye, Anne, Andrew and Jane, I couldn't have been happier. My
great grandpa told me about the time my dad and his dad walked down the
path to Kalaupapa and surprised my great grandpa Ben with a visit.
Grandpa Ben told me about some of his days in the past and some of his
friends and a little bit about my great grandma Rose. There isn't one
negative thing he told me about his life in Kalaupapa. He was happy
with his friends and church family.
The next time I visited my Grandpa Ben, I went down to Kalaupapa
and he was with his care takers, the Dru's. He had just shown me a book
that he was in called; Ma`i Ho`oka Awale and he gave it to me to keep.
The beauty of Kalaupapa is unreal, but I also know that it holds a
lot of sadness, and need for the grace and dignity of the people who
live/and lived in this place. So many missionaries gave their lives to
help these people, even Queen Liliuokalani had to go and see her people
in Kalaupapa and try to help them as best she could.
Senator Akaka, now is the time that we can finally give the people
of Kalaupapa what they deserve, please let them be forever remembered
by allowing a memorial Wall, such as the Vietnam wall that my father is
remembered on, to be built on Kalaupapa.
______
Statement of Emerald K. Adams, on S. 2502
Thank you for this opportunity to testify in support of S. 2502
Kalaupapa Memorial. I support the the establishment of a memorial
within Kalaupapa National Historical Park located on the island of
Molokai, in the State of Hawaii,to honor and perpetuate the memory of
those individuals who were forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa
Peninsula from 1866 to 1969, and for other purposes.
______
Statement of Caroline Bonnet, Cloverdale, CA
Thank you for providing me with an opportunity to testify in
support of the Kalaupapa Memorial Act. I was a nurse at Kalaupapa from
1989 until 1990. It was one of the most meaningful experiences in my
nursing career. I felt honored to be able to care for the patients
there, and become acquainted them and with the history of Kalaupapa.
The peninsula is one of the most beautiful spots on earth with a
rich and tragic history. And the people that I lived and worked with
are some of the most beautiful people I've encountered in my 66 years.
It is appropriate that these people be remembered by placing a memorial
in their honor for all to become aware of the tragedy, struggle and
hardship these people endured.
The plan to establish a memorial at both settlements--Kalawao and
Kalaupapa--is I think, most fitting. I feel very gratified in knowing a
memorial is to be placed in these sacred grounds.
Thank you very much.
______
Statement of Darlene Kehaulani Butts, Ke Ali`i Maka`ainana Hawaiian
Civic Club, Stafford, VA
Ke Ali`i Maka`ainana Hawaiian Civic Club of Washington, D.C.; one
of 53 Hawaiian Civic Clubs throughout Hawai`i, Alaska, California,
Colorado, Illinois, Nevada, Utah, Virginia, and Washington state, co-
authored the Kalaupapa Memorial Resolution presented during the 2006
Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs convention in Waikiki, O`ahu,
Hawai`i. We stood squarely with Ho`olehua Hawaiian Civic Club of
Ho`olehua, Moloka`i, Hawai`i and members of Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa as
this Resolution passed unanimously in committee and on the convention
floor.
The membership of Ke Ali`i Maka`ainana Hawaiian Civic Club
continues to stand in full support of the Kalaupapa Memorial.
Mahalo for your positive action to this request from the Nakahili-
Hakuole, English and Mokuau families; my mother's family; of Moloka`i.
Mahalo Nui Loa.
______
Statement of Rochelle delaCruz, Editor and Publisher, Northwest
Hawai`i Times
I am writing in support of the Kalaupapa Memorial Act (S 2502) to
remember and honor those 8,000 people of Hawai`i, mostly Kanaka Maoli,
suffering from Hansen's Disease who were exiled to that isolated
Molokai peninsula from 1866 to 1969. Most of them died there, buried in
graves that were either unmarked or with markers that have long
disappeared. A memorial dedicated to their value and dignity will help
bring honorable closure to this sad episode in Hawai`i's history, not
only for families directly impacted by this disease named Ma`i
Ho`oka`awale or the Separating Sickness, but for all of us from our
beloved Islands.
Mahalo nui loa to you Senator Akaka for all your efforts to help in
the establishment of this important Monument.
Aloha.
______
Statement of Takayuki Harada
First of all, I want to express my gratitude for your willingness
to introduce the Kalaupapa Memorial Act to the Senate. The
establishment of such a monument honors and perpetuates the memory of
each individual sent to Kalaupapa. It is vital to assure that we do not
forget such an important part of Hawaiian history. Hansen's disease had
a devastating impact on so many families in this state. This monument
will go a long way to make ``pono'' a century of wrong committed to a
community of people who were diagnosed with a disease that unfairly
stigmatized against them and everyone connected to them.
For 13 years, I was denied the opportunity of knowing my brother
because he was sent to Kalaupapa. In 1954, when Paul Harada was
``cured'', I was introduced to the brother I had never known. The
subsequent days were difficult because of the stigma that was attached
to one who was a ``leprosy patient''. We, as children, were not allowed
to live at our home because officials of the state informed our parents
that we could not live in the same household with him. I was a confused
thirteen year old, told that Paul was cured but unable to live with him
in the same household.
Since that encounter, I was able to renew a relationship with a
beloved brother and a gracious mentor. That relationship helped me to
rid myself of prejudice and the need to judge others who were different
from me. Paul died on January 4, 2008, in Kalaupapa. This would be
fitting gesture to perpetuate the memory of his sacrifice, and of
others before him who sacrificed the opportunity for a normal life, so
that I and the rest of my family could lead and live normal lives
without prejudice and fear.
I urge all to support this legislation.
______
Statement of Robert K. Hutchison
The Hutchison family, (my sisters, Holly, Mercy and myself),
strongly supports the establishment of the Kalaupapa Memorial, as
expressed in the Kalaupapa Memorial Act (S 2502), which passed the
House of Representatives on February 12.
Leprosy has deeply touched the Hutchison family. Our
greatgrandfather, Dr Ferdinand William Hutchison, who was Minister of
the Interior to Kamehameha V, was instrumental in the establishment and
initial operation of the Kalaupapa settlement. My grandfather's
brother, Ambrose K Hutchison, was an early patient. My grandmother's
sister, Emma K Nakuina, was also an early patient there. My father's
brother, Sabin K Hutchison, was a patient there.
In view of the effect leprosy has had on my family and on the
Hawaiian Islands, we strongly urge the establishment of a memorial with
the names of the individuals sent there. The monument will be a
permanent salute to all who were sent there for no other reason than to
be afflicted with leprosy. They had committed no crime, but were
nevertheless shunted to a life of isolation. Their separation from
their loved ones was a heavy burden for them and their families.
President Theodore Roosevelt understood the importance of
recognizing the people of Kalaupapa, when he ordered the Great White
Fleet, in its around the world cruise in 1908, to pass in sight of
Kalaupapa. It is only fitting, that the US Congress, 100 years later,
also salute the people of Kalaupapa by having their names engraved on
an enduring memorial for future generations to see and touch.
______
Statement of Kerri A. Inglis, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of History,
University of Hawai`i at Hilo, Hilo, HI, on S. 2502
There is an `olelo no`eau (Hawaiian proverb) which states: Ola ka
inoa. It means ``the name lives'' and traditionally would be said when
the name of a beloved, deceased relative is given to a child.\1\
Creating a memorial that lists the names of all who were sent to
Kalawao and Kalaupapa settlements, from 1865 to 1969, would not only
honor those individuals who contracted Hansen's disease (leprosy) and
lived at the settlement, but it would ensure that their ``names''
(meaning their histories) would also live on in that `aina (land) and
in our memories.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Mary Kawena Pukui, ed., `Olelo No`eau, Hawaiian Proverbs and
Poetical Sayings, (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1986).
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I not only support the building of a memorial, dedicated to naming
all the individuals who were sent to Kalawao & Kalaupapa settlements,
but believe it to be both necessary and long over-due. When the 1865
``An Act to Prevent the Spread of Leprosy'' was passed it facilitated
the severing of family/genealogical connections in the Hawaiian nation.
Indeed, by the 1890s the disease came to be known to most Hawaiians as
ma`i ho`oka`awale `ohana (the disease that separates families). A
memorial would give families the opportunity to re-connect and re-
establish those sacred family ties to those ancestors who had been
taken from their homes and communities.
The Kalaupapa peninsula is a sacred place. It is a land ``set
apart''--for its rich natural history, its incredible history of early
Hawaiian settlement, and its dramatic history as a settlement for
individuals in the islands who contracted leprosy during the 19th and
20th centuries. It is a land that has been consecrated by the pain and
suffering of those individuals who were displaced from their families
and their communities because they had a disease. It is also a land
consecrated by their great examples of perseverance, survival, service
to one another (kokua), new formations of community and `ohana
(family), and the ability to still find joy in life even in the face of
their adversities.
A memorial is needed--not just to mark the place of their death--
but to remember Kalawao and Kalaupapa as the lands where they lived,
that we might always remember them, and learn from the great lessons of
their lives.
I first learned about the Kalaupapa settlement some seventeen years
ago and have been a student of its history ever since. One of my
sweetest memories of Kalaupapa is of a day that a friend and I spent
with our dear friend, Clarence Naia. Uncle Naia took us on a tour of
the peninsula and as we traveled the road to Kalawao, then out to the
light house, and back to Kalaupapa, he shared with us many of the
precious memories of his life in the settlement.
I will never forget two things he told us that day. The first was
that ``God made this place for us, . . . [those of us] with the
sickness.'' It was clear to my friend and I that Uncle Naia loved this
`aina (his home) and his `ohana (extended family/community) on the
peninsula. The second comment I will never forget came as we drove past
the many gravesites that line the makai (ocean) side of the road from
the airport back to Kalaupapa. As we drove past, Uncle Naia slowed down
and pointed to one of the many cemeteries and said ``that's where my
brothers and sisters are''.
At first we were confused. Earlier in the day he had told us that
other than his parents, he was the only member of his family to live at
the settlement. Then he explained, the simple and profound truth, that
all who had lived upon this peninsula were his ``brothers and
sisters.'' I think Uncle Naia wanted to teach us two things in that
moment. First, that he was connected to all who had been sent there.
Secondly, that he wanted us to connect to those who had gone before him
as well, his `ohana. He was connecting the present with the past
through the concept of `ohana, family, and by extension genealogy
(albeit metaphorical).
That is the way that Hawaiians have always kept their history--
through their connections to `ohana, their genealogy if you will, but
it does not have to be a literal, bloodline connection. It is in the
names of those who have gone before us that we will remember their
stories, their lives, their struggles, and their triumphs.
Ola na inoa! Let the names live! We need to build a memorial that
lists their names, for in their names, they will live for us. Our
present will be connected to their past and in remembering them we will
remember the great lessons of their lives.
______
Statement of Kehaulani Lum, on S. 2502
Chairman Bingaman and members of the Committee, thank you for the
opportunity to express my strong support for S. 2502, the Kalaupapa
Memorial Act.
S. 2502 authorizes the establishment of a memorial within Kalaupapa
National Historical Park located on the island of Molokai, in the State
of Hawaii, to honor and perpetuate the memory of those individuals who
were forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula from 1866 to 1969.
This vital piece of legislation is long overdue.
As the grandniece of one of the historical park's last remaining
residents, Anakala Henry Nalaielua, my support for this measure is
deeply personal. I am grateful to the bill's sponsors, Senator Akaka
and Senator Inouye, for their important leadership, and to the
Committee for its genuine commitment.
Like others before him, Uncle Henry was involuntarily sent to
Kalaupapa as a young child, by a gross violation of fundamental human
rights that today would stir many in our great nation to protest. That
he has emerged from this experience as a loving person, a talented
artist and author, and, by all meanings of the term, a productive
citizen, speaks volumes of his incredible strength and human spirit. I
am in awe of him, and I know that if you had a chance to travel to
Kalaupapa and meet him and his fellow residents, you would be too.
In truth, no memorial will ever restore the days, months and years
that were lost and the countless childhood memories that were so
callously denied thousands of individuals who were torn from their
parents over a century and more. It is too late to turn back the time
and make them whole. But, there is still time to heal the legacy of
societal indifference and honor, respect and remember their sacrifices
in a meaningful way. A memorial to those denied liberty and justice, in
order to ``protect the welfare of society,'' is a fitting symbol of an
appreciative and civilized country. That, through your support, it
might be inspired by the vision and effort of those who were,
themselves, once condemned, is a rare gift.
What better way to educate and inspire present and future
generations, than by giving voice to those who, even in our own time,
were silenced? What better way to forgive more than a century of man's
inhumanity to man?
I can think of several instances in which individuals and/or events
have been memorialized on national park lands. I have visited Mt.
Rushmore National Memorial, in South Dakota, where the faces of four
Presidents memorialize American history. I have supported the American
Family Immigration History Center, located in the Ellis Island
Immigration History Museum, whose American Immigrant Wall of Honor
stands in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty and invites descendants
to honor their ancestors' sacrifices by the inscription of their names.
And, of course, just a few blocks from the site of today's hearing,
millions of tears have been shed along the marble wall which honors the
men and women who served when their Nation called upon them. The
designer of the Vietnam Memorial, Maya Lin, said that ``the politics
had eclipsed the veterans, their service and their lives.'' And, so,
too, it seems, without this legislation, might it neglect the
contributions of thousands of ordinary citizens who were denied their
chance at the American dream, for the benefit and well-being of their
countrymen and women. Until now.
When my daughter, who is ten years old, becomes an adult, I hope
that she will visit the Kalaupapa Memorial with her own children, and
that they will be able to touch the names of their beloved ancestors
and hear the story of how a wise group of leaders in Washington D.C.
found a way to transform a century of fear into an eternity of enduring
love.
Mahalo nui loa. Thank you very much for your serious consideration.
______
Statement of Esther Puakela Kia`Aina, on H.R. 3332 and S. 2502
Aloha Chairman Akaka and members of the Senate Energy and Natural
Resources Subcommittee on National Parks!
My name is Esther Puakela Kia`aina. I am the paternal granddaughter
of Joseph Heleluhe Kia`aina, who was born in Kalaupapa, Moloka`i in
1903. My grandfather was born to John Kia`aina and Mary Lucas Lujan, of
O`ahu and Hawai`i islands, respectfully. Both of them were exiled to
the Kalaupapa peninsula, where they lived the rest of their lives as
patients and perished. Shortly after his birth, my grandfather Joseph
was taken away from his parents and raised by his grandparents (and my
great-great-grandparents)--John and Keoki Kia`aina--in Waikiki, O`ahu.
My grandfather would never know his parents.
I only learned about my grandfather's Kalaupapa roots in high
school during an oral interview I conducted with him for my Hawaiian
Cultural History class. When I asked my father why he never told me
about this fact, he explained that it was difficult for him to bring up
given the stigma that was associated with Kalaupapa. Because of the
changing times, I, in turn, told him that I was very proud of my
grandpa and that the story of Kalaupapa was important to share not only
with our own family, but with others as well.
Over the course of my adult life, including as a Congressional
staffer on Capitol Hill, I have endeavored to support efforts that
remember the people and preserve the legacy of Kalaupapa in any way
that I could. Since there were 8,000+ individuals who perished between
1863 and 1969, the majority of them Hawaiian, many Hawaiian families
throughout the State of Hawai`i and elsewhere have been impacted by the
tragic history of Kalaupapa and can likely trace their genealogy to a
relative who was sent or perished there.
Apart from my Kia`aina roots, my paternal grandmother--Esther
Puakela Ah Sa of Keanae, Maui--also had relatives who died in
Kalaupapa. Her maternal grandfather was the Reverend Samuel K.
Kamakahiki, who spent the last two years of his life in Kalaupapa,
where he died in 1898. It is believed that his wife, Kapehe, may also
have perished there. My great-great-grandfather was the reverend for
Olowalu Church in Maui for nearly two decades prior to his relocation
to Kalaupapa.
I write in strong support of H.R. 3332/S. 2502, the Kalaupapa
Memorial Act, in honor of my great-grandparents, my great-great-
grandparents, the 8,000+ lives that perished in Kalaupapa, and all of
those who have called Kalaupapa home at one point in their lives.
Kalaupapa National Historical Park is special in our national parks
system not just because of its majestic and breath taking beauty. It is
special because of the people whose lives were impacted and Kalaupapa's
unique and cultural history. It is fitting and appropriate to establish
a memorial to honor and perpetuate the memory of those who perished
there.
______
Statment of Patients of Kalaupapa, Molokai, HI, on H.R. 4529
To provide for the establishment of a memorial within Kalaupapa
National Historical Park located on the island of Molokai, in the State
of Hawaii, to honor and perpetuate the memory of those individual who
were forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula from 1866 to 1969,
and for other purposes.
On Sunday, September 24, 2006, the following statements of current
and former patients of Kalaupapa, gave their testimony in support of a
Memorial to be established within the Kalaupapa National Historical
Park to Sister Alicia Damien Lau, OSF, Board Member for Ka`Ohana
O`Kalaupapa.
I am in favor of a monument in Kalaupapa. It shows a legacy
of the patients from the beginning of time--it will make the
world aware of what Kalaupapa is all about.
Winifred Harada, patient of Kalaupapa since 1943
We are in favor of a monument in Kalaupapa. It is part of
history for future generations to know the sorry and the
banishment of the people. Kalaupapa was not there to develop
better treatment, but we were sent there to die. The future
generations should know what happened.
Nancy and Jimmy Brede, patienst of Kalaupapa since 1942
It is good for people to remember all the patients who were
there before us. It is just like those who went to war and had
died, there are monuments with their names on it. There were
thousands who were sent to Kalaupapa. My mother was also sent
to Kalaupapa.
Peter Keola, Jr. patient of Kalaupapa since 1940, he is now
82 years old.
I was sent to Kalaupapa when I was 15 years old. I am in
favor of a monument because it is good to remember those who
have suffered and have died in Kalaupapa. I was the only one in
my family that was sent to Kalaupapa. No one else in my family
had the disease. That was in 1941.
Shoichi Hamai, patient of Kalaupapa since 1941
I support the bill to have a monument at Kalaupapa with the
patients' names. It is just an honorable thing to do. It is
what the patients want. It is to honor the patients who were
sent to Kalaupapa.
Bernard Punikai`a, patient of Kalaupapa since 1942.
Yes, the State of Hawaii should put up a monument for the
patients of Kalaupapa. The State of Hawaii should thank all
those people that were sent to Kalaupapa for giving up all that
they had--they gave up everything: their families, their
belongings, etc. to be isolated and to keep the disease from
spreading. If we were not segregated, the composite of the
people would be so very different. . . . the people (of
Kalaupapa) died for them (the State).
Paul Harada, patient of Kalaupapa since 1943.
Audio Tape Testimony
My name is Henry Nalaielua and I am in support of the bill that is
now going around asking for reasons as to why we establish the
memorial. One of the reasons why I am in support of this memorial is
that fact, I believe that the National Park, even though we have had
many reasons, as many times have we have mentioned over and over, is
that we did not want the grave sites (stones) removed or sacrificed for
something else. I think that the future of the National Park, did have
or will have a reason to probably remove all of the grave (stones) not
because they want to, but because of deterioration or because of the
grave sites falling into grave conditions that they need to be repaired
or set forth into its original position. I think these things will be
costing the National Parks people a lot of money and to again to begin
the process of putting it back to its original site. Where as if a
Memorial was built, there will be no need for this worrying about
happening to the graves (stones), because the Memorial will set forth
the names and dates and times of each individual making it known that
that memorial will stand now and the rest for the rest of the years
that the National Park is there and I believe that the Memorial will be
a place that people could go to and go to and just by looking at the
list they find a relatives or friends they knew and I think for me it
would be a cherished memory to have a monument that tells the people
this is that we wanted and this is what they have. I believe too, that
if it is an effort for people in Congress to think about this idea. All
they have to do is to ask Senators there, like Senator Inouye and
several others who visited the settlement. Of course that the condition
of the graves, they are not bad as they were, but still there are
graves that are unrecognizable and have caved and we are losing the
identity of those who are buried in that particular spot. And I support
this bill very much and it needs to be acted upon and I support the
idea of the memorial that will commemorate the death of those who
passed away years and years ago. One of the important things, I think,
in the memorials would be that still today, people want to find out if
they had relatives or not and the memorial is one way, I think, to make
it easer rather than going to all the different areas and the grave
sties just to look for a name. On the Memorial, you will find the name
because the intention is to put every person's name whether they were
here when the old timers came or after they came. And it's possible
that every person who had ever lived there, whether short time or long
time, their name will be on this Memorial and once it is there, I don't
think it can be forgotten. And if you want to find a name all you have
to do is to go to whatever source that we have to get the information.
Henry Nalaielua, patient of Kalaupapa since 1941.
Audio Tape Testimony
Aloha, my name is Kuulei Bell. I would like to talk about the
Kalaupapa Memorial. H.R. 4529. This is so important for the people and
the patients who live in Kalaupapa from the 1800s until the present
time; because of my family relations who went to Kalaupapa and died
there. My parent was a patient in Kalaupapa, my grandfather and my
father's twin sisters and many more. I never knew my dad until I became
a patient, and found out about him. I feel that the memorial monument
will let our family know, especially my children, and my great-
grandchildren about me and about their family--their grandparents--
their grandfathers who were there. And most of all the patients all had
families there. We need to remember the people who have dedicated their
lives and came to Kalaupapa, Father Damien who we love so much, came
and came to take care of all those in Kalawao in the 1800's and he
became one of us--contracted the disease, and so we know how this is.
And also we know that Mother Marianne gave her aloha and love with all
the nuns to come and take care of the patients--they need to be
remembered. These things are so important and the monument is a big
part of our history and our lives. So please consider what we are
asking for our history and for our children to know what happened to
manyof our patients. How sad it was for my mother who had to wait for
me to go and she could not even touch me because of the disease. And I
could not even touch my children. These are the things that we should
consider how important it is. These are the memories so please consider
these things; I say these things from my heart and I hope that you hear
it. Thank you for listening to this. Aloha and much aloha; much, much
mahalo.
Kuulei Bell, patient of Kalaupapa; she contracted the disease at
the age of 6.
The words are the words of the patients of Kalaupapa. I (Sister
Alicia Damien Lau) have recorded them with their permission as their
testimony for Bill H.R. 4529.
______
Statement of Katherine Lockhart
I hope my testimony helps in getting the memorial approved.
I remember when I was young (under 10). My parents use to
frequently fly to Kalaupapa to visit my grandfather ( Leon Nono ). They
use to fly almost every month. I was much to young to know what kind of
illness my grandfather & so I never saw him until I was old enough to
go to Kalaupapa. He use to come to Hawaii occasional for the doctors,
but most times stayed in Hale Mohalu, never at my parents home. Before
I went to Kalaupapa, I use to talk to my grandfather on the phone. He
use to tell me stories of fishing and what it was like when he was sent
to the settlement. (how and when he went). The funny thing about him
was that even though his eyesight was'nt to good he always knew where
the phone was. When I finally was old enough to go to Kalaupapa, we
went almost as frequently as my parents did. We had so much fun there
and the patients were wonderful. We would go and drive his car (no
registration needed) and go all over the settlement to see deer and
Kalawao to see the scenery. I took several of my friends and they just
could not stopping on how much fun they had there as well. I felt no
shame that my grandfather had leprosy, to me he was just as normal as
you & I. When I was there, I had long talks with him & always tried not
to slam the door. Boy was he was a stickler for that, but we always
tried not to slam the door. We would never here the end of it if we
did. My grandfather lived a long time and he had a good life. I will
love him and keep him in my heart forever. Actually I received a
picture from one of the nurses there (i don't know who) but the
envelope said. ``I think this is nono's granddaughter''. I took that
picture and made copies for all my sisters and brothers and gave it to
them one Christmas. That pictures sits on my shelf and there it will
stay. Everytime I look at that picture, I miss him, but I know that he
is in my heart always. I hope that they will put up a monument in honor
of my grandfather and the countless patients that went to the
settlement.
Thank you for letting write this testimony. I will be following the
outcome via the computer, for I now live in the mainland.
______
Statement of Henry and Nancy Mahi
Please convey our appreciation and support to Senator Akaka for
introducing this bill. Our great-grandfather was a patient at
Kalaupapa, and our grandfather was born there. He was hanai`d to a
topside Moloka`i family, but never talked about his early life. It has
been most difficult to trace the family history, particularly when
attempting to deal with state agencies. We have gotten nowhere. I am
hoping that the Kalaupapa Memorial Act will not only honor the many who
died on that peninsula, but will help many of their descendants find
their roots.
James Johnson of the National Park Service at Kalaupapa has been
wonderful in helping me try to find information about our grandfather.
He should be cloned.
Thank you.
______
Statement of Valerie Monson, Makawao, HI, on S. 2502 and H.R. 3332
I am writing in support of S 2502 and HR 3332, The Kalaupapa
Memorial Act, which would authorize the establishment on a monument on
the Kalaupapa peninsula to remember and honor the people of Hawaii who
were taken from their families and relocated because they had leprosy.
Although I am secretary of Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa, I am submitting
this testimony on my own behalf.
A monument at Kalaupapa has been discussed for more than 20 years.
People have often talked about erecting something ``like the Vietnam
Wall'' that would list all the names of everyone sent to Kalaupapa.
While a massive structure like a huge wall might not fit with the
Hawaiian landscape, it was clear that many people wanted to be
remembered by their individual identities. They also wanted to make
sure that the names of those people who were sent to Kalaupapa in
earlier times would be remembered--most of these individuals are known
only in records in Honolulu or elsewhere that can sometimes be hard to
access.
As a reporter, I first began visiting Kalaupapa in 1989. I still
recall being driven to the site of the original settlement at Kalawao,
three miles on the other side of the peninsula from Kalaupapa, during
that first visit. The Park Service officials who were giving the tour
told us the stories of Father Damien de Veuster, Mother Marianne Cope
and Brother Joseph Dutton, but there was no mention of any of the
thousands of Hawaiians who had been sent there. I wanted to know who
those people were and what happened to them. I wanted to know their
names and their stories.
After that initial visit, I began reading more about Kalaupapa and
learned that, at one point, Father Damien estimated there were at least
2,000 people buried in the vicinity of St. Philomena Church at Kalawao.
Today, you would never know that because there are only a handful of
graves of those early residents and very few that are identified. Most
of the tombstones or wooden crosses have been lost to neglect or the
elements. Because of the harsh conditions of those early years, many
residents probably never had a grave marker at all. A monument would be
the first step in bringing people back to their rightful place in
Hawaii's history and to their family genealogies Descendents would have
a place to find closure, healing and pride.
After listening to the community during many discussions about this
project, it was decided to build the monument in two parts. The first
phase would list the names of the first 5,000 people who were sent to
Kalaupapa from 1866 to 1896. We believe that most of these individuals
lived at Kalawao--as did Father Damien--and most of them are now buried
in unmarked graves. It would seem only appropriate that at least the
first phase of the monument be constructed at Kalawao where they lived
and died beneath the towering cliffs. It is because of these thousands
of people--those who were sent to the peninsula with no choice and
those who went to serve, such as Father Damien--that Kalawao has become
one of the most spiritual places in Hawaii.
The second phase of the monument will be developed at a later time,
when the names become available to the public domain. Once the first
phase of the monument has been completed, the community, family members
and supports will have a better idea of how and where the second phase
should be located.
Since my first visit to Kalaupapa, I have written numerous articles
about the community, including profiles of many of the residents who
generously shared their stories, posed for photographs and wanted their
names used, like anyone else featured in newspapers. They often talked
about their friends who had already died, but who they also want to be
remembered. Over my 30-year career in journalism, I have found the
people of Kalaupapa to be among the finest individuals I have ever
interviewed. My only regret is that I didn't come to Hawaii earlier so
I could have known many of those people who had died by the time I
started visiting.
Please approve S 2502 and HR 3332 so Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa can
begin the work to make this monument a reality. The great people of
Kalaupapa and their families deserve nothing less.
______
Statement of Gini Moore
As a member of the Ke Ali`i Maka`ainana Hawaiian Civic Club, I
encourage you to vote favorably for S. 2502, to establish a memorial at
Kalaupapa to honor the memories of those forced to move there.
Mahalo.
______
Statement of Lorna Nono, on S. 2502 and H.R. 3332
Chairperson Bingaman, Ranking Member Pete Domenici and Members of
the Senate Subcommittee on National Parks.
Thank you for this opportunity to testify in support of the
Kalaupapa Memorial Act, introduced as S. 2502 and H.R. 3332.
Kalaupapa and its history are a huge part of who I am and what I've
become. The people, all of whom I consider family, has in one way or
another impacted my life, especially the one that is my grandfather. I
am who I am because of him, but it did take some time for me to truly
appreciate what a special man he was; how knowledgeable he was; how
funny he was; but most of all, how generous he was. I was grateful to
have spent the years that I did with him at his home in Kalauapapa,
taking care of him, listening to all of his stories, and seeing how
much he cared for his family. My grandfather's family spans thousands
of miles, and although I have been graced with his love, many of his
other grandchildren had not, and it is my duty to pass on his story and
to honor him by supporting this monument.
Thank you for this opportunity to submit my testimony in support of
the Kalaupapa Memorial Act. Please vote yes and support S. 2502 and
H.R. 3332.
______
Statement of Pauline Puahala Hess, on S. 2502
I am in strong support of The Kalaupapa Memorial Act, S 2502, as a
family member and as a board member of Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa.
As a board member, this monument will help us achieve one of the
goals of Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa . . . ''to promote value and dignity to
every individual exiled to Kalaupapa since 1866''. In the four years
that I have served on the monument committee, the monument has always
been a priority in the minds and hearts of all in Kalaupapa.
The monument to me is about uplifting and honoring these human
beings who lived and survived under extraordinary circumstances. They
are people who gave up their rights for the rights of others. So much
of the written history of Kalawao and Kalaupapa has been about leprosy
and the people who contracted the disease.
As a family member, I want visitors to this monument to remember
these individuals as someone's parents, grandparents, sisters,
brothers, uncles, aunties, cousins, friends and neighbors. My parents,
uncles and aunties are among them.
Today, my mother is the only family survivor in Kalaupapa. At age
80, she continues to serve as an active community member and as an
international human rights activist. I want to see the names of my
mother, father, my uncles and aunties, and the names of all who were
sent there on this monument, to serve as an inspiration to those who
come to Kalaupapa.
Please help us ``to bring value and dignity to every individual
exiled to Kalaupapa since 1866''.
______
Statement of Donald W. Reeser, Makawao, HI, on S. 2502
In memory of my late wife, Henrietta Weber Reeser, I strongly
support SB 2502 which will provide funding to assist in the
establishment of a memorial at Kalawao or Kalaupapa within the
boundaries of Kalaupapa National Historical Park on the island of
Molokai, Hawai`i. She served on the Monument Committee of Ka `Ohana O
Kalaupapa at the time of her death in July 2007.
Her great-grandmother, Rosine Weber, was forcibly relocated to
Kalaupapa in 1911 and died there in 1917. Many of the grave markers of
the Hansen disease victims have either deteriorated or were destroyed
by a tsunami. In any case, except for a few documents preserved by the
Hawai`i Department of Health, there is no longer any on-site evidence
that she ever resided and was buried there. S2502 will help establish
an appropriate memorial be established to honor and perpetuate the
memory her great-grandmother and others, dishonored and separated from
their families, who died in Kalaupapa.
Thank you for this opportunity to testify.
______
Statement of Rev. Dr. Lon A. Rycraft, Corvallis, OR, on S. 2502
I am writing to you to request your support of The Kalaupapa
Memorial Act (S 2502). My wife, Ellen, and I served as the pastors of
the members and friends of Kana`ana Hou--Siloama United Church of
Christ in Kalaupapa from 1994 until 2005, and we are members of Ka
`Ohana O Kalaupapa.
The importance of the creation of a monument assures we will never
forget the names and the lives of those children, women and men, who
were exiled to the Kalaupapa peninsula to die. I believe this to be a
critical element in Kalaupapa National Historical Park's interpretive
mission.
Most importantly, the memorial will provide family members,
relatives and visitors the opportunity to make a direct connection with
an essential part of the history of the Kalaupapa peninsula, and I
believe this is ultimately the goal of Kalaupapa National Historical
Park.
Thank you for your important work, continued support of the people
and friends of Kalaupapa and your appreciation of the important history
of the Kalaupapa peninsula.
Aloha pumehana.
______
Sisters of St. Francis,
Honolulu, HI, April 13, 2008.
Hon. Jeff Bingaman,
Chairman, Energy and Natural Resources Committee, 304 Dirksen Senate
Office Building, Washington, DC.
Dear Senator Bingaman: This year, the Sisters of St. Francis are
celebrating 125th Anniversary of the arrival of Mother Marianne Cope
and the Sisters of St. Francis in Hawaii, as response to pleas from
King Kalaukaua and Queen Kapiolani to care for the women and children
at the Kakaako Branch Hospital and later at Bishop Home in Kalaupapa.
Presently, the Sisters of St. Francis continues the work that Mother
Marianne Cope started in the areas of healthcare, education, and social
ministries. There were approximately 56 Sisters who worked in Kalaupapa
(and one Sister is still assigned there) who cared for, listened to
their pain and resentment, and their disappointments and fears.
As a Sister of St. Francis, I have been visiting and helping the
patients of Kalaupapa, on the island of Moloka`i since the mid 1960's
and during my monthly visits, I have had the opportunity to develop
close relationships with many of the patients. In speaking with them,
they have expressed the desire to have a Monument in Kalaupapa. One of
the patient felt this is a way for those 8000 patients to be remembered
and not to be forgotten. With its surging restless sea and its steep
sloping cliffs, Kalaupapa was a confinement for the 8,000 patients who
were taken from their families, in shame and disgrace. Many of the
earlier patients have no grave site and many of the earlier patients
died without having their families with them.
I strongly support the idea of a Memorial at Kalaupapa, which will
greatly aid the National Park's mandate of preserving Kalaupapa's
history for the education and inspiration of present and future
generations. The Memorial is clearly the wish for the remaining
patients and so for many of those who have passed away and would like
their history and the history of all who came before them to be
remembered.
Mahalo for your willingness to introduce the Kalaupapa Memorial Act
to the Senate. The establishment of such a monument will honor and will
help to perpetuate the memory of each individual sent to Kalaupapa. We
have a responsibility to these individuals to remember the sacrifices
they made.
I thank everyone, in advance, for their support on this important
bill.
Mahalo piha,
Sister Alicia Damien Lau.
______
Statement of Ellen Christine Storm
From 1993 until 2005; my husband and I lived and worked in
Kalaupapa. He was the pastor of Kanaana Hou and Siloama; the Hawaiian
Protestant churches. I managed the arts and craft shop in the
settlement, worked as a nursing assistant at the Kalaupapa hospital,
worked for nine years as Postmaster Relief at the Kalaupapa Post
Office, helped host work groups who came from other islands, and
travelled a number of times to accompany some of the patients to the
mainland in order for them to attend international events sponsored by
IDEA (The International Association for Integration, Dignity and
Economic Advancement for people with Hansen's Disease.)
My husband and I were also part of the original group who started
Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa. The friendships that I made with the people who
grew up in Kalaupapa are not only precious to me, but continue to touch
me, teach me, amaze me. Sharing themselves through their stories has
been part of the healing. The thousands of people who suffered and died
in Kalawao and Kalaupapa are all part of their `ohana and ours as well.
It is mandatory that there be a monument, a memorial created as a
permanent remembrance for all the people who lived and died there. It
is absolutely critical that there be such a monument where families can
come and experience a place of healing. It is unthinkable that these
people who suffered so deeply not be recognized.
Creating a memorial to the thousands who have died will serve as a
gift: a completion of the circle. Friends and family, strangers and
those not yet born must know the complete story and the names
remembered. Thank you, Senator Akaka, for giving me a chance to share
my feelings. Thank you also for the work that you are doing on behalf
of the people of Kalaupapa.
______
Statement of Jay D. Vogt, President, National Conference of State
Historic Preservation Officers, on S. 2262
The National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers
(NCSHPO) appreciates the opportunity to submit this statement for the
record on the Preserve America and Save Americas Treasures Act. NCSHPO
is the professional association of the State government officials who
carry out the national historic preservation program as delegates of
the Secretary of Interior pursuant to the National Historic
Preservation Act of 1966 (NHPA). The NCSHPO acts as a communications
vehicle among the State Historic Preservation Offices (SHPOs) and their
staffs and represents the SHPOs with Congress, federal agencies and
national preservation organizations.
national historic preservation program
In 1966 Congress recognized the importance of preserving our past
by passing the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA 16 USC 470),
which established today's Historic Preservation Program. The NHPA
created and directs State Historic Preservation Offices (SHPOs) to
carry out the federal preservation program: 1) Locate and record
historic resources; 2) Nominate significant historic resources to the
National Register of Historic Places; 3) Foster historic preservation
programs at the local government level and the creation of preservation
ordinances; 4) Provide funds for preservation activities (including
bricks and motor repairs); 5) Comment on federal preservation tax
projects; 6) Create and update State Historic Preservation plans 7)
Review all federal projects for their impact on historic properties;
and 8) Provide technical assistance to federal agencies, state and
local governments and the private sector.
national historic preservation program funding
The National Conference has supported and continues to support
increased funding for the country's national Historic Preservation Fund
(HPF) and other historic preservation programs. In 1981, the states
(SHPOs) funding through the HPF was cut 70% and to date, the states
still struggle to reach the $47 million level received in 1980.
NCSHPO would specifically like to thank the Subcommittee Chairman
as well as Senators Landrieu, Menendez, Lincoln, and Sanders for
signing onto the fiscal year 2009 letter supporting $50 million for
State Historic Preservation Offices and for increasing funds for Tribal
Historic Preservation Offices, Save Americas Treasures, and Preserve
America.
In order to ensure the continued integrity of the National Historic
Preservation Act, the National Conference appreciates that S.2262
clarifies that the programs contained in the legislation would not be
funded from the Historic Preservation Fund (16 USC 470h) in conformance
with the eligibility language (16 USC 470a--Section 101(e)).
consideration of existing historic preservation infrastructure
The National Conference believes a fulsome consideration of the
long-standing, successful\1\ structure of the national historic
preservation program is merited prior to enacting major changes in
service delivery envisioned in this bill. The current authorized
historic preservation programs operate as a federal-state partnership
and were created so that States play a key role in the implementation
and delivery of our country's historic preservation programs. NCSHPO is
concerned that the proposed legislation greatly reduces the States
role.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ National Academy of Public Administration, ``Back to the
Future: A Review of the National Historic Preservation Program,''
Washington, DC, 2007; Office of Management and Budget, Program
Assessment Rating Tool audit of the Historic Preservation Fund
Programs, 2003.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
technical concerns of proposed legislation
Finally, NCSHPO has several technical concerns. As we have seen
from numerous other federal programs, when dual federal agencies become
involved, problems tend to arise. Additionally, NCSHPO is concerned
over the inclusion of grant criteria in federal legislation. Over time
the appropriateness of the eligible projects may change and rather than
having Congress amend statute, the Secretary should be given the
authority to create the criteria.
conclusion
The national historic preservation program is an outstanding
example of federalism with the National Historic Preservation Act
setting the policy and the states--through the SHPOs--administering the
program which has flourished for the past 42 years. NCSHPO supports the
activities carried out through Preserve America and Save Americas
Treasures and supports a more effective partnership with the states.
Thank You.
______
Statement of Anne Mahealani Apo, Kailua, HI, on S. 2502 and H.R. 3332
I would like to thank you and the committee for the opportunity to
share my testimony in support of the Kalaupapa Memorial Act of 2007.
My name is Anne Mahealani Apo, born of Hawaiian ancestry a
descendant of the Unea family of Puna and Apana family of Hilo on my
maternal grandmother's side.
Looking back at my youth, I remember the story my mother told me of
her grandfather who left home in 1893 to live out the rest of his days
in Kalaupapa to be with his son who had contracted Hansen's disease. An
unconditional testament of a parent's love for his child.
At the time, I never really understood the significance of
Kalaupapa until it became the missing pieces of the puzzle of my family
tree.
After connecting with Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa in October 2007, the
organization provided me with information of my great grandfather and
other family members that had been exiled to the remote peninsula.
My great grandfather held a position as the store manager
responsible for stocking necessary supplies and items of choice for the
Kalaupapa Settlement. He also recorded the first census in 1900.
During my research at the State Archives I discovered numerous
letters written by my great grandfather to the Board of Health dating
back to 1898. I had also found information of members of the Unea and
Apana family that confirmed the information I received from Ka `Ohana O
Kalaupapa. The missing pieces of the puzzle started to fit.
During my visit to Kalaupapa in 2007, I was blessed with the
opportunity to visit my great grandfather's wife's grave, an unexpected
surprise that I cherish dearly. For all undiscovered and missing family
members of Kalaupapa Settlement a sincere acknowledgment is long
overdue. A monumental token as a memorial of names, set in stone, is
but a small gesture we as a society can do for the unfortunate of such
a deadly disease.
Kalaupapa holds a lifetime of treasures of untold stories of human
struggle and broken spirits battling to overcome the physical and
emotional barriers scarred by impurity. Life of family, friends and
home as they knew it was gone forever.
I support the Kalaupapa Memorial Act of 2007 to provide for an
establishment of a memorial to honor and perpetuate the lives and
memory of those of Hansen's disease that were forcibly exiled to
Kalaupapa. Thank you for your time and consideration.
______
State of Hawai`i,
Office of Hawaiian Affairs,
Honolulu, HI, April 10, 2008.
Hon. Jeff Bingaman,
Chairman, Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 304 Dirksen
Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.
Re: Support of S. 2502/H.R. 3332, to provide for the establishment of a
memorial within Kalaupapa National Historical Park located on the
island of Moloka`i, in the State of Hawai`i, to honor and perpetuate
the memory of those individuals who were forcibly relocated to the
Kalaupapa Peninsula from 1866 to 1969, and for other purposes.
Mahalo nui loa (thank you very much) for the opportunity to present
the views of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs on S. 2502/H.R. 3332, in
support of establishment of a Kalaupapa memorial at Kalaupapa National
Historical Park. The Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) is established
through the Hawai`i State Constitution to work toward the betterment of
Hawai`i's indigenous people, Native Hawaiians. OHA' s policy-makers are
nine trustees elected by the voters of Hawai`i. OHA strongly supports
the passage of this bill, and future legislation to honor those
individuals forcibly relocated to Kalaupapa. This Kalaupapa memorial
measure will, if passed, provide for the establishment of a memorial
within Kalaupapa Historical Park to honor and perpetuate the memory of
those individuals who were forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa
Peninsula from 1866 to 1969. Most people know little about the hundred-
plus year policy of forced relocation that tore those afflicted with
Hansen's disease, once called leprosy, from their land, lives, and
loves, and isolated them between the steep valley cliffs and roaring
waves of the Kalaupapa Peninsula. This practice began with the Kingdom
of Hawai`i, and was continued by every form of government since,
including the State of Hawai`i. Today, the area is a National Historic
Park, which serves in part to preserve the memories and teach the
stories of the past. We believe that the next step in education and
preservation should be the establishment of a memorial honoring, in an
appropriate manner, by name, the eight thousand-plus forcibly relocated
individuals who made their lives in Kalaupapa. We believe that they
should be remembered as individuals first and foremost, and that this
memorial will accomplish that while fitting into the larger purpose of
the Kalaupapa National Historic Park. It will also respect the
consensus among the Kalaupapa community, and has the strong support of
Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa, a non-profit organization consisting of patient
residents at Kalaupapa, as well as family and friends.
From 1869 to 1969, more than eight thousand people of Hawai`i, an
estimated ninety percent of whom were Native Hawaiian, were taken from
their homes and isolated from society, under policy that defined them
solely by their illness. These people were also husbands, wives, sons,
daughters, grandparents, friends, and neighbors with hopes and dreams
of their own. Today there are `ohana (family) of Hawaiians from every
corner of the state. Whether they have passed or remain with us, it is
right that we remember them as individuals, and honor them as members
of our extended family. Please vote in favor of passage of S. 2502/H.R.
3332. Mahalo (Thank you) for this opportunity to submit a letter of
support.
S. Haunani Apoliona, MSW,
Chairperson, Board of Trustees.
______
State of Hawaii,
Executive Chambers,
Honolulu, HI, April 9, 2008.
Hon. Jeff Bingaman,
Chairman, Energy and Natural Resources Committee, 304 Dirksen Senate
Office Building, Washington, DC.
Dear Senator Bingaman: I am writing on behalf of the people of
Hawaii urging your favorable consideration of S. 2502 and H.R. 3332,
the Kalaupapa Memorial Act.
This bill authorizes the establishment of a suitable memorial
within the boundaries of Kalaupapa National Historical Park. The Park
was created to perpetuate the memory and lives of those individuals who
were relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula between 1866 and 1969. I
believe it is fitting and proper that we ask for a memorial so that
future generations may see and understand the significance of this
portion of our shared history within the State of Hawaii and the United
States.
Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa is a group that has made the establishment of
a monument one of its priorities. I fully support their efforts and
believe they will provide the spiritual and cultural guidance needed to
ensure that the memorial is consistent with the objectives and purposes
of the Kalaupapa National Historical Park.
Thank you for giving me an opportunity to express my support and
the support of the people of Hawaii for this undertaking.
Sincerely,
Linda Lingle,
Governor.
______
Statement of Chris Mahelona, Valleyford, WA, and David Mahelona,
Spokane Valley, WA
I am writing today, on behalf of myself and my father, in support
of the Kalaupapa Memorial Act of 2007.
Up until 1969 when the isolation law abolished, the isolation
policy for Hansen's disease (leprosy) patients resulted in a major
disruption of family life where children were taken from their parents,
parents taken from their children and husbands and wives were separated
regardless of their vows ``for better or for worse, in sickness and in
health''. As a result of this inequitable severance, this disease was
called by some, ``Ma`i Ho`oka`awale''--The Separating Sickness.
We have many members of our family who had Hansen's disease
including my grandfather, his brother and their father.
My grandfather, David Keli`ikaina Mahelona, was a successful native
Hawaiian businessman in Nanakuli, Hawai`i where he built the Homestead
Theater and Nanakuli Store in the 1930s. David was also the postmaster
in Nanakuli i as well as an `ukulele builder. After being diagnosed
with Hansen's disease in 1947, he was deported to Kalaupapa. Following
the development of Sulfone drugs for treatment of the disease in1949,
patients were allowed to leave Kalaupapa to be closer to friends and
family. My grandfather chose to move to the Hale Mohalu hospital in
Pearl City. After my grandfather contracted the disease, his wife
Rebecca, was left to raise 4 kids and run the family businesses on her
own.
I remember as a child, that when visiting him at Hale Mohalu, I
could only see him through a fence as the rules did not allow for
physical contact. I didn't understand, I thought I was supposed to be
able to sit on my grandfather's lap, have him tell me stories and feed
me candy. That would not be the case and my relationship with my
grandfather left much to be desired.
His brother, Jonah Kinilaulehua Napela Mahelona, was sent to
Kalaupapa in 1933 and stayed until the early 1950s. Jonah was the
sheriff at Kalaupapa as well as a LDS church leader. Jonah was taken
away from his wife and 5 kids and had worked for the Kahului railroad
before he was deported.
My great grandfather, Stephen Mahelona Napela was at Kalaupapa from
1905 to 1912. Not only was Stephen unwillingly physically separated
from his wife and 4 kids in Wailuku, Stephen's wife eventually divorced
him and remarried because of the disease. Hansen's disease was grounds
for divorce back then.
Stephen, who was listed as ``Inmate'' 487 in state archive
documents, is shown below with a group of his fellow patients and
Brother Dutton in 1905.
Unlike my grandfather and his brother, who are buried in Pearl
City, my great grandfather is buried somewhere on the Kalaupapa
peninsula. My father and I have been to Kalaupapa 4 times looking for
Stephen's grave, but so far have come up empty-handed.
To date, we have identified 38 people, who we think are family
members, who were banished to Kalaupapa through no choice of their own.
We found this information through extensive research at the Hawai`i
state archives in the Kalaupapa/Kalawao Record of Inmates and Persons
Apprehended & Examined, as well as Patient Records, census documents
and death certificates. We know of fourteen of them who buried there.
We have yet to find any of their graves either.
The National Park Service has been able to identify 1,300 people
through the names listed on headstones. Many of the existing headstones
like this one, are in poor condition and will soon be lost forever to
time.
The other 6,700 people buried on the Kalaupapa peninsula, were not
fortunate enough to have a headstone and if they did at one point in
time, it is gone now. The only way anyone would know they were even
buried there, would be to search for clues like we did.
Most gravesites look like this barren field overgrown with trees.
This field is actually the Kahaloko Cemetery which was used to bury
hundreds, if not thousands, of Hansen's patients between 1887 and 1920.
As my grandfather Stephen died there in 1912, he may very well be
buried here, although we will probably never find out where. We left
flowers for Stephen's grave by one of these trees as we had no other
place to leave them.
Historical records suggest that this field next to Father Damien's
church in Kalawao is the final resting place for thousands of former
patients.
The naming process and the giving of a Hawaiian name is an
important and sacred component of traditional Hawaiian culture. It is
said names carry significant mana (spiritual power) and they are
actually a part of the person, just like an arm or a leg. In ancient
Hawai`i, a person's name was one of his most precious possessions
unique to the individual and most times, related to an event, an
ancestor, or a personality trait. In every case, the kupuna (elders)
were always consulted. It was the responsibility of the bearer of the
name to carry its weight. Therefore, it is important to remember these
people by their names at their final resting place.
The patient's desire for the Monument and the importance of
remembering each former patient by name can be summarized by the two
quotes below:
You have to hear the voices to feel the people. You have to
know their names. If you don't say the names, it's like
something has been lost.
Bernard K. Punihai`a, 76 (sent to Kalaupapa in 1942).
I want to see a monument honoring the people of Kalaupapa
before I die. I want to see all their names. These people are
my friends--even though many of them died before I came here
and I didn't know them personally, in spirit we are all
together. I know their hearts and souls.
Olivia Breitha, 90 (sadly Olivia passed away in September
2007).
My father and I are members of the Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa.
One of the goals of the `Ohana has been to construct a Memorial
with the names of the 8,000 people sent to the Peninsula. These
unfortunate souls weren't just patients or inmates, they like my
family, were human beings, with families that loved them, friends that
socialized with them, jobs they went to daily and contributors to
society. A Memorial to recognize all who were sent to Kalaupapa would
be a great tribute to them.
It is Important to remember that we as a society learn from our
past mistakes in the way we treat our fellow human beings. We don't
always need to treat those that need caring and compassion as outcasts
because of our own fear and misunderstanding.
My father and I urge members of the Subcommittee on National Parks
Historic Preservation and Recreation, to support Kalaupapa Memorial.
With completion of this project, we hope to fill in the many gaps in
our Mahelona Relatives list (enclosed).
The Memorial would be the second best place for us to leave flowers
for Stephen and the rest of our family buried on the Kalaupapa
Peninsula. Unfortunately the best place will never be found.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
______
Statement of Cynthia K.L. Rezentes, Wai` anae, HI, on S. 2502
You have received the statistics of how many patients over one
hundred years were sent to Kalaupapa with Hansen's disease.
I had the privilege of attending a meeting of the Ka `Ohana O
Kalaupapa in October, 2007. It was the first time I visited the County
of Kalawao, the isolated and wild peninsula which was designated to
separate those with Hansen's disease from their friends and families.
I heard the stories of hardships experienced from the remaining
patients and their families.
I heard the story of a daughter who was separated at birth from her
mother and father and sent away to live with others because it was not
allowed to have children who did not have the disease to remain on the
peninsula. Today, over forty years later, mother and daughter are
reunited but are still going through the difficult process of coming to
terms with the separation.
Imagine that scene repeated hundreds of times over the hundred-plus
years of the policy of separating patients from their families. Imagine
a child with the disease being torn from their parents and sent alone
to Kalaupapa and having to survive, much less thrive in those harsh
conditions.
The story has been told many times over of the good works of Father
Damien and Mother Marianne Cope. And, they have been recognized for
their outstanding works in helping the people sent to Kalaupapa.
It is time to remember those who were sent and sometimes forgotten.
Over eight thousand people. Names, perhaps, forgotten today but spirits
remembered. Let's remember their names.
Please pass this bill to allow Ka Ohana O Kalaupapa to memorialize
and remember all who passed through that difficult journey.
______
Statement of William A. Ho`ohuli, Waipio, HI, on S. 2502
My name is William Aweao Ho`ohuli, from Waipio, HI. and ``a kanaka
maoli'' native Hawaiian who speaks on behalf of my ohana (family).
Please support and pass the Kalaupapa Memorial Act (S. 2502). The
names of the lepers who are no longer with us should be honored with a
monument, they are apart of Hawaiis history.
Mahalo.
______
Statement of Denise Ululani Pa`ao`ao Kalahiki
I am a Native Hawaiian born in the Territory of Hawaii. Denise
Ululani Pa`ao`ao Kalahiki, As I walked along the tombstones of
Kalaupapa; I came across `Ohana (family) and many, many familiar names
of friends and families I know today.
It saddens me to know that we have to come this far and through so
many obstacles, just to be recognized as people whom I feel are Heroes
of yesterday & Today. It is plain and clear as day to see they were
truly Heroes and should be recognized for their courage to jump off
that ship, swim through treacherous conditions, to be apart from family
and friends never to see or to hold them ever again. That is death in
itself. What a heart-wrenching sacrifice to save the rest of us, the
Hawaiian Race.
Hansen's disease came to Hawaii via whaling ships from abroad Our
ancestors should receive an official apology the same as for
Imprisoning our Beloved Queen and the illegal annexation of our
Hawaiian Kingdom.
I'm not sure if the Foreigners whom infected our people were ever
exiled I did not see any unfamiliar name there so could it be they
exempted themselves from such cruelty and continued raping our people
and manifesting this epidemic? We will never know.
I felt the pain of our people. If you look rnakai (Oceanside) off
Kalawao Valley you would feel it too.
Kalaupapa is a Beautiful and rich community though they know they
were there only to die. They are full of Aloha. Being there among the
patients and the people you begin to feel their Humbleness. You would
not believe the sense of humor they have considering all the suffering
they've gone through.
Please take the time to consider our plea and commemorate them, our
Leprosy harm Please embrace them just as we have...
Mahalo nui loa, (Thank you very much).
______
Statement of Olinda L.H. Fisher, on S. 2502
It is an honor for me today to submit my testimony on the Kalaupapa
Memorial Act (S. 2502).
The memorial monuments that is requested in this bill is but a
small token to ask for, I do not expect you to understand the
significant of this cause or who it's representing but to the families
whose love ones were banish to live their lives on a isolated island
away from society this will be a closing for them to read the names of
their ancestors and love ones.
Father Damien and Sister Marianne Cope whose monuments are
recognized in Hawaii and are placed in Ka]awao County and Kalaupapa are
remembered for their good deeds and aid that they gave and provided to
the lepers of that settlement; I ask only for the same memorial for the
thousands of native Hawaiians and non Hawaiians; young and old who were
sent there never to see their love ones again.
There are at least 22 Hansen diseases patience's in existence, some
of them who remain in the settlement to live out their lives, some who
live on the island of Oahu due to medical purposes, but always return
home to hala (die) in Kalaupapa.
This is the purpose why I implore you to pass this bill so that
those who are still with us will know that their friends and love ones
will always be remembered not only by history and the mo`olelo (story)
that have been passed down through generations.
______
Statement of Josiah L. Ho`ohuli, Wai`anae, HI, on S. 2502
My name is Josiah Lanakila Ho`ohuli Sr., 70 years of age, from
Nanakuli, HI. and a native Hawaiian (100%).
My testimony is to the point, yesterday I read in the Honolulu
Advertiser ``Feds back monument for Hansen's disease exiles'' by Dennis
Camire, Advertiser Washington Bureau.
Lynn Scarlett, deputy secretary of the Interior Department stated
the agency certainly supports the purpose of the bill and acknowledges
the importance of the memorial and believes the interior secretary
should have final approval on the monument site. She also mentions that
they prefer the memorial be in Kalaupapa settlement, instead of Kalawao
because of it's remote location in the park where the first exiles were
sent, and in her last statement she states the park service wants the
Ka `Ohana O Kalaupapa, a group of Hansen's disease patients relatives
and friends, to be responsible for the memorial's cost.
I want to first bring to your attention that we are the ``Kanaka
maoli'' native Hawaiians, ``Na Po`e O Hawai`i'' (the people of
Hawai`i), these lepers who were exiled in Kalawao, Ola (lived) and hala
(died) there. Their `uhane (spirits) still walk the `aina (land). This
is their resting grounds. It is not for the Interior Department nor the
interior secretary to have the last word nor the final approval. You
are malihini (stranger, foreigner) here to our Jihikai (shore) and
(mokupuni) islands, the `aina (land) which has been taken cared for
thousands of years by our kupuna (ancestors).
Kalawao is not a remote location as Ms. Scarlett describes it. It
is a safe haven where over 5,000 lepers found sanctuary. Here is where
it all started for the lepers. Here is where Father Damien has his
church and headstone to be remembered by.
This is where the first memorial monument should be placed with
names of the lepers who were there first.
Kalaupapa Settlement where about 3,000 plus settled on the
peninsula of Moloka`i due to the wet and cold climate of. Kalawao made
their homes. Here is where the last of the leper patients continues to
live, this is where the second memorial monument should be placed.
As for Ms. Scarlett's last statement regarding the responsibility
for the memorial's cost; in my opinion, the United States Interior
Department who claims jurisdiction over the park service should bear
the entire cost for the memorial monuments. It is but a small token to
the lepers of kahiko (old) and to the 22 Hansen disease patients who
arc left to see this memorial a reality.
Jurisdiction maybe under the park services, but the `aina (land)
will always belong to the Hawaiians; to the lepers and Na Po`e O
Hawai`i (people of Hawai`i).
The 22 Hansen disease patients; are all well into their old age.
These are the patients who are left to tell the mo`olelo (history) and
ka`ao (stories) of the ka wa i hala (past), they are the ones who carry
this heavy burden on their shoulders of making sure the `inoa (names)
of those who were banished to live in exile are remembered. Here is
where it started and here is where it will end.
I am confident that the kukakuka (discussion, consult) between the
two parties Ka Ohana O Kalaupapa and the National Park Services will
result in a win-win situation regarding the design, size and
inscriptions, and that all aspects of the Hawaiian Culture and
traditions will be considered.
Aloha A Hui Hou, Malama. Pono.