I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 520 

To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study of alternatives 

for commemorating and interpreting the role of the Buffalo Soldiers 

in the early years of the National Parks, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 5, 2013 

Ms. SPEIER (for herself, Ms. BORDALLO, Mr. CLAY, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. ELLISON, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. FARR, Mr. ISRAEL, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. 

MCDERMOTT, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Ms. MOORE, Mr. NADLER, Ms. NORTON, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr. HUFFMAN, and 

Mr. GRIJALVA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a 

study of alternatives for commemorating and interpreting 

the role of the Buffalo Soldiers in the early years of 

the National Parks, 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 ‘‘Buffalo Soldiers in 

5 the National Parks Study Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

2 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) In the late 19th century and early 20th cen4 tury, African-American troops who came to be 

5 known as the Buffalo Soldiers served in many crit6 ical roles in the western United States, including 

7 protecting some of the first National Parks. 

8 (2) Based at the Presidio in San Francisco, 

9 Buffalo Soldiers were assigned to Sequoia and Yo10 semite National Parks where they patrolled the 

11 backcountry, built trails, stopped poaching, and oth12 erwise served in the roles later assumed by National 

13 Park rangers. 

14 (3) The public would benefit from having op15 portunities to learn more about the Buffalo Soldiers 

16 in the National Parks and their contributions to the 

17 management of National Parks and the legacy of Af18 rican-Americans in the post-Civil War era. 

19 (4) As the centennial of the National Park 

20 Service in 2016 approaches, it is an especially ap21 propriate time to conduct research and increase pub22 lic awareness of the stewardship role the Buffalo 

23 Soldiers played in the early years of the National 

24 Parks. 

25 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to author26 ize a study to determine the most effective ways to inVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:41 Feb 12, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H520.IH H520

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1 crease understanding and public awareness of the critical 

2 role that the Buffalo Soldiers played in the early years 

3 of the National Parks. 

4 SEC. 3. STUDY. 

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

6 conduct a study of alternatives for commemorating and 

7 interpreting the role of the Buffalo Soldiers in the early 

8 years of the National Parks. 

9 (b) CONTENTS OF STUDY.—The study shall in10 clude— 

11 (1) a historical assessment, based on extensive 

12 research, of the Buffalo Soldiers who served in Na13 tional Parks in the years prior to the establishment 

14 of the National Park Service; 

15 (2) an evaluation of the suitability and feasi16 bility of establishing a national historic trail com17 memorating the route traveled by the Buffalo Sol18 diers from their post in the Presidio of San Fran19 cisco to Sequoia and Yosemite National Parks and 

20 to any other National Parks where they may have 

21 served; 

22 (3) the identification of properties that could 

23 meet criteria for listing in the National Register of 

24 Historic Places or criteria for designation as Na25 tional Historic Landmarks; 


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1 (4) an evaluation of appropriate ways to en2 hance historical research, education, interpretation, 

3 and public awareness of the story of the Buffalo Sol4 diers’ stewardship role in the National Parks, in5 cluding ways to link the story to the development of 

6 National Parks and the story of African-American 

7 military service following the Civil War; and 

8 (5) any other matters that the Secretary of the 

9 Interior deems appropriate for this study. 

10 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 3 years after funds are 

11 made available for the study, the Secretary of the Interior 

12 shall submit to the Committee on Natural Resources of 

13 the House of Representatives and the Committee on En14 ergy and Natural Resources of the Senate a report con15 taining the study’s findings and recommendations. 

Æ 


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