--(1) Study aims at protecting Manassas views -----------------------------------------------------
Manassas battlefield study aims at protecting views
of the past
Dan Genz, The Examiner
06/19/2008
DC Examiner (DC)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1448724~Manassas_battlefield_study_aims_at_protecting_views_of_the_past.html
WASHINGTON - Preservationists say it is not enough to protect
the grounds at Manassas National Battlefield Park without protecting
its views as new development spreads in fast-growing Prince William
County .
Researchers extensively photographed and mapped the home of the
first major land battle of the Civil War for months, selecting
25 lookouts, including the 10 most pivotal ones to visitors, that
they will attempt to preserve from new construction of roads,
office parks and apartment buildings.
“When you are trying to visualize the battles, you don’t
want to have those distractions,” said Bill Olson, vice
chairman of the Prince William Conservation Alliance. “You
don’t want to look out on traffic jams or cell phone towers
just beyond the fringe of the battlefield.”
Both the county and the National Park Service view the $60,000
study, set for completion at the end of the year, as a guide for
future development that may limit the heights of buildings and
mandate the planting of trees to block eyesores.
The researchers will release their study tonight at the battlefield,
giving visitors and county officials their first peek at which
views need protecting as the study proceeds toward setting development
recommendations.
“Protecting those views will give visitors a greater experience
and make the site more relatable,” said Ray Brown, the park’s
cultural resource manager.
As the Washington region grows, it has made the land beyond the
battlefield more valuable and attractive to developers and regional
planners.
The Tri-County Connector, a major road set to link Prince William
businesses and residents with a faster link to Washington Dulles
International Airport , is expected to be placed just outside
the battlefield.
Henry Hill, home of the visitors’ center, is an example
of what the study imagines preserving. Though there is extensive
development to the south, the modern signs of commerce are screened
by a thick layer of forest that protects what Brown called a “really
iconic view.”
“On Henry Hill, you look out over the heaviest action during
the first battle and the closing action of the second battle.
It’s a site that has an impressive viewscape as you look
out on the rolling countryside with Bull Run Mountain in the distance,”
Brown said.
--(2) Plantation, foundation part ways over quarry -----------------------------------------------------
Plantation, foundation part ways due to disagreement
over quarry
By Eric Beidel
06/19/2008
The Winchester Star (VA)
http://www.winchesterstar.com/article_details.php?ArticleID=7480
Middletown — A longtime preservation partnership has been
threatened by a beef over expanded mining operations near the
Cedar Creek Battlefield.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation and Belle Grove Inc.
have announced that they will end any involvement with the Cedar
Creek Battlefield Foundation.
The Belle Grove Plantation, located on the battlefield south of
Middletown , dates to the 18th century, and its board of directors
had allowed the use of its property by the Battlefield Foundation
for its annual Civil War re-enactment activities.
Belle Grove will no longer allow the use of its property by the
foundation because of the foundation’s position on the quarry
expansion, according to a press release issued Wednesday by the
National Trust.
"We certainly respect the Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation’s
past contributions to the stewardship of the battlefield,"
said Anne Buettner, president of Belle Grove Inc.’s Board
of Directors. "But we cannot silently and passively overlook
the foundation’s recent actions, which were taken unilaterally
and without the prior knowledge of its partners in the overall
preservation effort."
The Belgian mining conglomerate Carmeuse Lime and Stone recently
won rezoning approval from the Frederick County Board of Supervisors
to expand its limestone mining activities at its Chemstone quarry,
located near the Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical
Park south of Middletown .
Belle Grove Inc. claims that in April, the Cedar Creek Battlefield
Foundation reversed its opposition to the quarry expansion, then
cut a deal with the quarry owner to accept a land gift of 8 acres.
"We took no stance" on the quarry expansion issue, said
Linden "Butch" Fravel, who serves on the Battlefield
Foundation’s board. "There was no communication with
Belle Grove on this, that was the problem."
Fravel said his board voted two months ago to not use the plantation’s
property for this October’s re-enactment of the Battle of
Cedar Creek in an effort to save money.
He said, the foundation had spent about $70,000 over the past
five years renting land from Belle Grove for three days each October.
The foundation will still hold re-enactments on its more than
300 acres of battlefield property.
"I’m disappointed," said Mike Kehoe, another member
of the foundation’s board.
The gift from the quarry owner "deals with a lot more than
8 acres," he said. "We did what was best to protect
the property."
Preservationists have argued that the expanded mining operation
would harm views and eat up historical land. Blasting from the
mine could damage historical structures, they say.
Buettner said that Cedar Creek Battlefield representatives took
actions that "undermine the efforts of their partners and
that jeopardize the region’s treasured historic sites."
Belle Grove will continue to use its site to host events commemorating
the 1864 battle, but will do so independently of the Battlefield
Foundation.
"I’m sorry they took that position," Kehoe said.
"We certainly don’t want to alienate ourselves from
any of our partners. I guess there’s a lot of fence-mending
to do, because there’s still a lot of battlefield to preserve."
A phone message left for the Battlefield Foundation’s executive
director, Suzanne Chilson, was not immediately returned on Wednesday
night.
--(3) Search for Tennessee Civil War Flags -----------------------------------------------------
Where are the missing Civil War flags?
Special to the Oak Ridger
06/19/2008
Oak Ridger ( Oak Ridge , TN )
http://www.oakridger.com/news/x415941205/Where-are-the-missing-Civil-War-flags
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — As the Tennessee State Museum curators
gathered information on historic battle flags for a forthcoming
book titled "Volunteer Banners: The Civil War Flags of Tennessee,"
a mystery unfolded. Where are the banners that were carried by
the Tennessee Union troops who fought in the Civil War?
At the beginning of the war, Tennessee found itself divided when
the General Assembly voted to secede. Most people in East Tennessee
were opposed to the Confederacy and many joined regiments to preserve
the Union . Support for the Confederacy was centered in Middle
and West Tennessee .
"The museum has located many Confederate flags and has photographs
of color guards who carried their banners into battle, which will
be included in the book," noted Greg Biggs, renowned Civil
War historian, project director and lead author of Volunteer Banners.
"Only eight Union regimental flags out of the 60 to 70 believed
to have been in existence during the war have been located. As
there is no known record of Union flags being destroyed by post-war
Confederate sympathizers, there is the possibility that the flags
were hidden."
The State Museum , known for one of the finest Civil War and battle
flag collections in the nation, has been working on this project
for several years. Because Tennessee was the primary western battlefield
of the Civil War, with more than 400 battles and skirmishes within
its borders, the state has vast holdings of military documents,
firearms and uniforms. The institution holds some 60 flags, mainly
Confederate in its permanent collection.
The West Point Museum , in Highland Falls , New York , just outside
the gates of the U.S. Military Academy, holds seven Tennessee
Union Flags as part of its collection. The 12th and 13th Regiment
U.S. Colored Troops of Middle Tennessee carried three of these
flags. These troops fought in the Battle of Nashville and were
also responsible for building the railroad that ran from Kingston
Springs to Johnsonville. These seven flags and their history are
an example of the stories that will be included in the book.
"We are reaching out to the public to help us find Civil
War battle flags and photographs of ancestors who may have been
color bearers," Biggs said. "This also includes females
who may have been involved in the production of battle flags.
Portions of the book will be dedicated to the women behind the
banners."
Women, who went to work in huge numbers during the Civil War,
making flags, sewing uniforms, rolling bandages and working in
arsenals, were responsible for the production of the community's
regimental flag. They often selected the fabric and the design
and developed the patriotic slogans which appear on many of the
flags. If they did not actually sew the flag, they generally hired
the company that did. The Flag Presentation Ceremony, where women
presented the flag to their men, was considered to be the "social
event" of season, as it was the symbol and the bond connecting
the soldiers to their home communities.
If the public has any information to contribute to the Tennessee
Civil War Flag Book Project, e-mail museuminfo@tnmuseum.org or
call Myers Brown or Ron Westphal at (615) 741-2692. Proceeds from
the sale of "Volunteer Banners, The Civil War Flags of Tennessee,"
will be used to preserve the Civil War Flag Collection of the
Tennessee State Museum . For more information about the museum,
visit www.tnmuseum.org.
--(4) Trading Ford Recognized in Report to Congress -----------------------------------------------------
Trading Ford Recognized in Report to Congress
6/16/2008
Lexington Dispatch (NC)
http://www.the-dispatch.com/article/20080616/NEWS/553352888/-1/WAR
The Trading Ford area along the Yadkin River has been identified
by the National Park Service American Battlefield Protection Program
as a site at risk from rapid urban and suburban development.
The park service released its “Report to Congress on the
Historic Preservation of Revolutionary War and War of 1812 Sites
in the United States ” last week.
The Trading Ford was included in the survey along with other historic
sites that comprise the “Race to the Dan River .”
A linear resource, the inclusive “Race to the Dan River
,” is listed in the “Roads, Trails, and Waterways
Needing Further Study” section of the report. These are
resources that due to their size and complexity had no equivalent
survey methodology that allowed them to be represented in an equitable
manner.
A subcommittee of the National Park Service Advisory Board gave
each resource a ranking. The “Race to the Dan River ”
received a class of “A, site of a military or naval action
with a vital objective or result that shaped the strategy, direction,
outcome, or perception of the war.”
Paul Hawke, chief of the ABPP, said: “The Race to the Dan,
and all of its contributing resources, are considered among the
most significant sites we looked at.”
During the early days of winter 1781, Nathanael Greene, Southern
Commander of the U.S. Forces, divided his forces, baiting Lord
Cornwallis and the British to follow suit. After a decisive victory
at Cowpens , S.C. , on Jan. 17, Greene and his generals began
a strategic retreat that would lead both armies 230 miles across
the heart of the North Carolina Piedmont.
The Patriots lost beloved General Davidson at Cowan’s Ford
on the Catawba. Dispirited but forging on, they reached Salisbury
on Feb. 2, then moved on to cross the Yadkin at the Trading Ford.
The British arrived at the end of the day on Feb. 3, in time to
have a brief encounter with Greene’s rear guard, only to
find that the rest of Greene’s forces were safely across
the now-swollen river, and that all the boats were on the far
shore.
On the morning of Feb. 4, the British furiously cannonaded the
Americans before giving up their attack and marching north to
the Shallow Ford to cross the river. The pursuit continued until
Greene and his army crossed the Dan River at Irwin’s Ferry
in Virginia Feb. 13, again leaving a swollen river facing the
British army who lacked the boats to follow. Greene had led Cornwallis
away from his base of supply in Charleston and provided himself
with time for reinforcements to reach him. The stage was set for
the encounter between the two armies that would occur at Guilford
Courthouse on March 15.
Historians widely consider the Race to the Dan to have been a
masterful strategic maneuver. A campsite at Abbott’s Creek
in Davidson County is included in the route.
Salisbury historian Ann Brownlee, having previously surveyed the
Shallow Ford site, led a group of volunteers who surveyed the
Trading Ford site in 2000 and 2001, under the auspices of the
Carolinas ’ Backcountry Alliance. The Trading Ford site
was submitted as potentially eligible for the National Register.
“The Trading Ford survey opened the door to the discovery
of a wealth of historic sites concentrated in the Trading Ford
area,” said Brownlee, who subsequently founded the Trading
Ford Historic District Preservation Association to work toward
the preservation of these historic sites.
“I don’t know how it will turn out,” she said.
“But I’d be irresponsible if I didn’t do everything
I can to preserve this irreplaceable heritage. This has the potential
to be developed into a high-quality heritage tourism destination,
which would truly enhance the area and enrich us all. We’re
not against development, but we need a balance, which also includes
historic preservation. It’s time for us to rise to the occasion,
before it’s too late.”
The ABPP’s recognition of the role the Trading Ford played
in the Revolutionary War is the second recent national recognition
afforded this historic area. The Civil War Preservation Trust
recognized another Trading Ford area site, the Yadkin River Bridge
battlefield, as among the nation’s 25 most endangered 2008
Civil War battlefields.
--(5) Chickamauga : Relics Resurrect the Past -----------------------------------------------------
Chickamauga: Relics Resurrect the Past, Provide Clues
about the Civil War
By Chloe Morrison
6/14/2008
Chattanooga Times Free Press (TN)
http://www.tfponline.com/news/2008/jun/14/chickamauga-relics-resurrect-past-provide-clues-ab/
A dime dated 1863 and a wedding band, found side by side under
several inches of soil on a Chickamauga farm, are the kind of
Civil War artifacts that pique the interest of a relic hunter
like Con Kellerhals.
“I try to imagine what in the world could have happened,”
the longtime Catoosa County educator said. “It’s kind
of sad. This guy not only lost a dime, he lost his wedding band
and possibly his life.”
Most Civil War artifacts are less unique — from bullets
and buttons to tin cans and canteens.
But these remnant treasures from the “watershed event”
of our nation’s past tell important stories, and provide
valuable insight into history, Chickamauga Battlefield historian
Jim Ogden said.
There is sometimes is tension between relic hunters and archeologists.
Experts said the friction arises when a novice seeking treasure
robs the public of clues to the past by the careless extraction
of relics.
The search
The search for artifacts is like piecing together a puzzle, experts
said. Reference books may be used to identify finds. Hunters consult
other Civil War enthusiasts or put photos online to help identify
their finds.
The search is exciting, hunters said.
“It gets your heart pumping, and you want to hunt some more,”
said Kevin Walls with the Chattanooga Area Relic and Historic
Association.
Mr. Ogden said there is more importance to a new find than just
the object. Its value involves the object’s location, and
its context with events, place and other items.
For example, a group of cans or bullets can indicate an area used
by soldiers as a camp. “You can determine the layout of
the tents in the camp sites,” Mr. Ogden said.
Mr. Kellerhals said the most common items are Union relics.
“The Union had a lot more stuff,” he said. “Their
bullets were manufactured and mass produced. The Confederate soldiers,
most of them just used whatever gun they had around the house.”
Armed with metal detectors and shovels, relic hunters typically
search their own property or get permission to search on someone
else’s private property.
National Park Service officials stress it’s a federal crime
to do any relic hunting at Chickamauga Battlefield, and at many
other protected properties.
“Some folks are just not aware that it is inappropriate
or illegal to hunt for artifacts on the battlefield,” Mr.
Ogden said.
Those who are caught relic hunting in the park could face misdemeanor
or felony charges.
“It crosses the felony threshold pretty quickly,”
Mr. Ogden said.
Preservation and protection
Chattanooga and Northwest Georgia were the stage for some critical
Civil War events — such as the battles at Chickamauga ,
Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge . Relics left behind can
provide deeper understanding of solider and civilian life, or
the logistics of battles.
“Where they are found and what they are could potentially
tell us something more about how the battle unfolded,” Mr.
Ogden said.
The Chattanooga Area Relic and Historic Association is dedicated
to preserve and protect history, Mr. Walls said, Though found
items have monetary value, most agree the historic and cultural
value is most important.
“I wouldn’t sell them a bullet for $100, but I’ll
give them one,” Mr. Walls said about people with an interest.
“It is about preserving our history and sharing it with
other people.”
Despite good intentions of some, experts said there are those
only in it for the money.
Mr. Kellerhals and Mr. Walls said they have heard of people faking
artifacts to sell.
Not many stores in the area sell relics, but there are frequently
trade shows. Anyone buying an item at a store or online should
“beware,” Mr. Walls said, and buy from a reputable
dealer.
Education for generations
Members of the Chattanooga relic and historic group often visit
schools to try and educate the next generation.
Mr. Walls said Civil War history may be a small part of the school
curriculum. But he said many children are interested in the Civil
War and the relics left behind.
“One of the first schools I went to in 1988 — about
five years later a boy came up to me and said, ‘You gave
me a bullet, and I still have it and really love history because
of that,’” he said.
As years pass there are fewer artifacts to find, but experts said
new metal detecting technology still makes it possible to discover
great finds.
And Mr. Kellerhals said, for him, one of the most intriguing aspects
of Civil War history is that so much of it happened right in his
own back yard.
“I’ve been other places and found stuff, and they
just don’t mean as much to me as the things I find 100 yards
from my house,” he said.
--(6) Kaine Lauds state’s Land Goals -----------------------------------------------------
Kaine Lauds Virginia’s Land Conservation Goals
By Jeff Mellott
6/12/2008
Harrisonburg Daily News Record (VA)
http://www.dnronline.com/news_details.php?AID=29159&CHID=2
Timothy M. Kaine told land conservationists on Thursday that their
help has helped his administration to be slightly ahead of a pace
to permanently set aside 400,000 acres of open space during his
four-year term.
Speaking at the Virginia Union Land Trust conference at the Stonewall
Jackson Hotel & Conference Center , Kaine said between 260,000
and 270,000 acres would be conserved by mid-July.
"It's really satisfying to work on something that is forever,"
he said.
Kaine thanked conferees for their help in preserving funding for
the tax credit program, which he said has been instrumental in
setting the land preservation pace.
The General Assembly appropriated $30 million for the program,
although Kaine asked for $50 million.
Given the financial constraints of the projected budget shortfall,
Kaine said he was "stunned" the legislature retained
funding for the conservation program and provided money to administer
it.
Open-space efforts also will be aided, he said, by the state agreeing
to match funding from the Civil War Preservation Trust, Kaine
said.
The trust has agreed to match the $5 million state funding 2-to-1,
providing a total of $15 million for preserving Civil War
sites in Virginia .
Kaine was the featured speaker of the conference, hosted by the
Staunton-based Valley Conservation Council for the last two years.
The council is a private, nonprofit organization that shares responsibility
for preserving 14,000 acres of open space in a region that extends
from Frederick and Warren counties in the north to Botetourt County
in the south.
The Virginia Outdoors Foundation in conservation easements primarily
holds the land, said John Eckman, who is the council's executive
director.
The biggest threat to preserving open space, said Eckman of Harrisonburg,
is development sprawl and its effect on water quality.
While agricultural practices can be improved to protect water
sources, buildings cannot be torn down, he said.
"That's a much more long-term problem. We have to nip that
in the bud earlier and encourage growth in the right places,"
he said.
Generational Effort
Farmer and conservationist Taylor Cole already has acted. Cole
has set aside 319 acres of his 510-acre farm south of Deerfield
.
Cole grew up on a family farm near Lexington and said putting
the land in a conservation trust is the right thing to do.
"They're beautiful," he said of the acreage set aside.
Along with operating his farm where he grows grasses for alternative
energy sources, Cole is also president of Conservation Partners,
which advises landowners on how to conserve open space.
"Generations of Virginians have been protecting these lands
for the future and now it's our turn to try and protect it for
the next generation," he said.
Cole was among conferees who gave Kaine a standing ovation for
his conservation efforts.
Kaine said land conservation ranks with or close behind his top
passion of early child education.
"We want our grandkids," he said, "to be able to
look on some of the same things we look at and have the same feeling
of awe and wonder."
--(7) Landowners and Charities Farm Tax Break -----------------------------------------------------
Landowners and Charities Farm Tax Break
By Ashlea Ebeling
6/11/2008
Forbes Magazine (NAT)
http://www.forbes.com/businessinthebeltway/2008/06/10/taxes-deductions-charities-biz-wash-cz_ae_0611beltway.html
Land conservation charities had a banner year in 2007, as big
landowners rushed to take advantage of a temporary expansion of
the federal tax break for donating land development rights before
it expired on Dec. 31, 2007.
But like other tax goodies originally handed out temporarily,
the break for "conservation easements" is getting a
second serving. As part of the new farm bill, Congress is extending
the break through 2009, with an extra sweetener for farmers and
ranchers thrown in.
With a conservation easement, you give some or all of the development
rights on your land to a government agency or not-for-profit organization.
You still own and can enjoy the land, and may even be able to
do some construction--say, of duck blinds or a log cabin, for
instance. You can also continue to farm the land.
The newly extended incentive allows a non-farmer donor to use
a conservation donation deduction to wipe out 50% of his gross
income in any year, up from the normal 30%. The temporary break
also allows a donor to carry forward any unused write-off for
a full 15 years, instead of the normal five.
Farmers and ranchers get an even more generous break: They can
offset up to 100% of their adjusted gross income with conservation
donations, potentially zeroing out their tax liability for the
next 15 years. For that they can thank Senators Max Baucus, D-Mont.,
and Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, the Senate Finance Committee's chairman
and ranking minority member.
In fact, the conservation break is so generous that it produces
a bizarre and seemingly backwards incentive: Donors who keep a
piece of land while giving the development rights to a conservation
group can sometimes get a bigger tax benefit than if they'd given
the land outright to the same group. That's because, if a landowner
gives his property away, the normal tax rules apply, meaning he
can use the charitable deduction to wipe out only 30% of his adjusted
gross and can carry any unused deduction forward for only five
years.
Stephen Small, a tax lawyer in Boston who specializes in conservation
easements, says the 15-year carry-forward rule can be a remarkable
planning tool. "You can bank the deduction and use it against
a big income event in the future, say you're planning to sell
investment property or take big retirement distributions,"
he notes.
If you plan to use this break, don't get too greedy. The IRS and
state revenue officials have started auditing conservation deductions,
with an ongoing crackdown in Colorado . The main problem has been
taxpayers claiming inflated appraisals on the worth of the easements,
which leads to inflated and improper tax deductions. To stay out
of trouble, go with a reputable land trust; hire your own outside
tax lawyer to vet the deal; and hire a reputable, experienced
and independent appraiser to value what you're giving away.
"A good conservation easement brings with it some philanthropy;
you really do give up value," says Small. "If somebody
says 'I can put a deal together for you where you can donate an
easement and come out ahead financially,' beware." (For more
details on using the break, see IRS Notice 50-2007.)
Meanwhile, the Land Trust Alliance, an association of 1,600 local
and state land trusts that promote conservation, is already back
in Congress, lobbying to make the break permanent. It estimates
an additional 1 million acres of land was protected through 2007,
thanks to the temporary break.
The Land Trust is leading a coalition of 31 organizations pushing
for the break. Among the members: the American Bird Conservancy,
the Civil War Preservation Trust, the Mule Deer Foundation and
the North American Grouse Partnership.
"We don't want landowners to have to be under the gun of
a deadline," says Russell Shay, director of public policy
for the Land Trust Alliance. "We're dealing with a perpetual
commitment of what's often a family's most valuable asset."
--(8) Group Awaits Cost of Ritchey Mansion Repairs -----------------------------------------------------
Battlefield-protection Group Awaiting Final Cost of
Repairs to Ritchey Mansion
By Derek Spellman
6/8/2008
The Joplin Globe (MO)
http://www.joplinglobe.com/neosho_newton_mcdonald%20county/local_story_160213027.html?keyword=topstory
Local preservationists hope that repairs to the tornado-damaged
Ritchey Mansion will be complete by Sept. 1 as thoughts turn to
the future of the historic site.
For the historic mansion, a “ballpark” estimate puts
the total cost of the damage to the building caused by the May
10 tornado at between $86,000 and $100,000, said Kay Hively, a
member of the Newtonia Battlefields Protection Association, and
an advocate for preserving the house and grounds. The association
will not have a final number until after the contractor has finished
his work, she said.
Much of the damage to the building will be covered by the association’s
insurance, although the organization will have to absorb some
of the costs of cleaning up the surrounding property and of running
an underground power line to the utility pole at the edge of the
property, Hively said. Many of the trees that once studded the
front and back lawns are gone.
“The place looks bare now,” she said of the grounds.
“It looks like a big house on the prairie.”
The Ritchey Mansion served as a headquarters and a field hospital
during two Civil War engagements in Newtonia. The Newtonia Battlefields
Protection Association owns the mansion and both of the nearby
battlefields.
The tornado that swept through Newton County last month tore off
all three of the mansion’s chimneys, part of the brick in
the front and several large chunks of the roof. It also inflicted
other exterior and interior damage.
Hively said repairs to the outside of the building have been completed.
The roof, missing brickwork and damaged windows all have been
replaced, and crews have begun restoration work on the inside
of the house.
That work will include tearing out and replacing damaged parts
of the ceiling, repairs to floorboards, and rewiring the house,
she said.
The association has not been asking for donations to help defray
its repair costs, although that has not stopped some from contributing
money to the effort or volunteering their time to pick up glass
and other debris littering the lawn, Hively said.
The association is awaiting the final cost of repairs and the
amount that insurance will cover to determine how much of the
bill it will have to pay and how to do so, Hively said. The group
hopes to have the repairs and cleanup on the mansion property
finished by Sept. 1, although it has been and will continue to
host tours while the work is under way.
Supporters are hoping that the show of local support will help
accelerate a study of the battlefield sites that was approved
by Congress and endorsed by President Bush several days before
the tornado hit.
The legislation aims to determine the best way to preserve the
sites. It authorizes the National Park Service to conduct the
study to determine if the battlefields could be made a separate
unit of the Park Service or brought under the management of Wilson
’s Creek National Battlefield near Republic.
Jeffrey Olson, a spokesman for the National Park Service, estimated
that the study would cost between $250,000 and $300,000, and take
between 18 and 24 months.
--(9) Editorial: Plan Jeopardizes Port Gibson -----------------------------------------------------
Opinion: MDOT Plan Will Destroy “Treasured Past”
By Jane Ellis
6/8/2008
Jackson Clarion Ledger (MS)
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080608/OPINION02/806080311/1009
There is a warning for all Mississippi towns in Port Gibson's
David-and-Goliath battle to save its historic district.
Port Gibson, a southwest Mississippi town of about 1,800 which
survived the Civil War because Gen. Ulysses S. Grant declared
it "too beautiful to burn," is now battling the Mississippi
Department of Transportation to stop the routing of a five-lane
highway down its most historic street, Church Street.
Church Street is the quintessential Mississippi main street, canopied
by century-old live oaks and lined with seven churches and a 19th-century
synagogue renowned for its Byzantine architecture. Three of the
churches are antebellum, and a total of 52 buildings on the street
are on the National Register of Historic Places.
As part of its plan to reconfigure U.S. 61, MDOT has decided to
reconstruct the highway through Church Street , despite the existence
of other viable alternatives that would leave historic Church
Street intact.
While it has used federal dollars in the past to fund pre-construction
work on the Port Gibson project, MDOT now states that it will
spend only state dollars for the Church Street construction in
an attempt to circumvent federal reviews and protective standards.
Central District Commissioner Dick Hall has spoken publicly against
the Church Street route.
If MDOT chooses to ignore federal historic preservation and environmental
laws and force its way through Port Gibson's National Historic
District, it can do the same to any town in this state. The methods
used by MDOT to circumvent preservation laws are a threat to all
Mississippi towns that wish to preserve their local historic areas.
Please join Port Gibson in opposing MDOT's plan to route a five-lane
highway through historic Church Street, and help stop MDOT's plan
to evade historic preservation laws that protect all of Mississippi's
historic sites. Concerned citizens can sign a petition opposing
the Church Street project at http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/save-port-gibson-mississippi
and can call their MDOT district commissioner to voice their opposition
to this plan. The Mississippi we pass on to future generations
must preserve our treasured past.
Jane Ellis
Chairman, Highway 61 Committee
Port Gibson Heritage Trust
--(10) ditorial: National Park for Fort Monroe -----------------------------------------------------
Editorial: A National Park for Fort Monroe
6/8/2008
The Virginian-Pilot (VA)
http://hamptonroads.com/2008/06/national-park-fort-monroe
FORT MONROE has outlived its usefulness as a military installation,
according to the Base Realignment and Closure Commission. But
the 570-acre fort, whose history stretches back to the early 1600s
and includes epic events in the formation and growth of our nation,
has a bright and prosperous future as one of Virginia's premiere
tourism attractions, education centers and recreational parks
- if local, state and federal leaders do not let the opportunity
slip away.
In recent days, several key reports have been released that are
likely to play critical roles in determining what will become
of Fort Monroe when the U.S. Army departs in three years.
Among them is a preliminary reuse plan generated by the Fort Monroe
Federal Area Development Authority, an 18-member group composed
primarily of officials from the city of Hampton and state government.
The plan contains good news for those who grasp the tremendous
economic potential in the fort's historic and recreational assets.
All but gone is the assumption - widespread in the months after
the announcement of Fort Monroe 's pending shutdown - that the
base's open spaces must be heavily developed to pay for upkeep
of the property and offset the effect of the base's closure on
the Hampton economy.
The authority's consultants estimate annual maintenance costs
would be about $4 million, far below the Army's initial projections
of $14 million. The consultants also predict that Fort Monroe
's history could attract 100,000 to 150,000 visitors annually
and that its beachfront another 115,000 to 125,000.
There isn't quite as much cause for celebration in a long-anticipated
"reconnaissance study" by the National Park Service.
Not surprisingly, the agency concluded that the fort is "an
exceptionally important portal" through which to examine
our nation's history and is "worthy of preservation and protection."
Equally unsurprising is the conclusion that the cash-strapped
agency is in no hurry to take on the job of preservation and protection.
The Park Service's report recommends that Congress delay authorization
of "a Special Resource Study," a more comprehensive
review that could lead to national park designation, until a reuse
plan is approved by the redevelopment authority and by others
engaged in the process.
Two major challenges now face local, state and federal leaders
who recognize Fort Monroe 's rich but little-known history and
can envision the day when it could join Colonial Williamburg,
Jamestown and Yorktown as major attractions.
The obstacles, bluntly put, are (a) Fort Monroe is not likely
to achieve its potential without the expertise, resources and
reputation of the National Park Service and (b) the National Park
Service is unlikely to become part of the project unless others
contribute large sums of money.
In a meeting with The Pilot editorial board last week, Gov. Tim
Kaine re-stated his administration's commitment to preserving
the fort's historic assets, broadening public access to the site
and laying the groundwork for a self-sustaining operation. He
said "revenue maximization" - i.e., selling or leasing
open spaces for development - "should not be goal one."
That's good news.
Kaine, understandably, is unwilling to dip into the state's treasury
to help Fort Monroe build a partnership with the National Park
Service. But Kaine and the General Assembly should be willing
to marshal support from a wide range of groups - the National
Trust for Historic Preservation, the Civil War Preservation Trust
and the National Parks Conservation Association, among others
- to begin building a permanent funding mechanism for Fort Monroe
. A similar venture has succeeded at The Presidio, a former military
installation added to the Golden Gate National Recreation Area
almost 15 years ago.
Fort Monroe has many stories to tell - stories about, among others,
Capt. John Smith, Chief Black Hawk, the Monitor and the Merrimac,
Edgar Allan Poe, Jefferson Davis, Harriet Tubman and three enslaved
men, Frank Baker, Sheppard Mallory and James Townsend, whose brave
actions at the fort played a direct role in the Emancipation Proclamation.
But none of those stories will be told as effectively or reach
as broad an audience unless the National Park Service is involved
in the next stage of Fort Monroe's history, unless preservation
groups commit resources to establishing a public trust for its
protection, and unless local, state and federal leaders unite
in the obvious - creating Fort Monroe National Park.
--(11) Resaca Battlefield Project Marches On -----------------------------------------------------
Resaca Battlefield Project Marches On
By Lori Yount
6/2/2008
Chattanooga Times Free Press (TN)
http://www.tfponline.com/news/2008/jun/02/georgia-resaca-battlefield-project-marches/?local
Gen. William T. Sherman’s Atlanta campaign was bad news
for the Confederacy in 1864. But almost 150 years later, it’s
good news for Georgia ’s economy.
With Gov. Sonny Perdue’s final approval of $3 million in
bonds last month, local and state officials believe the development
of a Resaca Battlefield park near the Gordon-Whitfield county
line is secured.
The facility will become a clearinghouse of Civil War information,
and be complete before an influx in heritage tourists expected
in 2011, the 150th anniversary of the war’s beginning.
Groundbreaking on the visitors center is expected late this summer.
“The Resaca battle was the beginning of the end of the Confederacy,”
said John Culpepper, chairman of the Georgia Civil War Commission
and Chickamauga city manager. “The war ended in Georgia
.”
Tourism is the second largest industry in Georgia , and historic
tourism is steadily becoming a larger part of that. Leaders said
they hope transforming the battlefield — conveniently located
just off Interstate 75 — can attract and direct Civil War
buffs along in the footsteps of Gen. Sherman and to sites throughout
the state.
Most of the initial state funding for the project in last year’s
budget was re-directed to other projects, stalling construction
of the visitors center, but the bonds approved by Gov. Perdue
last month already were being sold last week, said Rep. John Meadows,
R-Calhoun.
“It’s an awfully good project — good for the
state of Georgia and the whole Southeast,” he said. “It’s
just an economic boon.”
And now with state money secure, it’s time for the local
communities to finish the mission with supplemental funds.
Ken Padgett, president of the nonprofit group Friends of Resaca
Battlefield, said his organization has secured a $10,000 grant
from the Calhoun-Gordon County Community Foundation for site development.
The money will be directed to the Department of Natural Resources,
the state agency in charge of transforming the 500-acre site.
Uncertainty in state money threatened the grant, Mr. Padgett said.
“We have until October to spend that money,” he said.
“If the governor had not signed (the bonds), we would likely
have re-routed the money.”
Mr. Padgett said the organization also will help the community
raise $500,000 for park furnishings, such as benches and fountains.
“(Fundraising) plans in the next month are really going
to gear up and go,” he said.
To complement the state’s battlefield preservation project,
the nonprofit group and Gordon County continue a preservation
effort to buy and plan to develop land near what is considered
the Fort Wayne part of the battlefield, where Mr. Padgett said
the first shots of the battle were fired.
The state Department of Transportation budget includes $200,000
to develop the land by blazing interpretive trails and an entrance.
“We hope to have it opened to the public before the state
opens the battlefield,” he said. “They’ll be
in a bird’s eye view of each other. They’ll both complement
each other.”
The two sites represent only about 20 percent of the area in which
the May 1864 clash took place, Mr. Padgett said, with the rest
held by private owners.
The Fort Wayne project should be finished by the end of 2009,
he said.
The state is projected to finish the visitors center within 18
months of receiving the $3 million. The next phase of the development,
which includes interpretive trails, might require more money from
the state Legislature next session and may not be completed until
the end of 2010, Mr. Padgett said.
Meanwhile, Mr. Culpepper said Civil War commissions in the region
are banding together to promote their areas for the 150th anniversary.
He said a tri-state committee of Georgia , Tennessee and Alabama
preservationists are pooling funds to buy billboards, fliers and
special offers to advertise sites already open to the public.
“We need to promote more of what we have now, and we’re
doing that,” Mr. Culpepper said.
--(12) Students Raise Money to Preserve History -----------------------------------------------------
Students Raise $250 to Preserve History
By Lucy Weber
6/1/2008
Jackson Clarion Ledger (MS)
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080601/NEWS/806010368/1001/news
By looking to the future, history students at Madison Middle School
are preserving the past.
A small plot of land has been purchased by the school's Junior
Historical Society and added to the acreage of the Civil War Preservation
Trust, which is working to save at the Battle of Champion Hill
site, near Edwards.
"We helped save a part of history," eighth-grader Xavier
Cheatham said.
"It's rewarding to know we got this land so it won't go to
residential development," said Rod Bridges, president of
the school club.
The officers and all-A students in the society recently got the
opportunity to present their check for $250 - raised by sponsoring
a day when students could pay $1 to wear a hat to school - to
Vicksburg National Military Park Ranger Terry Winschel, a national
board advisor to the Civil War Preservation Trust.
"You should be pleased and proud. Your children and your
grandchildren can come to this spot and know you had a role in
preserving it," Winschel told the students as he gave them
a tour of the area where the battle took place on May 16, 1863.
Called the Spicer tract, the total of three acres, which includes
the one-sixteenth of an acre the students bought, sits at the
southeast quadrant of the Crossroads, the middle line of the battle
that ended in defeat for the 22,500 Confederate troops who fell
that day to the 32,000 Union soldiers under the command of Gen.
Ulysses S. Grant. The guns of the Alabama battery were on the
spot during the battle.
The Crossroads is in the center of the battle area and several
hundred yards south of the actual Champion Hill.
"I cannot stress enough the significance of this," Winschel
said. "This makes them stakeholders of our history."
The preservation of this Civil War battlefield is important, he
said, because that war was a defining event in American history.
"The role of government today can be traced back to Civil
War society. It helps us to understand who we are and to know
what's important today."
----------------------------------------------------------------
Jim Campi, Policy and Communications Director
Civil War Preservation Trust
1331 H Street NW
Suite 1001
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 367-1861
http://www.civilwar.org