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89-384 PS 2003

H.R. 280, H.R. 646, H.R. 1594, 

H.R. 1618 AND H.R. 1862

LEGISLATIVE HEARING

BEFORE THE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL PARKS, RECREATION, 

AND PUBLIC LANDS

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON RESOURCES 

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS

FIRST SESSION

Tuesday, September 16, 2003

Serial No. 108-55

Printed for the use of the Committee on Resources

(

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.access.gpo.gov/congress/house 

or 

Committee address: http://resourcescommittee.house.gov 

(II)

COMMITTEE ON RESOURCES 

RICHARD W. POMBO, California, Chairman 

NICK J. RAHALL II, West Virginia, Ranking Democrat Member

Don Young, Alaska 

W.J. ‘‘Billy’’ Tauzin, Louisiana 

Jim Saxton, New Jersey 

Elton Gallegly, California 

John J. Duncan, Jr., Tennessee 

Wayne T. Gilchrest, Maryland 

Ken Calvert, California 

Scott McInnis, Colorado 

Barbara Cubin, Wyoming 

George Radanovich, California 

Walter B. Jones, Jr., North Carolina 

Chris Cannon, Utah 

John E. Peterson, Pennsylvania 

Jim Gibbons, Nevada, 

Vice Chairman 

Mark E. Souder, Indiana 

Greg Walden, Oregon 

Thomas G. Tancredo, Colorado 

J.D. Hayworth, Arizona 

Tom Osborne, Nebraska 

Jeff Flake, Arizona 

Dennis R. Rehberg, Montana 

Rick Renzi, Arizona 

Tom Cole, Oklahoma 

Stevan Pearce, New Mexico 

Rob Bishop, Utah 

Devin Nunes, California 

Randy Neugebauer, Texas 

Dale E. Kildee, Michigan 

Eni F.H. Faleomavaega, American Samoa 

Neil Abercrombie, Hawaii 

Solomon P. Ortiz, Texas 

Frank Pallone, Jr., New Jersey 

Calvin M. Dooley, California 

Donna M. Christensen, Virgin Islands 

Ron Kind, Wisconsin 

Jay Inslee, Washington 

Grace F. Napolitano, California 

Tom Udall, New Mexico 

Mark Udall, Colorado 

Anı ́bal Acevedo-Vila ́, Puerto Rico 

Brad Carson, Oklahoma 

Rau ́l M. Grijalva, Arizona 

Dennis A. Cardoza, California 

Madeleine Z. Bordallo, Guam 

George Miller, California 

Edward J. Markey, Massachusetts 

Rube ́n Hinojosa, Texas 

Ciro D. Rodriguez, Texas 

Joe Baca, California 

Betty McCollum, Minnesota

Steven J. Ding, Chief of Staff 

Lisa Pittman, Chief Counsel 

James H. Zoia, Democrat Staff Director 

Jeffrey P. Petrich, Democrat Chief Counsel 

(III)

SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL PARKS, RECREATION, 

AND PUBLIC LANDS 

GEORGE P. RADANOVICH, California, Chairman 

DONNA M. CHRISTENSEN, Virgin Islands, Ranking Democrat Member

Elton Gallegly, California 

John J. Duncan, Jr., Tennessee 

Wayne T. Gilchrest, Maryland 

Barbara Cubin, Wyoming 

Walter B. Jones, Jr., North Carolina 

Chris Cannon, Utah 

John E. Peterson, Pennsylvania 

Jim Gibbons, Nevada 

Mark E. Souder, Indiana 

Rob Bishop, Utah 

Richard W. Pombo, California, ex officio 

Dale E. Kildee, Michigan 

Ron Kind, Wisconsin 

Tom Udall, New Mexico 

Mark Udall, Colorado 

Anı ́bal Acevedo-Vila ́, Puerto Rico 

Rau ́l M. Grijalva, Arizona 

Dennis A. Cardoza, California 

Madeleine Z. Bordallo, Guam 

Nick J. Rahall II, West Virginia, ex officio 

(V)

C O N T E N T S 

Page

Hearing held on Tuesday, September 16, 2003 ..................................................... 1

Statement of Members: 

Christensen, Hon. Donna M., a Delegate in Congress from the Virgin 

Islands ............................................................................................................ 3

Hobson, Hon. David, a Representative in Congress from the State of 

Ohio ................................................................................................................ 8

Prepared statement on H.R. 280 ............................................................. 10

Majette, Hon. Denise, a Representative in Congress from the State of 

Georgia ........................................................................................................... 6

Prepared statement on H.R. 1618 ........................................................... 7

Peterson, Hon. John E., a Representative in Congress from the State 

of Pennsylvania ............................................................................................. 18

Prepared statement on H.R. 1862 ........................................................... 20

Radanovich, Hon. George P., a Representative in Congress from the State 

of California ................................................................................................... 2

Prepared statement on H.R. 280, H.R. 646, H.R. 1594, H.R. 1618 

and H.R. 1862 ....................................................................................... 3 

Whitfield, Hon. Ed, a Representative in Congress from the State of 

Kentucky ........................................................................................................ 12

Prepared statement on H.R. 646 ............................................................. 13

Statement of Witnesses: 

Clifton, Daniel M., Federal Affairs Manager, Americans for Tax Reform, 

Washington, D.C. .......................................................................................... 43

Prepared statement on H.R. 280, H.R. 1594, H.R. 1618, and 

H.R. 1862 ............................................................................................... 44

Hitchcock, Roxanne, Board Member, Oil Heritage Region, Inc., Oil City, 

Pennsylvania ................................................................................................. 37

Prepared statement on H.R. 1862 ........................................................... 39

Jordan, Kelly, Chair, Arabia Mountain Heritage Area Alliance, Atlanta, 

Georgia ........................................................................................................... 29

Prepared statement on H.R. 1618 ........................................................... 30

Knight, J. Peyton, Legislative Director, American Policy Center, 

Warrenton, Virginia ...................................................................................... 40

Prepared statement on H.R. 280, H.R. 1594, H.R. 1618, and 

H.R. 1862 ............................................................................................... 42

Lane, Amanda Wright, Commissioner, Dayton Aviation Heritage 

Commission, Cincinnati, Ohio ..................................................................... 21

Prepared statement on H.R. 280 ............................................................. 23

Murray, Robert, Chairman, Board of Commissioners, Venango County, 

Franklin, Pennsylvania ................................................................................ 35

Prepared statement on H.R. 1862 ........................................................... 36

Whitaker, Hon. Larry B., McLean County Judge, Calhoun, Kentucky ....... 26

Prepared statement on H.R. 646 ............................................................. 27

Additional materials supplied: 

Boehner, Hon. John A., a Representative in Congress from the State 

of Ohio, Statement submitted for the record on H.R. 280 ........................ 48

Richards, Hon. Vargrave A., Lieutenant Governor, The United States 

Virgin Islands, Statement submitted for the record on H.R. 1594 .......... 5

(1)

LEGISLATIVE HEARING ON H.R. 280, TO 

ESTABLISH THE NATIONAL AVIATION HERITAGE AREA, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES; 

H.R. 646, TO EXPAND THE BOUNDARIES OF 

THE FORT DONELSON NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD TO AUTHORIZE THE ACQUISITION 

AND INTERPRETATION OF LANDS ASSOCIATED WITH THE CAMPAIGN THAT RESULTED IN THE CAPTURE OF THE FORT IN 

1862, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES; H.R. 1594, 

TO DIRECT THE SECRETARY OF THE 

INTERIOR TO CONDUCT A STUDY OF THE 

SUITABILITY AND FEASIBILITY OF ESTABLISHING THE ST. CROIX NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA IN ST. CROIX, UNITED STATES 

VIRGIN ISLANDS, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES; H.R. 1618, TO ESTABLISH THE 

ARABIA MOUNTAIN NATIONAL HERITAGE 

AREA IN THE STATE OF GEORGIA, AND FOR 

OTHER PURPOSES; AND H.R. 1862, TO 

ESTABLISH THE OIL REGION NATIONAL 

HERITAGE AREA. 

Tuesday, September 16, 2003

U.S. House of Representatives 

Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation, and Public Lands 

Committee on Resources 

Washington, DC 

The Subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 2:04 p.m., in Room 

1334, Longworth House Office Building, Hon. George P. 

Radanovich [Chairman of the Subcommittee] presiding. 

Present: Representatives Radanovich, Peterson, Souder, 

Christensen, Tom Udall, Grijalva and Bordallo. 

2

STATEMENT OF THE HON. GEORGE P. RADANOVICH, A 

REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF 

CALIFORNIA 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Good afternoon. The Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation and Public Lands will begin its legislative 

hearing on a number of bills: H.R. 280, H.R. 646, H.R. 1594, 

H.R. 1618, and H.R. 1862. 

The first bill that is being considered today, H.R. 280, was introduced by Congressman David Hobson of Ohio, which would establish the National Aviation Heritage Area in southwest Ohio. 

Our second bill, H.R. 646, introduced by Congressman Ed 

Whitfield of Kentucky, would expand the boundaries of the Fort 

Donelson National Battlefield to authorize the acquisition and interpretation of lands associated with the campaign that resulted in 

the capture of the fort in 1862. 

The third bill is H.R. 1594, introduced by the Ranking Member 

of the Subcommittee, Mrs. Donna Christensen of the Virgin Islands, which would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study on the feasibility and suitability of establishing the St. 

Croix National Heritage Area in St. Croix, United States Virgin Islands. 

The fourth bill, H.R. 1618, introduced by Congresswoman Denise 

Majette of Georgia, would establish the Arabia Mountain National 

Heritage Area in the State of Georgia. 

Our final bill for consideration, H.R. 1862, introduced by our colleague, John Peterson of Pennsylvania, would establish the Oil Region National Heritage Area in the State of Pennsylvania. 

I would like to note that this is the Subcommittee’s first hearing 

of the 108th Congress on legislation either authorizing the study 

of a potential National Heritage Area or establishing a National 

Heritage Area. An increasing number of communities seeking National Heritage Area designations, along with concerns raised by 

many in the private property rights community, warrant careful 

discussion of the purpose of establishing these areas. 

I note that Chairman Pombo, who is a strong advocate of private 

property rights, shares my caution, so I look forward to a lively discussion today and hope that we may look forward to a better understanding about how National Heritage Area programs affect the 

notion of local control in communities throughout the country and 

ensures the involvement of property owners who would be affected 

by these potential designations. 

Before I turn it over to Mrs. Christensen for an opening statement, I would like to announce that we have an unusual situation 

here today, in that the Administration will not be testifying on the 

legislation before the Subcommittee. 

Though invited, the National Park Service could not prepare its 

testimony in the time provided by the Subcommittee. Nevertheless, 

the National Park Service will come before the Committee at a 

later date to present their testimony. 

At this time, too, I would like to ask unanimous consent that the 

Honorable Denise Majette, Dave Hobson and Ed Whitfield be allowed to join us on the dais after their opening statements. There 

being no objection, so ordered. 

3

I would now like to turn this over to Mrs. Christensen for her 

opening statement. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Radanovich follows:]

Statement of The Honorable George Radanovich, a Representative in 

Congress from the State of California 

Good afternoon. Today, the Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation and Public Lands will receive testimony on five bills—H.R. 280, H.R. 646, H.R. 1594, 

H.R. 1618 and H.R. 1862. 

The first bill, H.R. 280, introduced by Congressman David Hobson of Ohio, would 

establish the National Aviation Heritage Area in southwest Ohio. 

Our second bill, H.R. 646, introduced by Congressman Ed Whitfield of Kentucky, 

would expand the boundaries of the Fort Donelson National Battlefield to authorize 

the acquisition and interpretation of lands associated with the campaign that resulted in the capture of the fort in 1862. 

The third bill is H.R. 1594, introduced by our Ranking Member of the Subcommittee, Ms. Donna Christensen of the U.S. Virgin Islands, would authorize the 

Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study on the feasibility and suitability of establishing the St. Croix National Heritage Area in St. Croix, United States Virgin 

Islands. 

The fourth bill, H.R. 1618, introduced by Congresswoman Denise Majette of Georgia, would establish the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area in the State of 

Georgia. 

Our final bill for consideration today is H.R. 1862, introduced by our Committee 

colleague John Peterson of Pennsylvania, which would establish the Oil Region Heritage Area in the State of Pennsylvania. 

I would like to note that this is the Subcommittee’s first hearing in the 108th 

Congress on legislation either authorizing a study of a potential national heritage 

area or establishing a national heritage area, and the increasing number of communities seeking national heritage area designations, along with the concerns raised 

by many in the private property rights community warrant careful discussion of the 

purpose of establishing these areas. I know Chairman Pombo, who is a strong advocate of private property rights, shares my caution. So I look forward to a lively discussion today and hope that we may work toward a better understanding how a national heritage area program effects the notion of local control in communities 

throughout the country and ensures the involvement of property owners who would 

be affected by these potential designations. 

Before turning to Ms. Christensen for her opening statement, I would like to announce that we have an unusual situation here today in that the Administration 

will not be testifying on the legislation before the Subcommittee. Though invited, 

the National Park Service could not prepare its testimony in the time provided by 

the Subcommittee. Nevertheless, the National Park Service will come before the 

Committee at a later date to present their testimony. 

I now recognize Ms. Christensen for any opening statement she may have. 

STATEMENT OF THE HON. DONNA M. CHRISTENSEN, A 

DELEGATE IN CONGRESS FROM THE VIRGIN ISLANDS 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would like to 

welcome my colleagues. 

Today we are meeting to receive testimony on four bills concerning proposed National Heritage Areas, and one bill is the expansion of a National Battlefield. First let me say that I appreciate 

the Subcommittee holding hearings on these pieces of legislation, 

including my own, H.R. 1594, to provide for a suitability and feasibility study of establishing a St. Croix National Heritage Area in 

the United States Virgin Islands. 

National Heritage Areas are places where natural, cultural, historical and recreational resources combine to form a nationally distinctive landscape arising from patterns of human activity shaped 

by geography. While each island can make a good case for designation, the Island of St. Croix, with its two historic towns, 

4

Christiansted, built in 1734, and Frederiksted, built in 1752, is 

richly blessed with all of the attributes that would justify this designation. 

The town’s historic architecture matured over a 100-year period. 

The town of Christiansted is one of the finest examples of Danish 

architectural designs in this hemisphere, and the Island’s history 

can be traced back some 4,000 years to 2500 B.C. 

In 1443, Columbus arrived on St. Croix on what is now the Salt 

River National Historic Park and Ecological Preserve, making it 

the only site under the American flag where his men went ashore, 

as well as the first recorded hostile encounter between Europeans 

and Native Americans. Danish soldiers at Fort Frederik in 

Frederiksted, St. Croix were the first to salute the American colors 

during the Revolutionary War on October 25, 1776, causing an 

international stir. Fort Frederik has also been found to be the site 

of historic ceramics, 18th and 19th century marine shell and coral 

artifacts. 

Among the many strong ties of great national significance between St. Croix and the U.S., perhaps the most significant one is 

that this island was the boyhood home of Alexander Hamilton, 

where he began to develop the skills he later employed as the first 

Secretary of the Treasury of this country. 

There is significant interest in preserving and enhancing the natural historical and cultural resources of the island on a cooperative 

basis, and such a study would provide guidance on how best we can 

achieve those purposes. 

Our other three bills, H.R. 280, the National Aviation Heritage 

Area bill introduced by Mr. Hobson, H.R. 1618, the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area introduced by Ms. Majette, and 

H.R. 1862, the Oil Region National Heritage Area, introduced by 

Mr. Peterson, are ahead of mine and involve proposals to actually 

designate specific localities as National Heritage Areas. The areas 

in question have been studied for such designation and it is my understanding that there is local support for all of them. The strong 

support for the National Heritage Area concept is evident in the 

numerous proposals before the Subcommittee to either designate or 

study an area for possible National Heritage Area designation. 

These areas with to join the 23 previously designated National 

Heritage Areas in providing grass roots, community based efforts 

to preserve and enhance their heritage. 

The last bill, H.R. 646, would include land within the Fort 

Donelson National Battlefield that was part of the 1862 battle, that 

are otherwise necessary to protect critical resources associated with 

the military campaign. The battle was the North’s first major victory of the Civil War and helped launch the career of the then unknown General Ulysses S. Grant. 

Mr. Chairman, I again want to welcome our colleagues and witnesses to this hearing. I look forward to learning more about the 

areas included in the measures before us today. 

My panelist from the Virgin Islands, our Lieutenant Governor, is 

unable to join us today, and I would like to submit his testimony 

for the record. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. There being no objection, so ordered. 

5

[The prepared statement of Lieutenant Governor Vargrave A. 

Richards follows:]

Statement of Vargrave A. Richards, Lieutenant Governor of the United 

States Virgin Islands, in Support of the St. Croix National Heritage Area 

Study Act 

It is with great pleasure that I express my full support for the St. Croix National 

Heritage Area Study Act. I have great confidence that St. Croix is not only suitable 

as a National Heritage Area, but will be a shining example of the program for all 

Americans. 

St. Croix, United States Virgin Islands, was the backdrop for a very important 

part of America’s past. Alexander Hamilton, one of America’s founding fathers, 

spent the formative years of his youth on St. Croix. On King Street in the town of 

Christiansted, Alexander Hamilton worked for the merchant Nicholas Cruger, and 

gained valuable experience in financial and business matters that would serve him 

well as America’s first Secretary of the Treasury. His letter describing the hurricane 

of 1772 was so impressively written that Hamilton was sent by local citizens, at the 

age of 15, to college in New York, thus opening a momentous chapter in the pages 

of American history. Hamilton later served as an aide-de-camp to General George 

Washington, and was one of the primary drafters of the Federalist Papers, which 

formed the basis of our democratic system of government. 

We have carefully preserved our eighteenth century heritage, and the buildings 

of Christiansted echo the steps of Alexander Hamilton and so many others who 

walked its historic arcaded galleries in the days when Christiansted was the capital 

of the Danish West Indies. It was on St. Croix that Hamilton witnessed first hand 

the horrors of slavery. The experience led him to organize the Society for the Manumission of Slaves in 1785, which brought about the end to legal slavery in New York 

State. 

In addition to lasting historical ties to one of the founding fathers, Alexander 

Hamilton, St. Croix is blessed with diverse and abundant natural beauty. Among 

our proudest natural features are the Buck Island Reef National Monument, a marine park, a tropical forest, salt ponds, lagoons and mangroves, and Point Udall, the 

eastern most point in the United States. The National Park Service also administers 

the Christiansted Historic Site, which includes a well-preserved Danish fort, Customs House and Scale House dating from the 18th Century. 

St. Croix also boasts the Salt River Bay National Historic Park and Ecological 

Preserve. This unique park, jointly managed by the National Park Service and the 

Virgin Islands Government, is the first documented landing spot of Christopher Columbus, in what is now America, in 1493, and encompasses the entire spectrum of 

human history in the West Indies. The site contains valuable archaeological artifacts of ancient cultures including the Carib Indians, as well as an ancient ceremonial plaza or ball court, a Dutch earthen fort, a beautiful white sand beach, coral 

reefs and endangered mangroves and nesting habitats for resident and migratory 

wildlife. 

I have already committed to work with the National Park Service to finalize a 

Cooperation Agreement for the joint management of the Salt River Bay National 

Historic Park and Ecological Preserve. A copy of my letter to Joel Tutein, NPS Superintendent St. Croix, is attached and submitted for the record. 

I have been charged by the Governor of the Virgin Islands with the task of stimulating the economy of St. Croix. With the assistance of the Secretary of the Interior, 

there is no question that the cultural, natural and historical wonders of St. Croix 

can be protected and developed for educational, recreational and tourism purposes 

for generations to come. 

Secretary Norton and I have spoken about the various ways in which the Department of the Interior and the Virgin Islands Government can work together to enhance the National Parks on St. Croix in order to benefit the people of St. Croix, 

as well as park visitors, and all Americans, by preserving these important vestiges 

of our historic past and natural heritage. I have attached for the record a copy of 

my letter dated September 5, 2003 to Secretary Norton which describes the many 

natural, historic and cultural treasures of St. Croix. 

The Government of the Virgin Islands is not the only entity that is interested in 

our beautiful island’s heritage. St. Croix is blessed various active and committed 

historic preservation groups, including our Historic Preservation Commission, the 

St. Croix Landmarks Society, Farmers in Action, and other fine organizations dedicated to the identification and preservation of our cultural heritage. I believe there 

is enormous public support for the designation of St. Croix as a National Heritage 

Area, and feel that this designation will benefit all Americans by highlighting and 

6

preserving the unique historical, cultural and natural resources of St. Croix, United 

States Virgin Islands. 

We Crucians, as people from St. Croix are known, are extremely proud of our 

American citizenship, as well as our unique history, culture and traditions. We welcome the opportunity for the Department of the Interior to conduct its feasibility 

study, and stand ready to lend our support to the effort to preserve and protect St. 

Croix’s historical, cultural and natural heritage for generations to come. 

I would like to thank and to commend The Honorable Congresswoman Donna M. 

Christian Christensen for her initiative in sponsoring this legislation. 

I respectfully request your support for the St. Croix National Heritage Area Study 

Act. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you very much, Donna, and welcome to 

the Committee. We will begin with The Honorable Denise Majette. 

Denise, if you would like to begin your testimony, we would love 

to hear from you. 

STATEMENT OF HON. DENISE MAJETTE, A REPRESENTATIVE 

IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF GEORGIA 

Ms. MAJETTE. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I also want to thank 

Ranking Member Christensen. I appreciate all the Committee 

members giving me the opportunity to share with you the wonder 

of what could become the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area. 

I am proud of the strong, bipartisan support from Georgia in this 

effort. We have five Democrats and five Republicans as cosponsors 

of this bill. My special thanks go to Congressman John Linder for 

his leadership on this bill. 

Also, I would like to recognize the following people who are here 

today and who have helped me lead the charge to preserve this 

area. Mayor Marcia Glenn of Lithonia, Georgia; Kelly Jordan, the 

Chair of the Arabia Mountain Heritage Area Alliance; and Marc 

Cowe, President of Oldcastle Materials, and his Chief Financial Officer, Glen Culpepper. Mr. Cowe and Oldcastle played a significant 

role in the renovation of the Smithsonian and as a corporate participant in the heritage area. 

H.R. 1618 would establish the Arabia Mountain Area as a National Heritage Area. The Arabia Mountain Heritage Area is truly 

a living history lesson, illustrating thousands of years of human 

history intertwined with a unique natural landscape. 

Incredibly, there has been human settlement in this location for 

close to 7,000 years, and, in that time, our relationship with the 

land has changed in many ways. This heritage region captures 

snapshots of this developmental history with three components: 

one, areas of land with human alteration; two, areas showing the 

effect of intense human development; and three, areas where 

human development co-exists with natural beauty. 

The region we are discussing is a suburb east of the City of 

Atlanta, one of the fastest-growing communities in the world. But 

despite this proximity to Atlanta, one portion of the Heritage Area, 

Panola Mountain, remains untouched by development. Panola 

Mountain is a national landmark which has also been set aside by 

the State of Georgia and the Georgia Conservancy. The area features unique granite outcroppings that are over 400 million years 

old. If you’ve never seen this amazing formation, I invite you to 

visit. 

7

In addition to the natural beauty, there is also a rich cultural 

history that began when Native Americans lived on these lands. 

Archeological evidence indicates that Native Americans quarried 

these soapstone and granite outcroppings more than 5,000 years 

ago. The most heavily quarried area is around the City of Lithonia. 

The word ‘‘Lithonia’’ means ‘‘City of Rock’’ in Greek. Today, 

Lithonia is a small but vibrant community. It was the birthplace 

of former Senator Max Cleland. It is currently undergoing a revitalization, thanks to the vision of its Mayor, Marcia Glenn, who is 

here with us today. Her family’s roots are deep in Lithonia, spanning five generations. 

The heritage area’s namesake, Arabia Mountain, will be the 

heart of the heritage area. Other areas that will be preserved include the last farm left in what was once the biggest dairy farming 

area in the State of Georgia; the natural beauty of the southern 

pine and oak forests that once dominated the region; rivers, greenways and parks, including a portion of the South River; the site of 

the great Georgia gold rush of the early 1800s, which was centered 

right in Lithonia; endangered mosses and lichens; and evidence of 

early American settlements. This is a unique cultural and historical haven, which is very close to the City of Atlanta. It is a place 

that Georgians want to protect and want to continue to enjoy. 

I trust that this Committee will help Georgia’s residents showcase and preserve this area’s unique heritage for future generations 

by favorably reporting H.R. 1618 to the full Committee for consideration. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

[The prepared statement of Hon. Denise Majette follows:]

Statement of The Honorable Denise L. Majette, a Representative in 

Congress from the State of Georgia 

I would like to thank Chairman Radanovich, Ranking Member Christensen, and 

all of the Committee members for this opportunity to share the wonder of what 

could become the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area. I am proud to note that 

there is strong bipartisan support from Georgia in this effort, with 5 Democrats and 

5 Republicans as cosponsors of my bill. My special thanks go to John Linder for his 

leadership. 

I would also like to recognize the following people who have helped lead the 

charge to preserve this area: 

• Mayor Marcia Glenn of Lithonia, Georgia, 

• Kelly Jordan, the Chair of the Arabia Mountain Heritage Area Alliance, and 

• Mark Towe President of Oldcastle Materials and his Chief Financial Officer, 

Glen Culpepper. Mr. Towe and Oldcastle played a significant role in the renovation of the Smithsonian and is a corporate participant in the Heritage Area. 

H.R. 1618, which would establish the Arabia Mountain Area as a National Heritage Area, will provide residents of this region with the opportunity to preserve the 

wonders that Arabia Mountain has to offer and to share its history and beauty with 

all Americans. 

The Arabia Mountain Heritage Area is really a living history lesson, illustrating 

the interaction of human activity with a unique landscape over thousands of years. 

Incredibly, there has been human settlement in this location for close to 7,000 years. 

In that time, our relationship with the land has changed in many ways. This Heritage region captures snapshots of this developmental history with three components: 

• areas of land without human alteration; 

• areas showing the effect of intense human development; and 

• areas where development coexists with natural beauty. 

The region we are discussing is a suburb of east Atlanta—one of the fastest growing communities in the world. Despite this proximity, one portion of the Heritage 

Area, Panola Mountain, is pristine land untouched by development. Panola Mountain Conservation Park is a National Landmark. The area features unique granite 

8

outcroppings that are over 400 million years old. These amazing formations alone 

are worth a visit. 

Beyond the natural beauty of the area is a rich cultural history that began when 

Native Americans lived on these lands, and one that continues today. Archeological 

evidence indicates that Native Americans quarried these soapstone and granite 

outcroppings over 5,000 years ago. 

The most heavily quarried area is in and around the City of Lithonia which, not 

coincidentally, means ‘‘City of Rock’’ in Greek. Many of the historic buildings in 

town are made out of this granite. 

In addition to soapstone and granite, the great Georgia gold rush of the early 

1800’s, which predated the gold rush in California by 20 years, was centered right 

in Lithonia. Today, Lithonia is a small, but vibrant community. The birthplace of 

Senator Max Cleland, Lithonia is currently undergoing a revitalization thanks to 

the vision of its Mayor, Marcia Glenn. Her family’s roots are deep in Lithonia, spanning five generations. 

The Heritage Area’s namesake, Arabia Mountain, will be the heart of the Heritage Area. With a Nature Preserve, the last farm left in what was once the biggest 

dairy farming area in the state, and with ample evidence of historic settlements, 

Arabia Mountain is the glue that ties the whole Heritage Area together. Arabia 

Mountain is topped by endangered mosses and lichens and surrounded by evidence 

of early American developments from the early days of European settlement. 

By connecting the proposed Heritage Area’s natural, cultural and historical resources through rivers, greenways and parks, this region will rapidly become a popular recreation area for residents of the fast growing Metropolitan Atlanta area, as 

well as visitors from all over America. This unique cultural and historical haven is 

a place Georgians want to protect and continue to enjoy. 

I trust that this Subcommittee will help local residents showcase and preserve 

this area’s unique heritage for current and future generations by favorably reporting 

H.R. 1618 to the full Committee for consideration. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thanks, Miss Majette. 

I notice you have provided a map for us, but it doesn’t necessarily delineate the heritage area that you’re requesting. If you 

could provide some clarification to the Committee, I would appreciate it. You don’t have to do it right now, but if you could provide 

that to us. 

Ms. MAJETTE. Kelly Jordan, who is going to offer testimony, will 

be able to make it more clear to the Committee. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Very good. Thank you. 

Ms. MAJETTE. Thank you. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Hobson, welcome to the Committee. 

STATEMENT OF HON. DAVID HOBSON, A REPRESENTATIVE IN 

CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF OHIO 

Mr. HOBSON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I also want to thank the 

other members that are here today, and Chairman Pombo, for having this hearing today. 

I would make a unanimous request to submit a more lengthy 

statement that I will be giving here for the record, if I may. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. If there is no objection, so ordered. 

Mr. HOBSON. Mr. Chairman, I again appreciate the opportunity 

to be here and testify in support of H.R. 280, the National Aviation 

Heritage Area. 

I introduced this legislation with Representatives Mike Turner, 

John Boehner, and virtually all the Ohio delegation to create a National Aviation Heritage Area to enhance significant historical resources of interest to all Americans and to further national awareness of Ohio’s key role in the history of aviation. On this year’s 

100th anniversary of the first powered flight, I can think of no 

9

better way to preserve and carry on the years of hard work and 

preparation leading up to 2003 than to establish this heritage area. 

As a lifelong Ohioan, aviation enthusiast, and regular at the 

Dayton Air Show, I am deeply committed to enabling the Wright 

Brothers’ story to be told as often and in as many ways as possible. 

With each telling of their story, you never know who might be inspired. 

Few technological advances have transferred the world or our 

Nation’s economy, society, culture and national character as the development of powered flight. As a result, the industrial, cultural 

and national heritage legacies of the aviation and aerospace industry in the State of Ohio are nationally significant. 

Ohioans have been at the forefront of every major development 

associated with flight. But just as important as the Wright Brothers, John Glenn and Neil Armstrong are the inventors, scientists 

and engineers that have made it possible in less than 100 years to 

not only fly between continents, but also to fly to the moon and 

maintain a presence in space. 

While many people know that the Wright Brothers built the first 

airplane in a bicycle shop in Dayton, OH, few are aware that this 

corner of Ohio continued to nurture an astonishing number of aviation innovations, leaving behind a rich legacy of buildings, sites, 

and historical artifacts. 

In preparation for the establishment of the National Aviation 

Heritage Area, the Dayton Aviation Heritage Commission held a 

series of three public meetings in Columbus, Cleveland and Dayton 

to generate ideas and build awareness of the heritage area concept. 

Comments were also accepted through a website established to facilitate public participation. Additionally, five National Park Service and Dayton Aviation Heritage Commission studies and planning documents have demonstrated that sufficient historical resources exist to establish the National Aviation Heritage Area. 

Local governments, the State of Ohio, and private sector interests have embraced the heritage area concept and desire to enter 

into a partnership with the Federal Government to preserve, protect, and develop the heritage area for public benefit. The area 

would strengthen, compliment and support the aviation-related resources within the National Park Service, especially the Dayton 

Aviation Heritage National Historic Park. 

The National Aviation Heritage Area would encompass a core 

heritage area containing significant historic sites in Montgomery, 

Greene, Clark, Warren, Miami and Champaign counties in Ohio. 

Also the area would be administered through the U.S. Department 

of Interior, with the requirement that appropriated Federal funds 

be matched, dollar for dollar, with nonFederal funds. This legislation authorizes up to $10 million over 15 years, with a provision 

that not more than one million may be appropriated in any single 

fiscal year. This is in keeping with the recommendation for heritage areas by the Department of Interior and authorizing legislation 

for heritage areas established since 1996. 

The establishment of a National Aviation Heritage Area is a 

major recommendation of the Dayton Aviation Heritage Commission, which sunsets at the end of this year and was established by 

Congress in 1992. The commission was charged with the 

10

responsibility of creating a plan for the continuation of the preservation, conservation, interpretation of Ohio’s aviation heritage in 

the next 100 years. 

The legislation is fully in the spirit of President Bush’s recent 

‘‘Preserve America’’ executive order, which declared, ‘‘It is the policy of the Federal Government to provide leadership in preserving 

America’s heritage...by promoting intergovernmental cooperation 

and partnerships for the preservation and use of historic properties.’’ Also, it would provide even greater support and public 

awareness of Ohio’s many contributions to aviation history and the 

role that both civil and military aviation played in establishing the 

20th century as the American century. It is important that these 

significant sites be preserved and properly interpreted for future 

generations and establishing a national Aviation Heritage Area 

during the 100th anniversary year of flight is a solid step in that 

direction. 

Thank you for the opportunity to testify on behalf of this 

legislation. 

[The prepared statement of Hon. David Hobson follows:]

Statement of The Honorable David Hobson, a Representative in Congress 

from the State of Ohio 

Mr. Chairman: I appreciate the opportunity to be here today and to testify in support of H.R. 280, the National Aviation Heritage Area Act. I have introduced this 

legislation with Reps. Mike Turner, John Boehner and virtually all of the Ohio Delegation to create a National Aviation Heritage Area to enhance significant historical 

resources of interest to all Americans and to further national awareness of Ohio’s 

key role in the history of aviation. On this year’s 100th anniversary of the first powered flight, I can think of no better way to preserve and carry on the years of hard 

work and preparation leading up to 2003, than to establish this heritage area. 

As a life-long Ohioan, aviation enthusiast, and regular at the Dayton Air Show, 

I am deeply committed to enabling the Wright Brothers’ story to be told as often 

and in as many ways as possible. With each telling of their story, you never know 

who might be inspired. 

Few technological advances have transformed the world or our Nation’s economy, 

society, culture, and national character as the development of powered flight. As a 

result, the industrial, cultural, and natural heritage legacies of the aviation and 

aerospace industry in the State of Ohio are nationally significant. 

Ohioans have been at the forefront of every major development associated with 

flight. But just as important as the Wright Brothers, John Glenn, and Neil Armstrong—are the inventors, scientists and engineers that have made it possible in 

less than 100 years to not only fly between continents, but also to fly to the moon 

and maintain a presence in space. While many people know that the Wright Brothers built the first airplane in a bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio, few are aware that 

this corner of Ohio continued to nurture an astonishing number of aviation innovations leaving behind a rich legacy of buildings, sites, and historical artifacts. Many 

of those innovations occurred and are occurring each day at Wright Patterson Air 

Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, considered by many as the birthplace, home, and future 

of aerospace. Together, these sites comprise the classic case for a successful heritage 

area—historical resources associated with a nationally important theme in a geographically tight region with local institutions with a proven track record of successful partnerships. 

In preparation for the establishment of the National Aviation Heritage Area, the 

Dayton Aviation Heritage Commission held a series of three public meetings in Columbus, Cleveland, and Dayton to generate ideas and build awareness of the heritage area concept. Comments were also accepted through a website established to facilitate public participation. Additionally, five National Park Service and Dayton 

Aviation Heritage Commission studies and planning documents have demonstrated 

that sufficient historical resources exist to establish the National Aviation Heritage 

Area. 

Local governments, the State of Ohio, and private-sector interests have embraced 

the heritage area concept and desire to enter into a partnership with the federal 

11

government to preserve, protect, and develop the heritage area for public benefit. 

The area would strengthen, compliment and support the aviation-related resources 

within the National Park Service, especially the Dayton Aviation Heritage National 

Historical Park. 

As you all know, heritage areas are federally recognized collections of historic 

sites that are linked by theme and geographical proximity that have the potential 

to work together to promote tourism and improve historic preservation efforts. Heritage areas serve to protect and preserve our Nation’s heritage through communitybased partnerships that emphasize local control and direction. The protection of 

parks and the preservation of our special places is greatly enhanced when the people who live in the region and are uniquely qualified to care for them are involved. 

That is accomplished through the establishment of heritage areas. 

The National Park Service has outlined four critical steps that need to be taken 

prior to Congressional designation of a national heritage area. These include study, 

public comment, demonstration of support, and commitment from the community. 

The National Aviation Heritage Area meets all these tests. 

The National Aviation Heritage Area would be administered through the U.S. Department of the Interior with the requirement that appropriated federal funds 

would be matched dollar for dollar with non-federal funds. This legislation authorizes up to $10 million over 15 years, with a provision that not more than $1 million 

may be appropriated in any single fiscal year. Additionally, the authority of the Secretary of Interior to provide assistance will terminate after 15 years. This is in full 

keeping with the recommendation for heritage areas by the Department of the Interior and authorizing legislation for heritage areas established since 1996. 

This legislation is a major recommendation of the Dayton Aviation Heritage Commission, which sunsets at the end of this year and was established by Congress in 

1992. The commission was charged with the responsibility of creating a plan for the 

continuation of the preservation, conservation and interpretation of Ohio’s aviation 

heritage into the next 100 years. 

In 1992, former Dayton Area Representative Tony Hall, and I, authored the Dayton Aviation Heritage Preservation Act of 1992, which established the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park and the Dayton Aviation Heritage Commission. Since enactment, partnerships among the Federal, State, and local governments and the private sector have greatly assisted the development and preservation of the historic aviation resources in the Miami Valley. I strongly believe an 

aviation heritage area centered in Ohio is a suitable and feasible way to increase 

collaboration, promote heritage tourism, and build on the established partnerships 

among Ohio’s historic aviation resources and related sites. 

The National Aviation Heritage Area would encompass a core heritage area containing significant historic sites in Montgomery, Greene, Warren, Miami, Clark and 

Champaign counties in Ohio. Under the provisions of this legislation, the established management entity of the area would have three years after enactment to 

compile and submit to the Secretary of Interior a management plan. Included in the 

plan would be an inventory of the hundreds of aviation resources contained in the 

core area. Once included in the heritage area, sites will be eligible for technical assistance as well as historic preservation and educational and cultural funds. Also 

included would be the Neil Armstrong Air and Space Museum in Wapakoneta, Ohio, 

and the Wilbur Wright Birthplace and Museum in Millville, Indiana. These are included because they are significant sites within easy driving distance of the core 

area and would enhance the visiting experience of an aviation enthusiast visiting 

the region. 

This legislation is fully in the spirit of President Bush’s recent ‘‘Preserve America’’ 

executive order which declared, ‘‘It is the policy of the Federal Government to provide leadership in preserving America’s heritage ‘‘by promoting intergovernmental 

cooperation and partnerships for the preservation and use of historic properties.’’

The Members of Congress from Ohio have a long record of promoting the preservation of aviation sites in Central Ohio. We have previously worked together to secure funding for the U.S. Air Force Museum, the Dayton Aviation Heritage National 

Historical Park, and the National Aviation Hall of Fame. We have worked closely 

with the community to make sure that this year’s Centennial of Flight celebration 

was a huge success. 

This legislation would provide even greater support and public awareness of 

Ohio’s many contributions to aviation history and the role both civil and military 

aviation played in establishing the 20th century as the American century. It is important that these significant sites be preserved and properly interpreted for future 

generations and establishing a National Aviation Heritage Area during the 100th 

anniversary year of flight is a solid step in that direction. 

Thank you again for the opportunity to testify on behalf of this legislation. 

12

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you, Mr. Hobson. We appreciate your 

testimony. 

The Committee welcomes The Honorable Ed Whitfield to the 

Committee, who is here to speak on his bill, H.R. 646. Ed, welcome 

to the Committee. You may begin. 

STATEMENT OF HON. ED WHITFIELD, A REPRESENTATIVE IN 

CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF KENTUCKY 

Mr. WHITFIELD. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. I genuinely appreciate this opportunity to appear before the Subcommittee, and I am honored to present testimony in support of 

H.R. 646. 

I might add that Congressman John Tanner of Tennessee is a cosponsor of this legislation and has been quite supportive of it 

throughout. 

Our legislation proposes an expansion of the boundaries of Fort 

Donelson National Battlefield from its current size of 558 acres to 

2,000 acres. This expansion would allow Fort Henry in Tennessee 

and Fort Heiman in Calloway County, Kentucky, to be included in 

Fort Donelson’s boundaries and, therefore, managed by the National Park Service. Most of the land in Fort Heiman is currently 

owned by private citizens who are willing to sell the land for inclusion in Fort Donelson National Battlefield. 

In addition to allowing Fort Donelson’s boundaries to be expanded, H.R. 646 calls for a memorandum of understanding between the Forest Service and the National Park Service to allow 

Fort Henry be managed by the National Park Service. 

The inclusion of Fort Heiman in the Fort Donelson National Battlefield would provide Americans with a more thorough understanding of the importance of these three forts. Of course, John 

Tanner and I are also hoping that it will help promote economic 

opportunities and increased tourism for our area. 

Fort Henry and Fort Heiman were constructed by Confederate 

forces on the Tennessee River on opposite banks from each other. 

Fort Donelson was constructed on the Cumberland River, and all 

three were intended to guard the rivers from invasion by Union 

troops. In 1862, General Ulysses S. Grant led an attack on Fort 

Henry from both the river and the land. At the same time, Fort 

Heiman in Calloway County, Kentucky, was under attack, and 

within 10 days of those attacks, all three forts fell to the Northern 

forces. The conflict over these three forts represents one of the first 

major battles of the war. 

It also was a particularly important battle for the North, because 

when these three forts on the river fell to the Union, it was a great 

loss to the South and, more importantly, gave the North control of 

an important transportation hub of the South. It also marked the 

early stages of the South being divided by Northern forces, which 

ultimately led to the downfall of the Confederacy. 

I would also like to stress at this time that this legislation does 

not allow for seizure of private property, and does not allow the 

Park Service to claim eminent domain, but simply authorizes the 

National Park Service to acquire land by way of donations or purchase from willing sellers. 

13

We need to continue to honor Americans who perished in the 

Civil War and are buried at Fort Heiman and other battlefields 

throughout the country. As the only time in our Nation’s history 

when brother fought against brother, it is important to recognize 

and preserve the remaining battlefields and forts from this conflict 

as memorials sacred to their memory. 

Again, I want to thank you for giving this legislation your consideration and, in addition to this legislation, I also have an amendment that I’ve been talking to the staff about that would add Kentucky into the Vicksburg Campaign Trail study. I would like to continue working with your staff to add this during the markup. I 

would also add that Congressman John Tanner is supportive of 

this as well. 

I want to thank you again for this opportunity to testify on an 

important cultural and historic part of Kentucky, and also northern 

Tennessee, and I look forward to responding to any questions you 

may have. 

[The prepared statement of Hon. Ed Whitfield follows:]

Statement of The Honorable Ed Whitfield, a Representative in Congress 

from the State of Kentucky 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, for allowing me to testify regarding an issue that is very important to me: the legacy of the First District 

of Kentucky. I am honored to present H.R. 646 for your consideration, because it 

relates to a piece of our nation’s history I have always been interested in. The stories about what took place in my District during the Civil War are of great historic 

importance to western Kentucky. It is difficult to find any natives of the First District of Kentucky who do not have ancestral ties to this great national conflict. 

My legislation proposes an expansion of the boundaries of Fort Donelson National 

Battlefield from its current size of 558 acres to 2,000 acres. This expansion would 

allow Fort Henry, in Tennessee, and Fort Heiman, in Calloway County, Kentucky, 

to be included in Fort Donelson’s boundaries and, therefore, managed by the National Park Service. Most of the land in Fort Heiman is currently owned by private 

citizens who are willing to sell the land for inclusion in Fort Donelson National Battlefield. 

Fort Henry is controlled by the U.S. Forest Service. In addition to allowing Fort 

Donelson’s boundaries to be expanded, H.R. 646 calls for a Memorandum of Understanding between the Forest Service and the National Park Service to allow the remaining portion of Fort Henry to be managed by the National Park Service. Management by the Park Service would provide much-needed recognition of these historic forts and would help preserve the complete story of the battle of Fort Donelson 

for future generations. The inclusion of Fort Heiman in the Fort Donelson National 

Battlefield would not only aid in providing Americans with a more thorough understanding of how the Civil War was fought, but the recognition of this major conflict 

in western Kentucky could bring new visitors to my District and promote economic 

development in the surrounding community. 

Please allow me to give you a brief history of these three forts. Fort Henry and 

Fort Heiman were constructed by Confederate forces on the Tennessee River, on opposite banks from each other. Fort Donelson was constructed on the Cumberland 

River and all three were intended to guard the rivers from invasion by Union 

troops. In 1862, General Ulysses S. Grant led an attack on Fort Henry from both 

the river and from land, while Fort Heiman was attacked from land by General C.F. 

Smith. Confederate troops left Fort Heiman, which at that point had not been completely constructed, and moved across the river for refuge in Fort Henry. But while 

Fort Henry was still under attack by General Grant, part of it became flooded by 

the Tennessee River, and Confederate General Lloyd Tilghman, who was in command of both Fort Heiman and Fort Henry, sent most of his troops overland to Fort 

Donelson nearby and surrendered the remainder of his forces to Union control. After 

10 days of fighting between the North and the South at Fort Donelson, this third 

fortress also fell to the North. The conflict over these three forts represents one of 

the first major battles of the war. 

This also marked the first major victory in the Union’s ‘‘Anaconda Plan,’’ which 

consisted of utilizing important rivers to cut off the South’s western forces from its 

14

eastern forces. With major roads being scarce, the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers were major arteries of transportation and were heavily traversed and vital to 

the army’s movements. When the three forts on the rivers fell to the Union, it was 

a great loss to the South. The North now had control of an important transportation 

hub of the South. That marked the early stages of the South being divided by northern forces, which ultimately led to the downfall of the Confederacy. 

However, the story of Fort Heiman was not over yet. After it was abandoned by 

Union forces in 1863, Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest re-occupied Fort 

Heiman in 1864, and used his position there to ambush Union gunboats on the Tennessee River, some of which he sank, and others he captured for re-use by Southern 

forces. Using these gunboats, he led a successful raid on a major supply station of 

the Union in Johnsonville, Tennessee. However by that time the war was drawing 

to a close and it was too late for even such a successful mission to make a large 

impact on the outcome of war. 

Civil War sites outside the management and care of the National Park Service 

are becoming an endangered species. Many of them are disintegrating due to neglect 

and erosion. Sites sacred to our nation’s history are being consumed by urban 

sprawl. After the owner of Fort Heiman passed away several years ago, the land 

was subdivided, and several lots were sold for use as private residences. As this became known, concerned western Kentuckians formed a committee, consisting of local 

interest groups and concerned citizens, to save Fort Heiman from being developed 

into a housing complex. After much effort on the part of these dedicated Kentuckians to raise money and acquire grants to purchase this property, over 200 acres 

of Fort Heiman is ready to be bought, and, in turn, will be donated to the National 

Park Service in order to become a part of Fort Donelson National Battlefield. 

H.R. 646 would facilitate the forward movement of this land acquisition by allowing 

the National Park Service to accept the donated land. 

I want to stress the point that this legislation does not allow for seizure of private 

property and does not allow the Park Service to claim eminent domain, but only authorizes the National Park Service to acquire land by way of donations or purchase 

from willing sellers. There are a small number of home owners with small plots of 

land within the Fort Heiman boundaries who do not wish to sell their property at 

this time. This legislation would in no way require them to relinquish their land 

unless they choose to sell. Fort Heiman is not the only Civil War Battlefield with 

private residences within its boundaries; Gettysburg National Battlefield, for one, 

still has various private properties interspersed throughout its boundaries, with 

which the Park does not interfere. 

We need to continue to honor those Americans who perished in the Civil War and 

are buried at Fort Heiman and other battlefields throughout the country. As the 

only time in the history of our nation when brother fought against brother, it is important to recognize and preserve battlefields and forts from this conflict as memorials sacred to their memory. 

Again, I want to thank you for giving this legislation your consideration today, 

and I hope I have been able to effectively demonstrate why this project is so important to me and my constituents. In addition to this legislation, I have an amendment that would add Kentucky into the Vicksburg Campaign Trail Study, and I 

would like to work with your staff to add this during the markup, if possible. I have 

several letters of support from local officials, as well as a map of the area in question that I would like to submit for the record. I will now answer any questions you 

have. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you very much, Mr. Whitfield. I appreciate your testimony and I appreciate the attendance of everybody 

here today. 

Are there any questions of the members who have testified? 

Yes, Donna. 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. I would like to ask Congresswoman Majette, 

I understand there might be a window of opportunity open now because there’s a lot of development in the area. Is it important for 

us to have this designation now to preserve that and to have it 

done at a reasonable cost rather than having the property values 

increase? 

Ms. MAJETTE. Yes, it is. Over the last couple of decades, there 

has been substantial growth and development in the area. I moved 

15

to Georgia 20 years ago and I can personally say that things have 

changed substantially with a great deal of the development. That 

area has transitioned from a farming area to a very suburban region, moving toward an urban residential area. So having this designation in place will allow for the protection and preservation of 

that area. There is great support from the business community to 

have that done. 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. I wanted to also say for the record that you 

are fortunate to have the April 18, 2002 testimony from Brenda 

Barrett, who is the national coordinator for the heritage area, supporting the designation, stating that the National Park Service believes that those criteria have been fulfilled through the work done 

by the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area Alliance and other 

entities. We are hampered a bit today by not having the National 

Park Service here to testify, but you are fortunate to have that testimony from last year available now. 

Ms. MAJETTE. Yes. The testimony was offered last year on the 

Senate side. The bill had much more progress on the Senate side 

than it did on the House side, so we did have that testimony. Mr. 

Jordan can address that more specifically, if necessary. 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Congressman Hobson, there is an amendment that is going to be recommended by the next speaker. Have 

you had a chance to look at that? It’s a recommendation, a suggestion to authorize the Secretary to enter into cooperative agreements with public and private organizations, to provide public and 

private organizations operational assistance. 

Mr. HOBSON. We don’t have any objections to the amendment. 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. OK, thank you. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you, Mrs. Christensen. 

Mr. Souder, did you have a question? 

Mr. SOUDER. I have a couple of comments and then a couple of 

questions. 

This Committee, which I have been a member of now for a number of years—I don’t have the figure in front of me, but I believe 

we have something on the order of 48 heritage studies that Congress has cleared, and the National Park Service can do about six 

of those a year. In other words, they are backlogged somewhere 

right now of six to 8 years of things that Congress has already approved in heritage areas, because we have done these things and, 

after the first few, we just started pumping them through here. We 

have kind of taken our breath for a year and we need to look at 

this. 

The type of questions I will also ask of the second panel is as 

somebody who is a strong believer in heritage areas, but as somebody who is looking at similar things in Indiana and other parts 

of the Midwest. For those of us east of the Mississippi, we don’t 

have big wilderness areas. Heritage areas are our best way to preserve our history, both cultural and natural history. But there has 

to be some fundamental questions answered, and I didn’t hear 

some of those answered. 

One is in regard to the Arabia Mountain Area. I think one of the 

first questions is, why is this area nationally significant as opposed 

to regionally significant or locally significant, that that has to be 

16

part of any concept in a national thing. Because there are Native 

American groups all over the country, and there are endangered 

species all over the country; there are beautiful mountains all over 

the country. The question is, did this area provide something that 

was unique, that it shouldn’t be a state or a local heritage area as 

opposed to a national heritage area? 

Ms. MAJETTE. In terms of the national significance, one of the 

things that is very significant is the mining that took place in the 

Lithonia area. In fact, a number of buildings here in Washington 

were built as a result of using materials, granite and soapstone, 

from the quarries in the Lithonia area, in what would be the heritage area. So I believe that has particular significance nationally 

and not just locally or regionally. 

Mr. Jordan can address those questions or perhaps answer the 

question more to your satisfaction, but that is just one point I 

would like to make. 

Mr. SOUDER. I think as we move through the bill, our problem 

is not to be hostile to any given area, but in looking at this that 

should be national. For example, Indiana limestone is in most of 

the major buildings and is the core of rebuilding Washington, but 

we wouldn’t have a national heritage area there just because the 

limestone came from there. It’s a cluster of different things that we 

have to ask. 

Similarly to Ohio, which clearly the Dayton area, with the 

Wright Brothers and, for that matter, Holman, Indiana, and Millville, have a direct national hook. In Dayton, the Wright-Patterson 

Museum there is fabulous, as is the one in Wapakoneta. The question is, in adding the other areas around Ohio, the two questions 

I will have as this moves forward—obviously, I’m going to be very 

perceptive as a neighbor and someone who understands the heritage area. 

The question is, are the areas that are added to the Dayton facility unique in their national impact, or are they regionally important? For example, all over the country there are areas that produced airplanes. People argue over at what point and the status—

Gary, Indiana, disputes some of who did what first, or who was in 

the air first. There are locations all over the country that would 

have that. 

The second part of the Ohio question I would have—and I know 

this may be something for the second panel, too. I know you’re a 

very powerful member of the Appropriations Committee and can 

pretty much do whatever you want in regards to what we do. 

[Laughter.] 

Mr. SOUDER. That’s a tremendous respect, and you know that. 

It’s a public acknowledgment of your lead with this. 

Mr. HOBSON. I can remember something we did in Indiana. 

Mr. SOUDER. Yes. One of the questions is, should this be like a 

Midwest Aviation Heritage Area, because otherwise, if you make it 

so that it has to have a unique national thing beyond Dayton, how 

do you not include North Carolina, how do you not include Southern California, how do you not include others if it’s a national heritage area? 

Mr. HOBSON. Well, I think they might be included in their own 

national heritage area in some of those. But I think you can get 

17

too big and too unwieldy if you try to put everything under one umbrella. 

What I think we tried to do here, there are some unique things 

to this region that we would like to preserve. For example, propellers basically have been developed there, and are still manufactured in certain areas. There is the old Aeronca airfield and production facility down near Middletown, in John Boehner’s district. 

There are some things where flight tended to initially, once they 

began to develop, they learned to really fly an airplane in Ohio. It 

first flew in the air for a short period of time down in North Carolina, but actually at Huffman Prairie is where they actually 

learned to turn an airplane and learned the types of things that 

were necessary. There were a lot of people who worked on that scientific agenda. 

The other thing that’s very important that’s in the national park 

today is there was a great business relationship with Paul Lawrence Dunbar and the Wright Brothers, which showed a business 

relationship between a person of color back at that time and these 

two brothers running this bicycle shop who developed this machine 

that didn’t exist in a lot of places in this country. So we want to 

accentuate that in our region. But we didn’t want to take it so far 

that it began to impact on other parts of this country who also 

have a national heritage aviation background. I can think of California, for example, where a lot of planes were built there later on. 

But this is mainly for the early stuff, and also taking advantage 

of some of the Ohioans, like John Glenn and Neil Armstrong and 

people in this particular region of the State, or really the region of 

the country more than anything. 

Mr. SOUDER. Thank you. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you. 

Miss Bordallo. 

Ms. BORDALLO. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Rather 

than ask a question, I would like to just make a statement in support and to thank my colleagues, Mr. Hobson, Mr. Whitfield and 

Denise Majette for coming here to testify. 

I believe in the importance of protecting and educating America 

on the history of aviation and the growth of the aerospace industry. 

Two weeks ago, Mr. Chairman, I had the opportunity to attend the 

annual performance of the Face of America series at Wolf Trap, 

and this year the performance celebrated the 100th anniversary of 

flight by honoring the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historic 

Park, the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, and the Wright 

Brothers National Memorial at Kitty Hawk. It was a very, very 

awesome experience. So I go on record to support this legislation. 

A National Aviation Heritage Area would complement these 

three sites already within the system and would do much to preserve and protect the legacy of Wilbur and Orville Wright. The heritage area, as has been stated, would stand to educate future 

Americans of the greatness that the Wright Brothers accomplished 

and so many others have perfected after them. 

Finally, Mr. Chairman, aviation certainly has annexed the insular areas to the mainland. I guess I wouldn’t be here as frequently 

as I have been if it wasn’t for aviation, and I think I speak for Representative Donna Christensen as well. 

18

Mr. RADANOVICH. I think you speak for me, too. 

Ms. BORDALLO. Thank you. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you, Miss Bordallo. 

Lady and gentlemen, thank you for your testimony. You’re more 

than welcome to join us on the dais for the rest of the hearing and 

after the next panel. 

Next I would like to go to our Committee colleague, John 

Peterson of Pennsylvania, to speak on H.R. 1862. John, thank you 

for your patience and you may begin. 

STATEMENT BY THE HONORABLE JOHN E. PETERSON, A 

REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF 

PENNSYLVANIA 

Mr. PETERSON. Thank you, Chairman Radanovich, and Ranking 

Member Christensen. I want to thank you for this opportunity and 

I want to thank our panelists who came here from Pennsylvania 

that you will hear from later. 

I would like to begin by stating that in 1858 Colonel Edwin 

Drake was sent by a group of New England investors to Titusville, 

Pennsylvania, to see if there was any hope for drilling for oil. 

Drake had no experience to fit him for this task. A man 40 years 

of age, he had spent his life as a clerk and a railway conductor. 

It was months before Drake succeeded in getting together the tools, 

the engine and the rigging necessary to bore his well. He had difficulty in getting a driller who knew how to manipulate them. 

However, in August of 1859, with odds against him, Drake proceeded to hand-dig this well that marked the first commercial oil 

drilling in history. He actually hand dug the well, a task that I 

guess not many of us could do, 68 feet deep. Oil had been recognized as a potentially significant substance long before Drake’s 

well, with the attention of the world to this corner of northwestern 

Pennsylvania. Many accounts of the valleys of the Allegheny and 

its tributaries tell of springs and streams whose surfaces were 

often covered with a thick oily substance. Indeed, the Oil Creek 

Valley was so named even before Drake’s discovery. 

Drake’s primary contribution to the industry was in drilling the 

first well for the express use of producing oil. This discovery of oil 

sparked a mad rush to the area between Titusville and Oil City, 

with whole towns and hundreds of new oil wells quickly appearing. 

Commercial drilling quickly spread to other parts of the country 

and eventually throughout the world. The reason they went there 

first was because oil was continually seeping in the springs and the 

streams and it was just oozing up out of the ground. 

In 1994, the area that had been called ‘‘The Valley that changed 

the world’’ was officially designated a State Heritage Park by the 

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Currently, there are six separate 

national historic districts located within the State Heritage Park 

boundary. H.R. 1862, the Oil Region National Heritage Area, 

would unite these districts and coordinate a Federal/State partnership so vital to preserving and promoting this region. Indeed, it is 

now time to recognize the national significance of this great region 

by designating the Oil Region National Heritage Area. 

19

National heritage areas link all of the many historic sites, facilities and related tours and educational programs of the community. 

They are places where historic natural, cultural and recreational 

resources combine to form a nationally distinctive landscape that 

tells the story of its residents. Through the establishment of the Oil 

Region National Heritage Area, we are allowing this story to be 

told through the maintenance of exhibits and the restoration of 

buildings, the development of educational and recreational opportunities, and most importantly, an increase in public awareness 

about the impact that this region had on the world and how it 

changed the world. 

The oil region of northwestern Pennsylvania is rich in culture 

and natural and scenic beauty, historic communities, including 

many Victorian mansions and recreational opportunities. I am fortunate enough to live in one of those Victorian mansions that was 

actually started construction in 1859, the same year that Colonel 

Drake dug the Drake well. 

The interesting part is, it was owned by a Samuel P. Wilson, who 

made his money from being a physician and an oil producer and 

he actually produced the oil lease that came forward after Drake 

well was dug in that immediate area. He had an oil lease. 

My home, when I bought it, had a two-inch gas line coming into 

it that no gas was in, but that fueled the first electrified home in 

that part of the country because he had plenty of gas and he had 

an electric generator. My shed used to be the first electric generating facility in that part of the country. 

Oil fueled the industrial revolution and modernized America’s 

transportation industry. It is vital that we preserve and enhance 

the heritage of areas such as this, that have had such an impact 

on our Nation and the world at large. H.R. 1862 would add a great 

deal to the region, both economically and culturally, with minimal 

Federal Government involvement. An enhanced partnership with 

the Federal Government will greatly assist the Commonwealth of 

Pennsylvania, volunteer organizations, private businesses and the 

oil industry, in promoting the heritage of the region and stimulating economic development. The bill bars the use of Federal funds 

for the acquisition of property. Moreover, Federal funds cannot be 

used to pay more than 50 percent of an activity’s total cost. 

H.R. 1862 would not take control away from the community but 

would instead enhance local objectives while relying on the knowledge and expertise of the Department of Interior in preserving national historic areas. 

Today it is clear that Pennsylvania is no longer a major contributor to U.S. oil production. Oil Creek now runs clear. Hillsides that 

once were oil soaked before the boom now exist as natural oak forests, and the example of that is Oil Creek State Park, which is in 

the heart of this. In their slide presentation, they show these hills 

with nothing but oil derricks and snags and dead trees. There is 

not one blade of grass, no greenery, and today that is—It looks like 

a virgin oak forest because it’s 150 years later and it’s a very 

mature oak forest and very beautiful. 

Nevertheless, this region’s role in kicking off a global industry is 

extremely notable. All major oil companies have their roots here, 

including Sunoco, Standard Oil, Texaco—the list goes on. Every 

20

major oil company started its roots in Titusville or Oil City, Pennsylvania, Venango County. 

There is no doubt that the region has much heritage to share and 

to celebrate, but there is still much work to be done if the story 

of this great region is to be fully appreciated. A cooperative effort 

of resources to preserve the area and fully promote its economic development is needed. H.R. 1862 strives to ensure that the story of 

oil in this oil region lives on. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Peterson follows:]

Statement by The Honorable John E. Peterson, a Representative in 

Congress from the State of Pennsylvania 

In 1858, Colonel Edwin Drake was sent by a group of New England investors to 

Titusville, Pennsylvania, to see if there was any hope for drilling oil. Drake had no 

experience to fit him for his task. A man forty years of age, he had spent his life 

as a clerk and a railway conductor. It was months before Drake succeeded in getting 

together the tools, engine, and rigging necessary to bore his well, and he had difficulty in getting a driller who knew how to manipulate them. However, in August 

of 1859—with the odds against him—Drake proceeded to hand-dig the well that 

marked the first commercial oil drilling in history. 

Oil had been recognized as a potentially significant substance long before Drake’s 

well called the attention of the world to this corner of Northwestern Pennsylvania. 

Many accounts of the valleys of the Allegheny and its tributaries tell of springs and 

streams whose surfaces were covered with a thick oily substance. Indeed, the Oil 

Creek valley was so-named even before Drake’s discovery. Drake’s primary contribution to the industry was in drilling the first well for the express use of producing 

oil. This discovery of oil sparked a mad rush to the area between Titusville and Oil 

City, with whole towns and hundreds of new oil wells quickly appearing. Commercial drilling quickly spread to other parts of the country and eventually throughout 

the world. 

In 1994, the area that has been called the ‘‘valley that changed the world’’ was 

officially designated a State Heritage Park by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. 

Currently, there are six separate national historic districts located within the State 

Heritage Park boundary. H.R. 1862—the Oil Region National Heritage Act—would 

unite these districts and coordinate a federal-state partnership so vital to preserving 

and promoting this region. Indeed, it is now time to recognize the national significance of this great region by designating the Oil Region a National Heritage Area. 

National Heritage Areas link all of the many historic sites, facilities, and related 

tours and educational programs of the community. They are places where historic, 

natural, cultural, and recreational resources combine to form a nationally distinctive 

landscape that tells the story of its residents. Through the establishment of the Oil 

Region National Heritage Area, we are allowing this story to be told through the 

maintenance of exhibits and the restoration of buildings, the development of educational and recreational opportunities, and—most importantly—an increase in public awareness about the impact that this region has had on the world. 

The Oil Region of northwestern Pennsylvania is rich in cultural traditions, natural and scenic beauty, historic communities including many Victorian mansions, 

and recreational opportunities. Oil fueled the industrial revolution and modernized 

America’s transportation industry. It is vital that we preserve and enhance the heritage of areas such as this that have had such an impact on our nation and the 

world at large. 

H.R. 1862 would add a great deal to the region, both economically and culturally, 

with minimal federal government involvement. An enhanced partnership with the 

federal government will greatly assist the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, volunteer organizations, and private businesses in promoting the heritage of the region 

and stimulating economic development. 

This bill bars use of federal funds for the acquisition of real property. Moreover, 

federal funds cannot be used to pay more than 50% of an activity’s total cost. 

H.R. 1862 would not take control away from the community but would instead 

enhance local objectives while relying on the knowledge and expertise of the Department of the Interior in preserving national historic areas. 

Today it is clear that Pennsylvania is no longer a major contributor to U.S. oil 

production. Oil Creek now runs clear. Hillsides that once were oil-soaked before the 

boom now exist as mature oak forests. Nevertheless, this region’s role in kicking off 

the global industry is extremely notable. All major oil companies have their roots 

21

here, including Sunoco, Standard Oil, and Texaco; and the discovery of commercial 

drilling in this area has added millions upon millions of dollars to the wealth of the 

United States. 

There is no doubt that the region has much heritage to share and to celebrate. 

But there is still much work to be done if the story of this great region is to be 

fully appreciated. A cooperative effort of resources to preserve the area and fully 

promote its economic development is needed. This bill strives to ensure that the 

story of this Oil Region lives on. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you very much, Mr. Peterson. 

With that, we will move on to our next panel, the second panel, 

which consists of a number of people testifying on all of these five 

bills. 

Miss Amanda Wright Lane, Commissioner of the Dayton Aviation Heritage Commission in Cincinnati, Ohio; The Honorable 

Larry Whitaker, McLean County Judge, from Calhoun County, 

Kentucky; Mr. Kelly Jordan, Chair of Arabia Mountain Heritage 

Area Alliance, from Atlanta, Georgia; Mr. Robert Murray, Chairman of Venango County Commissioners, Franklin, Pennsylvania; 

Ms. Roxanne Hitchcock, Board Member of the Oil Heritage Region 

in Pennsylvania; Mr. Peyton Knight, Legislative Director of the 

American Policy Center, Warrenton, Virginia; and Mr. Daniel Clifton, Federal Affairs Manager, Americans for Tax Reform, Washington, D.C. I hope you all can fit at that table. 

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the Committee. I want to give you a few ground rules here. What we would 

like to do is hear from each and every one of you regarding your 

bills, and then open up the full panel to questions from Members 

on the dais afterwards. If you will be mindful of our clock, we 

would like to think that everybody can say everything they need 

to say within 5 minutes. The lights run green, yellow, red. Green 

is go, yellow is speed up, just like a traffic light, and red is stop. 

So please conform to that 5-minute rule. 

Your written testimony will be submitted for the record. 

If you want to speak off the cuff or ad lib this presentation, that’s 

fine with me. With that, we will go from my left to right. 

We are honored to have Miss Amanda Wright Lane, who I understand is a descendant of the Wright Brothers, who is here to speak 

regarding H.R. 280, which is the National Aviation Heritage Area. 

Miss Lane, welcome to the Committee. You may begin your 

testimony. 

STATEMENT OF AMANDA WRIGHT LANE, SPOKESPERSON, THE 

WRIGHT FAMILY, AND COMMISSIONER, DAYTON AVIATION 

HERITAGE COMMISSION, CINCINNATI, OHIO 

Ms. LANE. Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, my 

name is Amanda Wright Lane and I am the great grandniece of 

Orville and Wilbur Wright. It is my privilege to testify here today 

in support of H.R. 280, the National Aviation Heritage Act. I do so 

as a member of the Dayton/Miami Valley community and as a 

representative of the Wright family. 

Before I go any further, I want to thank you for the special backdrop today. It makes me feel right at home. 

I offer my testimony with three specific points in mind. First, 

Ohio is the birthplace of aviation. Aviation began there 100 years 

22

ago, and throughout time, the industry has been sustained and further refined to be as it is today because of what has taken place 

in Dayton and the area. 

It is no coincidence the home of the world’s first pilots, my Uncle 

Orv and Uncle Wil, and the home of the world’s first man to walk 

on the Moon, Neil Armstrong, are located within 60 miles of each 

other. Today, we find history being made again at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base as its scientists and engineers create aviation 

break-throughs in the form of invisible airplanes and stealth technology. Our accomplishments are many; our history is rich and full 

and worthy of National Heritage Area designation. 

Second, we are a community that has always passionately supported aviation and aviation history. We have lived it, and we have 

memorialized it in many of our local institutions, including Aviation Trail, the National Aviation Hall of Fame, and John W. Berry 

Sr. Wright Brothers Aviation Center at Carillon Park, just to name 

a few. We have provided both moral as well as financial support 

to these institutions. 

Last, I come to testify before you because now we wish to share 

the nationally significant stories of Dayton and the Miami Valley 

with others that share a passion for aviation. We believe it is an 

important part of American history and see it as a story that explains one of mankind’s most impressive achievements—powered 

flight. 

With passage of the National Aviation Heritage Act, we can tell 

this most important story in a way that is more fitting and more 

effective than if we do it on our own. Our aviation heritage is not 

just a national story. It’s a world story. In my travels throughout 

the nation, as the representative of the Wright Family in this centennial year, I have experienced first hand the interest expressed 

by many in the incredible history of my great grand uncles and 

those who followed in their footsteps. 

I see my role in this testimony today as one of color analyst, and 

my intention is to help you understand how our unique aviation 

heritage inspires citizens in the greater Dayton area and beyond. 

Aviation and aeronautical science were born in Dayton at Uncle 

Orv and Uncle Wil’s bicycle shop at the turn of the last century. 

I would like to share with you now the world’s first pilot’s description of flight over Huffman Prairie: 

‘‘The machine is in motion. You take your seat at the center of 

the machine beside the operator. He slips the cable and you shoot 

forward. Before reaching the end of the track, the operator moves 

the rudder and the machine lifts from the ground like a kite. The 

ground under you is a perfect blur at first, but as you rise, the objects become clearer. If you did not take the precaution to fasten 

your hat before starting, you have probably lost it by this time. The 

operator stops the motor while still high in the air. The machine 

comes down, and after sliding a few feet, comes to a rest. The 

motor close beside you kept up an almost deafening roar during the 

whole flight, yet in your excitement, you didn’t notice it until it 

stopped.’’ Orville Wright, September, 1908. 

In July of this year, I had the opportunity to understand the moment that Uncle Orv was describing when I witnessed a flight over 

Huffman Prairie during Dayton’s Centennial of Flight Celebration. 

23

While the circumstances were different, the exhilaration of that experience was the same. Instead of Uncle Orv at the controls, it was 

former Senator and U.S. astronaut Jake Garn, piloting a Wright 

Flyer high over the historic field, which is now a part of our National Park System. His flying machine was not a Wright original 

but, rather, a machine designed and built by Utah State University 

engineering students and their professors as a tribute to the 100th 

anniversary of flight. It was constructed out of the world’s most 

modern composite technology materials, but in the air it looked like 

muslin, wire, spruce, and a dab of glue. Thank goodness, Uncle Orv 

recorded his feelings about those early flights, for when Senator 

Garn taxied to a stop, he could barely speak. With great emotion 

and moist eyes, he tried to tell reporters and spectators what a joy 

it was to fly in a machine like that, with a stick and rudder. Moments like that are a perfect testimony as to why America should 

celebrate man’s ability to overcome the endless obstacles to fly, and 

why a National Aviation Heritage Area is a wonderful idea. 

The people of Ohio are fully engaged and they are ready to continue the work of preservation, conservation, interpretation and 

protection of our Nation’s most unique and truly American legacy: 

the story of our history of aviation. Our collaborative, communitybased effort began in Dayton over 20 years ago with the establishment of the Aviation Trail. That movement grew and, in 1992, Congress created a partnership park that will be one of the focal points 

of the National Aviation Heritage Area. 

In closing, I would like for you to consider one amendment to the 

proposed legislation involving the assistance the Secretary may 

provide to public and private organizations within the Heritage 

Area. The proposed change will more clearly define the roles of all 

parties described in H.R. 280. This suggested amendment is based 

on language found in P.L. 104-333, which pertains to the Ohio and 

Erie Canal National Heritage Corridor. This authority has proven 

exceptionally effective in creating and sustaining a wide variety of 

public and private partnerships. I have included suggested language as an attachment to these remarks. 

I want to thank Congressman Hobson for introducing and vigorously supporting this legislation. 

[The prepared statement of Amanda Wright Lane follows:]

Statement of Amanda Wright Lane, Spokesperson,

The Wright Family 

Mr. Chairman, and members of the Subcommittee, my name is Amanda Wright 

Lane and I am the great grandniece of Orville and Wilbur Wright. It is my privilege 

to testify here today in support of H.R. 280, the National Aviation Heritage Act. I 

do so not only as a member of the Dayton/Miami Valley community, but also as a 

representative of the Wright Family. 

I offer my testimony with three specific points in mind. First, Ohio is the birthplace of aviation. Aviation began there a hundred years ago, and throughout that 

time, the industry was sustained and further refined to be what we know it to be 

today because of what has taken place in Dayton and the surrounding region. It is 

no coincidence that the home of the world’s first pilots, my great granduncles, 

Wilbur and Orville, and the home of the world’s first man to walk on the moon, Neil 

Armstrong, are located within 60 miles of each other. Today, we find aviation history being made at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, as its scientists and engineers 

create aviation breakthroughs such as ‘‘invisible airplanes’’ and stealth technology. 

Our accomplishments are many, our history is rich and full, and worthy of National 

Heritage Area designation. Second, we are a community that has always passionately supported aviation and aviation history. We have lived it, and we have 

24

memorialized it in many of our local institutions, including the Aviation Trail, the 

National Aviation Hall of Fame and the John W. Berry Sr. Wright Brothers Aviation Center at Carillon Park, just to name a few. We have provided both moral, as 

well as financial, support to these institutions. Lastly, I come to testify before you 

because now we wish to share the nationally significant stories of Dayton and the 

Miami Valley with others who have the same passion about aviation as we do. We 

believe it is an important part of American History and see it as a story that explains one of mankind’s most impressive achievements-powered flight. With passage 

of the National Aviation Heritage Act we can tell this most important story in a 

way that is more fitting and more effective than if we do it on our own. Our heritage 

in aviation is not just a national story, but one that is of interest to many around 

the world. In my travels throughout the Nation this year, I have experienced first 

hand the interest expressed by many in the aviation history of my great granduncles and those who followed in their footsteps. 

I see my role in this testimony today as one of a ‘‘color analyst’’ and my intention 

is to help you understand some of the specific examples of how our aviation heritage 

inspires citizens in the greater Dayton area, and beyond. Aviation and aeronautical 

science were born in Dayton, in Uncle Orv and Uncle Wil’s bicycle shop, at the turn 

of the last century. I’d like to share with you now the world’s first pilot’s description 

of flight over Huffman Prairie: 

‘‘The engine is put in motion...You take your seat at the center of the machine beside the operator. He slips the cable and you shoot forward. Before 

reaching the end of the track the operator moves the front rudder and the 

machine lifts from the ground like a kite...The ground under you is at first 

a perfect blur, but as you rise, the objects become clearer...If you did not 

take the precaution to fasten your hat before starting, you have probably 

lost it by this time. The operator stops the motor while still high in the air. 

The machine comes down...and after sliding a few feet, comes to a rest’’.The 

motor close beside you kept up an almost deafening roar during the whole 

flight, yet in your excitement, you didn’t notice it until it stopped.’’ Orville 

Wright, September 1908

In July of this year I had the opportunity to understand the moment Uncle Orv 

was describing when I witnessed a flight over Huffman Prairie, during Dayton’s 

Centennial of Flight Celebration. While the circumstances were different, the exhilaration of that experience was the same. Instead of Uncle Orv at the controls, it was 

former Senator and U.S. Astronaut Jake Garn in a Wright Flyer, in the air over 

the historic field which is now a part of our National Park system. His flying machine was not a Wright original, but rather a machine designed and built by Utah 

State University engineering students and their professors as a tribute to the 100th 

anniversary of flight. It was built with some of the world’s most modern composite 

technology materials, but in the air, the machine looked like it was made of muslin, 

wire, spruce, and a dab of glue. Thank goodness, Uncle Orv recorded his feelings 

about those early flights. When Senator Garn taxied to a stop, he could barely 

speak. With great emotion and moist eyes, he tried to tell reporters and spectators 

what a joy it was to fly in a machine like that, with a stick and rudder. It is those 

feelings of passion, as expressed by the senator that demonstrate the kind of passion 

I’m talking about. 

American passion for aviation soars in many different directions. In the Dayton 

area alone this summer, we hosted authors, artists, photographers, historians, educators, engineers, and scientists...all who have an intense interest in looking to the 

skies. Celebrities like John Travolta, and heroes like Senator John Glenn, Dr. Neil 

Armstrong, and the Tuskegee Airmen participated in Dayton’s and other celebrations as their personal tribute to history and flying. And this year, the Dayton Air 

Show was attended by an unprecedented crowd that came from around the world 

to enjoy performances by the world’s best pilots... the Thunderbirds, the Blue Angels, and the Canadian Snowbirds to name a few. 

The celebrations were magnificent and grand. Thousands of people were on hand 

this 4th of July when President Bush visited Ohio to talk about the role of aviation 

has played in our nation’s freedom and peacekeeping efforts. His trip to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base was a salute to the Base’s historic role in aviation’s past, 

present, and future. 

In 2003, the dream of flight has and continues to be celebrated from New York 

City to Pasadena, Osh Kosh to Kitty Hawk. But for my family and I, the most significant show of interest in our heritage sometimes...often times, comes in the smaller events in this historic year. In May, I spoke to a Cincinnati 4th grade class on 

the subject of why the Wright Brothers were successful in unlocking the secrets of 

flight when others weren’t. After my talk, many of the kids surrounded me, all asking questions. As they slowly drifted away, I was left alone with my model of the 

25

1903 Flyer and one last boy. He was standing back a bit, with his hands in his uniform pants pockets, and he was wearing glasses that were bigger than he was. 

When I smiled at him, he moved forward, picked up the tiny flying machine, and 

said, ‘‘Mrs. Amanda Wright Lane, this stuff just fascinates me!’’ Passion in the 

smallest package... 

Moments like that one are the perfect testimony as to why our nation is celebrating man’s ability to overcome the endless obstacles to fly and why a National 

Aviation Heritage Area is a wonderful idea. The people of Ohio are fully engaged, 

and they are ready to continue the work of preservation, conservation, interpretation, and protection of our nation’s most unique and truly American legacy...the 

story of our history of aviation. Our collaborative, community-based effort began in 

Dayton over 20 years ago with the establishment of the Aviation Trail. That effort 

grew and with the help of Congress in 1992, we created a partnership National Park 

that will be one of the focal points of the National Aviation Heritage Area. With 

passage of HR280 we can include other partners and sites that are an important 

part of America’s aviation legacy. That’s why the designation of a National Aviation 

Heritage Area is so important to us all. There is still much to be done, but fortunately, there are many of us in Dayton and the entire proposed heritage area that 

are willing to do this important work. 

And needless to say, they are passionate about it! 

I want to leave you with some words of my grandfather, Milton Wright, from the 

dedication of his uncles’ 1903 Wright Flyer to the Smithsonian Institution in 1948. 

These words remind me of that young 4th grader: 

‘‘The aeroplane means many things to many people. To some it may be a vehicle 

for romantic adventure or simply quick transportation. To others it may be a military weapon or a means of relieving suffering. To me it represents the fabric, the 

glue, the spruce, the sheet metal, and the wire which, put together under commonplace circumstances but with knowledge and skill, gave substance to dreams and 

fulfillment to hopes.’’

In closing, I would like for you to consider one amendment to the proposed legislation involving the assistance the Secretary may provide to the public and private 

organizations within the Heritage Area. The proposed change will more clearly define the roles of all parties as described in H.R. 280. This suggested amendment is 

based on language found in PL 104-333 which pertains to the Ohio and Erie Canal 

National Heritage Corridor. This authority has proven exceptionally effective in creating and sustaining a wide variety of public/private partnerships. I have included 

suggested language as an attachment to these remarks. 

I want to thank Congressman Hobson for introducing and vigorously supporting 

this legislation. He has demonstrated outstanding leadership on behalf of his constituents. I want to thank you Mr. Chairman and the other members of the Subcommittee for allowing me the opportunity and privilege to offer my testimony to 

you today. 

ATTACHMENT

SUGGESTED AMENDMENT TO H.R. 280

Section 107. Technical and Financial Assistance; Other Federal Agencies. 

Redesignate subsection (b) as subsection (c) and insert the following new subsection: 

‘‘(b) Other Assistance-The Secretary may provide to the public and private 

organizations within the Heritage Area, including the management entity 

for the Heritage Area, operational assistance as appropriate to support the 

implementation of the Management Plan, subject to the availability of appropriations. The Secretary is authorized to enter into cooperative agreements with public and private organizations for the purposes of implementing this subsection.’’

Summary of comments: The Wright Family strongly supports the creation of the 

National Aviation Heritage Area as proposed in H.R. 280. A number of nationally 

significant sites exist within the proposed area, and should be made available for 

all citizens to experience. Expressions of support for the establishment of the National Aviation Heritage Area have been received by the Wright family from not just 

residents of Dayton but from citizens throughout the Nation. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you very much, Miss Lane. 

26

Next is The Honorable Larry Whitaker, who is here to speak on 

H.R. 646. Mr. Whitaker, welcome to the Committee. You may 

begin your testimony. 

STATEMENT OF HON. LARRY B. WHITAKER, McLEAN COUNTY 

JUDGE, CALHOUN, KENTUCKY 

Judge WHITAKER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Mrs. Christensen, 

and members of the Committee. After sitting and listening to the 

former speaker, I must say that my father was in the Air Force 

and I was born at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, so maybe I 

should be speaking to her bill instead of yours, Congressman. However, I will speak to the bill that is before us today, introduced by 

Congressman Whitfield. 

I trust that my testimony before the Committee today is worthy 

of the efforts that Judge Elkins, the Calloway County Fiscal Court, 

friends of ‘‘Save Fort Heiman’’, our congressional delegation, has 

expended for over 20 years. In 1978, Fort Heiman was listed on the 

National Register, and it has been through a long period of time 

that they have worked very hard to come to this day, actually. 

I would make the remark that in my written testimony there is 

an error. I believe I attributed a paraphrase to Chairman Pombo 

that actually should have been to Representative Miller regarding 

the classrooms. I apologize for that. However, certainly he would 

have said it if he had the chance, or perhaps members of the Committee would have. 

I am here as a representative of West Kentucky Corporation. The 

West Kentucky Corporation is a regional entity. We were created 

by the Kentucky legislature. We encompass 45 counties, both within the 1st and 2nd Congressional Districts of Kentucky. Even 

though Calloway County and Fort Heiman are nearly 100 miles 

away from McLean County where I serve, they are part of the constituency of West Kentucky Corporation. They are a part of the 

area development districts which also help and oversee the land 

and water moneys that have made this available. 

Just briefly, within the last few years, almost a million dollars 

has been raised by the Friends of Fort Heiman, as well as moneys 

that have flowed into our community from the land and water conservation fund. So I thank you specifically for those, as well as 

some TEA-21 moneys that have come our way. 

Where we are today with Fort Heiman is that the West Kentucky Corporation has, with Steve Zay and Debbie Spenser, worked 

very diligently to actually be the synergy. You have my written testimony and I will not go into the historic accounts that the Congressman has provided, as well as the National Park Service, but 

from a local perspective, I am here to represent to the Committee 

that local government, the local community, is very much in favor 

of this bill. Again, we have worked hard and I do believe it is 

through the efforts of Murray State University, as well as those 

local elected officials, such as myself, who are ready to partner with 

the National Park Service and also with the Members of Congress. 

It is a rare opportunity that we have back home to sit down and 

work through the details and come together as governments, as 

units of government, whether it be State, Federal or county governVerDate 0ct 09 2002 09:35 Feb 20, 2004 Jkt 088533 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 J:\DOCS\89384.TXT HRESOUR1 PsN: KATHY
27

ment, and agree upon ideals that better and enhance our communities. 

One of the members had asked earlier about the national significance perhaps of the legislation that you all are considering today. 

The inclusion of Fort Heiman by the expansion of Fort Donelson’s 

boundaries would bring a national battlefield into Land Between 

the Lakes National Recreation Area. I think that with the Land 

Between the Lakes area and the visitors that we receive from 

across the country, this is also a very nationally significant move. 

As I mentioned, regionalism is very important where we are. As 

Congressman Miller’s remarks regarding the classrooms, with the 

passage of the Civil War Battlefield Preservation Act of 2002, my 

father-in-law has a farm in southern Trigg County, near a community that’s called Free State. It is called Free State because it’s 

where African-Americans rejoined and were able to farm and live 

after the Civil War. It’s just a few miles down the south row to 

Donelson and Dover, TN. I have been there several times, have 

taken my children there, went to the interpretive center by the National Park Service. However, that was just one fort. What I 

learned and when I began to study from that was that it would require not only Fort Donelson, Fort Henry, Fort Heiman, but certainly a classroom. 

I would encourage the favorable expression of this Committee on 

House Resolution 646. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

[The prepared statement of Larry B. Whitaker follows:]

Statement of The Honorable Larry B. Whitaker, McLean County Judge,

Calhoun, Kentucky 

Thank you Chairman Radanovich and members of the Committee for allowing me 

the opportunity to come before you to speak on this very worthwhile project. For 

over 20 years, an effort has been underway to preserve Fort Heiman. 

• Nearly three years ago, a ‘‘Save Fort Heiman’’ Committee was formed which included representation from the KY Department of Local Government, KY Department of Transportation, Kentucky Heritage Council, Sons of the Confederacy, Murray State University, Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, West Kentucky Corporation and included Calloway County Judge Executive Larry Elkins, McLean County Judge Executive Larry Whitaker, State 

Senator Jackson, State Representative Buckingham, Michael Pape with Congressman Whitfield’s office, and T.C. Freeman with Congressman Bunning’s office as active members. Representatives of Congressman Tanner, the Civil War 

Trust, and the Tennessee State Civil War group have also been kept abreast 

of the efforts. 

• Community Awareness Meetings have been held in both Calloway County, Kentucky, and Dover, Tennessee. There are over 300 citizens who have expressed 

strong support for the initiative in writing and are kept abreast of the happenings through e-mails and website. 

Over the past two years, a website has been created, three grants written, as well 

as site visits conducted by numerous agencies and individuals. 

• In 2002, a grant of $600,000 from TEA-21 funds was received for land acquisition. The 20% match came in the form of land donation as well as donated labor 

for disking and seeding the primary property of 25 acres (with a value of 

$25,000); Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife agreed to donate seed to 

return the area to native grasses and the Calloway County Fiscal Court has 

promised assistance in removal of scrub trees, undergrowth and road maintenance to the site. 

• An additional $75,000 grant was received from Land and Water Conservation 

and in 2003, the Kentucky Heritage Land Conservation Fund Board awarded 

$105,000 for surveys, appraisals and land acquisition with the understanding 

that an additional $250,000 would be available in the future for additional land 

acquisition. 

28

• West Kentucky Corporation and Murray State University have agreed to provide office space until which time a structure can be built on site. 

• On September 23rd, tentatively, a check presentation will be held in Murray 

for the purchase of the land from Dr. Jackson. 

• West Kentucky Cooperation has been and continues to be the synergy behind 

this initiative to save Ft. Heiman. 

Mr. Chairman, I have read many of the recent proceedings of the Resources Committee in an attempt to familiarize myself with the spirit and intent of federal policy 

that the Committee has promulgated. The spirit and intent of previous action by 

this Committee demonstrates your commitment to preserving our nation’s historic 

Civil War battlefields national treasures. With that, I respectfully defer the more 

pertinent historic information attributed to H.R. 646 to the National Park Service 

and Congressman Whitfield’s remarks. Rather, my testimony and appearance this 

afternoon is directed toward the example of cooperation that can exist between government, all levels of government, and our respective constituency. The opportunity 

to build upon that cooperative spirit is present at this very moment with the passage of H.R. 646. 

We ask that the federal government, through its representation on The Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation and Public Land to partner with entities 

of local, regional, and state government; thereby furthering the interests of the general public through the long-term preservation and interpretation of Ft. Heiman. 

Passage of H.R. 646 conveys the federal government’s approval of local governments cooperating, regionally, without regard to geo-political or socioeconomic differences and the responsibility we both must acknowledge when such an initiative 

arises from the a local initiative that has garner overwhelming public support. 

The boundary expansion of Ft. Donelson so stated in H.R. 646 to include Ft. 

Heiman will expand the classroom at this site for future generations and our national history (to paraphrase Resources Committee Chairman Richard Pombo, 

Chairman comments upon the passage of H.R. 5125 (Civil War Battlefield Preservation Act of 2002). the committee’s response to a local initiative, which they have already garner overwhelming public support. Please give H.B. 646 your greatest consideration. 

The following Resolution, which has been adopted by local governmental entities, 

is further testimony of the importance of my appearance here today: 

RESOLUTION

HB 646—EXPANDING THE BOUNDARIES OF FORT DONELSON NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD TO

INCLUDE FORT HEIMAN

Whereas: Fort Heiman has great historical significance in the Civil War effort 

and the trilogy of Forts Heiman, Henry, and Donelson served as a one of the more 

significant strategic engagements early in the War Between the Sates. 

Whereas: Fort Heiman has been purchased by a development group and divided 

into lots and is at risk of becoming a subdivision. 

Whereas: The developer and many individual property owners have expressed an 

interest in selling their properties for the purpose turning the area into a National 

Historic Site. 

Whereas: The community through grants and other sources to purchase the land 

to be held in trust by Calloway County, Kentucky, with the hope to give the property to the National Park has raised over $1 million. 

Whereas: The National Park Service has determined this site to be culturally, 

historically and environmentally significant. 

Therefore: We, the citizens interested in the preservation of Fort Heiman, respectively request the Committee’s passing of H.B. 646 and the expansion of the 

boundaries of Fort Donelson National Battlefield to include the land area of Fort 

Heiman and provide the necessary funding to interpret the site. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you, Mr. Whitaker. I appreciate your 

testimony. 

Next, speaking on the same bill, is Mr. Kelly Jordan. Mr. Jordan, 

welcome to the Committee. You may begin your testimony. 

29

STATEMENT OF KELLY JORDAN, CHAIR, ARABIA MOUNTAIN 

HERITAGE AREA ALLIANCE, ATLANTA, GEORGIA 

Mr. JORDAN. Thank you, Chairman Radanovich, members of the 

Committee. I am Kelly Jordan—

Mr. RADANOVICH. Forgive me, but you’re not speaking on the 

same bill. 

Mr. JORDAN. I was hesitant to correct you. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. You are here to speak on H.R. 1618, the Arabia Mountain Heritage Area. Welcome. 

Mr. JORDAN. Thank you, sir. 

I am Kelly Jordan, Chair of the Arabia Mountain Heritage Area 

Alliance. I want to thank you all for having me here today. In particular, I want to thank my Congresswoman, Denise Majette, for 

her introduction of this bill and her leadership that has led us to 

have, as you well know, nine other sponsors here in the House. We 

very much appreciate that, Congresswoman. 

Time is short and, Chairman Radanovich, I’m going to take you 

up on your offer to extemporize a little and try to answer a couple 

of questions I have already heard come up so far today. 

Let me first say just who we are and what we are with Arabia 

Mountain. We are a very compact area, where an amazing variety 

of industrial and commercial and historic and environmental resources all come together, only ten miles long, comprising parts of 

three counties that now have over a million people within them. 

Yet still, we have the documented Native American historic sites 

that the Congresswoman referred to. 

We still have the Civil War history, where General Sherman 

camped on his way home from Atlanta. We still have the original 

settler houses of the first Europeans in the area that were built in 

the 1820s and 1830s, descendants of Revolutionary War veterans. 

Of special significance, we have the granite quarry industries 

that the Congresswoman referred to that began after the Civil War 

at Arabia and Lithonia. These quarries employed generations of 

immigrants to the United States—Scottish, Irish, Welsh, and later 

African-Americans. And it’s true, that stone from this quarry went 

all over this United States. They are in the academies at Annapolis 

and West Point; they’re in the Rayburn Office Building here. 

They’re in the piers of the George Washington Bridge in New York. 

We are pleased that the industries that are active in the area 

today, such as Oldcastle Materials, which is represented here 

today, Hanson, LaFarge, they’re all participating in our alliance. 

We have numerous historical, industrial and commercial buildings 

in the Arabia area that are listed on the National Register and 

have historic places already. As we mentioned, we have the last remaining dairy farm that we have preserved, which was an area 

that was once the dairy farm capital of our entire State and region. 

Then we have Arabia Mountain itself, which is home to federally 

listed endangered and threatened plant species, fantastic displays 

of wildflowers, if you ever go there. Then we have Panola 

Mountain, which was mentioned, a national natural landmark. 

That’s not an easy designation to come by. It recognizes that many 

people regard it as the finest rock outcrop in the eastern United 

States. 

30

In sum, our very compact heritage area displays the entire history of this part of the United States, and at the same time preserves a unique environmental heritage. We think it’s a historical 

miracle that such an opportunity exists only 20 minutes from 

downtown Atlanta, given the growth of the Atlanta region. 

So, to put our enthusiasm for it to the test, we went ahead and 

commissioned, at our expense, a 9-month long study process as to 

whether we would qualify to be considered a national heritage 

area. In her statement, which I do ask be added to the record, if 

you please, before the Senate Subcommittee on National Parks, on 

April 18th, 2002, Linda Barrett, who is the national coordinator for 

heritage areas, did say that ‘‘The Department recognizes the appropriateness of designation the Arabia Mountain National Heritage 

Area.’’

To address Congressman Souder’s question that he posed, which 

I think is a good one, what I have tried to describe is that we have 

a number of national features in the Arabia area. We have national 

register building sites; we have a national natural landmark, with 

endangered, federally listed plant species; we have quarries of national significance, other features all in a compact area. 

Now, maybe any one of these features by themselves would not 

be compelling or overwhelming, but we believe the combination in 

a small area is very compelling and does warrant national attention. 

Finally, who are we? The Arabia Alliance is a bipartisan, multijurisdictional, multiracial, multi-generational alliance, where 

there’s even an alliance between the environmentalists and the corporate community at Arabia Mountain. For instance, private landowners have donated over $15 million of their property. Private 

philanthropy has contributed over $2 million. We have over $20 

million in land acquired by our local county jurisdictions. We have 

professional firms and individuals that have donated years of time. 

And we have the support of numerous national environmental organizations. The Conservation Fund is represented here today, as 

well as our Georgia environmental organizations. 

Representative John Linder, one of the cosponsors, is heavily 

supportive in part because our project respects private property 

rights. A provision specifically to that effect is written into our bill, 

which I think you’re all aware. 

So, finally, the Alliance has been honored by the support of all 

the local residents and people in the Lithonia area, from women’s 

club members to the most prominent families that we have in the 

area. And corporate supporters, such as the Georgia Power Company, Coca Cola, Oldcastle, who is here today. Yet, despite all we 

have, all that we’ve accomplished, we really believe that national 

recognition is warranted and will help us enormously to let people 

know what there is to come and see down here near Atlanta, 

Georgia. 

Thank you for your consideration. 

[The prepared statement of Kelly Jordan follows:]

Statement of S. Kelly Jordan, Chair,

Arabia Mountain Heritage Area Alliance 

Dear Chairman Radanovich and Members of the Committee: 

31

On behalf of the many partners in the Arabia Mountain Heritage Area Alliance, 

I want to say how exciting it is to be here before you today. In particular, we want 

to thank our Congresswoman Denise Majette for her introduction of this legislation. 

It has been an honor for me to serve as Chair of the Arabia Mountain Heritage Area 

Alliance for the past six years. 

As we came to fully understand National Heritage Areas we saw what a productive partnership can be created between Federal, State and local jurisdictions 

through this mechanism. The resulting national recognition, combined with a relatively small amount of Federal support matched locally, can catalyze such great 

benefits for the people of Georgia and the United States. 

Our local, State and National Alliance partners share a deep love and affection 

for this part of our country—a compact area where an amazing variety of industrial, 

agricultural and environmental treasures occur within such a relatively small region, just for instance: • We have visible and documented Native American archaeological areas and rock 

quarries that extend back over 7,000 years that are already designated historic 

sites at the local and Federal levels; • One of our favorite people in Georgia, General William T. Sherman, wrote in 

his diary about camping at Arabia Mountain his first night out of Atlanta on 

his way back home in 1864; • The granite rock quarries that began after the Civil War at Arabia and 

Lithonia, Georgia, employed generations of Scottish, Welch and other immigrants to the United States and provided stone for historic buildings and areas 

all across the U.S., such as the West Point and Annapolis academies and Dupont Circle here in D.C. Lithonia granite is now being suggested as the material 

for the future Martin Luther King memorial in D.C. We are working with several of the major quarry industries such as Oldcastle Materials, LaFarge and 

Hanson Aggregates on several new projects including the creation of a major 

interactive historical museum; • Of the numerous historic industrial, commercial and residential buildings in the 

area built out of the native stone, one is already listed on The National Register 

of Historic Places and other nominations are in the process; • We are also now supporting the documentation and preservation of lesserknown histories throughout the heritage area including the oldest and neglected 

African American cemetery that is home to the still unmarked grave of U.S. 

serviceman Lucious Sanders who founded the Lithonia Civic League to promote 

voting rights and is considered the ‘‘M.L.K. of Lithonia’’; • With the help of our state government, the project has preserved for all time 

the last remaining dairy farm in DeKalb County—an urbanized county of 

700,000 citizens which once was the dairy capitol of the entire State. Other agricultural history is preserved by hundreds of acres where the land terraces are 

visible from cotton farming when cotton was king in the South; 

• Arabia Mountain itself is home to federally listed endangered, threatened and 

rare plant species and fabulous displays of unusual plants and wild flowers year 

round and was itself a gift to the public a generation ago by the Davidson Minerals company (now Hanson Aggregates); and 

• Panola Mountain near Arabia is already a designated National Natural Landmark and considered one of the finest rock outcrops in the eastern United 

States. Panola Mountain preservation was the first project of The Georgia Conservancy 36 years ago. 

In sum, this compact Heritage Area can display the entire history of this part of 

the United States, from our Native Americans to the early settlers and farmers, 

through the Civil War to the great quarry industries and farming—and at the same 

time preserve a unique environmental heritage. Yet I wish to point out that this 

bill explicitly respects and preserves private property rights within the proposed 

heritage area. 

It’s an historical miracle that such an opportunity still exists in the year 2003 

only twenty minutes from the downtown of a major urban center, particularly one 

growing like the Atlanta region. Think of the educational opportunities afforded by 

being within a one hour field trip of nearly half the school population of our entire 

state! We need to preserve and tell these stories and this legislation will help 

greatly. 

Obviously we are enthusiastic, but to put that enthusiasm to the test, we conducted a thorough study of what an Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area could 

offer to the public. We hired the highly experienced ICON firm, which we retained 

for a nine month long study process. It was our pleasure to have the close and invaluable involvement of the Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program of 

The National Park Service Southeast Region Office all along the way. The study 

32

findings we believe successfully address all the proposed criteria set forth by the 

National Park Service for future national heritage areas. The entire study (and 

much more) is posted on our website at www.arabiaalliance.org. 

In her statement (attached) to the Senate Subcommittee on National Parks on 

April 18, 2002, Brenda Barrett, National Coordinator for Heritage Areas within the 

National Park Service, said ‘‘The Department recognizes the appropriateness of designating the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area, as the area has the characteristics necessary to be established as a National Heritage Area and the potential 

to meet the expectations of the National Park Service’s National Heritage Area program. (There) are four critical steps that need to be completed before Congress establishes a National Heritage Area...The National Park Service believes that those 

criteria have been fulfilled through the work that was done by the Arabia Mountain 

Heritage Area Alliance...in conducting the feasibility study that was issued in February 2001. 

Finally, permit me a few words about partnership. The Arabia Mountain Heritage 

Area has the enthusiastic support of all relevant state and local partners: 

• Local landowners have gifted over $15 million in property; 

• Local philanthropy has contributed over $2 million in cash; 

• Over $22 million in land acquired by three counties; 

• Over $ 5 million in land acquired by the State of Georgia; and 

• Professional firms and individuals have donated untold hours. 

We also have the invaluable support and participation from numerous national 

organizations such as The Conservation Fund, the Trust for Public Land and The 

Nature Conservancy, as well as state organizations such as The Georgia Trust for 

Historic Preservation, The Georgia Wildlife Federation, The Georgia Conservancy 

and many others. 

We’re proud of the bipartisan nature of this project. In addition to Congresswoman Majette’s leadership, Congressman John Linder has been a great supporter 

and his help was invaluable in drafting the bill. We have had the support and participation of the recently deceased Marine Corp. General Ray Davis, who donated 

land to the project adjacent to his home, and, of course, the support of another decorated serviceman and Lithonia native former Senator Max Cleland. We’re proud 

also to say that this project occurs in a highly diverse area and has multiracial involvement at all levels of the Alliance. 

Finally, the Alliance has been honored by the support and involvement of the families and community associations in the Arabia and Lithonia area ranging from the 

youngsters in our educational video to the 92 year old S.B. Vaughters (our last dairy 

farmer) to the Lithonia Woman’s Club members and local garden clubs to the prominent families such as the Davidsons who gifted Arabia Mountain to the public over 

thirty years ago. 

Yet, despite our degree of local commitment and accomplishment to date, our full 

success very much needs the recognition and operational assistance that designation 

as a National Heritage Area would provide and we humbly ask for your support for 

this legislation. 

Thank you very much for your time and interest. I will be happy to answer any 

questions that you may have. 

Attachments: 

Statement of Brenda Barrett, National Coordinator for Heritage Areas, 

National Park Service, Department of the Interior, Before the Subcommittee on National Parks of the Senate Committee on Energy and 

Natural Resources, Concerning S. 1526, To Establish the Arabia 

Mountain National Heritage Area in the State of Georgia 

APRIL 18, 2002

Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the Department of the Interior on S. 1526, to establish the Arabia Mountain National Heritage 

Area in the State of Georgia. 

The Department recognizes the appropriateness of designating the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area, as the area has the characteristics necessary to be established as a national heritage area and the potential to meet the expectations of 

the National Park Service’s national heritage area program. To meet the President’s 

Initiative to eliminate the deferred maintenance backlog, we need to continue to 

focus our resources on caring for existing areas in the National Park System. Therefore, we recommend that the Committee defer action on S. 1526 during the remainder of the 107th Congress. While designation of the heritage area will not result in 

33

additional acquisition or capital costs, the authorization provides for up to $1 million per year in grant assistance costs not to exceed $10 million through September 

30, 2016. 

The proposed Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area would include parts of 

DeKalb, Rockdale, and Henry Counties that lie within the eastern side of the Atlanta metropolitan area. The heritage area would encompass the Davidson-Arabia 

Mountain Nature Preserve, the City of Lithonia, the Panola Mountain State Conservation Park, portions of the South River, and several active granite quarries. 

The Arabia Mountain Area, which is known primarily for its granite quarries, is 

rich in natural, cultural, and historic resources. Arabia Mountain and other nearby 

prominent granite formations have been linked to human settlement and activity for 

thousands of years, starting over 7,000 years ago with the quarrying and trading 

of soapstone. The area contains specific types of granite outcroppings that are very 

rare and do not occur anywhere outside the Piedmont Region. Granite from this 

area has been quarried and used around the nation, including in buildings at the 

military academies at West Point and Annapolis. 

The area retains an open and small-scale character, in contrast to the more intensively developed areas closer in to the City of Atlanta. The rapid growth of the metropolitan area in recent years has prompted a recognition among those involved in 

this proposal that there may be only a narrow window of opportunity to retain open 

lands and protect important resources before land costs and economics of development make such efforts much more difficult. The local governmental entities in the 

proposed national heritage area and the State of Georgia support national heritage 

area designation for this area. 

S. 1526 would establish the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area within the 

boundary defined by the map developed for the feasibility study for the heritage 

area. The legislation would name the Arabia Mountain Heritage Area Alliance as 

the management entity for the heritage area and provide for the Secretary of the 

Interior and the Alliance to carry out the legislation through a cooperative agreement. Provisions of the bill regarding the authority and duties of the management 

entity, the development of a management plan, and Federal technical and financial 

assistance that would be available to the heritage area are similar to provisions that 

have been included in legislation designating other heritage areas in recent years. 

National heritage areas are places where natural, cultural, historic, and recreational resources combine to form a nationally distinctive landscape arising from 

patterns of human activity shaped by geography. Heritage conservation efforts are 

grounded in a community’s pride in its history and traditions, and its interest in 

seeing them retained. The areas are designed to protect large, regional landscapes 

and resources that tell the story of its residents. They are best managed by entities 

with broad community representation and the ability to foster partnerships throughout the region. 

In the view of the National Park Service, there are four critical steps that need 

to be completed before Congress establishes a national heritage area. Those steps 

are: 

1. completion of a suitability/feasibility study; 

2. public involvement in the suitability/feasibility study; 

3. demonstration of widespread public support among heritage area residents for 

the proposed designation; and 

4. commitment to the proposal from the appropriate players which may include 

governments, industry, and private, non-profit organizations, in addition to the 

local citizenry. 

The National Park Service believes that those criteria have been fulfilled through 

the work that was done by the Arabia Mountain Heritage Area Alliance and other 

entities, including the National Park Service, in conducting the feasibility study 

that was issued in February, 2001. The work that has been done by the Arabia 

Mountain Heritage Area Alliance and its many partners in recent years has served 

to confirm our view that this area would be an appropriate candidate for designation as a national heritage area, once sufficient progress has been made in addressing the backlog of deferred maintenance in the National Park System. 

Mr. Chairman, that concludes my statement. I would be pleased to answer any 

questions you or other members of the Subcommittee may have. 

34

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you, Mr. Jordan. I appreciate your 

testimony. 


89384.001
35

Next is Mr. Robert Murray, Chairman, Board of Commissioners, 

Venango County, Pennsylvania, here to speak on H.R. 1862. Mr. 

Murray, welcome to the Committee. 

STATEMENT OF ROBERT MURRAY, CHAIRMAN,

VENANGO COUNTY COMMISSION, FRANKLIN, PENNSYLVANIA 

Mr. MURRAY. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, members of Congress, 

Committee staff, media and guests. On behalf of the good people 

of Venango County, I bring you greetings and sincere appreciation 

for this opportunity to speak with you today about the valley that 

changed the world. 

The previous speaker, Miss Wright Lane, noted the significance 

of the mural behind you. Let me note that, without oil, the airplane 

would not fly, the ships would not sail, and the cars, trucks and 

buses would not drive. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. What about the angels up there? 

[Laughter.] 

Mr. MURRAY. I think the angels would make it. 

Let me tell you about some other angels. You ought to know 

about the people of Venango County and the people of the world’s 

first oil patch. We are proud sons and daughters of the Teamsters, 

the Steelworkers, the coopers, the drillers, and the roughnecks of 

the oil industry. Our forefathers devised and built innovative transportation systems, financial institutions, commodity exchanges, 

manufacturing plants, and oil refineries. 

Today, with much of the oil now depleted, production is minimal. 

We are attempting to diversify, modernize, and grow our economy, 

but the economic boom of the 1990s never quite made it to Venango 

County. The last remnants of the big oil companies that were 

founded there, household names like Quaker State and Pennzoil, 

are now gone from our economic landscape. But the oil industry 

that was born in Venango County continues to heavily influence 

the world economy and world events. Oil plays a significant role in 

our Nation’s history, our Nation’s way of life, our Nation’s position 

in the world, and oil will continue to influence America and the 

world for decades to come. 

Today the oil patch is a lush, green, beautiful valley, with an 

abundance of natural beauty. Its rivers, forests and lakes make it 

attractive to visitors. The compelling history of the oil region, combined with the raw beauty of our mountains, positions Venango 

County and eastern Crawford County to take special advantage of 

a national heritage designation. 

Oil fuels the pride, the nostalgia, and the enthusiasm we in 

Venango County have for the oil patch. We recognize the responsibilities that national heritage designation will bring. I am here to 

tell you that the good people of Venango County will cherish and 

honor those responsibilities. 

The region already enjoys heritage park designation from the 

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and for more than a decade, 

countless numbers of volunteers, innumerable hours, and hundreds 

of thousands of private dollars have been contributed to this effort. 

I note and concur with the Committee’s concern regarding private property rights. I would call your attention to a letter of support offered by the Pennsylvania Independent Petroleum Producers 

36

who are supporting our efforts, who indicate their concern about 

private property rights as it effects the future of their livelihood. 

Private property rights are part of the very heritage I am asking 

you to recognize with this designation. You will note that 

H.R. 1862 explicitly prohibits the use of Federal dollars for land 

acquisition by the Oil Heritage Region, Inc. 

The Oil Heritage Region requires no land acquisition and will 

capitalize on public holdings of a 9,000 acre State park, a Drake 

well museum, which is operated by the Pennsylvania Museum 

Commission, a 2,700 acre county park, and a host of State game 

lands and forests. 

The tireless professional planning and management, including an 

appreciation for private property rights of the region, have been a 

hallmark of the success of this region to date. Furthermore, the 

elected officials of the region recognize our responsibility to partner 

in this effort. 

Recently, the Venango County Board of Commissioners appropriated $50,000 to facilitate a current update of the Oil Heritage 

Region’s management action plan. Additionally, I have proposed to 

the Board of Commissioners that we appropriate an additional 

$250,000 for feasibility analysis and preplanning for the development of an ‘‘Oil Boomtown’’ to replicate one of the many small 

towns that sprang up overnight with the discovery of oil in our valley. It is my hope that attractions and amenities such as this can 

be developed for education, entertainment, and recreation. 

It is also noteworthy that the Board of Commissioners has enacted a 3-percent hotel room tax to help fund the promotion and 

development of the travel industry in Venango County. Related 

revenues now exceed $100,000 per year. 

The Oil Heritage Region is ready, willing and able to become a 

National Heritage Region. On behalf of the people of Venango 

County and our neighbors in Crawford County, I respectfully submit that the birth of the oil industry was a world-changing event. 

I respectfully submit that the oil industry continues to influence 

world affairs. I respectfully submit that the people of Venango and 

Crawford Counties have demonstrated the passion, capacity and 

stewardship to manage the responsibilities of national designation. 

We do, and will continue to preserve oil artifacts, welcome our visitors, sustain the natural resources, encourage entrepreneurs, and 

share our stories with guests of all ages. 

I respectfully submit that the events that happened in the oil 

heritage region, and the people who live there, are worthy of recognition and support by the Congress of the United States of America. I humbly ask for your support by designating the Oil Region 

National Heritage Area. 

Thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Robert Murray follows:]

Statement of Bob Murray, Chairman, Board of Commissioners,

County of Venango, Franklin, Pennsylvania 

Mr. Chairman, Members of Congress, Committee Staff, Media, and Guests: 

My name is Bob Murray and I currently serve as Chairman of the Board of Commissioners in Venango County, Pennsylvania. On behalf of the good people of 

Venango County, I bring greetings and a sincere appreciation for this opportunity 

to speak with you today about ‘‘The Valley That Changed the World.’’ In a moment, 

37

you’ll hear about the geography and the compelling history of the Oil Heritage Region. But first, you ought to know about the people of the world’s first oil patch. 

We are the proud sons and daughters of the Teamsters, the Steelworkers, the Coopers, the Drillers, and the Roughnecks of the Oil Industry. Our forefathers devised 

and built innovative transportation systems, financial institutions, commodity exchanges, manufacturing plants, and oil refineries. 

Today, with much of the oil now depleted, production is minimal. We are attempting to diversify, modernize, and grow our economy, but the economic boom of the 

1990’s never quite made it to Venango County and the last remnants of the big oil 

companies that were founded there—household names like Quaker State and Pennzoil—are now gone from our local economy. But the oil industry that was born in 

Venango County continues to heavily influence the world economy and world events. 

Oil plays a significant role in our nation’s history, our nation’s way of life, our nation’s position in the world, and oil will continue to influence America and the world 

for decades to come. 

Today, the oil patch is a lush, green, beautiful valley with an abundance of natural beauty. Its rivers, forests, and lakes make it attractive to visitors. The compelling history of the Oil Region combined with the raw beauty of our mountains, positions Venango County and eastern Crawford County to take special advantage of 

a National Heritage Designation. 

Today oil fuels the pride, the nostalgia, and the enthusiasm we in Venango County have for the oil patch. We recognize the responsibilities that National Heritage 

designation will bring. I am here to tell you that the good people of Venango County 

will cherish and honor those responsibilities. The region already enjoys Heritage 

Park designation from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. For more than a decade, 

countless numbers of volunteers, innumerable hours, and hundreds of thousands of 

private dollars have been contributed to this effort. 

Tireless, professional planning and management of the region have been a hallmark of its success to date. 

Furthermore, the elected officials of the region recognize our responsibility to 

partner in this effort. Recently, the Venango County Board of Commissioners has 

granted $50,000 to facilitate a current update of the Oil Heritage Region’s Management Action Plan. Additionally, I have proposed to the Board of Commissioners that 

we appropriate an additional $250,000 for feasibility analysis and pre-planning for 

the development of an ‘‘Oil Boomtown’’ to replicate one of the many small towns the 

sprang up overnight with the discovery of oil in our valley. It is my hope that attractions and amenities such as this can be developed for education, entertainment, and 

recreation. 

It is also noteworthy that the Board of Commissioners has enacted a 3% hotel 

room tax to help fund the promotion and development of the travel industry in 

Venango County. Related revenues now exceed $100,000 per year. 

The Oil Heritage Region is ready, willing, and able to become a National Heritage 

Region. On behalf of the people of Venango County and our neighbors in Crawford 

County, I respectfully submit that the birth of the oil industry was a world changing 

event. I respectfully submit that the Oil Industry continues to influence world affairs. I respectfully submit that the people of Venango and Crawford Counties, 

Pennsylvania have demonstrated the passion, capacity, and stewardship to manage 

the responsibilities of National Heritage Designation. We do and will continue to 

preserve the oil artifacts, welcome our visitors, sustain the natural resources, encourage entrepreneurs, and share our stories with guests of all ages. 

I respectfully submit that the events that happened in the Oil Heritage Region—

and the people who live there—are worthy of recognition and support by the Congress of the United States of America. And I humbly ask for your support by designating the Oil Region National Heritage Area. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you for your testimony, Mr. Murray. 

Next up is Ms. Roxanne Hitchcock. Welcome to the Committee. 

Miss Hitchcock is here to speak on H.R. 1862 as well. You may 

begin your testimony. 

STATEMENT OF ROXANNE HITCHCOCK, BOARD MEMBER,

OIL HERITAGE REGION, INC., OIL CITY, PENNSYLVANIA 

Ms. HITCHCOCK. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, members of the 

Committee. My name is Roxanne Hitchcock. I own Oil Region 

Books and have, since 1999, served as a member of the board of 

38

directors for the Oil Heritage Region, Inc. I am very pleased to 

have the opportunity to present testimony to you in favor of the 

proposed oil region National Heritage Act, H.R. 1862. 

It began with a discovery in the wilderness of northwestern 

Pennsylvania. Little do we realize 144 years later the impact the 

discovery of oil has on the American people. Today, the very structure of our society is dependent upon petroleum. What began as a 

small enterprise on August 27, 1859, with the drilling of the first 

commercial well for oil, just outside Titusville, Pennsylvania, in 

Venango County, would catapult American industrialism into the 

spotlight. In the search for a better illuminate, these pioneer entrepreneurs began an industry that forever changed civilization. 

The oil region became a catalyst luring people to try to make 

their fortune. Some did, others did not. Many stayed and started 

a life that has been passed down from generation to generation. 

With the end of the Civil War, there was an influx of soldiers looking for adventure and a higher wage. Immigrants came looking for 

a better way of life for their families. 

Capitalism reigned with John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, 

J.P. Morgan and others developing the largest industries and companies in the world, some of which still exist today. By 1900, 

Standard Oil supplied 95 percent of every petroleum product to the 

railroad industry, for example. 

The oil industry evolved with the needs of the American people. 

As electric incandescent lighting became available, the need for 

kerosene declined. The advent of the automobile created a need 

that only the oil industry could supply. What was formally a byproduct of petroleum became one of our most precious commodities 

today. 

The story of oil, it’s history, development, transition and cultural 

impact is important and must be shared. The National Heritage 

Area designation would accelerate a stream of development into 

the Oil Heritage Region. 

Many small businesses would benefit and others would start new 

related ventures. The Oil Heritage Region, Inc. is committed to and 

has the capability to fulfill the responsibilities as a National Heritage Area. 

The information packets and display boards before you illustrate 

the geography of the Oil Heritage Region, which encompasses 

Venango County and the City of Titusville and Oil Creek Township 

in eastern Crawford County in Pennsylvania. You also see the front 

covers of the series of carefully prepared, community-generated, 

consensus-based plans that have led us to the stage of seeking not 

only the Pennsylvania Heritage Park designation which we have 

held since 1994, but also National Heritage Area designation. 

Those include the approved feasibility study in 1991, the management action plan in 1994, Oil Region Interpretive Prospectus/

Plan in 1998—you have that in your packets—and the strategic 

marketing plan in 2000. We are currently updating the old 

Heritage Region Management Action Plan to address the anticipated role of the National Park Service, and our responsibilities as 

an active National Heritage Area. 

Your packets also include many letters of endorsement and 

encouragement for the Oil Region National Heritage Area 

39

designation. In addition, there is a letter from Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell. 

You will find correspondence and resolutions from many entities, 

which range from environmental groups to industry representatives, to elected officials, to service organizations and businesses. 

These letters clearly illustrate the broad-based local and regional 

support for Federal designation as the Oil Region National 

Heritage Area. 

Thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Roxanne Hitchcock follows:]

Statement of Roxanne Hitchcock, Member, Board of Directors,

Oil Heritage Region Inc., and Owner, Oil Region Books 

Chairman Pombo, Members of Congress, Committee Staff, Media and Guests: 

My name is Roxanne Hitchcock. I own Oil Region Books and have, since 1999, 

served as a member of the Board of Directors for the Oil Heritage Region Inc. I am 

pleased to have the opportunity to present testimony to you in favor of the proposed 

Oil Region National Heritage Area Act, H.R. 1862. 

It began with a discovery in the wilderness of northwestern Pennsylvania. Little 

do we realize 144 years later the impact the discovery of oil has on the American 

people. Today, the very structure of our society is dependent on petroleum. 

What began as a small enterprise on August 27, 1859, with the drilling of the 

first commercial well for oil, just outside Titusville, Pennsylvania, in Venango County, would catapult American Industrialism into the spotlight. In the search for a 

better illuminate, these pioneer entrepreneurs began an industry that forever 

changed civilization. 

The Oil Region became a catalyst luring people to try and make their fortunes. 

Some did; others did not. Many stayed and started a life that has been passed down 

from generation to generation. With the end of the Civil War, there was an influx 

of soldiers looking for adventure and a higher wage. Immigrants came looking for 

a better way of life for their families. 

Capitalism reigned with John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, J. P. Morgan and 

others developing the largest industries and companies in the world, some of which 

still exist today. By 1900, Standard Oil supplied 95% of every petroleum product to 

the Railroad Industry, for example. 

The Oil Industry evolved with the needs of the American people. As electric incandescent lighting became available, the need for kerosene declined. The advent of the 

automobile created a need that only the Oil Industry could supply. What was formally a byproduct of petroleum became one of our precious commodities today. 

The story of oil, its history, development, transition and cultural impact is important and must be shared. The National Heritage Area designation would accelerate 

a stream of development into the Oil Heritage Region. Many small business owners 

would benefit and others would start new related ventures. The Oil Heritage Region 

Inc. is committed to and has the capability to fulfill the responsibilities as a National Heritage Area. 

The information packets and the display boards before you illustrate the geography of the Oil Heritage Region, which encompasses Venango County and the City 

of Titusville and Oil Creek Township in eastern Crawford County in Pennsylvania. 

You also see the front covers of the series of carefully prepared, community-generated, consensus-based plans that have led us to the stage of seeking not only the 

Pennsylvania Heritage Park designation which we have held since 1994, but also 

National Heritage Area designation. Those include the approved Feasibility Study 

in 1991, Management Action Plan in 1994, Oil Region Interpretive Prospectus/Plan 

in 1998 (a summary of which is contained in your packets), and the Strategic Marketing Plan in 2000. We are currently updating the OHR Management Action Plan 

to address the anticipated role of the National Park Service, and our responsibilities 

as an active National Heritage Area. 

Your packets also include letters of endorsement and encouragement for the Oil 

Region National Heritage Area Designation. In addition to a letter from Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell, you’ll find correspondence and resolutions from the 

following entities, which range from environmental groups to industry representatives to elected officials to service organizations and businesses: Allegheny Valley 

Trails Association; City of Franklin; City of Titusville; Clarion/Venango Educational 

Resources Alliance; County of Crawford; County of Venango; Cultural and Educational Committee for the Oil Heritage Region Inc.; ‘‘The Derrick’’ newspapers; 

40

Joint Legislative Committee on Air and Water Pollution Control and Conservation 

Committee of the Pennsylvania Legislature; the Pa. Independent Petroleum Producers; Northwest Pa. Regional Planning & Development Commission; Oil Creek 

Railway Historical Society, Inc.; Pa. Department of Conservation and Natural Resources; Oil Creek State Park; Pa. Department of Environmental Protection; Pa. Environmental Council; Pa. Historical and Museum Commission; Senator Robert D. 

Robbins; Titusville Area Chamber of Commerce; Titusville Historical Society; 

Venango County Historical Society; Venango County Planning Commission; 

Venango Economic Development Corporation; Dillon Wescoat; Western Pennsylvania Conservancy; and Senator Mary Jo White. These letters clearly illustrate the 

broad-based local and regional support for a federal designation as the Oil Region 

National Heritage Area. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you, Ms. Hitchcock. We appreciate your 

testimony. 

Next is Mr. Peyton Knight, who is here to speak on four of these 

bills, H.R. 280, 1618, 1594, and 1862. Mr. Knight, welcome to the 

Committee. You may begin. 

STATEMENT OF J. PEYTON KNIGHT, LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR, 

AMERICAN POLICY CENTER, WARRENTON, VIRGINIA 

Mr. KNIGHT. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and members of the 

Subcommittee, and thanks for the opportunity to appear before you 

today on behalf of property rights advocates across the country who 

are concerned with the impact of National Heritage Areas on land 

use, private property rights, and local communities. 

One of the biggest problems that both residential and commercial 

property owners face with Heritage Areas is that they effectively 

lead to restrictive Federal zoning and land use planning. Funding 

and technical assistance for Heritage Areas is administered 

through the National Park Service, a Federal agency with a history 

of hostility toward private landowners. The recipient of these funds 

and NPS direction is a management entity, which typically consists 

of strictly ideological special interest groups and local government 

officials. This conglomerate then works to impose its narrow vision 

of land use planning on the unsuspecting landowners within the 

Heritage Area’s boundaries. The result is a top-down approach to 

local zoning, with little or no involvement from the local property 

owners most affected. 

Proponents of heritage areas present them as innocuous designations, bestowed upon local communities in an attempt to preserve, 

interpret and celebrate the cultural and historic significance of a 

particular area. Incredibly, they argue that, despite this mission of 

preservation, heritage areas do not influence zoning or land use 

planning. Yet, by definition, this is precisely what they do. Heritage areas have boundaries, and these boundaries have consequences for the property owners within them. 

For example, both the National Aviation and the Arabia 

Mountain National Heritage Area Acts specifically direct the 

management entity to ‘‘encourage local governments to adopt land 

use policies consistent with the management of the Heritage Area 

and the goals of the management plan.’’ This can be construed as 

nothing less than a top-down, Federal zoning mandate. 

In the Oil Region National Heritage Area Act, section 5(b)5 calls 

for creating an ‘‘inventory of the resources contained in the Heritage Area, including a list of any property in the Heritage Area that 

41

is related to the themes of the Heritage Area and that should be 

preserved, restored, managed, developed, or maintained because of 

its natural, cultural, historic, recreational, or scenic significance.’’ 

Thus, landowners are subject to the whimsical interpretations of 

the preservation-driven management entity. Should their property 

be deemed significant in any way to the Heritage Area, you can bet 

that its use will be strictly curtailed. Again, this is a Federal zoning mandate. 

In the past, Federal funds have even been dangled as a ‘‘carrot’’, 

while the stick of zoning and land use restrictions were firmly applied. When the Augusta Canal National Heritage Area in Georgia 

was in its developmental stages in 1994, the National Park Service 

refused to accept the management plan put forth by the Planning 

Committee until they agreed to succumb to the Park Service’s vision of zoning. That testimony is included in my written submission. 

Property rights and limited government advocates are also concerned that National Heritage Areas will effectively become a feeder program for a ravenous national parks system. These fears are 

well founded. The Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area in southwestern Pennsylvania states boldly on its website: ‘‘Rivers of Steel 

is spearheading a drive to create a national park on 38 acres of 

original mill site. Bills have been introduced before the U.S. Congress to make this urban national park a reality.’’

Thus, here is an example of a National Heritage Area, funded 

and guided by the National Park Service, taking the initiative in 

lobbying Congress for land acquisition authority and the creation 

of yet another national park. It hardly appears that Heritage Areas 

and National Parks are strictly dichotomous. 

It is also worthwhile to note that these Heritage Areas are coming at a time when Federal funding is becoming increasingly scarce 

and the Park Service faces a multi-billion dollar maintenance backlog. 

If any of these proposed Heritage Areas eventually do come to 

fruition, and property rights advocates sincerely hope that they do 

not, it is morally imperative that landowner notification be included in the procedure. Each and every property owner within the 

boundaries of a proposed Heritage Area should be notified on an 

individual basis, and given the opportunity to opt into the designation. This is far more than merely a common courtesy to landowners. It is the only way to truly gauge the interest level of the 

local population—something that Heritage Area advocates claim is 

a prerequisite for designation in the first place. Anything short of 

this type of notification is wholly insufficient, yet proponents of 

Heritage Areas consistently shun this most common sense action. 

In conclusion, the Heritage Areas program should not be allowed 

to proliferate. Experience shows that it will not only become a 

funding albatross, as more and more interest groups gather around 

the Federal trough, but also a program that quashes property 

rights and local economies through restrictive Federal zoning practices. The real beneficiaries of National Heritage Areas are conservation groups, preservation societies, land trusts and the National Park Service, essentially organizations that are in constant 

42

pursuit of Federal dollars, land acquisition, and restrictions to development. 

True private property ownership lies in one’s ability to do with 

his property as he wishes. Zoning and land use policies are local 

decisions to be made by locally elected officials who are directly accountable to the citizens they represent. National Heritage Areas 

corrupt this inherently local procedure by adding Federal dollars, 

Federal oversight, and Federal mandates to the mix. The result is 

a system with little or no accountability to those who are most affected by these decisions. 

Again, Mr. Chairman, thank you for inviting me to testify on this 

very important issue. I would welcome any questions you or anyone 

else have on this issue. 

[The prepared statement of J. Peyton Knight follows:]

Statement of J. Peyton Knight, Legislative Director,

American Policy Center 

Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity 

to appear before you today on the behalf of property rights advocates across the 

country who are concerned with the impact of National Heritage Areas on land use, 

private property rights and local communities. 

One of the biggest problems that both residential and commercial property owners 

face with Heritage Areas is that they effectively lead to restrictive federal zoning 

and land use planning. Funding and technical assistance for Heritage Areas is administered through the National Park Service, a federal agency with a history of 

hostility towards private landowners. The recipient of these funds and NPS direction is a management entity, which typically consists of strictly ideological special 

interest groups and local government officials. This conglomerate then works to impose its narrow vision of land use planning on the unsuspecting landowners within 

the Heritage Area’s boundaries. The result is a top-down approach to local zoning, 

with little or no involvement from the local property owners most affected. 

Proponents of Heritage Areas present them as innocuous designations bestowed 

upon local communities in an attempt to preserve, interpret and celebrate the cultural and historic significance of a particular area. Incredibly, they argue that despite this mission of ‘‘preservation,’’ Heritage Areas do not influence zoning or land 

use planning. Yet by definition this is precisely what they do. Heritage Areas have 

boundaries, and these boundaries have consequences for the property owners within 

them. 

For example, both the National Aviation and the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area Acts specifically direct the management entity to ‘‘encourage local governments to adopt land use policies consistent with the management of the Heritage 

Area and the goals of the Management Plan.’’ This can be construed as nothing less 

than a top-down, federal zoning mandate. 

In the Oil Region National Heritage Area Act, Section 5(b)5 calls for creating an 

‘‘inventory of the resources contained in the Heritage Area, including a list of any 

property in the Heritage Area that is related to the themes of the Heritage Area 

and that should be preserved, restored, managed, developed, or maintained because 

of its natural, cultural, historic, recreational, or scenic significance.’’ Thus, landowners are subject to the whimsical interpretations of the preservation-driven management entity. Should their property be deemed ‘‘significant’’ in any way to the 

Heritage Area, you can bet that its use will be strictly curtailed. Again, this is a 

federal zoning mandate. 

In the past, federal funds have even been dangled as a carrot, while the stick of 

zoning and land use restrictions were firmly applied. When the Augusta Canal National Heritage Area in Georgia was in its developmental stages in 1994, the National Park Service refused to accept the management plan put forth by the planning committee until they agreed to succumb to the Park Service’s vision of zoning. 

Property rights and limited government advocates are also concerned that National Heritage Areas will effectively become a feeder program for a ravenous national parks program. These fears are well-founded. 

The Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area in southwestern Pennsylvania states 

boldly on its website: 

43

‘‘Rivers of Steel is spearheading a drive to create a national park on 38 

acres of original mill site...Bills have been introduced before the U.S. Congress to make this urban national park a reality.’’

Thus, here is an example of a National Heritage Area, funded and guided by the 

National Park Service, taking the initiative in lobbying Congress for land acquisition authority and the creation of yet another national park. It hardly appears that 

Heritage Areas and National Parks are strictly dichotomous. 

It is also worthwhile to note that these Heritage Areas are coming at a time when 

federal funding is becoming increasingly scarce and the Park Service faces a multibillion-dollar maintenance backlog. 

If any of these proposed Heritage Areas eventually do come to fruition, and property rights advocates sincerely hope that they do not, it is morally imperative that 

landowner notification be included in the procedure. Each and every property owner 

within the boundaries of a proposed Heritage Area should be notified on an individual basis, and given the opportunity to opt-in to the designation. This is far more 

than merely a common courtesy to landowners. It is the ONLY way to truly gauge 

the interest level of the local population—something that Heritage Area advocates 

claim is a prerequisite for designation in the first place. Anything short of this type 

of notification is wholly insufficient, yet proponents of Heritage Areas consistently 

shun this most common sense action. 

In conclusion, the Heritage Areas program should not be allowed to proliferate. 

Experience shows that it will not only become a funding albatross, as more and 

more interest groups gather around the federal trough, but also a program that 

quashes property rights and local economies through restrictive federal zoning practices. The real beneficiaries of a National Heritage Areas program are conservation 

groups, preservation societies, land trusts and the National Park Service—essentially, organizations that are in constant pursuit of federal dollars, land acquisition 

and restrictions to development. 

True private property ownership lies in one’s ability to do with his property as 

he wishes. Zoning and land use policies are local decisions to be made by locally 

elected officials who are directly accountable to the citizens they represent. National 

Heritage Areas corrupt this inherently local procedure by adding federal dollars, 

federal oversight, and federal mandates to the mix. The result is a system with little 

or no accountability to those who are most affected by these decisions. 

Again, Mr. Chairman, thank you for inviting me to testify on this very important 

issue. I would be happy to answer any questions that you, or other members of the 

Subcommittee may have. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you, Mr. Knight. I appreciate your 

testimony. 

Next up is Mr. Daniel Clifton, here to speak on the bills as well. 

Mr. Clifton, welcome to the Committee. You may begin. 

STATEMENT OF DANIEL CLIFTON, FEDERAL AFFAIRS 

MANAGER, AMERICANS FOR TAX REFORM, WASHINGTON, D.C. 

Mr. CLIFTON. Great. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for allowing me 

to speak today, and to members of the Subcommittee. 

I would also like to thank the sponsors of the bills and the people 

who have come here to testify. It is my belief that their intentions 

are well-placed. However, I want to take a little bit different route 

and speak more on the budget and the economics of this proposal, 

something that has not been discussed throughout this hearing so 

far. 

Essentially, our budget problem in this country is now at about 

$480 billion in Fiscal Year 2004. As somebody who constantly researches both Federal budgets and State and local budgets, something started to change in about 1998 and this Congress just could 

not say no to any new spending program. Here we are, continually 

saying ‘‘approve my National Heritage site’’. Each one is a good 

program on its merits, but essentially we are now coming to a point 

where each program is becoming one large program. There have 

44

been numbers thrown out that there’s 23 approved, 46 in the pipeline, and it’s becoming a very costly Federal Government program 

that, over time, is going to continue to expand and require more 

and more money from an already overstretched National Park 

Service. 

As such, the National Heritage Area has all the dynamics of becoming an exploding Federal Government program which threatens 

the long-term fiscal stability of the Federal budget. Let’s be real. 

Once this program is established, the program will become permanent and more localities will develop reasons for their areas to be 

designated. 

One example. I was born in Edison, NJ. It’s called Edison, NJ 

because that’s where Thomas Edison created the light bulb. To me, 

that has national significance. Every town across the country is 

going to find a reason to have national significance and come here 

and place this pressure on American taxpayers. Organized local 

government officials and special interests will continue to lobby for 

the program, to continue receiving more Federal funding. With 

more requests coming in, more money will be required, and more 

money maybe to create a National Park Service, as the speaker before me alluded to. 

This comes on top of the National Park Service burden for their 

maintenance backlog. All this will require higher taxes on working 

American families. At some point we have to just say no, on not 

just this program, but a lot of other programs coming through 

these Committees. 

At the same time this money is spent on the programs, what is 

the benefit? It is my belief that the costs far exceed any benefits 

derived from the new program. Local zoning restrictions will work 

to take property from rightful owners, while restricting economic 

growth in these communities. This occurs to benefit noncommunity 

residents who seek to profit off of American taxpayers and take 

property from existing residents. 

Under any analysis, it is clear that Congress should not move 

forward with this initiative. 

Mr. Chairman, I thank you for inviting me to testify on this very 

important issue, and I would be happy to answer any questions 

that you or other members of the Subcommittee may have. Thank 

you for your time. 

[The prepared statement of Daniel Clifton follows:]

Statement of Daniel M. Clifton, Federal Affairs Manager,

Americans for Tax Reform 

Mr. Chairman and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity 

to appear before you today on the behalf of taxpayers. As you may know, Americans 

for Tax Reform (ATR) is a broad coalition of taxpayers and taxpayer groups from 

across the country committed to free markets, lower taxes, less regulations and 

smaller government. 

As a matter of background, each year, ATR issues a report entitled Cost of Government Day, which calculates the day of the year the average American is done 

working for total government spending and regulations. For 2003, the average 

American needed to work more than half the year, until July 11th to pay for the 

costs imposed by government. This was an increase of 5 days from last year, driven 

by federal spending and regulations. All told, the average American needs to work 

87 days out of the year to pay for federal spending in 2003, an increase of 10 days 

from the year 2000. 

45

At the same time as spending has been increasing, in 2003, the average American 

will have to work 63 days out of the year to pay for all regulations, which is an 

increase of nearly one day over 2002 and five additional days than was required in 

2000. In total, the average American has worked a cumulative total of 10.1 additional days to pay for the substantial increases in regulations since 2000. 

So with the federal government expanding 20 percent faster than the growth of 

working families’ incomes since 2000 and the country fighting a War on Terrorism, 

the federal government should not be creating new spending and regulatory programs, such as National Heritage Areas. 

Just last month, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated the Fiscal 

Year 2004 budget deficit to be $480 billion due to increased spending and a slower 

economy. Signs are pointing upward for an economic rebound for the remainder of 

the year and into 2004, but without spending restraint the country will never dig 

itself out of the budget hole. 

If spending had been held to the rate of national income growth over the previous 

three years, the federal deficit would be just $70 billion, 4.5 times smaller than the 

actual projected 2003 deficit. In fact, the $70 billion deficit would reflect the slowdown of the economy and the lost capital gains revenue stemming from the stock 

market’s $7 trillion lost of value since March 2000. Expected faster economic growth 

at the end of this year and into 2004 would have put the country back into surpluses if spending had been restrained. 

The National Heritage Area proposal has all the dynamics to become an exploding 

federal government program, which threatens long-term fiscal stability of the federal budget. Let’s be real, once this program is established, the program will become 

permanent and more localities will develop reasons for their areas to be designated. 

Organized local government officials and special interests will continue to lobby for 

the program to continue and thus require more federal funding. With more requests 

coming in, more money will be required, AND more money for maintenance will be 

needed. This comes on top of a National Park Service burden that is already facing 

a multi-billion dollar maintenance backlog. All this will require higher taxes on 

working American families at some point and ATR vigorously opposes this proposal. 

At the same time this money is spent on the programs, what is the benefit? It 

is my belief that the costs far exceed any benefits derived from the new program. 

Local zoning restrictions will work to take property from rightful owners, while restricting economic growth in these communities. This occurs to benefit non-community residents who seek to profit off of American taxpayers and take property from 

existing residents. 

Under any analysis, it is clear that Congress should not move forward with this 

initiative. 

Mr. Chairman, thank you for inviting me to testify on this very important issue. 

I would be happy to answer any questions that you, or other members of the 

Subcommittee, may have. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you, Mr. Clifton. I appreciate your 

testimony. 

I recognize Mrs. Christensen. 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will ask perhaps 

two questions, and then see if some other members of the panel 

would like to respond to the testimony of the last two witnesses. 

My first question is to Mr. Knight. According to testimony provided by the Bush Administration before the Senate in March, the 

Heritage Area program has now been around for about 20 years, 

and the 23 areas that have been established. I can’t find any record 

that there are around 40 or so in the pipeline. I don’t have a specific number. 

The concern that I read in your testimony is about property 

rights, Mr. Knight. Can you provide any specific court cases, either 

pending or resolved, dealing with the property rights issue within 

an existing National Heritage Area? 

Mr. KNIGHT. Court cases, no. It’s in the opinion of property rights 

advocates and landowners, the ones I have spoken with and who 

are members of our particular organization, that they don’t really 

46

know of their National Heritage Areas or whether or not they’re 

within the boundaries of National Heritage Areas and that they 

are, in fact, are. 

Because the program is so young and because it takes such a 

long time for victims of land-use designations or zoning restrictions 

to come forward, they simply haven’t surfaced yet. 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. So there aren’t any? 

Mr. KNIGHT. No. Frankly, no. 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. There are about 45 million people in 17 

States that live in National Heritage Areas, and the program has 

been in existence for about 20 years now. 

Mr. KNIGHT. One particularly interesting scenario is what’s going 

on in Utah right now with the National Mormon Pioneer Heritage 

Area. I believe it’s sponsored by Senator Bennett. There is a local 

grassroots coalition gathering out there, simply trying to figure out 

what the heritage area designation means, and finding out what it 

means, they don’t want it. They’re essentially fighting it right now. 

Meanwhile, the folks on the Planning Committee, who claim that 

they have local involvement and locals behind the initiative, it’s 

turning out simply to not be true. 

I guess I would ask the question, how do we determine whether 

this is a ‘‘top down’’ initiative, started by special interests, local 

government officials and Federal Government officials and the 

Park Service, or whether this is truly a program where locals gathered together at the local level and chose some sort of—

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. I would doubt that there’s any case in which 

the National Park Service has gone to the community and said, 

‘‘We want you to be a National Heritage Area.’’ These requests for 

the studies come from the communities. They are managed under 

a community-developed organization. I would suggest that the people in Utah, if there’s a designation already there—there isn’t one? 

Mr. KNIGHT. It’s a proposed designation. 

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. There is no designation. 

I want to allow the other members of the panel to say something. 

I would suggest that the budget issues don’t quite apply here, either. In testimony before the Senate in March, also the Bush Administration is on record in support of preserving the areas that 

have a strong cultural and historical value in the country. But they 

reported that for Fiscal Year 2003, the total amount allocated for 

heritage areas is just over $14 million. Given that the Federal 

budget is in the $1.5 trillion range annually, I think that’s a fairly 

modest expenditure. 

But, beyond that, the Bush Administration also argues that, 

since 1985, this investment of $107 million has leveraged nearly $1 

billion in non-National Park Service partnership funds, from a wide 

variety of other services. That comes out to a match of one Park 

Service dollar to 8.7 other dollars. I don’t think there are any other 

Federal programs that can match those ratios. 

Do you have any, Mr. Clifton? 

Mr. CLIFTON. If I can just kind of take all that one step at a 

time. There was a lot of information thrown out there. 

I think you’re absolutely correct, $14 million within a $2.3 trillion budget that we’ll have this year. This is part of a much larger 

problem. This has been localized to my community. But as repVerDate 0ct 09 2002 09:35 Feb 20, 2004 Jkt 088533 PO 00000 Frm 00052 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6602 J:\DOCS\89384.TXT HRESOUR1 PsN: KATHY
47

resentatives, you both have to take care of your constituents and 

the country at large. We keep saying, ‘‘My program does not apply; 

it is only x-amount.’’ When we add up all those programs, we continue to spend. 

Let me give you an example. In 2000, the average taxpayer had 

to work 77 days out of the year to pay off the actual cost of Federal 

spending. Today—

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. I thought we were just talking about the National Heritage Areas. 

Mr. CLIFTON. I’m getting to that. I’m just trying to give a broader 

picture and then I’ll get right to it. 

Today, it’s 87 days. So in 3 years, we have increased spending 

so much that the average American has to work ten more days. 

And it didn’t come from one big program. It came from all these 

little programs and a continuing increase. 

Now, just because it’s $14 million this year doesn’t mean it’s 

going to be $14 million next year. We’re about to approve four 

more, and we’ve got another 43 in the pipeline. There is going to 

be added costs. Once this program comes in, ‘‘well, we need xamount of dollars for this.’’ That’s a big concern of ours, not just 

this program, but all programs coming through. At some point Congress has to say, ‘‘Let’s stop spending.’’ We have a $500 billion deficit. That’s point one. 

Point two, on the leveraging. What we have seen from some of 

these testimonies today is that there are already State designations 

without the Federal designations. State governments can do this 

program. Like you said, $14 million is not a lot of money. You 

know, if we split that among all the different sites, it’s not going 

to add much of a burden to them. Really, does the Federal Government have a responsibility to do this? That’s the question that 

needs to be answered. Americans for Tax Reform believes the answer is ‘‘no.’’

Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. At least on my side we strongly disagree with 

you, that there are some treasures in this country that need to be 

preserved and protected and need to play a role in the economic development of the communities, so that communities can stand on 

their own. I think this is a very small investment for the benefits 

that accrue to the communities involved. 

Mr. CLIFTON. If I can make one comment—OK. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you, Mrs. Christensen. 

I now recognize Miss Majette for any questions you might have 

of the Committee. None for you? 

Ms. MAJETTE. No. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Ms. Bordallo? 

Ms. BORDALLO. No. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Any other questions of the guest speakers 

today? Gosh, I thought we were going to go on a little longer on 

this. 

OK, great. Thank you very much everybody for your testimony. 

I appreciate your being here. 

Ms. MAJETTE. I’m sorry. Excuse me, Mr. Chairman. You had 

asked earlier about the area, I guess the physical boundaries of the 

area—

48

Mr. RADANOVICH. As it was, it didn’t seem to be clearly represented on the map that you had shown. 

Ms. MAJETTE. Would Mr. Jordan be able to get up and show you 

where that is? 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Sure, if you would like. 

Mr. JORDAN. Thank you, Congressman. Actually, I don’t need to 

get up and go over there. 

The aerial photograph that you see represented by that print, it 

roughly corresponds to the proposed heritage area boundary. In our 

heritage area study, which we completed with our own funds, 

which is posted on our website for all of you to see, 

ArabiaAlliance.org, the proposed boundary is indicated on that 

website exactly. 

I want to emphasize that we did what the Park Service considers the preliminary study. We have now a $250,000 master study underway, which we’re also funding ourselves, which will identify perhaps a slightly more precise boundary than the initial boundary. 

But that picture that you’re looking at there represents fairly 

roughly the entire area. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Very good. I appreciate that. 

Ms. Bordallo. 

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Chairman, first I apologize for coming in 

late. I understand that Representative Christensen did speak on 

her measure. I would like to add a few statements, since we are 

sister territories. 

I want to thank Representative Christensen for her leadership as 

the Ranking Member of this Subcommittee first. I strongly support 

this legislation. 

Mr. Chairman, the insular areas should not be overlooked in any 

national policy. We have a role to play, and I’m pleased that the 

National Park System includes units in the territories. However, 

there is much more that should be studied for inclusion. 

I have been to St. Croix many times. It offers rich and historic 

resources and architectural treasures that are no doubt worthy of 

recognition and preservation. I would be remiss if it didn’t say so 

does the Territory of Guam. 

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. RADANOVICH. Thank you, Ms. Bordallo. 

Are there any other questions of the folks who have testified before us today? If not, this hearing is adjourned. Thank you very 

much. 

[Whereupon, at 3:35 p.m., the Subcommittee was adjourned.]

[A statement submitted for the record by The Honorable John A. 

Boehner, a Representative in Congress from the State of Ohio, on 

H.R. 280 follows:]

Statement of The Honorable John A. Boehner, a Representative in 

Congress from the State of Ohio 

Mr. Chairman: I appreciate this opportunity to express my support for H.R. 280, 

the National Aviation Heritage Area Act. This legislation provides a management 

framework to preserve and promote Ohio’s aviation heritage. 

In 2003, the 100th Anniversary of Powered Flight, Ohioans have come together 

in unprecedented ways to celebrate, preserve, and promote the dream of Wilbur and 

Orville Wright. I can think of no better tribute to their efforts than to establish this 

heritage area, and I am proud to be an original cosponsor of this legislation. 

49

When Deputy Assistant Secretary Paul Hoffman testified before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources concerning the National Park Service’s National Heritage Area Program, he stated that to be successful ‘‘all heritage area initiatives must be developed and shaped by local people and by local initiative.’’ He 

further argued that heritage areas ‘‘should tell nationally important stories through 

a regionally distinctive combination of natural, cultural, historic, and recreational 

resources.’’ When one takes into account the cumulative efforts the citizens of the 

Miami Valley have taken to preserve their aviation heritage, it is easy to see the 

natural inclusion of the National Aviation Heritage Area into the National Park 

Service Heritage Area Program. 

The core of this heritage area—Montgomery, Miami, Greene, Warren, Clark, and 

Champaign counties in Southwest Ohio—have long been dedicated to the dedication 

of Ohioans to the preservation and advancement of powered flight. I am particularly 

impressed with the work of my constituents in Miami and Montgomery counties. 

From military to scientific to recreational pursuits, Southwest Ohio has led the way 

in aviation technology. 

Consider Wright Patterson Air Force Base: the birthplace, home, and future of 

aerospace. Originally, Wright Patterson was the site where much of the United 

States’ military applications to aviation were developed. Today, Wright Patterson 

houses the Air Force’s major weapons acquisition center. The base is home to premier scientists and engineers whose work continues to assure the United States Air 

Force’s aerospace dominance. 

Wright Patterson is also home to the United States Air Force Museum, where a 

dedicated staff opens the public’s imagination to the dream of aerospace through the 

preservation of the technology’s past. 

In Cleveland, Ohio, NASA Glenn Research Center has been at the forefront in establishing some of the most sophisticated scientific discoveries for our civil aerospace program. Thanks to NASA Glenn and Wright Patterson, the State of Ohio has 

one of the largest and most diverse aerospace industries in the country. 

However, it is not just the public sector working to advance aerospace. The Miami 

Valley has been fortunate to have numerous dedicated individuals and organizations 

who work to provide an educational and recreational preservation of the area’s aviation heritage. 

Based on the testimony provided by Mr. Hobson, the Committee is well aware of 

the efforts taken by Southwest Ohioans to preserve and promote their aviation legacy. A logical question is, ‘‘Why is establishing a federal aviation heritage area necessary?’’ Fundamentally, the goal of any heritage area is to provide a link among 

geographically close, thematic historical sites. The National Aviation Heritage Area 

will provide an organizing structure around which these disparate aviation heritage 

entities can collaborate and coordinate. 

I appreciate the time this Subcommittee has dedicated to this important issue, 

and I especially appreciate all the time and effort Mr. Hobson and his staff have 

put into promoting the Miami Valley’s aviation heritage. I also appreciate the work 

Mr. Turner, Mr. DeWine, and Mr. Voinovich have done on this issue and for the 

overwhelming support the Miami Valley has received from the Ohio delegation. I 

look forward to working with my colleagues on this issue, and again, I thank you 

for this opportunity to showcase this exciting movement happening in Ohio.

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