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Special Resource Study > The Harriet Tubman Study and its
Possible Results
The Harriet Tubman Study and its Possible Results
Harriet Tubman has long been recognized as a heroine,
especially to African Americans, for her achievements in "conducting"
slaves on the underground railroad. But she is less well known as
a Civil War scout, spy, and nurse, or as a humanitarian who established
one of the early homes for the aged. The Underground Railroad Special
Resource Study, completed in 1995, suggested that at least two sites
associated with Tubman (in Auburn, NY, and Dorchester County, MD)
be examined further for their preservation potential and access
by the public. This study includes those sites
plus five others.
New national park system sites are added by Congress
or the President after there has been a professional study to evaluate
the resources to be preserved and the ways in which the public will
be invited to enjoy them. These types of studies are called "special
resource studies."
At the initiative of Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY)
Senator Paul Sarbanes ((D-MD), and Representative Amo Houghton (R-NY),
Congress in 2000 passed a
law directing the National Park Service to "conduct a special
resource study concerning the preservation and public use of sites
associated with Harriet Tubman."
Specifically Congress mandated the National Park
Service to conduct a Special Resource Study that:
- Examines the Tubman legacy along with
places associated with her life and work.
- Explores ways in which places with Tubman resources
might fit appropriately within the national
park system. These ways may match existing types of park
system units or they may describe some other type of affiliation
with the National Park Service.
- Makes recommendations to Congress regarding
these findings.
The study will consider alternative concepts for
recognizing and honoring Harriet Tubman and preserving sites associated
with her. These might run the gamut from: a NPS unit, a related
area but not a unit, no NPS designation but technical assistance
to a state or local or private entity, or some type of network of
sites related through a program. The study report will recommend
a preferred management concept to be considered by Congress. This
concept would describe the basic characteristics, resources, interpretive
potential, public access, ownership, and goals.
There are many issues and possibilities to explore:
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