II

Calendar No. 885

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2345

[Report No. 106–440]

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study

concerning the preservation and public use of sites associated with Harriet Tubman located in Auburn, New York, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

APRIL 4, 2000

Mr. SCHUMER (for himself, Mr. MOYNIHAN, and Mr. SARBANES) introduced

the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee

on Energy and Natural Resources

SEPTEMBER 29, 2000

Reported under authority of the Senate of September 28 (legislative day,

September 22), 2000, by Mr. MURKOWSKI, with an amendment

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special

resource study concerning the preservation and public

use of sites associated with Harriet Tubman located in

Auburn, New York, 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,
2

S 2345 RS

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Harriet Tubman Spe3 cial Resource Study Act’’.

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

5 Congress finds that—

6 (1) Harriet Tubman is an important figure in

7 the history of the United States, and is most famous

8 for her role as a ‘‘conductor’’ on the Underground

9 Railroad, in which, as a fugitive slave, she helped

10 hundreds of enslaved individuals to escape to free11 dom before and during the Civil War;

12 (2) during the Civil War, Harriet Tubman

13 served the Union Army as a guide, spy, and nurse;

14 (3) after the Civil War, Harriet Tubman was

15 an advocate for the education of black children;

16 (4) Harriet Tubman settled in Auburn, New

17 York, in 1857, and lived there until 1913;

18 (5) while in Auburn, Harriet Tubman dedicated

19 her life to caring selflessly and tirelessly for people

20 who could not care for themselves, was an influential

21 member of the community and an active member of

22 the Thompson Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church, and

23 established a home for the elderly;

24 (6) Harriet Tubman was a friend of William

25 Henry Seward, who served as the Governor of and
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S 2345 RS

1 a Senator from the State of New York and as Sec2 retary of State under President Abraham Lincoln;

3 (7) William Henry Seward defied the decision

4 of the Supreme Court in Dred Scott v. Sandford, 60

5 U.S. 393 (1857) (holding that African Americans

6 were not citizens of the United States) by selling a

7 house in Auburn to Harriet Tubman;

8 (8) 4 sites in Auburn that directly relate to

9 Harriet Tubman and are listed on the National Reg10 ister of Historic Places are—

11 (A) Harriet Tubman’s home;

12 (B) the Harriet Tubman Home for the

13 Aged;

14 (C) the Thompson Memorial A.M.E. Zion

15 Church; and

16 (D) Harriet Tubman’s grave at Fort Hill

17 Cemetery; and

18 (9) the Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged

19 and William Henry Seward’s home in Auburn are

20 national historic landmarks.

21 SEC. 3. STUDY CONCERNING SITES IN AUBURN, NEW YORK,

22 ASSOCIATED WITH HARRIET TUBMAN AND

23 WILLIAM HENRY SEWARD.

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall

25 conduct a special resource study of the national signifi-
4

S 2345 RS

1 cance, feasibility of long-term preservation, and public use

2 of the following sites associated with Harriet Tubman, lo3 cated in Auburn, New York:

4 (1) Harriet Tubman’s home, located at 182

5 South Street.

6 (2) The Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged,

7 located at 180 South Street.

8 (3) The Thompson Memorial A.M.E. Zion

9 Church, located at 33 Parker Street.

10 (4) Harriet Tubman’s grave at Port Hill Ceme11 tery, located at 19 Fort Street.

12 (5) William Henry Seward’s home, located at

13 33 South Street.

14 (b) POSSIBLE INCLUSION IN THE NATIONAL PARK

15 SYSTEM.—The study under subsection (a) shall include an

16 analysis and any recommendations of the Secretary re17 garding the suitability and feasibility of incorporating 1

18 or more of the sites specified in subsection (a) into the

19 National Park System.

20 (c) CONSULTATION.—In preparing the study, the

21 Secretary shall consult with—

22 (1) the Governor of the State of New York;

23 (2) the Mayor of the city of Auburn, New York;

24 (3) the owners of the sites specified in sub25 section (a); and
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1 (4) the appropriate representatives of—

2 (A) the Thompson Memorial A.M.E. Zion

3 Church; and

4 (B) the Harriet Tubman Foundation.

5 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date

6 on which funds are made available for the study under

7 subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to Congress a

8 report describing the results of the study.

9 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

10 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Harriet Tubman Special

11 Resource Study Act’’.

12 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

13 Congress finds that—

14 (1) Harriet Tubman was born into slavery on a

15 plantation in Dorchester County, Maryland, in 1821;

16 (2) in 1849, Harriet Tubman escaped the plan17 tation on foot, using the North Star for direction and

18 following a route through Maryland, Delaware, and

19 Pennsylvania to Philadelpha, where she gained her

20 freedom;

21 (3) Harriet Tubman is an important figure in

22 the history of the United States, and is most famous

23 for her role as a ‘‘conductor’’ on the Underground

24 Railroad, in which, as a fugitive slave, she helped
6

S 2345 RS

1 hundreds of enslaved individuals to esacape to free2 dom before and during the Civil War;

3 (4) during the Civil War, Harriet Tubman

4 served the Union Army as a guide, spy, and nurse;

5 (5) after the Civil War, Harriet Tubman was an

6 advocate for the education of black children;

7 (6) Harriet Tubman settled in Auburn, New

8 York, in 1857, and lived there until 1913;

9 (7) while in Auburn, Harriet Tubman dedicated

10 her life to caring selflessly and tirelessly for people

11 who could not care for themselves, was an influential

12 member of the community and an active member of

13 the Thompson Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church, and es14 tablished a home for the elderly;

15 (8) Harriet Tubman was a friend of William

16 Henry Seward, who served as the Governor of and a

17 Senator from the State of New York and as Secretary

18 of State under President Abraham Lincoln;

19 (9) 4 sites in Auburn that directly relate to Har20 riet Tubman and are listed on the National Register

21 of Historic Places are—

22 (A) Harriet Tubman’s home;

23 (B) the Harriet Tubman Home for the

24 Aged;
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1 (C) the Thompson Memorial A.M.E. Zion

2 Church; and

3 (D) Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged

4 and William Henry Seward’s home in Auburn

5 are national historic landmarks.

6 SEC. 3. STUDY CONCERNING SITES IN AUBURN, NEW YORK,

7 ASSOCIATED WITH HARRIET TUBMAN.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall

9 conduct a special resource study of the national signifi10 cance, feasibility of long-term preservation, and public use

11 of the following sites associated with Harriet Tubman:

12 (1) Harriet Tubman’s Birthplace, located on

13 Greenbriar Road, off of Route 50, in Dorchester

14 County, Maryland.

15 (2) Bazel Church, located 1 mile South of

16 Greenbriar Road in Cambridge, Maryland.

17 (3) Harriet Tubman’s home, located at 182

18 South Street, Auburn, New York.

19 (4) The Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged, lo20 cated at 180 South Street, Auburn, New York.

21 (5) The Thompson Memorial A.M.E. Zion

22 Church, located at 33 Parker Street, Auburn, New

23 York.

24 (6) Harriet Tubman’s grave at Port Hill Cemetery,

25 located at 19 Fort Street, Auburn, New York.
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1 (7) William Henry Seward’s home, located at 33

2 South Street, Auburn, New York.

3 (b) INCLUSION OF SITES IN THE NATIONAL PARK SYS4 TEM.—The study under subsection (a) shall include an

5 analysis and any recommendations of the Secretary con6 cerning the suitability and feasibility of—

7 (1) designating one or more of the sites specified in

8 subsection (a) as units of the National Park System;

9 and

10 (2) establishing a national heritage corridor that

11 incorporates the sites specified in subsection (a) and

12 any other sites associated with Harriet Tubman.

13 (c) STUDY GUIDELINES.—In conducting the study au14 thorized by this Act, the Secretary shall use the criteria for

15 the study of areas for potential inclusion in the National

16 Park System contained in Section 8 of P.L. 91–383, as

17 amended by Section 303 of the National Park Omnibus

18 Management Act ((P.L. 105–391), 112 Stat. 3501).

19 (d) CONSULTATION.—In preparing and conducting the

20 study under subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult

21 with—

22 (1) the Governors of the States of Maryland and

23 New York;

24 (2) a member of the Board of County Commis25 sioners of Dorchester County, Maryland;
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1 (3) the Mayor of the city of Auburn, New York;

2 (4) the owner of the sites specified in subsection (a);

3 and

4 (5) the appropriate representatives of—

5 (A) the Thompson Memorial A.M.E. Zion

6 Church;

7 (B) the Bazel Church;

8 (C) the Harriet Tubman Foundation; and

9 (D) the Harriet Tubman Organization, Inc.

10 (e) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date on

11 which funds are made available for the study under sub12 section (a), the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report

13 describing the results of the study.
Calendar No. 885

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2345

[Report No. 106–440]

To direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct

a special resource study concerning the preservation and public use of sites associated with Harriet Tubman located at Auburn, New York, andfor other purposes.

SEPTEMBER 29, 2000

Reported under authority of the order of the Senate of

September 28 (legislative day, September 22), 2000,with an amendment