I

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 5157

To amend title 44, United States Code, to ensure preservation of the records

of the Freedmen’s Bureau.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

SEPTEMBER 12, 2000

Ms. MILLENDER-MCDONALD (for herself and Mr. WATTS of Oklahoma) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Government Reform

A BILL

To amend title 44, United States Code, to ensure

preservation of the records of the Freedmen’s Bureau.

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Freedmen’s Bureau

5 Records Preservation Act of 2000’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress finds the following:

8 (1) From 1619 to 1800 more than 660,000 Af9 rican men, women, and children were torn from
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1 their homelands in west Africa and herded onto

2 ships for transport to North America as slaves.

3 (2) Between 10 and 15 percent of these Afri4 cans died during the journey across the Atlantic

5 Ocean.

6 (3) The institution of slavery robbed Africans of

7 their natural rights and divided this Nation over the

8 meaning of freedom, the principle upon which this

9 Nation was founded.

10 (4) Paraphrasing President Abraham Lincoln,

11 the Government could not endure permanently half

12 slave and half free.

13 (5) The United States waged the Civil War to

14 free the Nation’s slaves, preserve the Nation, and

15 embrace all people as citizens regardless of race in

16 a system of inclusive freedom for all.

17 (6) On January 1, 1863, President Abraham

18 Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation,

19 which declared that individuals held as slaves within

20 the rebellious States ‘‘are, and henceforward shall be

21 free’’.

22 (7) On April 9, 1865, General Robert E. Lee

23 surrendered the Confederate Army to General Ulys24 ses S. Grant, thereby ending the Civil War.
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1 (8) In 1865, the Congress established in the

2 War Department the Bureau of Refugees, Freed3 men, and Abandoned Lands, commonly referred to

4 as the ‘‘Freedmen’s Bureau’’, to supervise and man5 age all matters relating to refugees and freedmen,

6 and to supervise abandoned and confiscated prop7 erty.

8 (9) The records of the Freedmen’s Bureau are

9 a vital source of information for historians and gene10 alogists.

11 (10) These records contain a wide range of data

12 about the African-American experience during slav13 ery and freedom, including in marriage records,

14 labor contracts, Government rations and back pay

15 records, and indentured contracts for minors.

16 (11) These records are maintained in Alabama,

17 Arkansas, the District of Columbia, Florida, Geor18 gia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Delaware, Mis19 sissippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina,

20 Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.

21 (12) All of these records are originals and, be22 cause they are deteriorating, require immediate at23 tention.
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1 (13) These records are an important link for

2 African-Americans to their slave and African ances3 tors.

4 (14) Preserving the records of the Freedmen’s

5 Bureau is a high priority for millions of Americans

6 interested in Civil War and post-Civil War era his7 tory.

8 SEC. 3. PRESERVATION OF FREEDMEN’S BUREAU

9 RECORDS.

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 29 of title 44, United

11 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing:

13 ‘‘§ 2910. Preservation of Freedmen’s Bureau Records

14 ‘‘The Archivist shall preserve the records of the Bu15 reau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, com16 monly referred to as the ‘Freedmen’s Bureau’, by using—

17 ‘‘(1) available technology for restoration of the

18 documents comprising these records so that they can

19 be maintained for future generations; and

20 ‘‘(2) innovative imaging and indexing tech21 nologies to make these records easily accessible to

22 the public, including historians, genealogists, novice

23 genealogy enthusiasts, and students.’’.

24 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections

25 at the beginning of chapter 29 of title 44, United States
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1 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new

2 item:

‘‘2910. Preservation of freedmen’s bureau records.’’.

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