“Report to Congress on the Historic
Preservation of Revolutionary War
and War of 1812 Sites in the United
States”
"Thanks
to the National Park Service’s
comprehensive report, we can learn about 677 “principal
sites” of two successive wars that established
and sustained our national independence. Field
surveys by the NPS on 243 battlefields and 434 historic
properties document threats to the sites and provide
opportunities for public agencies and private philanthropy
to preserve those that may still be protected. The
NPS has done a great job, and now we can get on with
our job as good citizen-trustees."
Roger Kennedy, Historian and former Director of the National Park Service
Most Americans have some knowledge about this Nation’s two wars for Independence, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. The Revolutionary War, fought from 1775 to 1783, to gain American Independence from Britain is better known. The War of 1812, fought from 1811 to 1815, to secure American Independence from Britain and promote American expansion, is more obscure. But what has become of the battlefields and other areas associated with those conflicts? The National Park Service has the honor of preserving numerous battlefields and areas that are important in understanding each of these conflicts. Many more are preserved by states and local governments or other public or private entities.
As the 225th Anniversary of the Revolutionary
War approached in 2000, members of the United States Congress were
concerned that the “historical integrity of many Revolutionary
War sites and War of 1812 sites” were at risk. In order to
determine the significance of the sites and to asses long and short
term threats to their integrity, Congress passed The Revolutionary
War and War of 1812 Historic Preservation Study Act of 1996 (P.L.
104-333, Section 603; 16 USC Ia-5 Notes).
After years of extensive research and collaboration by all entities involved in preservation of these many important and invaluable sites, the resulting “Report to Congress on the Historic Preservation of Revolutionary War and War of 1812 Sites in the United States” was completed and presented to Congress. It is the most comprehensive list of Revolutionary War and War of 1812 Sites taken on by the federal government. The report reflects the results of years of study and was successful in identifying the sites of almost 3,000 events associated with the two wars, including 60 sites within the National Park System. The study is perhaps the broadest federal effort ever undertaken to determine the status of Revolutionary War and War of 1812 resources.
The Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 are preserves in the National Park System in areas as diverse as Independence Hall
in Pennsylvania, Fort McHenry National Monument in Maryland, King’s Mountain National Military Park in South Carolina, Fort Stanwix National Monument in New York, Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial in Ohio, George Rogers Clark National Historical Park in Indiana, and Minute Man National Historical Park in Massachusetts. Through partnerships and a tireless commitment to history and the future, these and other places that reflect the roots of American freedom, sacrifice, and sovereignty can be saved for future generations through prompt and focused action today.
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National
Park Service Mediaroom Updated:
June 13, 2008
