I 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1420 
To establish a commission to commemorate the sesquicentennial of the 
American Civil War. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 7, 2011 
Mr. JACKSON of Illinois (for himself and Ms. MOORE) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government 
Reform 
A BILL 
To establish a commission to commemorate the 
sesquicentennial of the American Civil War. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Civil War Sesqui-
centennial Commission Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find-
ings: 
(1) The American Civil War was a defining ex-
perience in the development of the United States. 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
21:46 Apr 08, 2011
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1420.IH
H1420
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with BILLS
(2) The people of the United States continue to 
struggle with issues of race, civil rights, heritage, 
and the politics of federalism, which are legacies of 
the Civil War and Reconstruction. 
(3) There is a resurgence of interest in the Civil 
War that is evidenced by the multitude of publica-
tions, exhibits, reenactments, research organizations, 
Internet and multimedia resources, historic parks, 
and preservation associations focused on the Civil 
War. 
(4) The years 2010 through 2015 mark the ses-
quicentennial of the period beginning with the elec-
tion of Abraham Lincoln and concluding with the 
end of the Civil War. Notable milestones during this 
period include the following: 
(A) On November 6, 1860, Abraham Lin-
coln was elected President of the United States. 
(B) On December 20, 1860, in a special 
convention, the South Carolina Legislature 
voted to secede from the Union following the 
election of Lincoln. In the early months of the 
following year, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, 
Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas seceded and 
formed the Confederate States of America. 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
21:46 Apr 08, 2011
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1420.IH
H1420
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with BILLS
(C) In April 1861, Confederate forces fired 
on Fort Sumter, the first shots fired in the 
Civil War. In response, President Lincoln or-
dered the blockade of all Confederate ports and 
called for 75,000 volunteers to enlist in the 
Union Army. Four more Southern States—Vir-
ginia, Arkansas, Tennessee and North Caro-
lina—seceded in the months following the at-
tack on Fort Sumter. 
(D) The Civil War spawned numerous 
campaigns, battles, and engagements, including 
Bull Run, the Monitor versus the Merrimac, the 
Peninsula Campaign, Shiloh, the Capture of 
New Orleans, the Shenandoah Valley Cam-
paign, Seven Pines, Seven Days, Antietam, 
Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, 
the Siege of Vicksburg, Chickamauga, Chat-
tanooga, Wilderness, the Siege at Petersburg, 
the Capture of Atlanta, the March to the Sea, 
Nashville, and Appomattox. 
(E) In January 1863, President Lincoln 
issued the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing 
all slaves in States considered to be in rebellion 
against the Federal Government. 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
21:46 Apr 08, 2011
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1420.IH
H1420
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with BILLS
(F) On June 28, 1864, President Lincoln 
repealed all fugitive slave laws. 
(G) On January 31, 1865, the United 
States Congress passed the 13th Amendment to 
the Constitution, abolishing slavery and invol-
untary servitude. 
(H) On April 9, 1865, Confederate General 
Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox 
Courthouse. 
(I) On April 14, 1865, President Lincoln 
was shot by Confederate sympathizer John 
Wilkes Booth while attending a play at Ford’s 
Theater, and died the next day. 
(J) In April and May 1865, Confederate 
Generals Joseph Johnson and E. Kirby Smith, 
leaders of the remaining organized Confederate 
Forces, surrendered, formally ending the South-
ern Resistance. 
(K) By the end of the Civil War, an esti-
mated 600,000 Union and Confederate soldiers 
had been killed and over 471,000 wounded, 
making the Civil War the bloodiest war in the 
history of our Nation. 
(5) The sesquicentennial of the Civil War pre-
sents a significant opportunity for Americans to re-
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
21:46 Apr 08, 2011
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1420.IH
H1420
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with BILLS
call and reflect upon all aspects of that conflict and 
its legacy in a spirit of reconciliation and honest re-
flection, through exploration, interpretation, and dis-
cussion. 
(6) The sesquicentennial of the Civil War pre-
sents a significant opportunity to preserve and pro-
mote the remaining battlefields and historic sites re-
lating to the Civil War before the battlefields and 
sites are lost to future generations. 
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to estab-
lish a Civil War Sesquicentennial Commemoration Com-
mission to— 
(1) ensure a suitable national observance of the 
sesquicentennial of the Civil War that includes rec-
ognition of the historic, social, legal, cultural, and 
political forces that caused the American Civil War 
and influenced its course and outcomes; 
(2) explore the causes of the Civil War to gain 
a better understanding of the reasons that the demo-
cratic framework of the United States failed to re-
solve the sectional issues without resorting to war; 
(3) fully examine and reflect upon the con-
sequences of the Civil War, subjects which Congress 
directed the National Park Service to address in Na-
tional Park Service programs and materials begin-
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
21:46 Apr 08, 2011
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1420.IH
H1420
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with BILLS
ning in 1999, including the Reconstruction era and 
the aftermath, the subsequent constriction of equal 
rights for African-American citizens, and the ulti-
mate achievement of civil rights for the descendants 
of enslaved peoples almost a century later; 
(4) collaborate with and assist States and na-
tional organizations with programs and activities for 
the observance of the sesquicentennial of the Civil 
War; 
(5) assist in ensuring that any observance of 
the sesquicentennial of the Civil War is inclusive and 
appropriately recognizes the experiences and points 
of view of all people affected by the Civil War; and 
(6) provide assistance for the development of 
programs, projects, and activities on the Civil War 
that have lasting educational value. 
SEC. 3. CIVIL WAR SESQUICENTENNIAL COMMEMORATION 
COMMISSION. 
The Secretary of the Interior shall establish a com-
mission to be known as the Civil War Sesquicentennial 
Commemoration Commission (hereafter in this Act re-
ferred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). 
SEC. 4. COMPOSITION OF THE COMMISSION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall be com-
posed of 25 members as follows: 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
21:46 Apr 08, 2011
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1420.IH
H1420
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with BILLS
(1) GOVERNMENT MEMBERS.—The Commission 
shall include— 
(A) 2 Members of the Senate appointed by 
the President pro tempore of the Senate, in 
consultation with the majority leader and the 
minority leader of the Senate; 
(B) 2 Members of the House of Represent-
atives appointed by the Speaker of the House of 
Representatives, in consultation with the minor-
ity leader of the House; 
(C) the Secretary of the Interior or the 
designee of the Secretary; 
(D) the Secretary of the Smithsonian In-
stitution, or the designee of the Secretary; 
(E) the Secretary of Education, or the des-
ignee of the Secretary; 
(F) the Secretary of Defense, or the des-
ignee of the Secretary; 
(G) the Chairman of the National Endow-
ment for the Humanities, or the designee of the 
Chairman; 
(H) the Chairman of the National Endow-
ment of the Arts, or the designee of the Chair-
man; 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
21:46 Apr 08, 2011
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1420.IH
H1420
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with BILLS
(I) the Archivist of the United States, or 
the designee of the Archivist; 
(J) the Librarian of Congress, or the des-
ignee of the Librarian; and 
(K) the Director of the National Park 
Service, or the designee of the Director. 
(2) PRIVATE MEMBERS.—The Commission shall 
include— 
(A) 5 members appointed by the President 
from among individuals who are representative 
of the corporate and nonprofit communities; 
and 
(B) 7 individuals appointed by the Presi-
dent from among persons who by reason of edu-
cation, training, and experience, are experts on 
the Antebellum, Civil War, and Reconstruction 
eras and the preservation, interpretation, and 
presentation of those eras to the public, includ-
ing— 
(i) 5 individuals with expertise in his-
tory or related academic disciplines ger-
mane to the Civil War, including— 
(I) individuals representing the 
museum community, in particular his-
tory museums and historical societies, 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
21:46 Apr 08, 2011
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00008
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1420.IH
H1420
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with BILLS
such as the National Civil War Mu-
seum; 
(II) individuals with expertise in 
art history, historic preservation, or a 
related field; 
(III) individuals with expertise in 
anthropology, cultural geography, so-
ciology, or a related field; and 
(IV) individuals with expertise in 
political science, law, economics, or a 
related field; 
(ii) 1 individual with expertise in the 
preservation of Civil War historic sites and 
battlefields; and 
(iii) 1 individual representing State 
Civil War sesquicentennial efforts. 
(b) TERMS.— 
(1) GOVERNMENT MEMBERS.—If any member 
of the Commission who was appointed as an officer 
designated under subsection (a)(1) leaves such of-
fice, the member may continue as a member of the 
Commission for not longer than the 30-day period 
beginning on the date the member leaves such office. 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
21:46 Apr 08, 2011
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00009
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1420.IH
H1420
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with BILLS
(2) 
PRIVATE
MEMBERS.—Private 
members 
under subsection (a)(2) shall be appointed for the 
life of the Commission. 
(c) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the Commission 
shall not affect its powers, and shall be filled in the same 
manner as the original appointment. 
(d) INITIAL APPOINTMENTS.—The appointment of 
the members of the Commission shall be made not later 
than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 5. GENERAL PROVISIONS. 
(a) MEETINGS.— 
(1) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 60 days 
after the date on which all members of the Commis-
sion have been appointed, the members appointed 
under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of section 4(a)(2) 
shall call the first meeting of the Commission. 
(2) SUBSEQUENT MEETINGS.—The Commission 
shall hold subsequent meetings at the call of the 
Chairperson. 
(b) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON.—At the 
initial meeting, the Commission shall elect a Chairperson 
and a Vice Chairperson from among its voting members. 
(c) QUORUM.—A majority of voting members shall 
constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold meet-
ings. 
VerDate Mar 15 2010 
21:46 Apr 08, 2011
Jkt 099200
PO 00000
Frm 00010
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H1420.IH
H1420
srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with BILLS