[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 185 (Tuesday, November 19, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6672-S6673]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
By Mr. DURBIN (for himself and Ms. Duckworth):
S. 2896. A bill to establish the Pullman National Historical Park in
the State of Illinois as a unit of the National Park System, and for
other purposes; to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of
the bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be
printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 2896
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 ``Pullman National Historical
Park Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) in 1970, the Secretary of the Interior designated the
Pullman Historic District as a National Historic Landmark
District because of--
(A) the significance of the District to the labor history,
social history, architecture, and urban planning of the
United States; and
(B) the pivotal role of events in the District in creating
the first national Labor Day holiday in the world;
(2) between 1880 and 1884, George M. Pullman, owner of the
Pullman Palace Car Company, built the Pullman community,
which was envisioned by Pullman as an industrial town that
would provide employees with--
(A) a model community; and
(B) suitable living conditions;
(3) the town developed by George M. Pullman, which
consisted of over 1,000 buildings and homes, was awarded
``The World's Most Perfect Town'' at the International
Hygienic and Pharmaceutical Exposition in 1896;
(4) the Pullman factory site is a true symbol of the
historic struggle in the United States to achieve fair labor
practices for the working class, with the original factory
serving as the catalyst for the first industry-wide strike in
the United States;
(5) in the midst of economic depression in 1894, to protest
unsafe conditions and reductions in pay, Pullman factory
workers initiated a strike that--
(A) when taken up as a cause by the American Railway Union,
crippled the entire rail industry;
(B) continued even in the face of a Federal injunction and
a showdown between laborers and Federal troops that turned
violent and deadly; and
(C) set a national example for the ability of working
people in the United States to change the existing system in
favor of more just practices for protecting workers rights
and safety;
(6) following the deaths of a number of workers at the
hands of the United States military and United States
Marshals during the 1894 strike, Congress unanimously voted
to approve rush legislation that created a national Labor Day
holiday, which was signed into law by President Grover
Cleveland 6 days after the end of the strike;
(7) the Pullman Palace Car Company also played an important
role in African-American and early civil rights history
through the legacy of the Pullman porters, many of whom were
ex-slaves and employed in a heavily discriminatory
environment immediately following the Civil War;
(8) the Pullman porters, who served diligently between the
1870s and the 1960s, have been commended for--
(A) their level of service and attention to detail; and
(B) their contributions to the development of the African-
American middle class;
(9) the information, ideas, and commerce the Pullman
porters carried across the country while traveling on trains
helped to bring education and wealth to African-American
communities throughout the United States;
(10) the positive role of the Pullman porters in the
historical image of the first-class service that was made
available on Pullman cars is unmistakable;
(11) the Pullman community was the seminal home to the
Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, which--
(A) was founded by civil rights pioneer A. Philip Randolph
in 1925;
(B) was the first African-American labor union with a
collective bargaining agreement;
(C) fought--
(i) against discrimination; and
(ii) in support of just labor practices; and
(D) helped lay the groundwork for what became the great
Civil Rights Movement of the 20th Century;
(12) the Pullman community is--
(A) a paramount illustration of the work of architect Solon
Spencer Beman;
(B) a well-preserved example of 19th Century community
planning, architecture, and landscape design; and
(C) comprised of a number of historic structures, including
the Administration Clock Tower Building, Hotel Florence,
Greenstone Church, Market Square, and hundreds of units of
rowhouses built for Pullman workers;
(13) the preservation of the Pullman site has been
threatened by--
(A) plans for demolition in 1960; and
(B) a fire in 1998, which damaged the iconic clock tower
and the rear erecting shops;
(14) the diligent efforts of community organizations,
foundations, nonprofit organizations, residents, the State,
and units of local government in the restoration and
preservation of the District after the 1998 fire were vital
to the protection of the Pullman site;
(15) due to the historic and architectural significance of
the District, the District is designated as--
(A) a registered National Historic Landmark District;
(B) an Illinois State Landmark; and
(C) a City of Chicago Landmark District; and
(16) the preservation, enhancement, economic, and tourism
potential and management of the important historic and
architectural resources of the Park requires cooperation and
partnerships from among local property owners, the Federal
Government, the State, units of local government, the private
and nonprofit sectors, and the more than 100 civic
organizations that have expressed support for community
preservation through the establishment of the Pullman
National Historical Park.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Park.--The term ``Park'' means the Pullman National
Historical Park established by section 4(a).
(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of the Interior.
(3) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of Illinois.
[[Page S6673]]
SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF PULLMAN NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK.
(a) Establishment and Purpose.--There is established in the
State a unit of the National Park System, to be known as the
``Pullman National Historical Park''--
(1) to preserve and interpret for the benefit of future
generations--
(A) the significant labor, industrial, civil rights, and
social history of the Park;
(B) the significant architectural structures in the Park;
and
(C) the role of the Pullman community in the creation of
the first national Labor Day holiday in the world;
(2) to coordinate preservation, protection, and
interpretation efforts of the Park by the Federal Government,
the State, units of local government, and private and
nonprofit organizations; and
(3) to coordinate appropriate management options necessary
to ensure the protection, preservation, and interpretation of
the many significant aspects of the Park.
(b) Park Boundary.--The boundary of the Park--
(1) shall be established by the Secretary; but
(2) shall not exceed the boundary of the approximately 300-
acre Pullman Historic District in Chicago, which is between--
(A) 103rd Street on the north;
(B) 115th Street on the south;
(C) Cottage Grove Avenue on the west; and
(D) the Norfolk & Western Rail Line on the east.
(c) Inclusion of Historic Sites.--On conveyance by the
State to the Secretary, the Park shall include--
(1) the Pullman Factory Complex, including the Clock Tower
Building and rear erecting shops; and
(2) the approximately 13 acres of land on which the
structures described in paragraph (1) are located.
SEC. 5. ADMINISTRATION.
(a) In General.--The Secretary shall administer land within
the boundary of the Park in accordance with--
(1) this Act; and
(2) the laws generally applicable to units of the National
Park System, including--
(A) section 100101(a), chapter 1003, and sections
100751(a), 100752, 100753, and 102101 of title 54, United
States Code; and
(B) chapter 3201 of title 54, United States Code.
(b) Cooperative Agreements.--The Secretary may enter into
cooperative agreements with the State or other public and
nonpublic entities, under which the Secretary may identify,
interpret, and provide assistance for the preservation of
non-Federal land within the boundaries of the Park and at
sites in close proximity to the Park but located outside the
boundaries of the Park, including providing for placement of
directional and interpretive signage, exhibits, and
technology-based interpretive devices.
(c) Acquisition of Land.--The Secretary may acquire for
inclusion in the Park any land (including interests in land),
buildings, or structures owned by the State or any other
political, private, or nonprofit entity by donation,
transfer, exchange, or purchase from a willing seller.
(d) Technical and Preservation Assistance.--The Secretary
may provide public interpretation and technical assistance
for the preservation of historic structures of, the
maintenance of the cultural landscape of, and local
preservation planning for, related historic and cultural
resources within the boundaries of the Park.
(e) Management Plan.--Not later than 3 fiscal years after
the date on which funds are first made available to carry out
this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the State,
shall complete a general management plan for the Park in
accordance with--
(1) section 100502 of title 54, United States Code; and
(2) any other applicable laws.
(f) Effect.--Nothing in this Act modifies any authority of
the Federal Government to carry out Federal laws on Federal
land located in the Park.
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are
necessary to carry out this Act.
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