[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 3]
[House]
[Pages 3053-3055]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




    SHILOH NATIONAL MILITARY PARK BOUNDARY ADJUSTMENT AND PARKER'S 
                 CROSSROADS BATTLEFIELD DESIGNATION ACT

  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 88) to modify the boundary of the Shiloh National Military 
Park located in Tennessee and Mississippi, to establish Parker's 
Crossroads Battlefield as an affiliated area of the National Park 
System, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 88

       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 ``Shiloh National Military 
     Park Boundary Adjustment and Parker's Crossroads Battlefield 
     Designation Act''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act, the following definitions apply:
       (1) Affiliated area.--The term ``affiliated area'' means 
     the Parker's Crossroads Battlefield established as an 
     affiliated area of the National Park System under section 4.
       (2) Park.--The term ``Park'' means Shiloh National Military 
     Park, a unit of the National Park System.
       (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of the Interior.

     SEC. 3. AREAS TO BE ADDED TO SHILOH NATIONAL MILITARY PARK.

       (a) Additional Areas.--The boundary of Shiloh National 
     Military Park is modified to include the areas that are 
     generally depicted on the map entitled ``Shiloh National 
     Military Park, Proposed Boundary Adjustment'', numbered 304/
     80,011, and dated July 2014, as follows:
       (1) Fallen Timbers Battlefield.
       (2) Russell House Battlefield.
       (3) Davis Bridge Battlefield.
       (b) Acquisition Authority.--The Secretary may acquire lands 
     described in subsection (a) by donation, purchase from 
     willing sellers with donated or appropriated funds, or 
     exchange.
       (c) Administration.--Any lands acquired under this section 
     shall be administered as part of the Park.

     SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF AFFILIATED AREA.

       (a) In General.--Parker's Crossroads Battlefield in the 
     State of Tennessee is hereby established as an affiliated 
     area of the National Park System.
       (b) Description.--The affiliated area shall consist of the 
     area generally depicted within the ``Proposed Boundary'' on 
     the map entitled ``Parker's Crossroads Battlefield, Proposed 
     Boundary'', numbered 903/80,073, and dated July 2014.
       (c) Administration.--The affiliated area shall be managed 
     in accordance with this Act and all laws generally applicable 
     to units of the National Park System.
       (d) Management Entity.--The City of Parkers Crossroads and 
     the Tennessee Historical Commission shall jointly be the 
     management entity for the affiliated area.
       (e) Cooperative Agreements.--The Secretary may provide 
     technical assistance and enter into cooperative agreements 
     with the management entity for the purpose of providing 
     financial assistance with marketing, marking, interpretation, 
     and preservation of the affiliated area.
       (f) Limited Role of the Secretary.--Nothing in this Act 
     authorizes the Secretary to acquire property at the 
     affiliated area or to assume overall financial responsibility 
     for the operation, maintenance, or management of the 
     affiliated area.
       (g) General Management Plan.--

[[Page 3054]]

       (1) In general.--The Secretary, in consultation with the 
     management entity, shall develop a general management plan 
     for the affiliated area. The plan shall be prepared in 
     accordance with section 100502 of title 54, United States 
     Code.
       (2) Transmittal.--Not later than 3 years after the date 
     that funds are made available for this Act, the Secretary 
     shall provide a copy of the completed general management to 
     the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural 
     Resources of the Senate.

     SEC. 5. PRIVATE PROPERTY PROTECTION.

       (a) No Use of Condemnation.--The Secretary of the Interior 
     may not acquire by condemnation any land or interests in land 
     under this Act or for the purposes of this Act.
       (b) Written Consent of Owner.--No non-Federal property may 
     be included in the Shiloh National Military Park without the 
     written consent of the owner.
       (c) No Buffer Zone Created.--Nothing in this Act, the 
     establishment of the Shiloh National Military Park, or the 
     management plan for the Shiloh National Military Park shall 
     be construed to create buffer zones outside of the Park. That 
     activities or uses can be seen, heard, or detected from areas 
     within the Shiloh National Military shall not preclude, 
     limit, control, regulate, or determine the conduct or 
     management of activities or uses outside of the Park.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. McClintock) and the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. 
Torres) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.


                             General Leave

  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 88, introduced by Representative Marsha Blackburn 
of Tennessee, expands the boundaries of the Shiloh National Military 
Park to include 2,126 acres of battlefields in Corinth and designates 
the Parker's Crossroads Battlefield as an affiliated area of the 
National Park System.
  The Battle of Shiloh was one of the bloodiest battles in the history 
of this Nation and a turning point of which it was once said that, 
after Shiloh, the South never smiled again. The Battle of Parker's 
Crossroads was fought later that year and, though not as decisive a 
battle as Shiloh, was worthy of preservation in remembrance of the 
fallen.
  I would like to add something on a personal note. I would like to 
speak of Private James H. Ewing, of the Third Iowa Volunteer Infantry 
Regiment, the fifth of 10 children of James and Agnes Ewing of Marshall 
County, Iowa. The family had begun in Ohio and journeyed to the 
frontier of Iowa, following Horace Greely's advice to go west and grow 
with the Nation. In 1861, that Nation was torn apart by secession. 
James Ewing met President Lincoln's call to defend her and was 24 years 
old when he was killed on April 6, 1862, at Pittsburg Landing on the 
first day of the Battle of Shiloh.
  The words of his younger brother, John, written 64 years later, in 
1926, expressed both the enduring anguish of that loss with equal parts 
of enduring pride, saying: ``Brother James gave up his life at the 
Battle of Shiloh . . . fighting to save our free government.'' That 
free government survived because of the sacrifices and suffering of 
these brave young men, and I am honored to speak the name of one of 
them in this Chamber today.
  Private James H. Ewing is one of 3,584 courageous Americans whose 
graves our Nation has cared for and honored through the generations 
that have followed at Shiloh. This bill assures that several more of 
the battlefields they struggled on will be preserved in a cohesive 
unit. Our family remains proud of him to this day and grateful to 
Congresswoman Blackburn for bringing forward this bill to assure that 
the sacrifices, gallantry, and idealism of those young men who 
struggled at Bloody Shiloh shall never be forgotten by their larger 
family, the American people.
  This bill would preserve approximately 2,126 acres of that 
battlefield associated with the Siege of Corinth, including the Fallen 
Timbers, Russell House, and Davis Bridge Battlefields. The National 
Park Service determined that each of these sites provides extensive 
opportunities for visitor use and interpretation or the potential for 
archeological research. An identical version of this legislation passed 
the House of Representatives last Congress.
  I commend Representative Blackburn for her work to preserve these 
historically significant sites, and I urge my colleagues to vote in 
favor of this measure.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. TORRES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  By expanding the boundaries of the Shiloh National Military Park in 
the State of Tennessee, H.R. 88 will assist the National Park Service 
in its efforts to preserve lands and share the history of the Civil War 
for generations to come.
  The bill adjusts the boundary of the park to include several sites 
identified in the 2004 boundary expansion study conducted by the 
National Park Service. This bill also establishes the Parker's 
Crossroads Battlefield as an associated area of the National Park 
System.
  Between the Union and Confederacy, Parker's Crossroads saw over 700 
Americans lose their lives in the war for our Nation's future. 
Preserving this site will provide even broader opportunities to 
commemorate and learn from the legacy of the Civil War.
  The emphasis that we all need to place on preserving our country's 
history cannot be overstated. The Civil War is a chapter in our 
national story that continues to shape the thoughts and actions of this 
country over 150 years after its conclusion.
  The struggles and personal conflicts faced by millions of soldiers 
and the impact on families throughout and after the war have provided 
us with many lessons, lessons that continue to remain relevant today. 
Only through learning from our past will we learn how to be a better 
and stronger nation in the future.
  Parks, such as Shiloh National Military Park, offer countless 
opportunities for us to explore the rich history and lessons of the 
past. These opportunities are most effective when visitors to sites can 
immerse themselves in the full setting of the area and gain a true 
understanding of the historical context, something that this expansion 
of the Shiloh National Military Park will achieve.
  I would like to thank Representative Blackburn for her hard work and 
commitment to protecting the historical resources in her State, and I 
urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to 
the gentlewoman from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn), the author of this 
measure.
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from California 
for yielding the time.
  I do encourage my colleagues to support this legislation.
  Recently, National Geographic ranked this as the third best Civil War 
site to visit--the third best--and there is a reason for that. It is 
because of the dedication of the National Park Service personnel that 
are there at the Shiloh battlefield and the local volunteers from 
Tennessee and Mississippi that work to preserve and to enhance.
  Mrs. Torres was so right when she talked about the relevancy of the 
site and the opportunity for introspection and remembrance and the 
importance of preservation and the lessons that can be learned as 
individuals go and visit this park. It is significant, and in our Civil 
War history it is significant that we preserve this and work with the 
National Park Service.
  The Battle of Shiloh was fought on April 6 and 7 in 1862. It was the 
bloodiest battle of the Civil War up to that point: 23,000 Americans 
died. General Grant's Union Army was victorious. The Confederate forces 
withdrew to Corinth, and the outcome of the battle eventually led to 
the fall of Vicksburg

[[Page 3055]]

in July of 1863. This permanently divided the Confederacy and crippled 
the Southern war effort.
  As we look at this legislation that goes around this battlefield, it 
does preserve the historical legacy of Tennessee, of Shiloh, and of our 
Nation. It gives the Park Service the authority that they would like to 
preserve more than 2,100 additional acres of the historic Shiloh 
National Military Park.
  As the gentleman from California said, Fallen Timbers, Davis Bridge, 
and Russell House are all included in this, as well as Parker's 
Crossroads Battlefield, which would be named an affiliated area.
  As we look at visitors to our Nation's park, the Shiloh National 
Military Park welcomes more than 500,000 visitors each and every year.
  I thank my colleagues for the time and the support.
  Mrs. TORRES. Mr. Speaker, I would like to again thank Representative 
Blackburn for her efforts, and I urge adoption of this bill.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I would join in asking for adoption of 
this measure.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. McClintock) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 88.
  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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