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(FWD) NCC WASHINGTON UPDATE, Vol. 7, #44, October 25,2001



(Apologies for formatting; I'm on the road again....Holly)

> NCC WASHINGTON UPDATE, Vol. 7, #44, October 25, 2001
> by Bruce Craig <rbcraig@nccph.org
> National Coordinating Committee for the Promotion of History (NCCPH)
> *****************
> 
> 1.  Interior Bill Ready for President's Signature
> 2.  Update: September 11 Damage Report
> 3.  2002 Election News Prognostication
> 4.  News Bits and Bytes: Wilson Quarterly 25th Anniversary Issue
> 
> 
> 1.  INTERIOR BILL READY FOR PRESIDENT'S SIGNATURE
> The FY 2002 Department of the Interior and Related Agencies spending bill
> (H.R. 2217; Conference Report 107-234) is ready for the President's
> signature, but due to business interruptions owing to the various Anthax
> threats on the Capitol, the bill has not yet made it to the White House.
> 
> Agreement on the Conference Report by Senate and House conferees was
> reached on October 10, 2001 and both houses passed the $19.1
> billion  measure on October 17.  The Senate passed the measure by a vote of
> 95-3, and the House by 380-28.  Of particular interest to the
> historical/archival community are the funding levels for a variety of
> historic preservation related programs, the National Endowment for the
> Humanities (NEH), and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).
> 
> Congress cleared and sent to the President a bill that provides $1 billion
> more than he requested for programs in the Interior Department and a number
> of related cultural agencies. The final version allocates $9.4 billion to
> the Interior Department - a $48 million increase over FY 2001 and $269
> million more than the President requested.
> 
> The National Park Service, the principal agency providing funding for a
> wide variety of federal historic preservation programs, is slotted to get
> $2.323 billion, overall, some $194.6 million less than the Administration
> requested. The National Park Service "Operations" account is funded at $1.5
> billion, some $91 million more than in FY 2001.  A total of $44.5 million
> is set aside for various historic preservation activities.  The Historic
> Preservation Fund will net $74.5 million and the Advisory Council on
> Historic Preservation will see $3.4 million for its necessary expenses. The
> bill also provides some $30 million for the popular "Save America's
> Treasures" program.
> 
> The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) will get $125 million - $5
> million more than the Administration requested.  The National Endowment for
> the Arts (NEA) is to receive $115.2 million (funding is at $98 million with
> an additional $17 million for the "Challenge America Arts Fund") - some $10
> million above the President's request.  The Institute of Museum and Library
> Services (IMLS) will realize $26.9 million. The Smithsonian Institution is
> funded at $497 million, some $43 million above FY 2001 and $3 million above
> the President's request. Finally, the Woodrow Wilson International Center
> for Scholars is authorized at $7,796,000 to carry out the provisions of the
> Woodrow Wilson Memorial Act.
> 
> 2.  UPDATE: SEPTEMBER 11 DAMAGE REPORT
> The National Task Force on Emergency Response has issued a damage report
> update on the impact that the events of September 11 on museums and
> collections, historic sites and landmarks, libraries and archives in the
> New York and Washington D.C. areas. The Task Force is a coalition of 30
> government agencies and national service organizations formed in 1995 to
> help libraries, archives, museums, historical societies, and historic sites
> better protect their cultural and historic resources from damage due to
> disasters. Based on information contained in that damage assessment and on
> information gleaned from additional press reports, here is what we now know.
> 
> For the most part, historic and art collections are basically sound. Most
> continuing problems relate to dust, ventilation systems, and interruptions
> to communications.  For the some 245 pieces of outdoor sculpture in Lower
> Manhattan, however, there is no accurate report of damage as yet, except
> for excessive dust and soot.  Battery Park appears most affected.
> 
> According to the Task Force update, "a spectacular art collection,
> including sculptures and drawings by Rodin," was destroyed when the World
> Trade Center Towers collapsed. It is still too early to determine exactly
> how much art was destroyed because much of it was owned by private
> companies and most of them  have yet to detail their losses.  Cantor
> Fitzgerald lost hundreds of staff and the world's largest private
> collection of works by Rodin in the gallery known as the Museum in the
> Sky.  The collection also included 19th Century American and European
> paintings, sculptures, and photographs. Moreover, works by Alexander
> Calder, Louise Nevelson, Joan Miró and Roy Lichtenstein have been damaged
> or totally destroyed. National Public Radio reports that a tapestry by
> Spanish surrealist Joan Miro, which was in the mezzanine of Tower Two, is
> presumed lost.  Elyn Zimmerman's memorial fountain to the victims of the
> 1993 World Trade Center bombing was also lost.
> 
> Historic preservationists report that most of the 67 city landmarks below
> Chamber Street are unscathed though ash-laden.  Some 13 historically or
> architecturally important buildings suffered various degrees of
> damage.  The hardest hit building was the National Park Service unit,
> Federal Hall National Memorial.
> 
> The Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) has been alerted to
> the existence of a valuable collection of artifacts related to the Five
> Points site and the African-American Burial Ground (See NCC WASHINGTON
> UPDATE, Vol. 7, #38, September 20, 2001) .  The collection was being
> maintained by the General Services Administration and was stored in the
> basement near 6 World Trade Center. The collection has yet to be located in
> the ruins.
> 
> With the exception of the New Amsterdam Branch of the New York Public
> Library, most libraries in the area below 14th Street have reopened.
> Located in Building 2 of the World Trade Center, the National Developmental
> Research Institute's library, however, was totally destroyed.  In terms of
> impacts on archival collections, characterized as "probably lost" by the
> Task Force report, is a collection of 35,000 photographs and their
> documentation from the former Broadway Theater Archive. The archive was
> located in the offices of Broadway Digital Entertainment, one block from 7
> World Trade Center.
> 
> As previously reported in this publication (see NCC WASHINGTON UPDATE, Vol.
> 7, #39, September 27, 2001), on September 24, various New York State
> preservation agencies met to mobilize and to provide assistance to
> institutions impacted by the terrorist attacks.  Participants attending the
> September 24 meeting have now undertaken several actions: a) gathering
> information on damage to collections and institutions; b) organizing
> appropriate materials and volunteers; c) disseminating information on
> available services; and d) coordinating efforts with national
> organizations. A full report on the meeting is available from Christine
> Ward at the New York State Archives, cward@mail.nysed.gov.
> 
> A consortium of five historic preservation organizations (the World
> Monuments Fund, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the
> Preservation League of New York State, the Municipal Art Society and the
> New York Landmarks Conservancy) is creating the Lower Manhattan Emergency
> Preservation Fund.  It will make grants to help alleviate the impact of the
> disaster and to restore damaged historic sites in Lower Manhattan. A
> special Web site has been established: nycpreservation911.org.
> 
> As reported earlier (See NCC WASHINGTON UPDATE, Vol 7, #41, October 4,
> 2001), the Library of Congress is collecting and documenting information on
> the Internet related to September 11. A new site, September11.archive.org
> went online October 11, and already contains more than 500,000 Internet pages.
> 
> On October 4, some 70 historians, librarians, archivists, and historic site
> managers met under the auspices of the  Museum of the City of New York and
> the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History to encourage
> communication and collaboration on the issues of collecting and programming
> in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks (see NCC WASHINGTON UPDATE, Vol.
> 7, #43, October 18, 2001). A first step will be the establishment of
> 911history.net, a Web page where news and communications can be posted.
> 
> Any new information about the status of organizations impacted by the
> events of September 11  and news about efforts to respond to the crisis may
> be sent to Ruth Hargraves, newly-hired staff for the National Task Force on
> Emergency Response at (202) 634-0023 or rhargraves@heritagepreservation.org.
> 
> 3.  2002 ELECTION NEWS PROGNOSTICATION
> While right now it seems a long way off, midterm Congressional elections
> will be upon us in less than a year. Consequently, Capitol Hill strategists
> are beginning to assess the potential changes in the next Congress.
> 
> Democrats, who currently have a narrow majority in the Senate, hope to pick
> up six House seats; that would then give them a slim majority in the lower
> House as well.  However, Republican campaign officials hope to pick up ten
> seats once all the House redistricting changes in each state is
> completed.  Based on the combination of Republican redistricting gains and
> the existence of what is expected to be fewer competitive races, many Hill
> insiders predict that a Democratic takeover of the House appears somewhat
> remote.
> 
> Traditionally, the Party that controls the White House tends to lose seats
> in midterm elections. But President Bush's near record-level popularity for
> his handling of the terrorist threats also may impact the outcome of
> Congressional elections next year. Nevertheless, the 2002 midterm elections
> are still a year away and anything can happen to change the political
> environment.
> 
> 4.  NEWS BITS AND BYTES
> Item #1 - "Wilson Quarterly" 25th Anniversary: Twenty-five years ago, an
> effort was made to create a magazine that would reach into the world of
> ideas and strive to make the most important work of scholars and thinkers
> intelligible to a general audience.  The Quarterly's special 25th
> anniversary issue (Autumn, 2001; Vol 25, #4) is a testament to the
> continuing vitality of those original goals. The magazine is published by
> the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, an independent,
> wide-ranging institute for advanced study where vital cultural issues and
> their deep historical background are explored through research and
> dialogue. To visit the WQ website, tap into: http://www.Wilsonquarterly.com
> 
> * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 
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