Antiquities Act -- Its History and Use

DOCUMENT Full-Text Francis McManamon.

The Antiquities Act of 1906 is among the most important of American conservation and preservation laws. It provides specifically for the preservation of archaeological, historical, and natural resources on public lands. It also provides the foundation of a century's worth of further developments in statutes, regulations, and policies for the conservation and preservation of archaeological, historical, and natural resources throughout the United States. Theodore Roosevelt, of course, was...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Kevin Mack.

Recently, some members of Congress have attempted to create controversy with an anonymous leak of an “Internal Draft — NOT FOR RELEASE” memo within the Department of Interior. The leaked memo contained a list of 14 areas in nine states that might be worthy of being designated as national monuments under the Antiquities Act. The memo clearly stated, “further evaluations should be completed prior to any final decision, including an assessment of public and Congressional support.” For those of us...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Jessica Verges. Barabara Dobson. Gregory A. Miller. Linea Sundstrom. Jon M. Shumaker. Delaine Spilsbury. Cathy Garrett. William H. Doelle. Erik M. Gantt. Deborah Gangloff. Delaine Spilsbury. Buford Crites. Nancy Hall. Cindy Shogan. Damon Dozier. Rebecca Wodder. C. Brian Rose. Jeff Williamson. Mike Painter. John Podesta. Carolyn Campbell. Brian O'Donnell. Rodger Schlickeisen. Glenda Simmons. Paul McFarland. Lahsha Brown. Pat Williams. Thomas Hulen. Kelly Burke. Rick Johnson. Tiernan Sittenfeld. Craig Sharpe. Thomas C. Kiernan. Adam Kolton. John C. Tull. Stephen Capra. Katherine Finley. Gary Werner. David Jenkins. Leonard Becker. Debbie Sease. Margaret W. Conkey. Dave Willis. Scott Groene. Andrew Fulks. John Horning. William B. Lees. Luther Propst. Kevin Bixby. Herbert D. Trossman. William H. Meadows. Bill James. Dennis Tighe. Patrick Shea. Patty Gerstenblith. Bob Witzeman. Mike Daulton. Richard Moe. Frances Beinecke. William Doleman. Brent Fenty. Adam Cramer. Susan Tixier. Lynsey Miller. Megan Graham. Melanie Emerson.

On behalf of the following organizations and the millions of Americans that comprise our members nationwide, we write in support of the Antiquities Act. This law is a critical tool for the conservation and preservation of our nation's public lands and as such we encourage you to oppose any legislation to reduce your authority under the Antiquities Act and to appropriately utilize this tool to continue the long bipartisan practice of Presidents recognizing and protecting our rich natural and...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Carol Hardy Vincent. Kristina Alexander.

The Antiquities Act of 1906 authorizes the President to create national monuments on federal lands that contain historic landmarks, historic and prehistoric structures, or other objects of historic or scientific interest. The President is to reserve “the smallest area compatible with the proper care and management of the objects to be protected.” The act was designed to protect federal lands and resources quickly, and Presidents have proclaimed about 130 monuments. Congress has modified many of...

DOCUMENT Full-Text The Wilderness Society.

This is a two page overview of the Antiquities Act by the Wilderness Society.. Since Congress passed the Antiquities Act in 1906, presidents—Republicans and Democrats alike—have used the Act more than 100 times to preserve some of our most spectacular and historically important public lands. Although its title suggests a focus on archaeology (ruins, petroglyphs, etc.), the Antiquities Act gives the president the power to protect all forms of American history – natural, scientific, and...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Michelle Norris. John Nielsen.

This is the transcript from the radio program "All Things Considered". The broadcast discusses the possibility of George W. Bush using the Antiquities Act to protect ocean reserves. If the idea moves ahead, environmentalists say it would be one of the most significant ctions of conservation in U.S. history. And they say it could give President Bush what you might call a historic blue legacy.

DOCUMENT Full-Text Em Hall.

This issue of the Natural Resources Journal encompasses a “very large array” of articles, to borrow the name of one of New Mexico’s wonders on the Plains of San Augustine southwest of Albuquerque and the title of National Park Service historian Richard Sellar’s history of the beginnings of the long esteemed and recently embattled agency for which he works. The “large array” in this issue runs the gamut from the economic evaluation of ecological services, a critical issue in the balancing of...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Richard W. Sellars.

This issue of the Natural Resources Journal encompasses a “very large array” of articles, to borrow the name of one of New Mexico’s wonders on the Plains of San Augustine southwest of Albuquerque and the title of National Park Service historian Richard Sellar’s history of the beginnings of the long esteemed and recently embattled agency for which he works. The “large array” in this issue runs the gamut from the economic evaluation of ecological services, a critical issue in the balancing of...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Frank Norris.

June 8 of 2006 marked the centennial of the Antiquities Act —a law that, by any standards, is a landmark in the history of U.S. land management policies. There was a sweeping application of this act in the late 1970s that reserved a huge amount of acreage, and generated as large an amount of controversy. Questions arose, therefore, about the roots of that controversy, and whether the actions taken regarding Alaska were unique. The Antiquities Act’s second section provides for the U.S. president...

DOCUMENT Full-Text The Wilderness Society.

Rising 1,267 feet above the Belle Fourche River, Devils Tower casts shadows over the rolling hills, pine forests, and prairie grasses that comprise Devils Tower National Monument in northeastern Wyoming. Proclaimed a National Monument on September 24, 1906, by President Theodore Roosevelt, Devils Tower is our oldest National Monument and represents the first time the Antiquities Act of 1906 was used to preserve some of the remarkable resources found throughout the United States. Since the...

DOCUMENT Full-Text David Harmon. Francis McManamon. Dwight T. Pitcaithley.

The history of American archaeology, conservation, and historic preservation often is told in terms of legal milestones, and rightly so. An environmental activist working to expand a nearby park, a historic preservationist trying to save a cherished old building, a volunteer working on a national wilderness campaign, an archaeologist investigating an ancient village site in advance of reservoir construction—all are working from a solid foundation of statutory authorities that, law by law, have...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Francis McManamon.

The Antiquities Act of 1906 is not widely known, yet it is among the most important of American laws for archaeological and historical preservation, as well as for natural resource conservation. To the extent that the law is known, it is most commonly understood to be the authority by which the president can establish national monuments on public lands. This chapter describes another important aspect of the law: its position as the foundation for public archaeological and historic preservation...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Shaun E. P. Brooks.

The central purpose of this research was to analyze the similarities and differences between the National Park Service’s (NPS) and the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) planning and management of public lands, focusing specifically on national monuments. Public lands are shared by everyone, and BLM must abide by laws and regulations to develop plans for its national monuments that are acceptable to the public, while simultaneously providing for protection of the objects located within the...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Uploaded by: Sarah Klassen

In the United States District Court District of Utah-Central Division Utah Association of Counties, on behalf of its members, Plaintiffs, vs. George W. Bush, in his official capacity as President of the United States, et al., Defendants., and Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, et al., Defendants-Intervenors. AND Mountain States Legal Foundation, on behalf of its members Plaintiffs, vs. George W. Bush, in his official capacity as President of the United States, et al., Defendants. and Southern...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Kathleen D. Browning.

Public archeology in the United States received a long-sought and hard won legislative boost for antiquities protection in 1906. On June 8, 1906, a federal law, an Act for the Preservation of American Antiquities (16 U. S. C. 431-433) was signed into law by President Theodore Roosevelt after several arduous decades of dedicated attention to the issue. Better known as the Antiquities Act, its enactment responded to a growing concern over the issues of looting and vandalism of...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Mark Squillace.

This Article explores the Antiquities Act and its long and remarkable legacy. It describes the history of the law, the special places that have received its protection, and the many controversies that it has sparked over the years. It then considers the myriad of legal and policy issues that are raised by the law, and its continuing utility and evolution as a conservation management tool. Finally, the Article discusses proposals to reform or repeal the Antiquities Act.

DOCUMENT Full-Text Carol Hardy Vincent.

Presidential creation of national monuments under the Antiquities Act of 1906 often has been contentious. Recent controversy has focused on President Clinton’s creation of 19 new monuments and expansion of 3 others. Issues have related to the size of the areas and types of resources protected, the inclusion of non-federal lands within monument boundaries, restrictions on land uses, and the manner in which the monuments were created. The Bush Administration is reviewing President Clinton’s...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Carol Hardy Vincent.

Presidential creation of national monuments under the Antiquities Act of 1906 often has been contentious. Recent controversy has focused on President Clinton’s creation of 19 new monuments and expansion of 3 others. Issues have related to the size of the areas and types of resources protected, the inclusion of non-federal lands within monument boundaries, restrictions on land uses, and the manner in which the monuments were created. The Bush Administration is reviewing President Clinton’s...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Uploaded by: Sarah Klassen

No. 02-1590 In the Supreme Court of the United States Mountain States Legal Foundation, Et Al., V. George W. Bush, President of the United States, Et Al. To the United States Court of Appeals Brief for the federal respondent in opposition. Petitioners have challenged six presidential proclamations designating specified tracts of federal land as national monuments. In issuing those proclamations, the President acted pursuant to the Antiquities Act of 1906, which authorizes the...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Carol Hardy Vincent. Pamela Baldwin.

This report addresses the authority of the President to create national monuments on federal lands under the Antiquities Act of 1906. It discusses the benefits of the Act and those aspects of the Act that have been controversial, including the size and types of resources protected; the level of and types of threat to designated areas; effects of proclamations on land uses; consistency of the Act with the withdrawal, public participation, and environmental review aspects of other laws; monument...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Pamela Baldwin.

Both the President and the Congress currently can create "national monuments," a type of conservation unit created from federal lands. Since 1933 and until recently, monuments were managed by the National Park Service in the Department of the Interior. President Clinton has created a number of new national monuments and has charged agencies other than the National Park Service with the management of several of them. The President exercised the authority given the President under the Antiquities...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Sandi Zellmer.

More than half a century has passed since the New Deal, the era known for ushering in the modern administrative state, where broad-sweeping regulatory powers were delegated to over a dozen new executive agencies pursuant to a raft of social legislation. Until the later years of the New Deal, courts were highly suspicious of socially progressive legislation, and, for that matter, any legislation that upset common law systems supporting private property rights and freedom of contract. Regulatory...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Bruce Babbitt.

This document is a transcript of remarks made at the University of Denver Law School by Bruce Babbitt, then the Secretary of the Interior. Secretary Babbitt was instrumental in identifying and justifying the large number of National Monument designations and expansions made by President Bill Clinton. In this presentation, Secretary Babbitt provides his perspective about the nature of National Monuments and the importance of the Antiquities Act. Secretary Babbitt was appointed by President...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Carol Hardy Vincent. Carol Baldwin.

This report addresses the authority of the President to create national monuments on federal lands under the Antiquities Act of 1906. It discusses aspects of the Act that have been controversial. These include the size and types of resources protected; the level of threat to designated areas; effects of proclamations on land uses; consistency of the Act with the withdrawal, public participation, and environmental review aspects of other laws; monument management by agencies other than the...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Hal K. Rothman.

The Antiquities Act of June 8, 1906, may be the most important piece of preservation legislation ever enacted by the United States government. Although its title suggests a limited focus on archeological matters, in practice the law became a cornerstone of preservation in the federal system. By allowing Presidents extraordinary power to preserve cultural and “scientific” features on public land, it created a mechanism for rapid decisionmaking concerning the disposition of federal lands. The...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Bruce Babbitt.

I appreciate the opportunity to testify here today on proposed withdrawals of federal land from location and entry under general land laws, including the mining laws. Your letter of invitation specifically directed attention to my recent actions to initiate withdrawals of 429,000 acres along the Rocky Mountain Front in the Lewis & Clark and Helena National Forests, and 605,000 acres in the Shivwits/Parashant region north of the Grand Canyon in northwestern Arizona. I welcome a public discussion...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Carol Hardy Vincent.

President Clinton created the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah, by proclamation on September 18, 1996. The Monument contains geological, paleontological, archeological, biological, natural, and historical resources. It is managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) under interim guidelines, pending approval of a final management plan and environmental impact statement (EIS) by September 18, 1999. The creation of the Monument was controversial. Issues include the President's...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Francis McManamon.

This is an introduction to three articles (Bill Lipe, Caroline Zander, and Francis P. McManamon) commemorating the important contributions to United States archeology and historic preservation and a brief overview of the Antiquity's Act. The Antiquities Act set aside archeological sites on the public lands of the United States for special protection as public resources of significance and value to every American. The Antiquities Act aimed to ensure that the commemorative value, history, and...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Francis McManamon.

On June 8, 1906, 90 years ago, President Theodore Roosevelt signed into law the Antiquities Act. This law was intended to protect archeological sites on the public lands of the United States as resources of significance and value to every American. The goal was to preserve historic, scientific, commemorative, and cultural values embodied in archeological sites for present and future generations of Americans. As one means of commemorating the anniversary of this important statute, this article...

DOCUMENT Full-Text National Park Service.

This booklet, printed at no expense to the Federal Government, has been prepared on the occasion of the Founders Day Dinner, August 25, 1982, marking 66 years of the work and achievements of the National Park Service – a unique conservation agency of the Federal Government. The Founders Day program is sponsored by the 1916 Society of the Employees and Alumni Association of the National Park Service, melding the retired and active members of the National Park Service Family, and rededicating us...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Douglas H. Strong.

For over thirty years, Ralph Henry Cameron- Arizona businessman, miner and politician - attempted to develop and control the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Cameron's interest in the canyon dated from the 1880s when prospectors explored the depths of the canyon, and stage coaches started bringing curious tourists to view the spectacular work of nature. Cameron helped to build the first trails into the canyon and opened its first flourishing mine. In time, however, his construction of a tourist...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Douglas H. Strong.

Ralph Cameron's election in 1920 to the United States Senate from Ariwna came at an opportune time. Congress, the year before, had incorporated his mining claims into the newly created Grand Canyon National Park, and the United States Supreme Court had just ruled that his claims there were invalid. As matters stood, there seemed little likelihood that Cameron could realize his dream of converting strategically located mineral sites into a fortune. But Cameron's optimism never deserted him....

DOCUMENT Full-Text John D. McDermott.

The purpose of this study is to trace the development of the Federal interest in historical preservation, particularly as it is evidenced in legislation. The study focuses on the firsts in the movement and does not purport to be definitive in any sense of the word. Two major legislative enactments received special emphasis, the Antiquities Act of 1906 and the Historical Sites Act of 1935. Together they form the heart and soul of the Federal policy in the preservation of nationally significant...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Uploaded by: Francis McManamon

This report consists of a collection of the bills and resolutions introduced through the 82nd Congress in relation to the Antiquities Act. It also includes copies of statutes, orders, proclamations, appropriation acts, state laws, public documents relating to legislation and executive and department orders.

DOCUMENT Full-Text Robert Claus.

This report provides an overview of the political and legisltative activities from 1900 to 1906 that led to the passage of the Antiquities Act of 1906. It includes descriptions of the passage of general legislation to protect American antiquities and the involvement of government and non-government agencies in the passage of the law. The records of the Department of the Interior in the National Archives indicate that the Department took an active interest in promoting the passage of...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Hubert Work.

This short document is a copy of the Secretarial Order with which the Secretary of the Interior designated Jesse Nusbaum as official archaeological expert for the Department of the Interior. The position became known as the Departmental Consulting Archeologist, a position and function that continues to provide overarching advice to the Department on archaeological policies, procedures, regulations, and other archaeology-related topics. The text of the Order follows: United States...

DOCUMENT Full-Text U.S.Supreme Court.

CAMERON v. U.S., 252 U.S. 450 (1920) 252 U.S. 450 Cameron et al.v. United States. No. 205 Argued January 29 and 30, 1920. Decided April 19, 1920 This is a suit by the United States to enjoin Ralph H. Cameron and others from occupying, using for business purposes, asserting any right to, or interfering with the public use of, a tract of land in Arizona, approximately 1,500 feet long and 600 feet wide, which Cameron is claiming as a lode mining claim, and to require the defendants to...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Theodore Roosevelt.

I, Theodore Roosevelt, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the power in me vested by section two of the Act of Congress, approved June eighth, nineteen hundred and six, entitled, "An Act For the preservation of American antiquities," do proclaim that there are hereby reserved from appropriation and use of all kinds under all of the public land laws, subject to all prior valid adverse claims, and set apart as a National Monument, all the tracts of land, in the Territory of...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Edgar L. Hewett.

This is a section of a compilation of short reports, Anthropolocic Miscellanea, included in this issue of American Anthropologist. Hewett's portion of the miscellanea describes recent activities concerning the preservation of American Antiquities. Some of the highlights include a bill that was enacted by the 59th Congress creating the Mesa Verde National Park in southwestern Colorado, for the purpose of preserving the remarkable cliff dwelling remains of that region and the Lacy Act.

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This is a copy of the Antiquities Act

DOCUMENT Full-Text Edgar L. Hewett.

Prior to 1904, the only act of our Government looking toward the preservation of our antiquities was the reservation and restoration, by act of Congress of March 2, 1889, of the Casa Grande ruin in Arizona. During the last fifteen months a definite policy of preservation has rapidly developed, so that at present it may be said that approximately three-fourths of all the remains of antiquity that are situated on lands owned or controlled by the United States are under custodianship more or less...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Edgar L. Hewett.

This is a review of the activities of institutions and individuals from 1902 to 1906 that are associated with American Anthropologist. Hewett's recent publications as well as the progress of the Antiquity Act are mentioned in this portion of the review

DOCUMENT Full-Text Edgar L. Hewett.

At a joint meeting of the committee on preservation of American antiquities of the Archeological Institute of America and the American Anthropological Association, held at the Cosmos Club in Washington, on the evening of January 10, the subject of pending legislation was considered. It was decided that a memorandum should be prepared embodying such provisions from pending measures, as in the judgment of the joint committee should be incorporated into law, and the same presented to the House of...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Edgar L. Hewett.

This is a section of a compilation of short reports, Anthropological Miscellanea, included in this issue of American Anthropologist. Hewett's portion of the miscellanea discusses the transfer of land from the administration of the National Forest Reserves to the Bureau of Forestry under the Department of the Interior. This has implications to the prehistoric ruins of the Southwest because legislation must now be targeted towards the Department of the Interior rather than the National Forest...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Edgar L. Hewett.

This is a section of a compilation of short reports, Anthropolocic Miscellanea, included in this issue of American Anthropologist. Hewett's portion of the miscellanea describes recent activities concerning Southwestern US sites. More people have visited the prehistoric ruins of the Southwest during the present season than during any five previous years. This points to a marked revival of interest in American archeology, and to the necessity for an unremitting campaign for the preservation of...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Hewett Edgar L..

In the summer of 1896 the writer commenced to investigate the archeology of the plateau between the Jemez mountain range and the Rio Grande in New Mexico. The ethnological significance of this region seemed at that time to have been overlooked, nor has it yet received much attention. The studies then begun have continued intermittently ever since. The first object was to obtain such facts as could be obtained by exploration, photography, and a limited amount of excavation. I hope to be...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Edgar L. Hewett.

The traffic in prehistoric wares from the southwest that has arisen during the past few years, with the attendant destruction of prehistoric remains, has become a matter of great concern to archeologists, who appreciate the gravity of this loss to anthropological science. Even though much of this material gathered by parties who are only commercially interested in it, eventually finds its way into public museums, its value to science is greatly reduced because of the absence of authentic...

DOCUMENT Full-Text Edgar L. Hewett.

The importance of the large number of historic and prehistoric ruins scattered over the semiarid region of the southwestern part of the United States has gradually come to be recognized. Every cliff dwelling, every prehistoric tower, communal house, shrine and burial mound is an object which can contribute something to the advancement of knowledge, and hence is worthy of preservation. Knowledge of the extent, location and nature of these ruins bas been accumulating for many years. We now know...