I

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 4821

To establish the Honey Springs National Battlefield and Washita Battlefield

National Historic Site in the State of Oklahoma, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JULY 25, 1994

Mr. SYNAR (for himself and Mr. LUCAS) introduced the following bill; which

was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

A BILL

To establish the Honey Springs National Battlefield and

Washita Battlefield National Historic Site in the State

of Oklahoma, and for other purposes.

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 ‘‘Honey Springs Na5 tional Battlefield and Washita Battlefield National His6 toric Site Act of 1994’’.

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

8 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that:

9 (1) The Battle of Honey Springs, July 17,

10 1863, was the pivotal battle fought between Union
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1 and Confederate forces in the Indian Territory

2 (Oklahoma). Union victory at Honey Springs pre3 vented the Confederates from capturing Fort Gibson

4 and resulted in Union control of the Indian Terri5 tory for the remainder of the war.

6 (2) The Battle of Honey Springs represents

7 more than the pinnacle of Confederate control in the

8 Indian Territory, it was a multi-racial engagement

9 where African-Americans, Indians from the Five

10 Civilized Tribes, Anglos, and Hispanics fought with

11 and against each other. No other Civil War battle

12 claims such a distinction.

13 (3) The Battle of Honey Springs pitted Indians

14 against Indians and symbolizes the bitter Civil War

15 strife throughout the Indian Territory where no less

16 than 90 battles were fought and where many of the

17 soldiers were Indians.

18 (4) The battlefield retains much of its historical

19 integrity and natural setting. Traces of the Texas

20 Road, one of the major north-south corridors linking

21 Texas with the midwest, bisects the battlefield.

22 Much of the fighting at Honey Springs occurred

23 along or near the Texas Road.

24 (5) The Battle of the Washita, November 27,

25 1868, was one of the largest engagements between
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1 Plains tribes and the United States Army on the

2 southern Great Plains. The site is a registered Na3 tional Historic Landmark.

4 (6) Lt. Colonel George A. Custer, leading the

5 7th United States Cavalry, attacked the sleeping

6 Cheyenne village of peace chief Black Kettle. Cus7 ter’s attack resulted in more than 150 Indian cas8 ualties, many of them women and children.

9 (7) The Battle of the Washita symbolizes the

10 struggle of the southern Great Plains tribes to main11 tain their traditional ways of life and not to submit

12 to reservation confinement.

13 (8) The Washita battle site possesses a high de14 gree of integrity and the cultural landscape is essen15 tially intact. The Cheyenne village site has not been

16 altered substantially except by periodic flooding of

17 the Washita River.

18 TITLE 1—HONEY SPRINGS NATIONAL

19 BATTLEFIELD

20 SEC. 101. PURPOSE.

21 The purposes of this title are to—

22 (1) recognize the importance of the Battle of

23 Honey Springs as a nationally significant element of

24 the Civil War history of our Nation;
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1 (2) establish Honey Springs as a national bat2 tlefield to preserve, protect, and interpret its na3 tional, historical, and cultural resources for the ben4 efit, inspiration, and education of the people of the

5 United States; and

6 (3) commemorate the role of American Indians

7 and African Americans in the bitter Civil War strug8 gles that occurred in the Indian Territory and

9 provide opportunities for American Indian represent10 atives and other groups to be involved in the formu11 lation of educational programs for the national

12 battlefield.

13 SEC. 102. ESTABLISHMENT.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—In order to provide for the preser15 vation and interpretation of the Civil War battlefield of

16 Honey Springs, there is hereby established the Honey

17 Springs National Battlefield in the State of Oklahoma

18 (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘‘national battle19 field’’).

20 (b) BOUNDARY.—(1) The national battlefield shall

21 consist of approximately 3,300 acres as generally depicted

22 on the map entitled ‘‘Honey Springs National Battlefield,’’

23 numbered lllll and dated lllll 1994. This

24 map shall be on file in the offices of the Director of the

25 National Park Service, Department of the Interior, the
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1 State of Oklahoma, and other appropriate Federal and

2 State offices. After advising the Committee on Natural

3 Resources of the United States House of Representatives

4 and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of

5 the United States Senate, and the congressional office(s)

6 where the battlefield parks are located, in writing, the Sec7 retary may, from time to time, make minor revisions in

8 the boundary of the national battlefield in accordance with

9 the general management plan developed under section 105

10 of this Act by publishing of a revised map or other bound11 ary description in the Federal Register.

12 (2) By January 1, 1996, the Secretary shall submit,

13 in writing, to the committees referred to in subsection (b),

14 the congressional office(s) where the battlefield parks are

15 located, and to the Committees on Appropriations of the

16 United States Congress a detailed plan which shall

17 indicate—

18 (A) the lands and areas identified in this

19 section,

20 (B) the lands which have previously been ac21 quired by purchase, donation, exchange, or transfer

22 for the purpose of this battlefield park,

23 (C) the annual acquisition program (including

24 the level of funding) recommended for the ensuing

25 five years, and
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1 (D) the final boundary map for the battlefield

2 park.

3 SEC. 103. ADMINISTRATION.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through the

5 Director of the National Park Service, shall manage the

6 national battlefield in accordance with this Act and with

7 provisions of law generally applicable to units of the Na8 tional Park System, including the Act entitled ‘‘An Act

9 to establish a National Park Service,’’ approved August

10 25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535; 16 U.S.C. 1, 2–4), and the Act

11 of August 21, 1935 (49 Stat. 666; 16 U.S.C. 461–467),

12 and for other purposes.

13 (b) MANAGEMENT PURPOSES.—

14 (1) To protect and preserve the national battle15 field, including the topographic features important

16 to the battle sites, particularly the remaining traces

17 of the ‘‘Texas Road’’ and the fords along Elk Creek,

18 artifacts and other physical remains of the battle,

19 and the visual scene as closely as possible as it was

20 at the time of the battle.

21 (2) To interpret the cultural and natural re22 sources of the national battlefield, providing for pub23 lic understanding and appreciation of the area in

24 such a manner as to perpetuate these qualities and

25 values for future generations.
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1 (c) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary

2 may enter into cooperative agreements with State and

3 local public departments and agencies, Indian tribes, Afri4 can-American organizations, and nonprofit entities to—

5 (1) provide technical assistance for the manage6 ment, protection, and interpretation of the national

7 battlefield; and

8 (2) provide grants for the annual costs of oper9 ation and maintenance, protection, preservation, and

10 rehabilitation of the national battlefield.

11 SEC. 104. ACQUISITION OF PROPERTY.

12 Within the national battlefield boundary established

13 by section 102(b) of this Act, the Secretary is authorized

14 to acquire lands and interest in lands by donation, pur15 chase with donated or appropriated funds, or exchange.

16 Lands or interest in lands owned by the State of Okla17 homa or any political subdivision thereof may be acquired

18 only by donation.

19 (1) Except for property which the Secretary de20 termines to be necessary for the purposes of admin21 istration, development, access or public use, an

22 owner or owners (hereafter referred to as ‘‘owner’’)

23 of any improved property which is used solely for

24 noncommercial residential purposes on the date of

25 its acquisition by the Secretary or any owner of
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1 lands used solely for agricultural purposes (includ2 ing, but not limited to, grazing) may retain, as a

3 condition of the acquisition of such property or

4 lands, a right of use and occupancy of such property

5 for such residential or agricultural purposes. The

6 term of the right retained shall expire upon the

7 death of the owner or the death of his or her spouse,

8 whichever occurs later, or in lieu thereof, after a

9 definite term which shall not exceed twenty-five

10 years after the date of acquisition. The owner shall

11 elect, at the time of conveyance, the term of the

12 right reserved. The Secretary shall pay the owner

13 the fair market value of the property on the date of

14 such acquisition, less the fair market value of the

15 term retained by the owner. Such right may, during

16 its existence, be conveyed or transferred, but all

17 rights of use and occupancy shall be subject to such

18 terms and conditions as the Secretary deems appro19 priate to assure the use of such property in accord20 ance with the purposes of this Act. Upon a deter21 mination that the property or any portion thereof,

22 has ceased to be used in accordance with such terms

23 and conditions, the Secretary may terminate the

24 right of use and occupancy by tendering to the hold25 er of such right an amount equal to fair market
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1 value, as of the date of the tender, of that portion

2 of the right which remains unexpired on the date of

3 termination.

4 (2) As used in this section, the term ‘‘improved

5 property’’ means a detached year-round one-family

6 dwelling which serves as the owner’s permanent

7 place of abode at the time of acquisition, and con8 struction of which was begun before July 22, 1994,

9 together with so much of the land on which the

10 dwelling is situated, the said land being in the same

11 ownership as the dwelling, as the Secretary shall

12 designate to be reasonably necessary for the enjoy13 ment of the dwelling for the sole purpose of non14 commercial residential use.

15 SEC. 105. MANAGEMENT PLAN.

16 (a) Within three years after the date funds are made

17 available, the National Park Service shall develop and

18 transmit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Re19 sources of the United States Senate and the Committee

20 on Natural Resources of the United States House of Rep21 resentatives, a general management plan for the national

22 battlefield consistent with the purposes of this Act, includ23 ing, but not limited to—

24 (1) a cultural resource protection program for

25 the preservation of historic properties (including his-
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1 toric landscapes, objects, structures, and other types

2 of sites), and natural values;

3 (2) a visitor use plan for programs and facilities

4 that will be provided for public use, including the lo5 cation and cost of public facilities;

6 (3) a research and curation plan;

7 (4) a roadway signing plan and educational

8 media, to aid visitor use;

9 (5) access to the national battlefield and private

10 cemeteries contained therein, and ways of providing

11 safe, high standard highway access; and

12 (6) educational programs and management di13 rection that address the roles of American Indians,

14 African-Americans, and Hispanics in the battle and

15 the Civil War, and the story of the old ‘‘Texas

16 Road.’’

17 (b) The general management plan shall be prepared

18 in consultation with the Honey Springs National Battle19 field Advisory Commission established pursuant to section

20 106 of this Act and the State of Oklahoma.

21 SEC. 106. HONEY SPRINGS NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD ADVI22 SORY COMMISSION.

23 (a) There is hereby established the Honey Springs

24 National Battlefield Advisory Commission (hereinafter in

25 this Act referred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). The Commis-
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1 sion shall be composed of members appointed by the Sec2 retary for terms of five years as follows:

3 (1) One member who shall have professional ex4 pertise in Civil War history.

5 (2) One member who shall have professional ex6 pertise in Indian history or ceremonial activities.

7 (3) One member who shall have professional ex8 pertise in African-American history.

9 (4) One member who shall have professional ex10 pertise in outdoor recreation.

11 (5) One member who shall be an affected land12 owner from the Oktaha community.

13 (6) One member who shall be an affected land14 owner from the Rentiesville community.

15 (7) One member who shall have professional ex16 pertise in cultural anthropology.

17 (8) One member from the Friends of Honey

18 Springs Battlefield Park, Inc.

19 (9) One member from the general public.

20 (10) The Executive Director of the Oklahoma

21 Historical Society, or his or her designee, ex officio.

22 (11) The Director of the National Park Service,

23 or his or her designee, ex officio.

24 (b) Any member of the Commission may serve after

25 the expiration of his or her term until a successor is ap-
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1 pointed. A vacancy in the Commission shall be filed in the

2 same manner in which the original appointment was made.

3 (c) Members of the Commission shall serve without

4 pay. While away from their homes or regular places of

5 business in the performance of services for the Commis6 sion, members of the Commission shall be allowed travel

7 expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in the

8 same manner as persons employed intermittently in Gov9 ernment service are allowed expenses under section 5703

10 of title 5, United States Code.

11 (d) The Chair and other officers of the Commission

12 shall be elected by a majority of the members of the Com13 mission to serve for terms established by the Commission.

14 (e) The Commission shall meet at the call of the

15 Chair or a majority of its members, but not less than twice

16 annually. Six members of the Commission shall constitute

17 a quorum. Consistent with the public meeting require18 ments of section 10 of the Federal Advisory Committee

19 Act (5 U.S.C. App.), the Commission shall, from time to

20 time, meet with persons concerned with Indian history and

21 historic preservation, and with other interested persons.

22 (f) The Commission may make such bylaws, rules,

23 and regulations as it considers necessary to carry out its

24 functions under this Act. Section 14(b) of the Federal Ad-
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1 visory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.), shall not apply to

2 the Commission.

3 (g) The Commission shall advise the Secretary and

4 the State of Oklahoma on the management and develop5 ment of the park, and on the preparation of the general

6 management plan referred to in section 105. The Sec7 retary, or his or her designee, shall from time to time,

8 but at least semiannually, meet and consult with the Com9 mission on matters relating to the management and devel10 opment of the park.

11 SEC. 107. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

12 There is authorized to be appropriated such sums as

13 may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.

14 TITLE II—WASHITA BATTLEFIELD

15 NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE

16 SEC. 201. PURPOSE.

17 The purposes of this title are to—

18 (1) recognize the importance of the Battle

19 of the Washita as a nationally significant ele20 ment of frontier military history and as a sym21 bol of the struggles of the southern Great

22 Plains Tribes to maintain control of their tradi23 tional use areas; and

24 (2) establish the site of the Battle of the

25 Washita as a national historic site and provide
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1 opportunities for American Indian groups in2 cluding the Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribe to be in3 volved in the formulation of plans and edu4 cational programs for the national historic site.

5 SEC. 202. ESTABLISHMENT.

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—In order to provide for the preser7 vation and interpretation of the Battle of the Washita,

8 there is hereby established the Washita Battlefield Na9 tional Historic Site in the State of Oklahoma (hereafter

10 in this Act referred to as the ‘‘national historic site’’).

11 (b) BOUNDARY.—The national historic site shall con12 sist of approximately 2,900 acres as generally depicted on

13 the map entitled ‘‘Washita Battlefield National Historic

14 Site’’, numbered lllll and dated lllll

15 1994. This map shall be on file in the offices of the Direc16 tor of the National Park Service, Department of the Inte17 rior, the State of Oklahoma, and other appropriate offices

18 of the Service. The Secretary may, from time to time,

19 make minor revisions in the boundary of the national his20 toric site in accordance with the general management plan

21 developed under section 205 of this Act by publishing of

22 a revised map or other boundary description in the

23 Federal Register.
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1 SEC. 203. ADMINISTRATION.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through the

3 Director of the National Park Service, shall manage the

4 national historic site in accordance with this Act and the

5 provisions of law generally applicable to units of the Na6 tional Park System, including the Act entitled ‘‘An Act

7 to establish a National Park Service,’’ approved August

8 25, 1916 (39 Stat. 535; 16 U.S.C. 1, 2–4), and the Act

9 of August 21, 1935 (49 Stat. 666; 16 U.S.C. 461–467),

10 and for other purposes.

11 (b) MANAGEMENT PURPOSES.—The park shall be

12 managed for these purposes, among others:

13 (1) To protect and preserve the national his14 toric site, including the topographic features impor15 tant to the battle site, artifacts and other physical

16 remains of the battle, and the visual scene as closely

17 as possible as it was at the time of the battle.

18 (2) To interpret the cultural and natural re19 sources of the national battlefield, providing for pub20 lic understanding and appreciation of the area in

21 such a manner as to perpetuate these qualities and

22 values for future generations.

23 (c) CONSULTATION AND TRAINING.—The Secretary,

24 acting through the Director of the National Park Service,

25 shall consult regularly with the Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribe

26 on the formulation of the management plan pursuant to
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1 section 205 of this Act and on preparation of educational

2 programs provided to the public. The Secretary is author3 ized to enter into cooperative agreements with the Chey4 enne-Arapaho Tribe, its subordinate boards, committees,

5 and enterprises to further the purposes of this Act.

6 (d) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS.—The Secretary

7 may enter into cooperative agreements with State and

8 local public departments and agencies, Indian tribes, and

9 nonprofit entities to—

10 (1) provide technical assistance for the manage11 ment, protection, and interpretation of the national

12 battlefield; and

13 (2) provide grants for the annual costs of oper14 ation and maintenance, protection, preservation, and

15 rehabilitation of the national battlefield.

16 SEC. 204. ACQUISITION OF PROPERTY.

17 Within the national battlefield boundary established

18 by section 202(b) of this Act, the Secretary is authorized

19 to acquire lands and interest in lands by donation, pur20 chase with donated or appropriated funds, or exchange.

21 Lands or interest in lands owned by the State of Okla22 homa or any political subdivision thereof may be acquired

23 only by donation.

24 (1) Except for property which the Secretary de25 termines to be necessary for the purposes of admin-
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1 istration, development, access or public use, an

2 owner or owners (hereafter referred to as ‘‘owner’’)

3 of any improved property which is used solely for

4 noncommercial residential purposes on the date of

5 its acquisition by the Secretary or any owner of

6 lands used solely for agricultural purposes (includ7 ing, but not limited to, grazing) may retain, as a

8 condition of the acquisition of such property or

9 lands, a right of use and occupancy of such property

10 for such residential or agricultural purposes. The

11 term of the right retained shall expire upon the

12 death of the owner or the death of his or her spouse,

13 whichever occurs later, or in lieu thereof, after a

14 definite term which shall not exceed twenty-five

15 years after the date of acquisition. The owner shall

16 elect, at the time of conveyance, the term of the

17 right reserved. The Secretary shall pay the owner

18 the fair market value of the property on the date of

19 such acquisition, less the fair market value of the

20 term retained by the owner. Such right may, during

21 its existence, be conveyed or transferred, but all

22 rights of use of occupancy shall be subject to such

23 terms and conditions as the Secretary deems appro24 priate to assure the use of such property in accord25 ance with the purposes of this Act. Upon a deter-
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1 mination that the property, or any portion thereof,

2 has ceased to be used in accordance with such terms

3 and conditions, the Secretary may terminate the

4 right of use and occupancy by tendering to the hold5 er of such right an amount equal to fair market

6 value, as of the date of the tender, of that portion

7 of the right which remains unexpired on the date of

8 termination.

9 (2) As used in this section, the term ‘‘improved

10 property’’ means a detached year-round one-family

11 dwelling which serves as the owner’s permanent

12 place of abode at the time of acquisition, and con13 struction of which was begun before July 22, 1994,

14 together with so much of the land on which the

15 dwelling is situated, the said land being in the same

16 ownership as the dwelling, as the Secretary shall

17 designate to be reasonably necessary for the enjoy18 ment of the dwelling for the sole purpose of non19 commercial residential use.

20 SEC. 205. MANAGEMENT PLAN.

21 (a) Within three years after the date funds are made

22 available, the National Park Service shall develop and

23 transmit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Re24 sources of the United States Senate and the Committee

25 on Natural Resources of the United States House of Rep-
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1 resentatives, a general management plan for the national

2 historic site consistent with the purposes of this Act, in3 cluding, but not limited to—

4 (1) a cultural resource protection program for

5 the preservation of historic properties (including his6 toric landscapes, objects, structures, and other types

7 of sites), and natural values;

8 (2) a visitor use plan for programs and facilities

9 that will be provided for public use, including the lo10 cation and cost of public facilities;

11 (3) a research and curation plan;

12 (4) a highway signing program; and

13 (5) involvement by the Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribe

14 in the formulation of educational programs for the

15 national historic site.

16 (b) The general management plan shall be prepared

17 in consultation with the Washita Battlefield National His18 toric Site Advisory Commission established pursuant to

19 section 206 of this Act and the State of Oklahoma.

20 SEC. 206. WASHITA BATTLEFIELD NATIONAL HISTORIC

21 SITE ADVISORY COMMISSION.

22 (a) There is hereby established the Washita Battle23 field National Historic Site Advisory Commission (herein24 after in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). The
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1 Commission shall be composed of members appointed by

2 the Secretary for terms of five years as follows:

3 (1) One member who shall have professional ex4 pertise in Indian history or ceremonial activities.

5 (2) One member who shall have professional ex6 pertise in outdoor recreation.

7 (3) One member who shall be an affected land8 owner.

9 (4) One member who shall have professional ex10 pertise in cultural anthropology.

11 (5) One member from the Washita Battlefield

12 preservation association.

13 (6) One member from the general public.

14 (7) The Executive Director of the Oklahoma

15 Historical Society, or his or her designee, ex officio.

16 (8) The Director of the National Park Service,

17 or his or her designee, ex officio.

18 (b) Any member of the Commission may serve after

19 the expiration of his or her term until a successor is ap20 pointed. A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled in

21 the same manner in which the original appointment was

22 made.

23 (c) Members of the Commission shall serve without

24 pay. While away from their homes or regular places of

25 business in the performance of services for the Commis-
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1 sion, members of the Commission shall be allowed travel

2 expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in the

3 same manner as persons employed intermittently in Gov4 ernment service are allowed expenses under section 5703

5 of title 5, United States Code.

6 (d) The Chair and other officers of the Commission

7 shall be elected by a majority of the members of the Com8 mission to serve for terms established by the Commission.

9 (e) The Commission shall meet at the call of the

10 Chair or a majority of its members, but not less than twice

11 annually. Six members of the Commission shall constitute

12 a quorum. Consistent with the public meeting require13 ments of section 10 of the Federal Advisory Committee

14 Act (5 U.S.C. App.), the Commission shall, from time to

15 time, meet with persons concerned with Indian history and

16 historic preservation, and with other interested persons.

17 (f) The Commission may make such bylaws, rules,

18 and regulations as it considers necessary to carry out its

19 functions under this Act. Section 14(b) of the Federal Ad20 visory Commission Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply

21 to the Commission.

22 (g) The Commission shall advise the Secretary and

23 the State of Oklahoma on the management and develop24 ment of the park, and on the preparation of the general

25 management plan referred to in section 6. The Secretary,
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1 or his or her designee, shall from time to time, but a least

2 semiannually, meet and consult with the Commission on

3 matters relating to the management and development of

4 the park.

5 SEC. 207. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

6 There is authorized to be appropriated such sums as

7 may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.

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