TUAI TUIN Foundation Document
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE • U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Foundation Document Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site Alabama April 2017 Foundation Document To Auburn and Atlanta Chehaw Exit 38 Tuskegee 85 Airmen C National h a p Historic Site p A ie v e J n a Exit 32 u m e e 29 s 80 81 TUSKEGEE 51 UNIVERSITY To Tuskegee Institute Montgomery National Rd ry and Historic Site e TUSKEGEE Selma to Montgomery m o National Historic Trail g t 35mi n 56km o M 80 North 0 2 Kilometers 29 0 2 Miles Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site | Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site Contents Mission of the National Park Service 1 Introduction 2 Preface: Three Parks, One Legacy 3 Part 1: Core Components For Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site 4 Brief Description of the Park 4 Park Purpose 6 Park Significance 7 Fundamental Resources and Values 8 Related Resources 9 Interpretive Themes 10 Part 2: Dynamic Components for Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site 11 Special Mandates and Administrative Commitments 11 Assessment of Planning and Data Needs 12 Part 3: Core Components for Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site 26 Brief Description of the Park 26 Park Purpose 28 Park Significance 29 Fundamental Resources and Values 30 Related Resources 31 Interpretive Themes 32 Part 4: Dynamic Components for Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site 34 Special Mandates and Administrative Commitments 34 Assessment of Planning and Data Needs 35 Part 5: Contributors 44 Appendixes 45 Appendix A: Enabling Legislation and Legislative Acts for Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site 45 Appendix B: Enabling Legislation for Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site 49 Appendix C: Inventory of Administrative Commitments for Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site 54 Appendix D: Inventory of Administrative Commitments for Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site 54 Appendix E: Past and Ongoing Park Planning and Data Collection Efforts for Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site 55 Appendix F: Past and Ongoing Park Planning and Data Collection Efforts for Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site 56 Foundation Document ii Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site | Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site Mission of the National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) preserves unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the national park system for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations. The National Park Service cooperates with partners to extend the benefits of natural and cultural resource conservation and outdoor recreation throughout this country and the world. The NPS core values are a framework in which the National Park Service accomplishes its mission. They express the manner in which, both individually and collectively, the National Park Service pursues its mission. The NPS core values are: · Shared stewardship: We share a commitment to resource stewardship with the global preservation community. · Excellence: We strive continually to learn and improve so that we may achieve the highest ideals of public service. · Integrity: We deal honestly and fairly with the public and one another. · Tradition: We are proud of it; we learn from it; we are not bound by it. · Respect: We embrace each other’s differences so that we may enrich the well-being of everyone. The National Park Service is a bureau within the Department of the Interior. While numerous national park system units were created prior to 1916, it was not until August 25, 1916, that President Woodrow Wilson signed the National Park Service Organic Act formally establishing the National Park Service. The national park system continues to grow and comprises more than 400 park units covering more than 84 million acres in every state, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. These units include, but are not limited to, national parks, monuments, battlefields, military parks, historical parks, historic sites, lakeshores, seashores, recreation areas, scenic rivers and trails, and the White House. The variety and diversity of park units throughout the nation require a strong commitment to resource stewardship and management to ensure both the protection and enjoyment of these resources for future generations. The arrowhead was authorized as the official National Park Service emblem by the Secretary of the Interior on July 20, 1951. The sequoia tree and bison represent vegetation and wildlife, the mountains and water represent scenic and recreational values, and the arrowhead represents historical and archeological values. 1 Foundation Document Introduction Every unit of the national park system will have a foundational document to provide basic guidance for planning and management decisions—a foundation for planning and management. The core components of a foundation document include a brief description of the park as well as the park’s purpose, significance, fundamental resources and values, and interpretive themes. The foundation document also includes special mandates and administrative commitments, an assessment of planning and data needs that identifies planning issues, planning products to be developed, and the associated studies and data required for park planning. Along with the core components, the assessment provides a focus for park planning activities and establishes a baseline from which planning documents are developed. A primary benefit of developing a foundation document is the opportunity to integrate and coordinate all kinds and levels of planning from a single, shared understanding of what is most important about the park. The process of developing a foundation document begins with gathering and integrating information about the park. Next, this information is refined and focused to determine what the most important attributes of the park are. The process of preparing a foundation document aids park managers, staff, and the public in identifying and clearly stating in one document the essential information that is necessary for park management to consider when determining future planning efforts, outlining key planning issues, and protecting resources and values that are integral to park purpose and identity. While not included in this document, a park atlas is also part of a foundation project. The atlas is a series of maps compiled from available geographic information system (GIS) data on natural and cultural resources, visitor use patterns, facilities, and other topics. It serves as a GIS-based support tool for planning and park operations. The atlas is published as a (hard copy) paper product and as geospatial data for use in a web mapping environment. The park atlas for Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site and Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site can be accessed online at: http://insideparkatlas.nps.gov/. 2 Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site | Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site Preface: Three Parks, One Legacy The Interwoven Historical Foundations of Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site, Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, and Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail The stories of Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site, Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, and Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail are interwoven and connected by history. Founded in 1881, the Tuskegee Institute served as a springboard for nationally significant events that led to the establishment of these three national historic sites as units of the national park system. Guided by the leadership of Dr. Booker T. Washington and the genius of Dr. George Washington Carver, Tuskegee Institute (today Tuskegee University) became nationally prominent for its innovative curricula, research, and community outreach under the direction of these two prominent figures in American history. The African American pilots and air crews who became the celebrated “Tuskegee Airmen” of the U.S. military were birthed out of the upstanding reputation the Tuskegee Institute developed as the leading African American school teaching leadership and entrepreneurship in the late 1800s and early 1900s, leading to the Army Air Corps initial site selection. In 1939 President Franklin D. Roosevelt visited the Civilian Pilot Training Program near Tuskegee Institute to view firsthand the institute’s strength in aeronautics. Two years later, in 1941, Tuskegee became the first government-operated flight training base for the all-African American 99th Pursuit Squadron. Pre-flight training began at Tuskegee Institute and primary flight training took place at the nearby Tuskegee Army Air Field until Moton Field was built on Tuskegee Institute land later that year. Moton Field was the only military primary flight training for African Americans throughout World War II. Without Tuskegee Institute, there may not have ever been a flight program for African Americans at Tuskegee or elsewhere. Our national struggle for civil rights had roots within the Tuskegee Airmen. Often upon graduation from flight school at the Tuskegee Army Air Field, the Tuskegee Airmen went overseas to fight during World War II. Along with various other African American military and civilian groups, the Airmen developed the “Double V Campaign,” which was a campaign aimed at winning the war against fascism overseas and racism here in the United States. At the end of the war, the fascist governments in Europe were defeated, and many Tuskegee Airmen returned to the United States and helped to take up the