Originally built in 1844, the Cherokee National Supreme Court Building is located on Capitol Square in Tahlequah, Okla., and once housed the judicial branch of the Cherokee Nation and Indian Territory/Oklahoma’s first newspaper, The Cherokee Advocate.
The museum will formally operate as Cherokee Nation’s first wholly owned and operated museum to showcase artifacts in three aspects of Cherokee history including the Cherokee National Judicial System, the Cherokee Advocate and Cherokee Phoenix newspapers and the Cherokee language. Artifacts ranging from photos, stories and objects to furniture, periodicals and memorabilia will visually communicate the ability of the Cherokee people to survive, adapt, prosper and excel.
The Cherokee National Supreme Court Building is Oklahoma’s oldest public building and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who:
Cherokee Nation.
•Chad Smith, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation.
•David Stewart, CEO of Cherokee Nation Entertainment.
•Dr. Bob Blackburn, Executive Director of Oklahoma Historical Society.
•Ron Stahl, Co-host of Discover Oklahoma and Representative of Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department.
What:
Cherokee National Supreme Court Museum Dedication. The ceremony will recognize the historical significance of the Cherokee National Supreme Court Building as an icon of Indian Territory and Oklahoma today.
Also a proclamation presentation from the State of Oklahoma recognizing the Cherokee National Supreme Court Museum as an “Outstanding Historical Tourism Site.”
Where:
122 E. Keetoowah St., Tahlequah, OK 74464.
When:
Wednesday, April 7, 2010, 11 am to 12 pm.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
Lisa Meyer Releases CD
We just heard from vocalist and United Daughter of the Confederacy Lisa Meyer. She wanted to share a great piece of news with us!
I am pleased to announce that a few months ago I was nominated in several categories for the 2009 Southern Heritage Music Association Awards. I just found out that I won in the Female Artist of the Year & Up and Coming Artist of the Year categories. Quite a pleasant surprise!!! My new CD – Voices Hushed and Still…a collection of Southern Songs and Rare Gems from the Civil War Period.
I was born and raised in Harrisonburg in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia and now reside outside of Nashville , TN. I am a member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy - Kate Litton Hickman Chapter in Nashville and am a chairman for The Music of the Confederacy for the state of Tennessee. The CD layout was shot at the McGavock Confederate Cemetery in Franklin, TN.
The Song List includes:
The Homespun Dress
Old Folks at Home/Oh Shenandoah
Somebody’s Darling
Long, Long Ago
The Rebel Soldier
Slumber On, Baby Dear
Richmond is a Hard Road to Travel
Cruel War/Johnny Has Gone for a Soldier
Pray, Maiden Pray!
I’m Going Home to Dixie/Dixie’s Land
Home, Sweet Home
When Upon the Field of Glory
You can hear samples of the songs, download and/or purchase at: http://cdbaby.com/cd/lisameyer or can be purchased on EBay.com http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=370158705399
I hope you will support this project in preserving our Southern Heritage!
Sincerely,
Lisa Meyer
www.voiceshushedandstill.com
I am pleased to announce that a few months ago I was nominated in several categories for the 2009 Southern Heritage Music Association Awards. I just found out that I won in the Female Artist of the Year & Up and Coming Artist of the Year categories. Quite a pleasant surprise!!! My new CD – Voices Hushed and Still…a collection of Southern Songs and Rare Gems from the Civil War Period.
I was born and raised in Harrisonburg in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia and now reside outside of Nashville , TN. I am a member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy - Kate Litton Hickman Chapter in Nashville and am a chairman for The Music of the Confederacy for the state of Tennessee. The CD layout was shot at the McGavock Confederate Cemetery in Franklin, TN.
The Song List includes:
The Homespun Dress
Old Folks at Home/Oh Shenandoah
Somebody’s Darling
Long, Long Ago
The Rebel Soldier
Slumber On, Baby Dear
Richmond is a Hard Road to Travel
Cruel War/Johnny Has Gone for a Soldier
Pray, Maiden Pray!
I’m Going Home to Dixie/Dixie’s Land
Home, Sweet Home
When Upon the Field of Glory
You can hear samples of the songs, download and/or purchase at: http://cdbaby.com/cd/lisameyer or can be purchased on EBay.com http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=370158705399
I hope you will support this project in preserving our Southern Heritage!
Sincerely,
Lisa Meyer
www.voiceshushedandstill.com
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Tourism Office Spotlights Black History Month
In recognition of the state's African-American lineage and Black History Month, the Maryland Tourism Office has designated February as a time to call attention to this rich cultural tradition.
Imagine a gathering with an elite list of guests: an inventor, a scientist, an explorer, a Supreme Court justice, an orator, a human-rights hero, a few baseball players and a coterie of musicians. Despite their individual interests, the guests share a common trait. They all spent their formative years in Maryland. Moreover, they evoke a wide range of Maryland's rich African-American heritage.
The guest list includes: Henry Blair, Benjamin Banneker, Matthew Henson, Thurgood Marshall, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Leon Day, Judy Johnson, Billie Holiday, Eubie Blake, Chick Webb and Cab Calloway.
Though these "guests" could not have assembled as a single group, visitors to Maryland can learn about them and become better acquainted with their legacies at a variety of attractions and locations across the state.
"Throughout the history of our State and our nation, African-Americans have made significant contributions in fields as diverse as sports, music, law, and civil rights," said Gov. Martin O'Malley. "Their achievements have helped improve our quality of life, secure a better future for our children, and expand opportunity for generations yet to come. It is our proud distinction to be home to so many African-Americans who have played such integral roles in shaping our nation."
Governor O'Malley will participate in an African-American Heritage Tour with students from Annapolis Elementary School in Annapolis, Md. Sponsored by Watermark, the walking tour focuses of the history of African-Americans in the state capitol. Lt. Governor Anthony Brown will celebrate the accomplishments of the county's African-Americans with a group of senior citizens in Prince George's County on February 16.
"Visitors to Maryland can explore the lasting heritage of a long list of distinguished citizens from our African-American communities," said Margot Amelia, director of the Maryland Tourism Office. "Visits to significant places linked to this thread of our history will provide travelers with opportunities to enjoy Maryland's diverse landscape – from the waterfront villages along the Chesapeake Bay to engaging urban centers to magnificent mountain scenery."
One of the state's major attractions is the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture in Baltimore near the Inner Harbor. It's the largest African-American museum on the East Coast, featuring a 2,000-seat theater, oral-history studio and substantial exhibition space. An exhibition of graphic works by artist Romare Bearden runs through March.
"February is a special month for the Reginald F. Lewis Museum," said David T. Terry, the museum's executive director. "We are celebrating the 2010 Black History Month theme of 'economic empowerment' – a theme that honors the accomplishments of the museum's namesake, Reginald F. Lewis, who was chair and CEO of TLC Beatrice International, the largest U.S. company owned by an African-American during his lifetime."
Here are some other places listed by region where visitors can experience Maryland's African-American heritage:
Western Maryland
•Doleman Black Heritage Museum – started as a hobby by Marguerite Doleman out of her Hagerstown home in 1974 – has a collection of books, artifacts and artwork that depict African-American history in Washington County. Visitors can see it by appointment (301-739-8185). A fundraiser for the museum is set for Feb. 27 at The Maryland Theatre, also in Hagerstown. Performers include the Coppin State University Choir (Baltimore) and students from Hagerstown's Barbara Ingram School for the Arts.
•The Kennedy Farmhouse in Sharpsburg was the staging location where abolitionist John Brown and his small army prepared for their raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry in 1859 – an event that is often considered to have been the start of the Civil War. This restored National Historic Landmark is open for tours.
Capital Region
•Dorsey Chapel (Glenn Dale) and Northampton Plantation Slave Quarters Archeological Site (Mitchellville) are both run by Prince George's County. Dorsey – the religious and social center of a rural African-American community for more than 70 years – was built in 1900 and restored in 1996. Visitors to Northampton can see the rebuilt foundations of two 19th-century slave quarters from the remains of a tobacco plantation.
•Josiah Henson Site, formerly called the "Riley Farm/Uncle Tom's Cabin," is in Bethesda. Reverend Josiah Henson's 1849 autobiography was the inspiration for Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin . Henson lived and worked as a slave at Isaac Riley's farm from 1795 to 1830. He then managed to escape to Canada.
•Sandy Spring Slave Museum & African Art Gallery in Sandy Spring is open for tours by appointment (SlaveMuseum@yahoo.com). Exhibits include cross-section of a ship that transported slaves across the ocean, slave-era log cabin, arts pavilion and resource library.
Central Maryland
•Banneker Historical Park and Museum in Oella (Western Baltimore County) is the site of the Banneker family's farmstead dating back to the 17th century. Benjamin Banneker became prominent as a self-taught mathematician and astronomer. The 142-acre park, which has a permanent Banneker exhibition, is also a showcase for colonial history and environmental conservation. A number of trails are on the site, including the historic No. 9 Trolley Line Trail.
•The Banneker-Douglass Museum, located in Annapolis, maintains the state's official collection of African-American history and culture. Named for Benjamin Banneker and Frederick Douglass, the museum hosts lectures, workshops and performances. One of the current exhibitions is Portraits of Courage , a collection of paintings that features prominent African-Americans in Maryland history.
•Eubie Blake National Jazz Institute and Cultural Center, in Baltimore, hosts musical theater and jazz concerts. It also has a gallery and runs performing-arts classes. On Feb. 14, the center presents Maysa – a 2009 Soul Train Music Award winner – in a Valentine's Day concert. February gallery exhibit, Love's Theory: A Visual Expression, uses paintings, photography, poetry and film.
•Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park, located on the water in Baltimore's Fells Point section, offers exhibitions, gallery talks, tours and hands-on learning programs. The park depicts the history of the African-American community during the 1800s, along with the maritime traditions of the region. Douglass, who had lived and worked on the local docks, was an abolitionist, orator and statesman. Myers was a founder of Chesapeake Marine Railway and Dry Dock Company – the first African-American owned and operated shipyard – and a national labor leader.
•Hampton National Historic Site, a National Park Service property in Baltimore County, was the location of the largest house in the country in 1790. The site incorporated an area half the size of present-day Baltimore. Indentured servants and slaves were a major part of the history of the estate, where the Ridgely family assembled a fortune through agriculture, manufacturing and commerce.
•The National Great Blacks in Wax Museum, in Baltimore, is the nation's first African-American history wax museum. More than 100 life-sized figures are on display. A fundraiser for the museum is set for Sports Legends at Camden Yards, Feb. 27, as a tribute to Baltimore boxer Joe Gans (the first African-American sports champion) who won the lightweight title in 1902.
Southern Maryland
•African-American Heritage Society Museum in La Plata has artifacts, documents and photographs that depict the history of African-Americans in Charles County from 1658 to the present. The society promotes awareness of African-American contributions to the development of Southern Maryland.
•Sotterley Plantation in Hollywood (near St. Mary's City) is the only remaining Tidewater plantation in Maryland that is open to the public. Older than both Mount Vernon and Monticello, Sotterley includes an early-18th-century mansion, an original slave cabin and an assortment of other buildings on 95 acres of fields and gardens just off the Patuxent River. The 2010 speaker series opens Feb. 6 with FREE at Last - Black History Celebration! This all-day event includes storytelling, music and tours.
Eastern Shore
• Harriet Tubman Museum and Educational Center is one of an assortment of Cambridge locations that link to the story of Harriet Tubman, the runaway slave from Dorchester County who led hundreds to freedom through the Underground Railroad during the 1850s. A Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park in Caroline, Dorchester and Talbot counties is in the planning stages. Tubman's name topped Glamour magazine's list of "the seven most courageous women ever" in the publication's January 2010 issue.
Heritage brochures
More information about Maryland's African-American heritage is available in brochures that can be ordered through the Tourism Office's web site, including: Underground Railroad and Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway . An updated African-American History brochure will also be available soon.
In January, the Tourism Office spotlighted Maryland bed and breakfasts. Previous monthly themes have included Maryland's designated Main Streets, Chesapeake Bay art; hiking and biking; educa-tours; buying local; and Maryland wine.
To receive free Maryland travel information - Destination Maryland , Maryland Calendar of Events and a state highway map - by mail, call 800-719-5900. Information can also be found on the Tourism web site: VisitMaryland.org .
About Maryland tourism
The Maryland Office of Tourism is an agency of the Division of Tourism, Film and the Arts within the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development. Recently reported visitor data shows that the state welcomed more than 28 million visitors in 2008 who spent nearly $14.5 billion on travel-related expenses – a 3.2 percent increase in spending over 2007. During 2008, the Maryland tourism industry also generated close to $1.8 billion in state and local taxes and provided 146,000 jobs to Maryland residents.
Imagine a gathering with an elite list of guests: an inventor, a scientist, an explorer, a Supreme Court justice, an orator, a human-rights hero, a few baseball players and a coterie of musicians. Despite their individual interests, the guests share a common trait. They all spent their formative years in Maryland. Moreover, they evoke a wide range of Maryland's rich African-American heritage.
The guest list includes: Henry Blair, Benjamin Banneker, Matthew Henson, Thurgood Marshall, Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, Leon Day, Judy Johnson, Billie Holiday, Eubie Blake, Chick Webb and Cab Calloway.
Though these "guests" could not have assembled as a single group, visitors to Maryland can learn about them and become better acquainted with their legacies at a variety of attractions and locations across the state.
"Throughout the history of our State and our nation, African-Americans have made significant contributions in fields as diverse as sports, music, law, and civil rights," said Gov. Martin O'Malley. "Their achievements have helped improve our quality of life, secure a better future for our children, and expand opportunity for generations yet to come. It is our proud distinction to be home to so many African-Americans who have played such integral roles in shaping our nation."
Governor O'Malley will participate in an African-American Heritage Tour with students from Annapolis Elementary School in Annapolis, Md. Sponsored by Watermark, the walking tour focuses of the history of African-Americans in the state capitol. Lt. Governor Anthony Brown will celebrate the accomplishments of the county's African-Americans with a group of senior citizens in Prince George's County on February 16.
"Visitors to Maryland can explore the lasting heritage of a long list of distinguished citizens from our African-American communities," said Margot Amelia, director of the Maryland Tourism Office. "Visits to significant places linked to this thread of our history will provide travelers with opportunities to enjoy Maryland's diverse landscape – from the waterfront villages along the Chesapeake Bay to engaging urban centers to magnificent mountain scenery."
One of the state's major attractions is the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture in Baltimore near the Inner Harbor. It's the largest African-American museum on the East Coast, featuring a 2,000-seat theater, oral-history studio and substantial exhibition space. An exhibition of graphic works by artist Romare Bearden runs through March.
"February is a special month for the Reginald F. Lewis Museum," said David T. Terry, the museum's executive director. "We are celebrating the 2010 Black History Month theme of 'economic empowerment' – a theme that honors the accomplishments of the museum's namesake, Reginald F. Lewis, who was chair and CEO of TLC Beatrice International, the largest U.S. company owned by an African-American during his lifetime."
Here are some other places listed by region where visitors can experience Maryland's African-American heritage:
Western Maryland
•Doleman Black Heritage Museum – started as a hobby by Marguerite Doleman out of her Hagerstown home in 1974 – has a collection of books, artifacts and artwork that depict African-American history in Washington County. Visitors can see it by appointment (301-739-8185). A fundraiser for the museum is set for Feb. 27 at The Maryland Theatre, also in Hagerstown. Performers include the Coppin State University Choir (Baltimore) and students from Hagerstown's Barbara Ingram School for the Arts.
•The Kennedy Farmhouse in Sharpsburg was the staging location where abolitionist John Brown and his small army prepared for their raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry in 1859 – an event that is often considered to have been the start of the Civil War. This restored National Historic Landmark is open for tours.
Capital Region
•Dorsey Chapel (Glenn Dale) and Northampton Plantation Slave Quarters Archeological Site (Mitchellville) are both run by Prince George's County. Dorsey – the religious and social center of a rural African-American community for more than 70 years – was built in 1900 and restored in 1996. Visitors to Northampton can see the rebuilt foundations of two 19th-century slave quarters from the remains of a tobacco plantation.
•Josiah Henson Site, formerly called the "Riley Farm/Uncle Tom's Cabin," is in Bethesda. Reverend Josiah Henson's 1849 autobiography was the inspiration for Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin . Henson lived and worked as a slave at Isaac Riley's farm from 1795 to 1830. He then managed to escape to Canada.
•Sandy Spring Slave Museum & African Art Gallery in Sandy Spring is open for tours by appointment (SlaveMuseum@yahoo.com). Exhibits include cross-section of a ship that transported slaves across the ocean, slave-era log cabin, arts pavilion and resource library.
Central Maryland
•Banneker Historical Park and Museum in Oella (Western Baltimore County) is the site of the Banneker family's farmstead dating back to the 17th century. Benjamin Banneker became prominent as a self-taught mathematician and astronomer. The 142-acre park, which has a permanent Banneker exhibition, is also a showcase for colonial history and environmental conservation. A number of trails are on the site, including the historic No. 9 Trolley Line Trail.
•The Banneker-Douglass Museum, located in Annapolis, maintains the state's official collection of African-American history and culture. Named for Benjamin Banneker and Frederick Douglass, the museum hosts lectures, workshops and performances. One of the current exhibitions is Portraits of Courage , a collection of paintings that features prominent African-Americans in Maryland history.
•Eubie Blake National Jazz Institute and Cultural Center, in Baltimore, hosts musical theater and jazz concerts. It also has a gallery and runs performing-arts classes. On Feb. 14, the center presents Maysa – a 2009 Soul Train Music Award winner – in a Valentine's Day concert. February gallery exhibit, Love's Theory: A Visual Expression, uses paintings, photography, poetry and film.
•Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park, located on the water in Baltimore's Fells Point section, offers exhibitions, gallery talks, tours and hands-on learning programs. The park depicts the history of the African-American community during the 1800s, along with the maritime traditions of the region. Douglass, who had lived and worked on the local docks, was an abolitionist, orator and statesman. Myers was a founder of Chesapeake Marine Railway and Dry Dock Company – the first African-American owned and operated shipyard – and a national labor leader.
•Hampton National Historic Site, a National Park Service property in Baltimore County, was the location of the largest house in the country in 1790. The site incorporated an area half the size of present-day Baltimore. Indentured servants and slaves were a major part of the history of the estate, where the Ridgely family assembled a fortune through agriculture, manufacturing and commerce.
•The National Great Blacks in Wax Museum, in Baltimore, is the nation's first African-American history wax museum. More than 100 life-sized figures are on display. A fundraiser for the museum is set for Sports Legends at Camden Yards, Feb. 27, as a tribute to Baltimore boxer Joe Gans (the first African-American sports champion) who won the lightweight title in 1902.
Southern Maryland
•African-American Heritage Society Museum in La Plata has artifacts, documents and photographs that depict the history of African-Americans in Charles County from 1658 to the present. The society promotes awareness of African-American contributions to the development of Southern Maryland.
•Sotterley Plantation in Hollywood (near St. Mary's City) is the only remaining Tidewater plantation in Maryland that is open to the public. Older than both Mount Vernon and Monticello, Sotterley includes an early-18th-century mansion, an original slave cabin and an assortment of other buildings on 95 acres of fields and gardens just off the Patuxent River. The 2010 speaker series opens Feb. 6 with FREE at Last - Black History Celebration! This all-day event includes storytelling, music and tours.
Eastern Shore
• Harriet Tubman Museum and Educational Center is one of an assortment of Cambridge locations that link to the story of Harriet Tubman, the runaway slave from Dorchester County who led hundreds to freedom through the Underground Railroad during the 1850s. A Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park in Caroline, Dorchester and Talbot counties is in the planning stages. Tubman's name topped Glamour magazine's list of "the seven most courageous women ever" in the publication's January 2010 issue.
Heritage brochures
More information about Maryland's African-American heritage is available in brochures that can be ordered through the Tourism Office's web site, including: Underground Railroad and Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Byway . An updated African-American History brochure will also be available soon.
In January, the Tourism Office spotlighted Maryland bed and breakfasts. Previous monthly themes have included Maryland's designated Main Streets, Chesapeake Bay art; hiking and biking; educa-tours; buying local; and Maryland wine.
To receive free Maryland travel information - Destination Maryland , Maryland Calendar of Events and a state highway map - by mail, call 800-719-5900. Information can also be found on the Tourism web site: VisitMaryland.org .
About Maryland tourism
The Maryland Office of Tourism is an agency of the Division of Tourism, Film and the Arts within the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development. Recently reported visitor data shows that the state welcomed more than 28 million visitors in 2008 who spent nearly $14.5 billion on travel-related expenses – a 3.2 percent increase in spending over 2007. During 2008, the Maryland tourism industry also generated close to $1.8 billion in state and local taxes and provided 146,000 jobs to Maryland residents.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
National Park Service Awards Grant
More than 139 years after its construction, the Cherokee National Capitol still stands and operates as a symbolic landmark for the Cherokee people. Now, through a unique grant sponsored by the National Park Service, Cherokee Nation has received $150,000 to help preserve the 1870-built Capitol for future generations. The building is Cherokee Nation’s only National Historic Landmark.
Awarded by a cooperative municipal program named, Save America’s Treasures, the federal money will go toward restoring the building’s roof and foundation, which has significantly deteriorated due to water infiltration. The funds will also aid in the installation of an appropriate drainage system.
The Cherokee National Capitol preservation project is scheduled to begin in 2010. The building currently houses the judicial branch of the Cherokee Nation and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
“The Cherokee National Capitol is a source of great pride for the Cherokee people with its rich history, symbolism and continued functionality within today’s tribal government,” said Chad Smith, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. “Moving onward with the restoration, we look forward to sharing and educating the public on the historical significance of this building.”
The Cherokee National Capitol is one of 41 projects throughout the United States recognized in the National Park Service’s Save America’s Treasures $9.5 million grant award program for 2009. According to the National Park Service, the funds will assist the organizations and agencies to conserve significant United States cultural and historic treasures, which illustrate, interpret and are associated with the great events, ideas, and individuals that contribute to our nation’s history and culture.
National Park Service Director Jon Jarvis congratulated the recipients of the Save America’s Treasures awards saying, “The recipients of these grants deserve great credit for their commitment to the preservation of our nation’s history and culture. The historic properties and collections protected by Save America's Treasures grants for the last 10 years benefit all Americans, today and in the future. The National Park Service is proud of our role in administering this exceptional program with our partners.”
Since Cherokee Nation reunified its government in Indian Territory in 1839, the grounds on which the Capitol was built have been witness to much history. In 1843, the site played host to one of the most significant tribal gatherings in American history when more than 17 tribes from across the United States came to Tahlequah, Indian Territory, for the International Indian Council to renew ancient customs and strengthen tribal alliances. This historic convention is depicted in John Mix Stanley’s painting “International Indian Council,” which is displayed at Smithsonian American Art Museum.
Built in 1870, the Cherokee National Capitol was completed shortly after the American Civil War, a period in which the Cherokee Nation overcame turmoil and inter-tribal dissension to reunite and build its government seat. Over the years the building has survived numerous damages including fire. Today, the national landmark stands as a reminder of the progressive government and social system the Cherokee Nation established once it arrived in Indian Territory.
The Cherokee Nation’s commitment to preservation features four key projects including the Cherokee National Supreme Court Museum and Ross Cemetery, which are currently underway, and the Cherokee National Capitol and Cherokee National Jail, which are scheduled for 2010.
Sikes Abernathie Architects in Tulsa, Okla., completed the assessment of the existing physical condition of the Cherokee National Capitol and provided a prioritized list of projects to be completed in the restoration of the property.
Additional information on the Save America’s Treasures program can be found on the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities web site at http://www.pcah.gov and/or the National Park Service web site at http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/treasures/.
About Cherokee Nation Cultural Tourism DepartmentThe Cherokee Nation Cultural Tourism Department is managed by Cherokee Nation Entertainment and was created in 2007 to promote the story of the Cherokee people. Efforts by the Cherokee Nation include developing guided community and educational tours, creating tourism partnerships and programs throughout northeastern Oklahoma, and launching a new Cherokee tourism-specific web site. For more information, please visit http://www.cherokeetourismok.com.
About Cherokee Nation Entertainment
Cherokee Nation Entertainment is the gaming, hospitality, retail and tourism entity of the Cherokee Nation. Cherokee Nation Entertainment owns and operates the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, five Cherokee Casinos, Cherokee Casino Will Rogers Downs, three hotels, two golf courses and many other retail operations in northeastern Oklahoma. For more information, please visit http://www.cherokeestarrewards.com.
About Cherokee Nation
The Cherokee Nation is the sovereign operating government of the Cherokee people. It is a federally recognized tribe of more than 280,000 Cherokee citizens, with its capitol located in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. Employing more than 6,500 people, Cherokee Nation’s annual economic impact in Oklahoma and surrounding areas is more than $1 billion dollars. To learn more, please visit http://www.cherokee.org.
Awarded by a cooperative municipal program named, Save America’s Treasures, the federal money will go toward restoring the building’s roof and foundation, which has significantly deteriorated due to water infiltration. The funds will also aid in the installation of an appropriate drainage system.
The Cherokee National Capitol preservation project is scheduled to begin in 2010. The building currently houses the judicial branch of the Cherokee Nation and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
“The Cherokee National Capitol is a source of great pride for the Cherokee people with its rich history, symbolism and continued functionality within today’s tribal government,” said Chad Smith, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. “Moving onward with the restoration, we look forward to sharing and educating the public on the historical significance of this building.”
The Cherokee National Capitol is one of 41 projects throughout the United States recognized in the National Park Service’s Save America’s Treasures $9.5 million grant award program for 2009. According to the National Park Service, the funds will assist the organizations and agencies to conserve significant United States cultural and historic treasures, which illustrate, interpret and are associated with the great events, ideas, and individuals that contribute to our nation’s history and culture.
National Park Service Director Jon Jarvis congratulated the recipients of the Save America’s Treasures awards saying, “The recipients of these grants deserve great credit for their commitment to the preservation of our nation’s history and culture. The historic properties and collections protected by Save America's Treasures grants for the last 10 years benefit all Americans, today and in the future. The National Park Service is proud of our role in administering this exceptional program with our partners.”
Since Cherokee Nation reunified its government in Indian Territory in 1839, the grounds on which the Capitol was built have been witness to much history. In 1843, the site played host to one of the most significant tribal gatherings in American history when more than 17 tribes from across the United States came to Tahlequah, Indian Territory, for the International Indian Council to renew ancient customs and strengthen tribal alliances. This historic convention is depicted in John Mix Stanley’s painting “International Indian Council,” which is displayed at Smithsonian American Art Museum.
Built in 1870, the Cherokee National Capitol was completed shortly after the American Civil War, a period in which the Cherokee Nation overcame turmoil and inter-tribal dissension to reunite and build its government seat. Over the years the building has survived numerous damages including fire. Today, the national landmark stands as a reminder of the progressive government and social system the Cherokee Nation established once it arrived in Indian Territory.
The Cherokee Nation’s commitment to preservation features four key projects including the Cherokee National Supreme Court Museum and Ross Cemetery, which are currently underway, and the Cherokee National Capitol and Cherokee National Jail, which are scheduled for 2010.
Sikes Abernathie Architects in Tulsa, Okla., completed the assessment of the existing physical condition of the Cherokee National Capitol and provided a prioritized list of projects to be completed in the restoration of the property.
Additional information on the Save America’s Treasures program can be found on the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities web site at http://www.pcah.gov and/or the National Park Service web site at http://www.nps.gov/history/hps/treasures/.
About Cherokee Nation Cultural Tourism DepartmentThe Cherokee Nation Cultural Tourism Department is managed by Cherokee Nation Entertainment and was created in 2007 to promote the story of the Cherokee people. Efforts by the Cherokee Nation include developing guided community and educational tours, creating tourism partnerships and programs throughout northeastern Oklahoma, and launching a new Cherokee tourism-specific web site. For more information, please visit http://www.cherokeetourismok.com.
About Cherokee Nation Entertainment
Cherokee Nation Entertainment is the gaming, hospitality, retail and tourism entity of the Cherokee Nation. Cherokee Nation Entertainment owns and operates the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, five Cherokee Casinos, Cherokee Casino Will Rogers Downs, three hotels, two golf courses and many other retail operations in northeastern Oklahoma. For more information, please visit http://www.cherokeestarrewards.com.
About Cherokee Nation
The Cherokee Nation is the sovereign operating government of the Cherokee people. It is a federally recognized tribe of more than 280,000 Cherokee citizens, with its capitol located in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. Employing more than 6,500 people, Cherokee Nation’s annual economic impact in Oklahoma and surrounding areas is more than $1 billion dollars. To learn more, please visit http://www.cherokee.org.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Ancient Rome & America Exhibit at The Constitution Center--A Must See!
The National Constitution Center announced today that it will host the world debut of Ancient Rome & America – a multi-million dollar, artifact-rich exhibition showcasing the cultural, political, and social connections between the lost world of ancient Rome and modern America – from February 19 through August 1, 2010.
The National Constitution Center has worked for three years to develop the exhibition, which features a unique and unprecedented collection of rare artifacts and artwork, in partnership with Contemporanea Progetti of Florence, Italy , in collaboration with the Ministero per i Beni e Le Attività Culturali, Rome , Italy .
Rome, like the United States , overcame a monarchy to become a republic. Long after the fall of ancient Rome , its heroes and legends have continued to influence future generations. From the battlefields of the revolution to the chambers of Congress, Rome became a part of America ’s foundation. Through marble sculptures, paintings, jewelry, coins, and ceramics, Ancient Rome & America draws striking comparisons between Roman and American culture, from theories of government to slavery and civil war, to continental expansion and worldwide influence.
“The connections between these two cultures separated by millennia and continents are startling and captivating,” said National Constitution Center President and CEO David Eisner. “Visitors will never think of either the lost world of ancient Rome or the founding values of America in the same way.”
Covering over 8,000 square feet, Ancient Rome & America is organized into five galleries: Introduction, Building a Republic, A Classical Revival, Expansion and Empire, and Epilogue.
The exhibition features more than 300 artifacts from Italy 's leading archaeological collections in Florence , Naples , and Rome , paired with objects from over 40 lending institutions in the United States . Highlights include:
•Two eagles depicting this classic symbol shared by ancient Rome and America . The American eagle is carved from gilt wood. It was made in 1804 by Samuel McIntire, an important early American architect. Of the Roman eagle, only the bronze head remains. It likely originated from the top of a Roman army military standard.
•Roman busts of Scipio Africanus, Julius Caesar, and Cicero. American busts of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson, each portrayed in togas.
•Gladiator/Football helmets. Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Harold Carmichael’s helmet will be on display with a gladiator helmet and four original pieces from the gladiator barracks of an amphitheater in Pompeii – a “greave” (shin guard), two spearheads, and a dagger.
•Excavated remnants from Pompeii , including silverware, a preserved piece of a wall fresco, and the cast of a man who did not escape the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius .
•A selection of classical works belonging to the Founding Fathers that helped shape their political thought during the early years of the American republic. John Adams’ personal copy of Plutarch’s Lives, John Dickenson’s personal copy of the works of Roman historian Tacitus, and John Quincy Adams’ personal copy of Cicero’s De Oratore.
•Two letters from August 1776 exchanged between John and Abigail Adams. In them, Abigail signs her name “Portia” after the wife of the Roman Senator Brutus. The letters are filled with classical references and ideas of republican virtue.
•Slave collars from ancient Rome and the United States . Both ancient Rome and America prior to 1865 were slave societies. Made in the early 1800s, the slave collar from the U.S. is a rare artifact that can be tied to one man’s quest for freedom. Ben, a slave who worked on a farm in Pennsylvania , tried to escape three times, and after the third time, his owner had an iron collar made for him.
The exhibition concludes with a video presentation about Rome ’s legacy. Though the Roman Empire declined and fell, it remains a powerful influence on the western world. As visitors depart the exhibition, they will be left to ponder the lessons ancient Rome teaches us about our nation’s future.
“The profound and pervasive legacy of ancient Rome is deeply embedded in the western culture of today; the lasting effects of Roman domination can be found almost anywhere,” said Linda Carioni of Contemporanea Progetti. “They can be seen in our judiciary and monetary systems, in our art and architectural patrimony, in the modern Romance languages, in our alphabet of 26 letters, as well as the calendar of Julius Caesar.”
To augment the exhibition, the Center’s public programming staff in the Annenberg Center for Education and Outreach is developing a variety of special programs and family activities. Also in keeping with the Center’s mission to foster discussion and citizen engagement, evening programs about current and historical topics related to the exhibition are planned. In addition, the Center is offering a special iPod audio tour in conjunction with the exhibition.
Admission to Ancient Rome & America is $20 for adults, $18 for seniors ages 65 and up, and $12 for children ages 4-12. Active military personnel and children ages 3 and under are free. Group rates are also available. Admission to the Center’s main exhibition, The Story of We the People, including the award-winning theater production “Freedom Rising,” is included. iPod audio tours cost an additional $5. For ticket information, call 215.409.6700 or visit www.constitutioncenter.org.
CBS 3 and The CW Philly are the official media partners of Ancient Rome & America. CBS 3 (KYW-TV) and The CW Philly 57 (WPSG-TV) are part of CBS Television Stations, a division of CBS Corporation.
The National Constitution Center, located at 525 Arch St. on Philadelphia’s Independence Mall, is an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing public understanding of the U.S. Constitution and the ideas and values it represents. The Center serves as a museum, an education center, and a forum for debate on constitutional issues. The museum dramatically tells the story of the Constitution from Revolutionary times to the present through more than 100 interactive, multimedia exhibits, film, photographs, text, sculpture and artifacts, and features a powerful, award-winning theatrical performance, “Freedom Rising.” The Center also houses the Annenberg Center for Education and Outreach, which serves as the hub for national constitutional education. Also, as a nonpartisan forum for constitutional discourse, the Center presents – without endorsement – programs that contain diverse viewpoints on a broad range of issues. For more information, call 215.409.6700 or visit www.constitutioncenter.org.
The National Constitution Center has worked for three years to develop the exhibition, which features a unique and unprecedented collection of rare artifacts and artwork, in partnership with Contemporanea Progetti of Florence, Italy , in collaboration with the Ministero per i Beni e Le Attività Culturali, Rome , Italy .
Rome, like the United States , overcame a monarchy to become a republic. Long after the fall of ancient Rome , its heroes and legends have continued to influence future generations. From the battlefields of the revolution to the chambers of Congress, Rome became a part of America ’s foundation. Through marble sculptures, paintings, jewelry, coins, and ceramics, Ancient Rome & America draws striking comparisons between Roman and American culture, from theories of government to slavery and civil war, to continental expansion and worldwide influence.
“The connections between these two cultures separated by millennia and continents are startling and captivating,” said National Constitution Center President and CEO David Eisner. “Visitors will never think of either the lost world of ancient Rome or the founding values of America in the same way.”
Covering over 8,000 square feet, Ancient Rome & America is organized into five galleries: Introduction, Building a Republic, A Classical Revival, Expansion and Empire, and Epilogue.
The exhibition features more than 300 artifacts from Italy 's leading archaeological collections in Florence , Naples , and Rome , paired with objects from over 40 lending institutions in the United States . Highlights include:
•Two eagles depicting this classic symbol shared by ancient Rome and America . The American eagle is carved from gilt wood. It was made in 1804 by Samuel McIntire, an important early American architect. Of the Roman eagle, only the bronze head remains. It likely originated from the top of a Roman army military standard.
•Roman busts of Scipio Africanus, Julius Caesar, and Cicero. American busts of George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson, each portrayed in togas.
•Gladiator/Football helmets. Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Harold Carmichael’s helmet will be on display with a gladiator helmet and four original pieces from the gladiator barracks of an amphitheater in Pompeii – a “greave” (shin guard), two spearheads, and a dagger.
•Excavated remnants from Pompeii , including silverware, a preserved piece of a wall fresco, and the cast of a man who did not escape the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius .
•A selection of classical works belonging to the Founding Fathers that helped shape their political thought during the early years of the American republic. John Adams’ personal copy of Plutarch’s Lives, John Dickenson’s personal copy of the works of Roman historian Tacitus, and John Quincy Adams’ personal copy of Cicero’s De Oratore.
•Two letters from August 1776 exchanged between John and Abigail Adams. In them, Abigail signs her name “Portia” after the wife of the Roman Senator Brutus. The letters are filled with classical references and ideas of republican virtue.
•Slave collars from ancient Rome and the United States . Both ancient Rome and America prior to 1865 were slave societies. Made in the early 1800s, the slave collar from the U.S. is a rare artifact that can be tied to one man’s quest for freedom. Ben, a slave who worked on a farm in Pennsylvania , tried to escape three times, and after the third time, his owner had an iron collar made for him.
The exhibition concludes with a video presentation about Rome ’s legacy. Though the Roman Empire declined and fell, it remains a powerful influence on the western world. As visitors depart the exhibition, they will be left to ponder the lessons ancient Rome teaches us about our nation’s future.
“The profound and pervasive legacy of ancient Rome is deeply embedded in the western culture of today; the lasting effects of Roman domination can be found almost anywhere,” said Linda Carioni of Contemporanea Progetti. “They can be seen in our judiciary and monetary systems, in our art and architectural patrimony, in the modern Romance languages, in our alphabet of 26 letters, as well as the calendar of Julius Caesar.”
To augment the exhibition, the Center’s public programming staff in the Annenberg Center for Education and Outreach is developing a variety of special programs and family activities. Also in keeping with the Center’s mission to foster discussion and citizen engagement, evening programs about current and historical topics related to the exhibition are planned. In addition, the Center is offering a special iPod audio tour in conjunction with the exhibition.
Admission to Ancient Rome & America is $20 for adults, $18 for seniors ages 65 and up, and $12 for children ages 4-12. Active military personnel and children ages 3 and under are free. Group rates are also available. Admission to the Center’s main exhibition, The Story of We the People, including the award-winning theater production “Freedom Rising,” is included. iPod audio tours cost an additional $5. For ticket information, call 215.409.6700 or visit www.constitutioncenter.org.
CBS 3 and The CW Philly are the official media partners of Ancient Rome & America. CBS 3 (KYW-TV) and The CW Philly 57 (WPSG-TV) are part of CBS Television Stations, a division of CBS Corporation.
The National Constitution Center, located at 525 Arch St. on Philadelphia’s Independence Mall, is an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing public understanding of the U.S. Constitution and the ideas and values it represents. The Center serves as a museum, an education center, and a forum for debate on constitutional issues. The museum dramatically tells the story of the Constitution from Revolutionary times to the present through more than 100 interactive, multimedia exhibits, film, photographs, text, sculpture and artifacts, and features a powerful, award-winning theatrical performance, “Freedom Rising.” The Center also houses the Annenberg Center for Education and Outreach, which serves as the hub for national constitutional education. Also, as a nonpartisan forum for constitutional discourse, the Center presents – without endorsement – programs that contain diverse viewpoints on a broad range of issues. For more information, call 215.409.6700 or visit www.constitutioncenter.org.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Sailors Saluted on Postage Stamps
Four members of the U.S. Navy will be immortalized on stamps: William S. Sims, Arleigh A. Burke, John McCloy and Doris Miller. The First-Day-of-Issue dedication ceremony for the four 44-cent First-Class collectible "Distinguished Sailors" stamps takes place in Washington, DC, Feb. 4, 2010 at 10:30 a.m. in the Arleigh and Roberta Burke Theater of the United States Navy Memorial www.navymemorial.org at 701 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W. The event is free and open to the public.
WILLIAM S. SIMS
Commander of U.S. naval forces in European waters during World War I, William S. Sims (1858-1936) was an outspoken reformer and innovator who helped shape the Navy into a modern fighting force.
Sims was born in Port Hope, Ontario, Canada, where his father, an American citizen, was a railroad engineer. The family moved to Vermont when Sims was about twelve and soon thereafter settled in Pennsylvania.
Sims attended the Naval Academy from 1876 to 1880. He then spent nearly two decades at sea, interrupted by a year (1889) in Paris studying French. From 1897 to 1900, he served as naval attaché to the U.S. embassy in France and to the ministry in Russia. During this time, he studied and made reports on European naval developments, which he found to be far more advanced than those in America. (While in France, he met his future wife, Anne Hitchcock, daughter of the U.S. Minister to Russia.)
In 1901, at great risk to his career, Sims circumvented his immediate superiors and wrote directly to President Theodore Roosevelt about “the extreme danger of the present very inefficient condition of the Navy,” emphasizing the glaring deficiencies of American battleships and the need for more accurate firepower. Roosevelt thanked Sims for the letter and encouraged him to continue offering suggestions. Sims was able to implement some of his ideas for reform, especially in the area of gunnery, while serving as inspector of target practice in the Navy’s Bureau of Navigation from 1902 to 1909. He trained officers and gun crews in a new gun control method called “continuous aim firing,” adapting the techniques of British officer Percy Scott and achieving significant improvements in firing speed and accuracy. He also served as President Roosevelt’s naval aide from 1907 to 1909.
Shortly before the United States entered World War I, Sims, by this time a rear admiral, was sent on a secret mission to gather information on wartime conditions and to confer with the British Royal Navy. Soon after America entered the war, he was appointed commander of U.S. naval forces operating near Europe. To counter the German strategy of unrestricted warfare by U-boats, Sims advocated various antisubmarine measures. He played a critical role in promoting and coordinating a system of convoys—using destroyers and other warships to escort merchant ships and transports through danger zones—that achieved dramatic reductions in Allied shipping losses. To the extent that the defeat of German submarine warfare was “the critical naval campaign of the war, essential to victory over the Central Powers,” as historian David Trask has written, Sims’s contribution to the Allied victory in World War I was profound.
After the war, Sims returned to the same position he had held previously at the Naval War College, serving as president until his retirement in 1922. He sparked a congressional investigation in 1920 of the wartime conduct of the Navy Department, leading to extensive hearings on the subject. He also wrote a Pulitzer Prize-winning book about the war, Victory at Sea (1920).
Sims continued to write and lecture about naval reform until his death in 1936, at which time the New York Herald Tribune declared that he had “influenced our naval course more than any man who ever wore the uniform.” The Navy has named three destroyers after Sims. The most recent, USS W. S. Sims (DE-1059), was commissioned in 1970 and was decommissioned in 1991.
ARLEIGH A. BURKE
After serving as one of the top destroyer squadron commanders of World War II, Arleigh A. Burke (1901-1996) had an equally distinguished postwar career in which he played a major role in modernizing the Navy and guiding its response to the Cold War.
Born and raised on a farm near Boulder, Colorado, Burke secured an appointment to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1919 and graduated in 1923. After serving for five years in the battleship USS Arizona, he pursued postgraduate work in ordnance at the United States Naval Postgraduate School and then earned a master’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Michigan in 1931. During the 1930s, Burke served in various capacities in a heavy cruiser and a destroyer before being given command of USS Mugford, which under Burke won the Destroyer Gunnery Trophy for 1939-1940.
At the outset of World War II, Burke was an inspector at the Naval Gun Factory in Washington. His repeated requests for sea duty went unheeded until he was given command in early 1943 of a destroyer division in the South Pacific. He soon gained a reputation for brilliance and innovation, especially after taking command that fall of Destroyer Squadron 23. Under Burke the squadron became known as “the Little Beavers” and fought in 22 separate actions in a four-month period, sinking or helping to sink 9 Japanese destroyers and downing some 30 of their airplanes. His exploits and his own nickname, “31-Knot Burke,” became widely known, and his performance in battle earned him an appointment in March 1944 as chief of staff to Vice Admiral Marc Mitscher in the famed Fast Carrier Task Force. According to the Dictionary of American Military Biography, in this post Burke “coordinated the operations of the largest naval striking force in history in the battles of the Philippine Sea, Leyte Gulf, and Okinawa.”
With the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, Burke was sent to Japan to serve as deputy chief of staff to the commander of U.S. naval forces in the Far East. In 1951, he briefly served as commander of Cruiser Division Five before being designated a member of the United Nations Truce Delegation, which sought to negotiate an armistice in Korea. In late 1951, Burke was summoned to Washington for a two-year tour as director of the Navy’s Strategic Plans Division. In 1955, while still a rear admiral, he reached the pinnacle of his profession when President Eisenhower appointed him Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), promoting him ahead of nearly 100 more senior officers. During an unprecedented three terms as CNO, Burke sped up the construction of nuclear-powered submarines and initiated the Polaris Ballistic Missile Program.
Burke retired from the Navy in 1961 after nearly forty years of service. (He remained an influential figure and was at the forefront of efforts to establish the U.S. Navy Memorial in Washington, which was dedicated in 1987.) In 1977, Burke was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Navy honored him by naming a new class of guided missile destroyers after him. On July 4, 1991, the first of these, USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51), was commissioned in a ceremony attended by Burke and his wife Roberta.
When Burke died in 1996, he was hailed as a “sailor’s sailor” who defined what it meant to be a naval officer: “relentless in combat, resourceful in command, and revered by his crews.”
WILLIAM S. SIMS
Commander of U.S. naval forces in European waters during World War I, William S. Sims (1858-1936) was an outspoken reformer and innovator who helped shape the Navy into a modern fighting force.
Sims was born in Port Hope, Ontario, Canada, where his father, an American citizen, was a railroad engineer. The family moved to Vermont when Sims was about twelve and soon thereafter settled in Pennsylvania.
Sims attended the Naval Academy from 1876 to 1880. He then spent nearly two decades at sea, interrupted by a year (1889) in Paris studying French. From 1897 to 1900, he served as naval attaché to the U.S. embassy in France and to the ministry in Russia. During this time, he studied and made reports on European naval developments, which he found to be far more advanced than those in America. (While in France, he met his future wife, Anne Hitchcock, daughter of the U.S. Minister to Russia.)
In 1901, at great risk to his career, Sims circumvented his immediate superiors and wrote directly to President Theodore Roosevelt about “the extreme danger of the present very inefficient condition of the Navy,” emphasizing the glaring deficiencies of American battleships and the need for more accurate firepower. Roosevelt thanked Sims for the letter and encouraged him to continue offering suggestions. Sims was able to implement some of his ideas for reform, especially in the area of gunnery, while serving as inspector of target practice in the Navy’s Bureau of Navigation from 1902 to 1909. He trained officers and gun crews in a new gun control method called “continuous aim firing,” adapting the techniques of British officer Percy Scott and achieving significant improvements in firing speed and accuracy. He also served as President Roosevelt’s naval aide from 1907 to 1909.
Shortly before the United States entered World War I, Sims, by this time a rear admiral, was sent on a secret mission to gather information on wartime conditions and to confer with the British Royal Navy. Soon after America entered the war, he was appointed commander of U.S. naval forces operating near Europe. To counter the German strategy of unrestricted warfare by U-boats, Sims advocated various antisubmarine measures. He played a critical role in promoting and coordinating a system of convoys—using destroyers and other warships to escort merchant ships and transports through danger zones—that achieved dramatic reductions in Allied shipping losses. To the extent that the defeat of German submarine warfare was “the critical naval campaign of the war, essential to victory over the Central Powers,” as historian David Trask has written, Sims’s contribution to the Allied victory in World War I was profound.
After the war, Sims returned to the same position he had held previously at the Naval War College, serving as president until his retirement in 1922. He sparked a congressional investigation in 1920 of the wartime conduct of the Navy Department, leading to extensive hearings on the subject. He also wrote a Pulitzer Prize-winning book about the war, Victory at Sea (1920).
Sims continued to write and lecture about naval reform until his death in 1936, at which time the New York Herald Tribune declared that he had “influenced our naval course more than any man who ever wore the uniform.” The Navy has named three destroyers after Sims. The most recent, USS W. S. Sims (DE-1059), was commissioned in 1970 and was decommissioned in 1991.
ARLEIGH A. BURKE
After serving as one of the top destroyer squadron commanders of World War II, Arleigh A. Burke (1901-1996) had an equally distinguished postwar career in which he played a major role in modernizing the Navy and guiding its response to the Cold War.
Born and raised on a farm near Boulder, Colorado, Burke secured an appointment to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1919 and graduated in 1923. After serving for five years in the battleship USS Arizona, he pursued postgraduate work in ordnance at the United States Naval Postgraduate School and then earned a master’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Michigan in 1931. During the 1930s, Burke served in various capacities in a heavy cruiser and a destroyer before being given command of USS Mugford, which under Burke won the Destroyer Gunnery Trophy for 1939-1940.
At the outset of World War II, Burke was an inspector at the Naval Gun Factory in Washington. His repeated requests for sea duty went unheeded until he was given command in early 1943 of a destroyer division in the South Pacific. He soon gained a reputation for brilliance and innovation, especially after taking command that fall of Destroyer Squadron 23. Under Burke the squadron became known as “the Little Beavers” and fought in 22 separate actions in a four-month period, sinking or helping to sink 9 Japanese destroyers and downing some 30 of their airplanes. His exploits and his own nickname, “31-Knot Burke,” became widely known, and his performance in battle earned him an appointment in March 1944 as chief of staff to Vice Admiral Marc Mitscher in the famed Fast Carrier Task Force. According to the Dictionary of American Military Biography, in this post Burke “coordinated the operations of the largest naval striking force in history in the battles of the Philippine Sea, Leyte Gulf, and Okinawa.”
With the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, Burke was sent to Japan to serve as deputy chief of staff to the commander of U.S. naval forces in the Far East. In 1951, he briefly served as commander of Cruiser Division Five before being designated a member of the United Nations Truce Delegation, which sought to negotiate an armistice in Korea. In late 1951, Burke was summoned to Washington for a two-year tour as director of the Navy’s Strategic Plans Division. In 1955, while still a rear admiral, he reached the pinnacle of his profession when President Eisenhower appointed him Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), promoting him ahead of nearly 100 more senior officers. During an unprecedented three terms as CNO, Burke sped up the construction of nuclear-powered submarines and initiated the Polaris Ballistic Missile Program.
Burke retired from the Navy in 1961 after nearly forty years of service. (He remained an influential figure and was at the forefront of efforts to establish the U.S. Navy Memorial in Washington, which was dedicated in 1987.) In 1977, Burke was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Navy honored him by naming a new class of guided missile destroyers after him. On July 4, 1991, the first of these, USS Arleigh Burke (DDG-51), was commissioned in a ceremony attended by Burke and his wife Roberta.
When Burke died in 1996, he was hailed as a “sailor’s sailor” who defined what it meant to be a naval officer: “relentless in combat, resourceful in command, and revered by his crews.”
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Historic Preservation Group now on Facebook!
PreservationDirectory.com, a leading online resource for historic preservation and cultural resource management, has launched a companion page on Facebook.
The focus of the Facebook page will be to disseminate historic preservation-related news and policy alerts, job postings for museum/architecture/organizations, and photos of historic places and structures. The goal will be to use the networking expertise of Facebook to keep members aware of preservation news, job information, and policy alerts.
According to Tim Cannan, President of PreservationDirectory.com, "the new Facebook page will allow us to reach members instantly with late-breaking historic preservation news. We are also very excited to be able alert our members to job listings as soon as they are added to PreservationDirectory.com."
To view the new PreservationDirectory.com Facebook page, go to http://www.facebook.com/pages/PreservationDirectorycom/182062916596.
To celebrate the launch of the new companion group page on Facebook, PreservationDirectory.com has added hundreds of photos from their personal achives to the new group page. The photos are some of their favorite shots of buildings, roadside attractions, and other cultural sites from travels across North America.
Collaboration is also a big part of PreservationDirectory.com - in that spirit, they are looking for photos from the public to add to the architectural photo gallery. To submit photos and to receive historic preservation-related alerts, join the Facebook historic preservation group at http://www.facebook.com/pages/PreservationDirectorycom/182062916596.
In addition to regular updates to the architectural photo gallery, look for job postings in the fields of historic preservation, cultural resources and architecture, and policy alerts with links to new and archived documents.
About PreservationDirectory.com:
PreservationDirectory.com is a primary online resource for historic preservation, building restoration and cultural resource management in the United States & Canada. Our goal is to foster the preservation of historic buildings, historic downtowns and neighborhoods, cultural resources and to promote heritage tourism by facilitating communication among historic preservation professionals and the general public. Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Portland, Oregon, PreservationDirectory.com has continually expanded and evolved to cover a comprehensive array of topics and resources of most interest to the historic and cultural resource community.
Contact:
Tim Cannan, President
PreservationDirectory.com
7017 N. Alma Ave
Portland, OR 97203
503-223-4939
info@preservationdirectory.com
http://www.PreservationDirectory.com
The focus of the Facebook page will be to disseminate historic preservation-related news and policy alerts, job postings for museum/architecture/organizations, and photos of historic places and structures. The goal will be to use the networking expertise of Facebook to keep members aware of preservation news, job information, and policy alerts.
According to Tim Cannan, President of PreservationDirectory.com, "the new Facebook page will allow us to reach members instantly with late-breaking historic preservation news. We are also very excited to be able alert our members to job listings as soon as they are added to PreservationDirectory.com."
To view the new PreservationDirectory.com Facebook page, go to http://www.facebook.com/pages/PreservationDirectorycom/182062916596.
To celebrate the launch of the new companion group page on Facebook, PreservationDirectory.com has added hundreds of photos from their personal achives to the new group page. The photos are some of their favorite shots of buildings, roadside attractions, and other cultural sites from travels across North America.
Collaboration is also a big part of PreservationDirectory.com - in that spirit, they are looking for photos from the public to add to the architectural photo gallery. To submit photos and to receive historic preservation-related alerts, join the Facebook historic preservation group at http://www.facebook.com/pages/PreservationDirectorycom/182062916596.
In addition to regular updates to the architectural photo gallery, look for job postings in the fields of historic preservation, cultural resources and architecture, and policy alerts with links to new and archived documents.
About PreservationDirectory.com:
PreservationDirectory.com is a primary online resource for historic preservation, building restoration and cultural resource management in the United States & Canada. Our goal is to foster the preservation of historic buildings, historic downtowns and neighborhoods, cultural resources and to promote heritage tourism by facilitating communication among historic preservation professionals and the general public. Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Portland, Oregon, PreservationDirectory.com has continually expanded and evolved to cover a comprehensive array of topics and resources of most interest to the historic and cultural resource community.
Contact:
Tim Cannan, President
PreservationDirectory.com
7017 N. Alma Ave
Portland, OR 97203
503-223-4939
info@preservationdirectory.com
http://www.PreservationDirectory.com
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