NPS Theme Studies Shape the Nation’s Understanding of its Complex and Diverse History Nationwide
CASE STUDY
Equity in Indentification of Historic Properties Federal agencies reported both new and existing directives prioritizing equity and environmental justice. In the context of the identification of historic properties, these policies help agencies promote equity and diversity in the identification process. Agencies shared significant examples of their progress in the ways they are engaging with consulting parties and telling lesser-known stories through the properties they identify. Of note are efforts toward the recognition and preservation of African American Burial Grounds, discussed in a Case Study on page 50.
In the last decade, the National Historic Landmarks (NHL) program, administered by the National Park Service (NPS), has published or featured theme studies and reports that examine national historic context on specific American history or prehistory topics. These studies help historic preservationists in government agencies and the private sector identify and evaluate related places for historical significance, so that more of these places are likely to be nominated to the National Register of Historic Places (National Register) and for NHL designation. They are an important contribution to shaping the nation’s understanding of its complex and diverse history, and to providing direction to the NPS’s engagement with the American people. One notable recent report is the African American Outdoor Recreation National Historic Landmark Theme Study (2022), led by the Midwest Regional Office Historic Preservation Partnerships Program and prepared through a partnership with the Organization of American Historians. It examines how race impacted the experience of and access to outdoor recreation and leisure resources for African American people in the United States from the end of the Civil War through the early 21st century. The study also includes typologies of related property types such as resorts, amusement parks, campgrounds, or beaches, and registration guidelines to identify and evaluate surviving examples for further study as potential NHLs. By examining this history through the lens of race and from the perspective of African Americans, the report brings together the histories of recreation and civil rights in the United States and sheds further light on central themes in the Black experience in this country.
In 2023, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced NPS will collaborate with with Tribes, and other experts, on a new theme study that will focus on the Indian Reorganization Period. The study, supported by the National Park Foundation, will build on the Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative, and other efforts by the Department of the Interior, to ensure Native American history is recognized as American history. The National Park Foundation is contributing to the launch of the study, which will be prepared with the guidance and expertise of external partners, including Tribal leaders, academics, and other experts in the field.
HIGHLIGHTS
» The BLM Vale District’s National Historic Oregon Trail Interpretive Center is working to preserve and share the history of Chinese immigrants in the settlement
of eastern Oregon. The Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project (winner of the 2023 National Trust/ACHP Award for Federal Partnerships in Historic Preservation) is collaborating with the BLM, USFS, and other agencies to proactively collect and inventory data from culturally significant mine sites, which aid in telling the important but rarely-documented stories of Chinese Oregonian miners. The Buck Rock Tunnel Project, as part of the Oregon Chinese Diaspora Project, and Southern Oregon Chinese Archaeology Project, won the Oregon Heritage Excellence Award in 2020, received BLM’s Heritage Hero Award in 2021, and was awarded, among others, the American Association for State and Local History award in 2022, the most prestigious recognition for achievement in the preservation and interpretation of state and local history.
Green Pastures Recreation Area, established in 1936 on the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests holds historical significance as a recreation space for African Americans during the segregation era. Local efforts from community preservation groups have aimed to restore and preserve this culturally significant place. (Jennifer Queen/USFS)
» DHS revised its Environmental Justice Strategy in 2021, introduced an Equity Action Plan in 2022, and finalized Directive 071-04, Consultation and Coordination with Tribal Nations, and its implementing instructions at 071-04-001 in 2022. These policies incorporate the myriad of executive actions issued by the President since 2021. » As of August 2023, DoD is working on an update to the 1995 DoD Strategy on Environmental Justice, which focuses on identifying the impacts of DoD activities on minority and low-income populations; promoting partnerships with all stakeholders; streamlining government; and fostering nondiscrimination in DoD programs. By updating the DoD Strategy on Environmental Justice, DoD will better adhere to the requirements of EO 14096,“Revitalizing Our Nation’s Commitment to Environmental Justice for All.” The DoD Cultural Resources Program is reviewing and providing input to the updated Environmental Justice strategy with a focus on ensuring equity and diversity in the identification of cultural resources for underserved communities. » The Presidio Trust reported that it is funding an update to the Golden Gate National Recreation Area’s Historic Resource Study through a California Coastal Conservancy grant of $250,000, with support from the Organization of American Historians. This critical baseline document update is necessary to offer multi-disciplinary approaches to its scholarship and provide untold stories from previously unheard voices.
Archaeological excavations of a Chinese railroad worker structure in Terrace, UT, were completed in May 2021 as part of a BLM Passport in Time project. (Nicole Lohman/BLM)
“We must look back at the history we find difficult, in equal measure to looking back at the history in which we take great pride.” —NPS Principal Historian Turkiya Lowe
African American Outdoor Recreation Theme Study prepared by NPS. Theme studies like these aid the agency in identifying specific sites for future preservation. (NPS)
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