Congressional Hearing Today: To Establish National Park Sites to Commemorate the Life of Harriet Tubman

Washington, D.C.-The nation’s leading voice for the national parks,
the nonprofit National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) today
voiced support for legislation under consideration in Congress (S. 227)
to establish the new Harriet Tubman National Historical Park in Auburn,
New York, and the new Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National
Historical Park on the Eastern shore of Maryland-the first sites in the
National Park System to specifically honor Tubman.

“Harriet Tubman is one of the most widely recognized icons in
American history, but myth and misinformation have obscured the true
significance of her contributions to this country,” said NPCA
Legislative Representative Alan Spears. “Establishment of these sites
would provide the public with a clearer understanding of two critical
but poorly understood periods in Tubman’s life, and place the
responsibility for preserving and interpreting that history in the
capable hands of the National Park Service.”

The proposed Harriet Tubman National Historical Park in New York would
include Tubman’s home; the home she established for elderly Blacks;
the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church; the Fort Hill Cemetery
where she is buried; a memorial garden, and walking paths. 

The Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park in
Maryland would include nearly 5,700 acres of historically important
landscapes in Dorchester, Caroline, and Talbot counties, including the
Poplar Neck Plantation from which Tubman escaped in 1849, a memorial
garden, and walking paths. The park site would also be connected with
the existing Blackwater Wildlife Refuge. 

For more information about this legislation, visit: 
http://www.npca.org/cultural_diversity/black_history/harriet_tubman.html