[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 13 (Wednesday, February 9, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E192]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      LEGISLATION TO CREATE A COMMISSION FOR THE SESQUICENTENNIAL 
                     COMMEMORATION OF THE CIVIL WAR

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. RICHARD H. BAKER

                              of louisiana

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 9, 2005

  Mr. BAKER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to re-introduce legislation that 
is not only important for Louisiana, but for the Nation as well. The 
ripple effects of the Civil War and Reconstruction remain as our 
country continues to wrestle with its legacy of race relations and 
Federal, State and civil rights. In order to properly commemorate this 
event, I believe it is imperative to create a Sesquicentennial, or 
150th, Commission for the Commemoration of the Civil War.
  I am grateful the House of Representatives agrees that the 150th 
anniversary of the Civil War should receive attention. In the 108th 
Congress the House of Representatives adopted by unanimous vote the 
exact legislation I offer today.
  In 1996, Congress designated the United States Civil War Center, 
USCWC, at Louisiana State University, LSU, and the Civil War Institute 
at Gettysburg College as future co-facilitators of the Sesquicentennial 
Commemoration of the Civil War to be held between 2011 and 2015. 
Legislation establishing the Sesquicentennial Commission was to be 
passed in the 107th Congress. Today I again offer this aforementioned 
legislation.
  The American Civil War, 1861-1865, was one of the most violent times 
in the history of the United States, touching not only every State and 
territory, but claiming more than 600,000 lives, bringing freedom to 
over 4 million slaves and destroying property valued at $5 billion. In 
1993, the USCWC was created to promote the study of the American Civil 
War from the perspectives of all professions, occupations, and academic 
disciplines in order to facilitate a deeper, more thorough 
understanding of one of the most important events in our nation's 
history. This mission is fulfilled through a variety of projects, 
including an official web site featuring over 9000 links to Civil War-
related sites, the Michael Shaara Award for Civil War Fiction, Civil 
War Book Review, the Michael Lehman Williamson Collection of Civil War 
Books for Young People, the David Madden Collection of Civil War 
Fiction, and the Sesquicentennial Commemoration of the Civil War.
  The commission will include members of the U.S. Senate and House of 
Representatives, directors of the Library of Congress and National 
Archives, and academics in history, anthropology, sociology, political 
science, art history and law. Mr. Speaker, I fully support the 
objectives and services the USCWC provides and hope they are fully 
utilized by its inclusion in the commission. I believe the USCWC will 
strengthen the commission, and aid to it's goal of providing the 
direction and resources needed for the proper Sesquicentennial 
Commemorations of the Civil War throughout this Nation.

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