IB 

House Calendar No. 147 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4400 

[Report No. 112–598] 

To designate the Salt Pond Visitor Center at Cape Cod National Seashore 

as the ‘‘Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr. Salt Pond Visitor Center’’, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 19, 2012 

Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts, Mr. NEAL, Mr. 

OLVER, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. TIERNEY, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. LYNCH, Ms. 

TSONGAS, Mr. KEATING, and Ms. PELOSI) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 

JULY 17, 2012 

Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be printed 


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A BILL 

To designate the Salt Pond Visitor Center at Cape Cod 

National Seashore as the ‘‘Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr. Salt 

Pond Visitor Center’’, and for other purposes. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. DESIGNATION. 

4 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) Thomas Phillip (Tip) O’Neill, Jr., was born 

6 on December 9, 1912, in the Irish middle-class area 

7 of North Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Thomas 

8 Phillip O’Neill, Sr., and Rose Ann (Tolan) O’Neill. 

9 (2) Nicknamed ‘‘Tip’’ during his childhood, 

10 O’Neill was educated in Roman Catholic schools, 

11 graduating from St. John’s High School in 1931, 

12 where he was captain of the basketball team. 

13 (3) Tip O’Neill then attended Boston College, 

14 where he ran for a Cambridge City Council seat dur15 ing his senior year—his first attempt at running for 

16 office and only electoral defeat. 

17 (4) Following his graduation from Boston Col18 lege in 1936, Tip O’Neill was elected to the Massa19 chusetts House of Representatives that same year as 

20 a New Deal Democrat whose political philosophy 

21 was shaped by his experience growing up in working22 class Boston and his strong Catholic faith, which led 

23 him to view government as a means for helping the 

24 disadvantaged in society. 


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1 (5) In 1949, Tip O’Neill became the first 

2 Democratic Speaker in the history of the Massachu3 setts State Legislature, serving as Speaker until 

4 1952, when he ran successfully for the United States 

5 House of Representatives to fill the seat vacated by 

6 Senator-elect John F. Kennedy. 

7 (6) In 1958, inspired by the establishment of 

8 the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, a seashore 

9 park in North Carolina, Representative Tip O’Neill, 

10 along with his close friend and colleague Representa11 tive Edward Boland, introduced legislation to protect 

12 lands on Cape Cod as a national seashore. 

13 (7) In describing this area on Cape Cod, Henry 

14 David Thoreau had written that ‘‘A man may stand 

15 there and put all America behind him’’, as the pris16 tine sandy beach, marshes, ponds, and uplands sup17 porting diverse species represent a unique, cherished 

18 jewel of nature. 

19 (8) The legislation established a 40-mile na20 tional park along Cape Cod’s outer beach, from 

21 Chatham through Orleans, Eastham, Wellfleet, 

22 Truro, and Provincetown that includes lighthouses, 

23 cultural landscapes, and wild cranberry bogs that 

24 offer a glimpse of Cape Cod’s past and continuing 

25 ways of life. 


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1 (9) After introduction of the legislation during 

2 the 85th Congress, Tip O’Neill continued to advo3 cate strongly for establishment of the Cape Cod Na4 tional Seashore, co-sponsoring bills in the 86th and 

5 87th Congresses, testifying at hearings and working 

6 to advance the legislation through Congress. 

7 (10) The legislation was intended to preserve 

8 one of the great natural marvels of the United 

9 States, with its unbroken beach and moors, marshes, 

10 forests, and freshwater ponds that are home to 

11 many species of birds, fish, animals, and plants. 

12 (11) On August 7, 1961, President Kennedy 

13 signed into law the legislation authorizing the Cape 

14 Cod National Seashore as Public Law 87–126. 

15 (12) In 1966, the Cape Cod National Seashore 

16 was formally established, and Representative O’Neill 

17 attended the May 30, 1966, ceremony inaugurating 

18 the Salt Pond Visitor Center. 

19 (13) The Cape Cod National Seashore has be20 come a national treasure, with millions of Americans 

21 and visitors from around the world enjoying its 

22 beauty and remarkable biodiversity. 

23 (14) Tip O’Neill and his family maintained a 

24 home on Cape Cod in Harwich Port, and he was a 


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1 frequent visitor to the National Seashore during his 

2 service in Congress and in his retirement years. 

3 (15) While in Congress, Tip O’Neill rose quick4 ly through the leadership ranks due to his extraor5 dinary political skills, mastery of the legislative proc6 ess and sharp wit, serving first as Majority Whip in 

7 the House beginning in 1971 and then in 1973 as 

8 House Majority Leader. 

9 (16) One of O’Neill’s greatest accomplishments 

10 as Speaker was the crafting of a peace accord be11 tween warring factions in Northern Ireland, during 

12 which he worked with fellow Irish-American politi13 cians including Senator Edward M. Kennedy to de14 velop the ‘‘St. Patrick’s Day declaration’’ denounc15 ing violence in Northern Ireland and culminating 

16 with the Irish aid package upon the signing of the 

17 Anglo-Irish Agreement in 1985. 

18 (17) On January 3, 1987, Tip O’Neill retired 

19 from Congress, having served in public life for 50 

20 years, including 34 years as a Member of Congress 

21 and 10 years as Speaker of the House, the longest 

22 continuous term of any Speaker since the first Con23 gress met in 1789. 

24 (18) Tip O’Neill’s extraordinary record of pub25 lic service and tremendous accomplishments for the 


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1 nation and unmatched attention to the needs of his 

2 constituents led President George H.W. Bush in 

3 1991 to present Tip O’Neill with the Presidential 

4 Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the 

5 United States. 

6 (19) It is also altogether fitting to recognize 

7 Tip O’Neill’s support for the protection of the nat8 ural, historic, and cultural resources of the national 

9 parks of Massachusetts. 

10 (b) DESIGNATION.—The Salt Pond Visitor Center at 

11 Cape Cod National Seashore in Eastham, Massachusetts, 

12 is designated as the ‘‘Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr. Salt Pond 

13 Visitor Center’’. 

14 (c) REFERENCES.—Any reference to the Salt Pond 

15 Visitor Center at Cape Cod National Seashore in any law, 

16 regulation, map, document, record, or other paper of the 

17 United States shall be considered to be a reference to the 

18 ‘‘Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr. Salt Pond Visitor Center’’. 

19 (d) SIGNAGE.—The Secretary of the Interior may 

20 post an interpretive sign at the visitor center that— 

21 (1) includes information on Thomas P. O’Neill, 

22 Jr., and his contributions as a member of the U.S. 

23 House of Representatives; 

24 (2) includes an image of Thomas P. O’Neill, 

25 Jr.; and 


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1 (3) refers to his efforts to aid in the preserva2 tion of the national seashore and other national 

3 parks in Massachusetts. 


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House Calendar No. 147 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4400 

[Report No. 112–598] 

A BILL 

To designate the Salt Pond Visitor Center at Cape 

other purposes. O’Neill, Jr. Salt Pond Visitor Center’’, and for Cod National Seashore as the ‘‘Thomas P. 

JULY 17, 2012 

Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be 

printed 


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