[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 130 (Tuesday, October 2, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H6097-H6098]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 BOOKER T. WASHINGTON NATIONAL MONUMENT BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT ACT OF 2001

  Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 1456) to expand the boundary of the Booker T. Washington 
National Monument, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 1456

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Booker T. Washington 
     National Monument Boundary Adjustment Act of 2001''.

     SEC. 2. BOUNDARY OF BOOKER T. WASHINGTON NATIONAL MONUMENT 
                   EXPANDED.

       The Act entitled ``An Act to provide for the establishment 
     of the Booker T. Washington National Monument'', approved 
     April 2, 1956 (16 U.S.C. 450ll et seq.), is amended by adding 
     at the end the following new section:

     ``SEC. 5. ADDITIONAL LANDS.

       ``(a) Lands Added to Monument.--The boundary of the Booker 
     T. Washington National Monument is modified to include the 
     approximately 15 acres, as generally depicted on the map 
     entitled ``Boundary Map, Booker T. Washington National 
     Monument, Franklin County, Virginia'', numbered BOWA 404/
     80,024, and dated February 2001. The map shall be on file and 
     available for inspection in the appropriate offices of the 
     National Park Service, Department of the Interior.
       ``(b) Acquisition of Additional Lands.--The Secretary of 
     the Interior is authorized to acquire from willing owners the 
     land or interests in land described in subsection (a) by 
     donation, purchase with donated or appropriated funds, or 
     exchange.
       ``(c) Administration of Additional Lands.--Lands added to 
     the Booker T. Washington National Monument by subsection (a) 
     shall be administered by the Secretary of the Interior as 
     part of the monument in accordance with applicable laws and 
     regulations.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Radanovich) and the

[[Page H6098]]

 gentlewoman from the Virgin Islands (Mrs. Christensen) each will 
control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California (Mr. Radanovich).
  Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  H.R. 1456, introduced by the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goode), 
would expand the boundary of the Booker T. Washington National Monument 
in Franklin County, Virginia, through the purchase from willing sellers 
of 15 acres adjacent to the existing monument.
  Mr. Speaker, Booker T. Washington, perhaps the most notable African 
American educator of his day and founder of the Tuskegee Institute in 
Alabama, was born into slavery in 1856 on a 200-acre tobacco farm in 
southwestern Virginia. Today, the Booker T. Washington National 
Monument preserves and protects the birthplace and childhood home of 
Mr. Washington and interprets his life experiences and his significance 
in American history.
  The monument is one-half mile from the rapidly growing commercial 
crossroads of Westlake Corner and commercial and residential 
development is visible from the park. Much of the farmland around the 
park is for sale, including the 15-acre proposed piece of property. If 
authorized and acquired, the 15-acre parcel of land would be added to 
the park's agricultural permit program in order to preserve the 
agricultural setting of the park.
  The Park Service estimates the purchase and acquisition cost of the 
15-acre parcel will be approximately $400,000. The Park Service's 
Northeast Region has determined this project as its top land 
acquisition funding priority for fiscal year 2003.
  Mr. Speaker, this legislation is not controversial. It is supported 
by the majority and minority of the Committee on Resources, the 
administration and the surrounding communities in southwestern 
Virginia.
  I urge an ``aye'' vote on this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume. I would first like to associate myself with the remarks of the 
gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Udall), his closing remarks on H.R. 
1384, establishing the Navajo Long Walk National Historic Trail.
  On this bill, Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1456, which would modify the boundary 
of the Booker T. Washington National Monument in southwestern Virginia, 
we are pleased to also be in a position to manage this bill. H.R. 1456 
would include approximately 15 acres of adjacent agricultural land to 
the monument.

                              {time}  1700

  The bill authorizes the Secretary to acquire the property from 
willing sellers, using donated or appropriated funds. It is our 
understanding that while this property has not been available 
previously, it is currently on the market. Seven of the 15 acres to be 
added were part of the original plantation on which Booker T. 
Washington was born, but addition of the entire parcel will protect the 
area from encroaching commercial development. This boundary adjustment 
was recommended by the most recent general management plan for the 
monument.
  Mr. Speaker, Booker T. Washington is a significant figure in American 
history. As you have heard, born into slavery in 1856, he went on to 
found the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama in 1881 and is recognized as 
the leading African American educator of his time. He has left a legacy 
that continues to enrich the African American community and this 
Nation.
  I am proud as a member of the Congressional Black Caucus and ranking 
member of the Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation, and Public 
Lands of the Committee on Resources to support the expansion of this 
national monument as a means to further protect Booker T. Washington's 
valuable legacy.
  I want to thank and commend my colleague, the gentleman from Virginia 
(Mr. Goode), for his work on this bill, and urge my colleagues to 
support it.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to 
the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goode), the sponsor of the bill.
  Mr. GOODE. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from California 
(Chairman Radanovich) and the ranking member, the gentlewoman from the 
Virgin Islands (Mrs. Christensen), for their support, and the support 
of the Committee on Resources for this legislation.
  H.R. 1456 would expand the boundary of the Booker T. Washington 
National Monument located in Franklin County, Virginia. I am a native 
and lifelong resident of Franklin County, so I have some personal 
knowledge and familiarity with the monument and the surrounding area. I 
can attest to the rapid growth that the area has experienced over the 
last few years. The proximity of the monument to Smith Mountain Lake 
poses a real threat to the rural character and pastoral nature of the 
Booker T. Washington National Monument.
  A 15-acre parcel of land adjacent to the monument has been put up for 
sale by the owner. The legislation would facilitate the purchase of 
this property and expand the monument boundary. It is important to note 
that 7 of the 15 acres were part of the original Burrough farm. With 
the encroaching development, I hope that we can act now to maintain the 
rural character of the Booker T. Washington National Monument before 
the opportunity is lost.
  If one drives down Route 122 in Franklin County where this monument 
is located, you can see the rapid growth and expansion on all sides of 
it. This 15 acres is in a high area which would preserve a good vista 
for the monument as it exists today. If we do not act right away, I am 
afraid the opportunity will be lost.
  The 224-acre park is comprised of rolling hills, woodlands, fields, 
the Burrough homeplace, and two slave cabin sites. The park portrays 
Washington's rural life on a small tobacco farm and what it was like, 
and the rural character is critical to the park's interpretation of the 
life on such farms during the period just prior to the Civil War.
  I hope that we can maintain the rural character of the Booker T. 
Washington National Monument. I believe that this is a worthwhile 
endeavor for the National Park Service, it is worthwhile for the memory 
of Booker T. Washington, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and 
I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. McHugh). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from California (Mr. Radanovich) that the 
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1456.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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