II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1902 

To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource 

study of the archeological site and surrounding land of the New Philadelphia town site in the State of Illinois, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 17, 2011 

Mr. KIRK (for himself and Mr. DURBIN) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources 

A BILL 

To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a 

special resource study of the archeological site and surrounding land of the New Philadelphia town site in the 

State of Illinois, and for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘New Philadelphia, Illi5 nois, Study Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that— 


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1 (1) Frank McWorter, an enslaved man, bought 

2 his freedom and the freedom of 15 family members 

3 by mining for crude niter in Kentucky caves and 

4 processing the mined material into saltpeter; 

5 (2) New Philadelphia, founded in 1836 by 

6 Frank McWorter, was the first town planned and le7 gally registered by a free African-American before 

8 the Civil War; 

9 (3) the first railroad constructed in the area of 

10 New Philadelphia bypassed New Philadelphia, which 

11 led to the decline of New Philadelphia; and 

12 (4) the New Philadelphia site— 

13 (A) is a registered National Historic Land14 mark; 

15 (B) is covered by farmland; and 

16 (C) does not contain any original buildings 

17 of the town or the McWorter farm and home 

18 that are visible above ground. 

19 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

20 In this Act: 

21 (1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

22 the Secretary of the Interior. 

23 (2) STUDY AREA.—The term ‘‘Study Area’’ 

24 means the New Philadelphia archeological site and 

25 the surrounding land in the State of Illinois. 


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1 SEC. 4. SPECIAL RESOURCE STUDY. 

2 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary shall conduct a special 

3 resource study of the Study Area. 

4 (b) CONTENTS.—In conducting the study under sub5 section (a), the Secretary shall— 

6 (1) evaluate the national significance of the 

7 Study Area; 

8 (2) determine the suitability and feasibility of 

9 designating the Study Area as a unit of the National 

10 Park System; 

11 (3) consider other alternatives for preservation, 

12 protection, and interpretation of the Study Area 

13 by— 

14 (A) Federal, State, or local governmental 

15 entities; or 

16 (B) private and nonprofit organizations; 

17 (4) consult with— 

18 (A) interested Federal, State, or local gov19 ernmental entities; 

20 (B) private and nonprofit organizations; or 

21 (C) any other interested individuals; and 

22 (5) identify cost estimates for any Federal ac23 quisition, development, interpretation, operation, and 

24 maintenance associated with the alternatives consid25 ered under paragraph (3). 


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1 (c) APPLICABLE LAW.—The study required under 

2 subsection (a) shall be conducted in accordance with sec3 tion 8 of Public Law 91–383 (16 U.S.C. 1a–5). 

4 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 3 years after the date 

5 on which funds are first made available for the study 

6 under subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to the 

7 Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Rep8 resentatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural 

9 Resources of the Senate a report containing— 

10 (1) the results of the study; and 

11 (2) any conclusions and recommendations of the 

12 Secretary. 

13 (e) FUNDING.—The study authorized under this sec14 tion shall be carried out using existing funds of the Na15 tional Park Service. 

Æ 


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