Legislation Could Protect State’s Revolutionary War Battlefields
Battles
The New Bedford Standard-Times
Cristian Hernandez
Boston University Washington News Service
03/06/09
WASHINGTON – The House of Representatives passed legislation this week that would help preserve Revolutionary War and War of 1812 battlefields.
The bill, cosponsored by Rep. Jim McGovern, D-3, allots $50 million for the establishment of a national grant program to help acquire and protect battlefield sites.
The money would be distributed to local preservation groups and local governments in the form of matching grants that pay no more than 50 percent of the total costs needed to acquire the battlefield site. Officials from the National Park Service said that property owners have to be willing sellers.
Massachusetts has 26 Revolutionary War battlefield sites including the site of the New Bedford-Fairhaven Raid of 1778, which is not under the protection of the National Parks Service. In September of 1778 the south coast came under attack when 4,000 British troops burned homes and sunk ships.
“There are quite a few [battlefield sites] that are still around but are threatened by 21st century development,” said Tanya Gossett, preservation planner for the National Park Service Battlefield Protection Program. “A lot of times folks are not even aware of historic events that took place in those grounds.”
The National Park Service Battlefield Protection Program operates a similar program for Civil War battlefields.
Lawmakers said that urbanization, suburban sprawl and residential development have encroached on important battlefields all over the country. A report by the National Park Service said that out of 677 significant Revolutionary War and War of 1812 sites nationwide 177 are in danger of being destroyed.
Other Massachusetts endangered sites include Penobscot Bay, Nantasket Roads, Newburyport, Dorchester Neck and Charlestown.
“The battlefields of the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 provide a unique opportunity for Americans to experience where and how the epic struggle for our nation’s independence took place,” said Rep. Rush Holt, D-N.J., in a written statement. Holt sponsored the legislation.
Gossett said that the bill provides incentives for communities interested in historic preservation.
The bill will be placed in the Senate’s legislative calendar for consideration this spring.
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