The American Battlefield Protection Program

W O R K 'l-HST G . T O G E T H E R T O P R E S E R V E

A M E R I C ^ f e f ^ ' H I S T - O R I C ' B A T T L E F I E L D S

TH E NATIONAL PARK SERVICE'S

American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP)

leads a federal partnership initiative to help

communities identify, assess, and protect our

nation's historic battlefields. This program works to

preserve significant battle sites associated with wars fought

on American soil.

The American Battlefield Protection Program provides

guidance, support, and seed money for

battlefield preservation, planning,

interpretation, and education. The ABPP

works with private land owners, interested

community groups, and local, regional,

and state officials so they can become

leaders in preserving America's historic

battle sites.

The ABPP was born of crisis. In 1988,

proposed development of a regional

shopping mall threatened 540 acres of

significant Civil War battlefield land that

lay beyond the boundaries of the

Manassas National Battlefield Park in

Virginia. Supporters of preservation and

proponents of development quickly drew

new battle lines. In the end, national

public outcry in favor of preserving the

battlefield convinced the U.S. Congress to

buy the land, but at a cost to American

taxpayers of nearly $120 million.

The experience at Manassas taught us

that such last-minute preservation efforts

are often expensive and divisive ways to preserve this

nation's important battlefields. To ensure that such costly

resolutions did not occur again, Manuel Lujan, Jr., then

Secretary of the Interior, and Congress created the

American Battlefield Protection Program in 1990.

Preserving battlefields

honors those who fought

and died for their ideals,

their homes, and their

families. It also ensures

that both the tragedies of

war and our nations

hard-won advances

are never forgotten.

WALK T H E G R O U N D at Lexington

and Concotd, Gettysburg, and Little

Big Horn. Experience the powerful

lessons these places convey about the

past, present, and future of the United States. A

battlefield's landscape speaks beyond written accounts and

motion picture and television recreations. The remarkable

story of armed conflict in America cannot be compellingly

told or wholly understood without these

sites.

The need to protect these sites of heroism

and sacrifice has never been more acute.

Today, residential, commercial, and industrial

development threaten significant battle sites

in dozens of states.

Among the most vulnerable battlefields identified in

1993 by the Congressionally-appointed Civil War Sites

Advisoty Commission are: Malvern Hill, Virginia; Port

Hudson, Louisiana; Fort Donelson, Tennessee

Bentonville, North Carolina; and Glorieta

Pass, New Mexico. Hundreds of other

Civil War battlefields are now at

risk and soon may be lost

forever. Equally endangered

are dozens of battlefields

associated with the French

and Indian War, the

American Revolution, the

War of 1812, the Mexican-

American War, and the

Indian Wars.

THE ABPP WORKS W I T H INDIVIDUALS,

organizations, and local and state governments

to find innovative ways of preserving the

nation's battlefields. Planning and stewardship

are two key objectives. The ABPP encourages public and

private partners to identify and evaluate battlefields as

early as possible so that information about them can be

incorporated into land-use, economic development, and

tourism plans. This helps avert costly

ctises that can divide communities and

lead to the destruction of important

historic sites.

The ABPP also fosters local stewardship

of historic battlefields by working with

landowners, developers, battlefield friends groups, govern­

ment officials, and others to create opportunities for

preservation. The program encourages its partners to

promote battlefields and associated historic sites as

valuable community assets. When carefully managed,

these places can become recreational open space, outdoor

classrooms, and tourism and revenue generators.

No single government agency, organization, or

person can preserve this nations battlefields

alone. Together we can. The American

Battlefield Protection Program is committed to

working with its many partners to save these

remarkable places of American history.

P A R T N E R S I N

P R E S E R V A T I O N

B A T T L E G R O U N D S

I N C R I S I S

ON C E A Y E A R as par t of its Par tnersh ip

Fund ing Program, the ABPP invites

funding proposals for battlefield preserva­

t ion projects. Since 1990, the ABPP and its

par tners have helped protect a n d enhance more t h a n

60 battlefields by co-sponsor ing more t h a n 130 projects in

16 states and the Distfict of Co lumbia . Individual project

funding has ranged from $1,000 to more t h a n $115,000;

the avetage a m o u n t is $22,000. Mos t pa r tne t s

cont r ibu te ma tch ing funds or in -k ind services

to these projects.

T h e ABPP supports par tne t sh ip projects that:

• Identify and d o c u m e n t battlefields and

associated histot ic sites;

• Assess the condi t ion of battlefields a n d potent ia l

threats to their con t inued survival;

• Deve lop battlefield preservation plans;

• Provide for publ ic educa t ion and interpreta t ion of

battlefields and associated historic sites;

• Incorporate battlefield preservation into local, county,

regional, and state p lann ing ;

• Promote battlefields and associated historic sites as

heri tage tour ism at t ract ions and local and regional

e c o n o m i c deve lopment oppor tun i t i es ; or

• Improve the technica l or m a n a g e m e n t capabili t ies of

local, tegional , state, a n d nat ional o tganizat ions and

governments that help protect battlefields.

T h e ABPP does not fund land acquisi t ion or capital

improvement projects.

At present, the ABPP is focusing on strategies to

preserve priori ty Civil War battlefields identified by the

Civil War Sites Advisory Commis s ion . T h e ABPP also

selectively funds projects that protect sites associated wi th

the Ftench and Indian War, the Amer i can Revolut ion, the

War of 1812, the M e x i c a n - A m e t i c a n War, the Ind ian Wars,

the Span i sh-Amet ican War, and other a r m e d conflicts.

E X A M P L E S O F P A R T N E R S H I P P R O J E C T S

C H I C K A M A U G A , G E O R G I A

In 1994 and 1995, the ABPP, the Chicka­

mauga and Chattanooga National Military

Park, the Georgia Office of Historic Preser­

vation, and several regional planning

authorities orchestrated a comprehensive

survey of Civil War resources outside the

boundaries of the park. This broad-based

planning effort stressed private property

owner and public participation.

F R E D E R I C K S B U R G , V I R G I N I A

As part of a land-use planning initiative,

the ABPP used computer mapping technolo­

gies called Geographic Information

Systems to map for the first time all of the

Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National

Military Park's historic features, including

nearly 40 miles of defensive earthworks. In

1994, the ABPP supported Spotsylvania

County's effort to incorporate a battlefield

preservation element into the county's

comprehensive plan.

H O N E Y S P R I N G S , O K L A H O M A

The Oklahoma Historical Society used two

ABPP Partnership Funding awards to

conduct an archaeological investigation of

the Honey Springs Battlefield. Information

from the two projects helped accurately

identify and interpret historic sites associ­

ated with the battle.

M E X I C A N - A M E R I C A N W A R STUDY,

TEXAS

From 1993 to 1995, the ABPP assisted the

Texas Historical Commission, the South­

west Regional Office of the National Park

Service, and the Palo Alto Battlefield

National Historic Site identify battlefield

sites associated with the Mexican-

American War in the Rio Grande Valley.

R I C H M O U N T A I N , W E S T V I R G I N I A

Beginning in 1994, the ABPP helped the

Rich Mountain Battlefield Foundation,

Inc., develop a tourism route linking Civil

War battle sites between Parkersburg, West

Virginia, and Staunton, Virginia. The

project's goal is to increase public aware­

ness of battlefields associated with the 1861

West Virginia Campaign.

S T O N E S R I V E R , T E N N E S S E E

In 1992, the ABPP funded Rutherford

County's efforts to develop a corridor pro­

tection plan and an interpretive plan

for Thompson Lane, a major approach to

Stones River National Battlefield. In

1993, the county received additional

support to interpret lands outside the park's

boundaries.

THE PARTNERSHIP

FUNDING PROGRAM

In 1992, citizens in south-central Kentucky forged a part­

nership with the American Battlefield Protection Program

that is reaping rewards for the region. The Mill Springs

Battlefield Association, with assistance from the ABPP, the

Kentucky Heritage Council, and the Appalachian

Regional Commission, protected more than 600 acres of

historic land associated with the Battle of Mill Springs

from encroaching resort development. Here in 1862,

Union General George H. Thomas' army broke through

the Confederate defensive line shielding Tennessee,

thereby opening an invasion route into the heart of the

Confederacy early in the Civil War.

The protected Mill Springs Battlefield affords visitors

an educational site, precious open space, outdoor recre­

ation opportunities, and the enjoyment that comes with

these amenities. With support from local citizens, the Mill

Springs Preservation Association continues to raise funds

to build a battlefield museum and protect adjacent

historic land. The Association also is helping preserve the

battlefields 1862 appearance

by negotiating leases and agri­

cultural easements for large

tracts of farmland and wooded

areas with private property

owners. This success story

underscores ABPP'S mission of

encouraging and enhancing

local battlefield stewardship

before threats to the integrity

of battlefields arise.

R E D I S C O V E R T H E HISTORY

of battles that took place in your community,

state, or region through books, battlefield

tours, and special events.

F A M I L I A R I Z E yourself with battlefield preservation issues

and techniques.

T E A C H YOUNG PEOPLE the value of preserving battlefields

as a tangible way to understand the history

of the United States and its people.

Encourage schools to do the same.

V I S I T BATTLEFIELDS and associated

historic sites throughout the country that

commemorate the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, the

Indian Wars, and other American military conflicts.

ENCOURAGE YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS to support legis­

lation that protects historic battlefields.

A T T E N D LOCAL PLANNING MEETINGS to ensure that

decision makers acknowledge and protect battlefields as

historic places, open spaces, and tourist sites.

J O I N A LOCAL BATTLEFIELD FRIENDS GROUP. If one

does not exist in your community, establish one.

J O I N AND SUPPORT NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD PRESERVATION

organizations and historical associations.

V O L U N T E E R at a battlefield park or site.

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL OR STATE BATTLEFIELD PRESER­

VATION COMMISSION. If one does not exist, petition your

elected officials to establish one.

E N D O R S E BATTLEFIELD PRESERVATION initiatives

through newspaper editorials and at community meetings.

W H A T YOU C A N DO

M I L L S P R I N G S : A LOCAL P A R T N E R S H I P

Andrus, Patrick W. National Register Bulletin 40: Guidelines for

Identifying, Evaluating, and Registering America's Historic Battlefields.

Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1992.

Battlefield Update. American Battlefield Protection Program,

National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Washing­

ton, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1990-present.

Boge, Georgie, and Margie Holder Boge. Paving the Past: A History

and Guide to Civil War Battlefield Preservation.

Washington, DC: Island Press, 1993.

The Civil War Battlefield Guide. Edited by Frances

H. Kennedy. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin

Company, 1990.

Civil War Sites Advisory Commission Report on the Nations Civil War

Battlefields. Washington, DC: National Park Service, r993.

Civil War Sites in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Washington,

DC: National Park Service, 1995.

Greene, A. Wilson, and Gary W. Gallagher. National

Geographic Guide to the Civil War National Battlefield Parks. Wash­

ington, DC: The National Geographical Society, 1992.

Kennedy, Frances H., and Douglas R. Porter. Dollar$ and Sense of

Battlefield Preservation. Washington, DC: The Preservation Press,

1994.

Stokes, Samuel N., A. Elizabeth Watson, and J. Timothy Keller.

Saving America's Countryside: A Guide to Rural Conservation. Wash­

ington, DC: National Trust for Historic Preservation, 1989.

C O V E R : Color lithograph by Endicott & Co., Capture of a Rebel Lunette, Near York-

town, Va. April26th 1S62 (New York, n.d.). P R I N T S : Prints and Photographs Division,

Library of Congress. REVOLUTIONARY W A R RE-ENACTORS: National Park Service.

M I L L SPRINGS: Robert G. Drake, Jr. C O L O R P H O T O G R A P H S : Eric Long Photography,

Gaithersburg, M D .

D E S I G N : Meadows Design Office, Incorpotated, Washington, D C

P U B L I S H E D : 1996, American Battlefield Protection Program

The following national organizations support battlefield preservation and

work cooperatively with the American Battlefield Protection Program.

NATIONAL PARKS AND

CONSERVATION ASSOCIATION

1776 Massachusetts Avenue, N W

Suite 200

Washington, DC 20036

(202) 223-6722

NATIONAL T R U S T FOR

H I S T O R I C PRESERVATION

1785 Massachusetts Avenue, N W

Washington, DC 20036

(202) 673-4000

A S S O C I A T I O N F O R

T H E P R E S E R V A T I O N O F

C I V I L W A R SITES

11 Public Square, Suite 200

Hagerstown, M D 21740

(301) 665-1400

T H E C I V I L W A R T R U S T

2101 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1120

Arlington, VA 22201

(703) 516-4944

T H E CONSERVATION F U N D

Civil War Battlefield Campaign

1800 North Kent Street

Arlington, VA 22209

(703) 525-6300

There also are numerous state and local battlefield preservation organi­

zations that would welcome your support. For more information, contact:

T H E AMERICAN BATTLEFIELD PROTECTION PROGRAM

Heritage Preservation Services

National Park Service

P.O. Box 37127, Suite 250

Washington, DC 20013-7127

Telephone: (202) 343-3941 Fax: (202) 343-1836

Internet: http://www.cr.nps.gov/abpp/abpp.html

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Battlefield preservation enables current

and future generations to understand

better the connection between military

conflicts and important social and political

changes in American history. Saving the

site of every battle that occurred in

the United States may be impossible and

impractical, but we should strive to protect

Ithe most important battlegrounds for

urselves and our descendants. At these

ces our ancestors fought and died for the

American ideals we now enjoy —

liberty, democracy, and human rights.

U . S . D E P A R T M E N T O F T H E I N T E R I O R N A T I O N A L P A R K S E R V I C E

C U L T U R A L R E S O U R C E S

H E R I T A G E P R E S E R V A T I O N S E R V I C E S