[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 37 (Monday, March 5, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H2133-H2134]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
FIRST AND SECOND BATTLES OF NEWTONIA, MISSOURI, STUDY ACT
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 376) 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 First and Second
Battles of Newtonia, Missouri, during the Civil War as part of Wilson's
Creek National Battlefield or designating the battlefields and related
sites as a separate unit of the National Park System, and for other
purposes.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 376
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM SPECIAL RESOURCE STUDY,
NEWTONIA CIVIL WAR BATTLEFIELDS, MISSOURI.
(a) Special Resource Study.--The Secretary of the Interior
shall conduct a special resource study relating to the First
Battle of Newtonia in Newton County, Missouri, which occurred
on September 30, 1862, and the Second Battle of Newtonia,
which occurred on October 28, 1864, during the Missouri
Expedition of Confederate General Sterling Price in September
and October 1864.
(b) Contents.--In conducting the study under subsection
(a), the Secretary shall--
(1) evaluate the national significance of the Newtonia
battlefields and their related sites;
(2) consider the findings and recommendations contained in
the document entitled
[[Page H2134]]
``Vision Plan for Newtonia Battlefield Preservation'' and
dated June 2004, which was prepared by the Newtonia
Battlefields Protection Association;
(3) evaluate the suitability and feasibility of adding the
battlefields and related sites as part of Wilson's Creek
National Battlefield or designating the battlefields and
related sites as a unit of the National Park System;
(4) analyze the potential impact that the inclusion of the
battlefields and related sites as part of Wilson's Creek
National Battlefield or their designation as a unit of the
National Park System is likely to have on land within or
bordering the battlefields and related sites that is
privately owned at the time of the study is conducted;
(5) consider alternatives for preservation, protection, and
interpretation of the battlefields and related sites by the
National Park Service, other Federal, State, or local
governmental entities, or private and nonprofit
organizations; and
(6) identify cost estimates for any necessary acquisition,
development, interpretation, operation, and maintenance
associated with the alternatives referred to in paragraph
(5).
(c) Criteria.--The criteria for the study of areas for
potential inclusion in the National Park System contained in
section 8 of Public Law 91-383 (16 U.S.C. 1a-5) shall apply
to the study under subsection (a).
(d) Transmission to Congress.--Not later than three years
after the date on which funds are first made available for
the study under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to
the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources of the Senate a report containing--
(1) the results of the study; and
(2) any conclusions and recommendations of the Secretary.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Arizona (Mr. Grijalva) and the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Bishop) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Arizona.
General Leave
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Arizona.
There was no objection.
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise in strong support of H.R. 376, introduced by the gentleman
from Missouri (Mr. Blunt). This legislation would direct the National
Park Service to conduct a study to determine how best to protect the
sites related to the First and Second Battles of Newtonia, Missouri.
Two Civil War battles were waged near Newtonia which lies in Newton
County, Missouri. The first, on September 30, 1862, involved 4,000
Confederate troops and 6,500 Union soldiers, and it is believed to be
the only Civil War battle in which full American Indian units fought on
both sides of the conflict.
The Second Battle of Newtonia occurred on October 28, 1864, and
involved 1,500 Union cavalry engaging a Confederate Army returning from
the unsuccessful Missouri and Kansas Campaign of Confederate General
Sterling Price.
Mr. Speaker, I want to commend and congratulate my colleague, Mr.
Blunt, for this bill. A hearing was held on a nearly identical measure
last Congress, and that bill eventually passed the House. We strongly
support H.R. 376 and urge its adoption by the House today.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 376 introduced by the
distinguished minority whip, Representative Roy Blunt of Missouri. It
would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special
resource study to determine the suitability of designating the First
and Second Battles of Newtonia, Missouri, as a part of Wilson's Creek
National Battlefield or as a separate unit of the National Park System.
I support this bill. I commend the leadership and persistence of Mr.
Blunt on this issue.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to, at this time, yield to the sponsor of the
bill, the minority whip, such time as he may consume, Mr. Blunt of
Missouri.
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding, and thank
the subcommittee chairman and the committee for bringing this bill to
the floor.
The language we are discussing today is designed to authorize a study
by the National Park Service to determine the feasibility of creating a
new Civil War battlefield at Newtonia, Missouri, or bringing those
battlefield lands under the management of the Wilson's Creek National
Battlefield near Springfield and also near the Newtonia battlefield
site.
This measure is a necessary first step to determine if this
battlefield, as I believe it will, fits the criteria necessary for
being preserved as part of the National Park System. I believe the
study will find that the two Civil War battles at Newtonia, like the
Manassas Battlefield south of where we are now, hold a unique place in
American history and are worthy of protection in the National Park
Service system.
Two important battles were fought at Newtonia during the Civil War,
one in 1862, where large numbers of American Indian troops on the
Confederate side and the Union side, actually fought each other in
battle. It was the largest of the rare engagements where native
Americans fought on both sides in the Civil War. My understanding is
that this is the place where those troops actually fought each other.
Two years later, in 1864, the last battle of the Civil War west of
the Mississippi was fought at Newtonia as Confederate forces withdrew
from Missouri after their defeat at Westport. Tennessee, Missouri and
Virginia had the most battles in the Civil War, and this was the final
battle in our State.
This legislation has really been strongly supported by the local
community, as has the idea of preserving this battlefield. The Newtonia
Battlefields Protection Association has spearheaded preservation
efforts at Newtonia. In 2002, the association acquired 11 acres of the
battlefield, along with the Ritchey Mansion, which is on the National
Register of Historic Places for around $300,000. A year later, I
delivered a ceremonial check for about half of that from the American
Battlefield Protection Program to reimburse the local group that had
put this association together.
The National Park Service rated the 1864 battlefield as a Priority I
for preservation and the 1862 site as a Priority II. These sites are
largely similar. They overlap in some places, but they are right next
to each other.
A review by the National Park Service found the 1964 battlefield
faced a greater threat from development. The not-for-profit Newtonia
Battlefields Protection Association was formed in 1994 to work on
funding to preserve the battlefields. In addition, the National Park
Service has provided archaeological and historical surveys and
assessments of the battlefield.
I think this study will answer the questions that need to be answered
before any further steps are taken. I am grateful to the committee for
bringing this legislation to the floor today. If this study is agreed
to by both bodies, it might even be funded in this year's appropriation
process.
Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Grijalva) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 376.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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