III 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 142 

Honoring the life of Rachel Carson. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 21, 2015 

Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. CASEY, and Ms. MIKULSKI) submitted the 

following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Honoring the life of Rachel Carson. 

Whereas, May 27, 2007, marked the centennial of the birth 

of Rachel Carson, a longtime Maryland resident, a noted 

author, and an environmental visionary; 

Whereas Rachel Carson was born on May 27, 1907, in 

Springdale, of western Pennsylvania, where she learned 

to love nature while exploring the Allegheny River with 

her family and friends; 

Whereas Rachel Carson graduated magna cum laude from 

Pennsylvania College for Women (now known as ‘‘Chatham University’’) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1928, 

and went on to earn her master’s degree in zoology from 

The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, 

in 1932; 


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•SRES 142 IS 

Whereas Rachel Carson abandoned her pursuit of a doctorate 

degree in 1935 when her father died so that she could 

provide financial support for her aging mother by taking 

part-time teaching positions at The Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland as well as a position as a writer for the United States Bureau of Fisheries (now known as the ‘‘United States Fish and Wildlife Service’’); 

Whereas Rachel Carson continued her writing career with 

feature columns in the Baltimore Sun on the marine life 

of the Chesapeake Bay until she was employed full-time 

in the Federal Government where she rose to become the 

editor-in-chief for all Fish and Wildlife Service publications; 

Whereas Rachel Carson’s first book, ‘‘Under the Sea-Wind’’, 

published in 1941, gave readers across the country a 

chance to enjoy her poetic style and her careful use of 

scientific information for the first time; 

Whereas Rachel Carson’s second book, ‘‘The Sea Around 

Us’’, earned the 1952 National Book Award and allowed 

her to fully devote her time to her writing career; 

Whereas Rachel Carson’s guide to seashore life, ‘‘The Edge 

of the Sea’’, was published in 1955 and became another 

best seller; 

Whereas in 1962, while a resident of Silver Spring, Maryland, Rachel Carson wrote ‘‘Silent Spring’’, a book that 

detailed how synthetic chemicals accumulate in water, 

soils, fish, and animals, including birds; 

Whereas President John F. Kennedy convened an expert 

panel of scientists that confirmed Rachel Carson’s scientific findings, leading to the domestic ban on the sale 


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•SRES 142 IS 

of the chemical dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (commonly known as ‘‘DDT’’) in 1972, an action that many 

individuals credit with saving the bald eagle from extinction; 

Whereas in 2015, there are more bald eagles in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed than there were in the entire lower 

48 States in 1972; and 

Whereas Rachel Carson passed away on April 14, 1964, at 

her home in Silver Spring, Maryland, leaving behind a 

history of tireless advocacy on behalf of the natural 

world, a legacy of scientific rigor coupled with poetic sensibility, and a book that helped launch the modern environmental movement: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate honors the life of Rachel 

2 Carson, a scientist, writer, and pioneer of the environ3 mental movement. 

Æ 


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