SENATE PASSES SCHUMER-MOYNIHAN BILL TO PROTECT TUBMAN LANDMARKS

Bill Will Honor Civil Rights Hero, Auburn Resident

US Senators Charles E. Schumer and Daniel Patrick Moynihan announced that the Senate has passed legislation they introduced to recognize Civil War-era abolitionist and Underground Railroad conductor Harriet Tubman by requiring the U.S. Department of Interior to study the preservation and public use of local New York landmarks associated with her life. Tubman lived in Auburn, New York from 1857 until her death in 1913.

"Harriet Tubman was without a doubt one of this nation's earliest and greatest civil rights leaders, helping hundreds of African-Americans escape slavery in the years leading up to and during the Civil War," said Schumer. "This legislation will help preserve the memory of a true American hero so that future generations can learn from her courageous example."

"This is an important step towards making Harriet Tubman's home a national landmark, as well as other sites in Auburn that reflect her accomplished life," said Moynihan. "In addition to leading 750 people to freedom on the Underground Railroad, she served as a nurse and scout for the Union Army, raised money for black schools, worked for women's rights and established a home in Auburn for needy blacks. The national landmark description will give Auburn and New York more reason to be proud of her."

The legislation directs the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a resource study concerning the preservation and public use of sites in Auburn associated with Harriet Tubman. The sites that would be studied include Harriet Tubman's home at 182 South Street; The Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged at 180 South Street; The Thompson Memorial AME Zion Church at 33 Parker Street; Harriet Tubman's grave at Port Hill Cemetery; and William Henry Seward's home at 33 South Street. The bill also requires the Department of Interior to look into incorporating these sites into the National Park system.

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