I 
112TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4400 
To designate the Salt Pond Visitor Center at Cape Cod National Seashore 
as the ‘‘Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr. Salt Pond Visitor Center’’, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 19, 2012 
Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts, Mr. NEAL, Mr. 
OLVER, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. TIERNEY, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. LYNCH, Ms. 
TSONGAS, Mr. KEATING, and Ms. PELOSI) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
A BILL 
To designate the Salt Pond Visitor Center at Cape Cod 
National Seashore as the ‘‘Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr. Salt 
Pond Visitor Center’’, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. DESIGNATION. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
(1) Thomas Phillip (Tip) O’Neill, Jr., was born 
on December 9, 1912, in the Irish middle-class area 
of North Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Thomas 
Phillip O’Neill, Sr., and Rose Ann (Tolan) O’Neill. 
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(2) Nicknamed ‘‘Tip’’ during his childhood, 
O’Neill was educated in Roman Catholic schools, 
graduating from St. John’s High School in 1931, 
where he was captain of the basketball team. 
(3) Tip O’Neill then attended Boston College, 
where he ran for a Cambridge City Council seat dur-
ing his senior year—his first attempt at running for 
office and only electoral defeat. 
(4) Following his graduation from Boston Col-
lege in 1936, Tip O’Neill was elected to the Massa-
chusetts House of Representatives that same year as 
a New Deal Democrat whose political philosophy 
was shaped by his experience growing up in working- 
class Boston and his strong Catholic faith, which led 
him to view government as a means for helping the 
disadvantaged in society. 
(5) In 1949, Tip O’Neill became the first 
Democratic Speaker in the history of the Massachu-
setts State Legislature, serving as Speaker until 
1952, when he ran successfully for the United States 
House of Representatives to fill the seat vacated by 
Senator-elect John F. Kennedy. 
(6) In 1958, inspired by the establishment of 
the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, a seashore 
park in North Carolina, Representative Tip O’Neill, 
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along with his close friend and colleague Representa-
tive Edward Boland, introduced legislation to protect 
lands on Cape Cod as a national seashore. 
(7) In describing this area on Cape Cod, Henry 
David Thoreau had written that ‘‘A man may stand 
there and put all America behind him’’, as the pris-
tine sandy beach, marshes, ponds, and uplands sup-
porting diverse species represent a unique, cherished 
jewel of nature. 
(8) The legislation established a 40-mile na-
tional park along Cape Cod’s outer beach, from 
Chatham through Orleans, Eastham, Wellfleet, 
Truro, and Provincetown that includes lighthouses, 
cultural landscapes, and wild cranberry bogs that 
offer a glimpse of Cape Cod’s past and continuing 
ways of life. 
(9) After introduction of the legislation during 
the 85th Congress, Tip O’Neill continued to advo-
cate strongly for establishment of the Cape Cod Na-
tional Seashore, co-sponsoring bills in the 86th and 
87th Congresses, testifying at hearings and working 
to advance the legislation through Congress. 
(10) The legislation was intended to preserve 
one of the great natural marvels of the United 
States, with its unbroken beach and moors, marshes, 
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