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broadsideboston national historical park

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2006

Mary Bomar Sworn In AsNational Park Service Director

BOSTON NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK Superinten-dent Terry W. Savage was among the 200 National ParkService employees and public officials present in Philadelphia'shistoric Congress Hall on October 3, 2006, when NortheastRegional Director Mary A. Bomar was sworn in as the 17thDirector of the National Park Service.

On September 30, 2006, Bomar had been confirmed by theUnited States Senate as the next Director of the National ParkService. Bomar was nominated by President George W. Bushto head the Park Service after Director Fran Mainella an-nounced her resignation in July.

Bomar, a British native who became a U.S. citizen in 1977,has been with the National Park Service for seventeen years,including posts as Acting Superintendent at Rocky MountainNational Park and Superintendent at the Oklahoma CityNational Memorial. Upon her nomination, Bomar said, “Merewords cannot express how honored I am to be nominated asthe 17th Director of the National Park Service by the Presidentof the United States. For this ‘American by Choice’ it is theultimate honor to be entrusted with the care of the crownjewels of America—our national parks. I will be proud to leada passionate, committed, professional workforce working toensure a wonderful experience for visitors today and for thegenerations yet to come.”

Bomar has been the National Park Service NortheastRegional Director since July 2005. The region covers thirteenstates and is responsible for a third of all NPS museumcollections, a quarter of all historic structures, almost half of thecountry’s National Historic Landmarks and more than half ofthe National Heritage Areas. Prior to that, Bomar served asActing Regional Director.

As regional director, Bomar visited Boston National His-torical Park on numerous occasions, attending the June 2005groundbreaking ceremony for the Bunker Hill Monument andMuseum rehabilitation project (photo at right) and, mostrecently, to attend a National Park Foundation event hosted byFirst Lady Laura Bush. “We are incredibly excited about

With her hand resting on an 18th-century Bible held by her husband MiltonBomar (right), Mary A. Bomar takes the oath of office as Director of theNational Park Service from Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne.

(Continued on page 2)

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THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, in aunique partnership with Amnesty Inter-national USA, the Gulag Museum at Perm-36, and the International Memorial Soci-ety, is presenting the first exhibition onthe Soviet Gulag in the United States.GULAG: Soviet Forced Labor Camps andthe Struggle for Freedom opened at Bos-ton University’s 808 Gallery on October24, 2006, and will run through January 14,2007. An opening reception took place onThursday evening, November 2, 2006.

In Boston a dynamic, interdiscipli-nary planning committee has developed acompanion exhibit along with a wide vari-ety of related programming. The commit-tee includes representatives from theNational Park Service, Amnesty Interna-tional USA, the Boston University ArtGallery, Boston University’s School ofTheatre, the Davis Center for Russian andEurasian Studies at Harvard University,and Boston College.

The exhibit comes to Boston after asuccessful opening run on Ellis Island in NewYork where tens of thousands visited theexhibit, and it received significant criticalacclaim. The New York Times (June 7, 2006)called the exhibit “powerful” and declaredthat “small things tell large truths…in spare-ness and simplicity.” The Wall Street Jour-nal (June 27, 2006) wrote that the small arti-facts with which the story is told “are strik-ingly effective” and overall the exhibit has an“affecting, mesmerizing quality” which dra-matically engages visitors. The NationalReview Online (August 1, 2006) congratu-lated the exhibit organizers for bringing “theoften overlooked horrors (and lessons) ofthe Gulag to a wider audience.”

This exhibit traces the history of theSoviet Union’s forced labor camp systemand its impact on Russia and the world today.The vast network of labor camps was anintegral part of Stalin’s plans for rapid indus-trialization. At its height the Gulag impris-oned or internally exiled over five millioncitizens, both repressing political oppositionand providing labor for Stalin’s economicprogram. Highlighted in the exhibit is thehistory of one camp in Russia’s Ural Moun-tains, Perm-36, and how Russians committedto preserving the memory of the Gulag havetransformed the labor camp into an historicsite and museum. “Our mission is to promotedemocratic values and civic consciousnessin contemporary Russia,” says VictorShmyrov, director of the Gulag Museum at

Perm-36, “through preservation of the lastSoviet political labor camp.”

Featured in the exhibit are rare artwork offormer Gulag prisoners depicting the degrad-ing living and working conditions; archivalfootage from Soviet propaganda films of thelargest construction projects under Stalin’sdictatorship; a re-creation of a dismal solitaryconfinement cell for political prisoners; por-traits of former political prisoners at Perm-36;historic photographs; and artifacts depict-ing daily camp life: hand-made cups andspoons and crude tools prisoners employedin their backbreaking labors.

Two seemingly commonplace objects inthe exhibit actually are remarkable testamentsto the human determination for freedom in theface of brutal tyranny. The exhibit features apair of toothbrushes inscribed with secretlove messages for the recipients who werehusband and wife, messages that escapedthe scrutiny of the prison guards and in-spired the prisoners to endure their harshprison camp terms. Other noteworthy arti-facts include a shovel sent by the UnitedStates government to assist the Soviet Unionduring World War II that ended up beingused by slave laborers in the Gulag, a com-mon occurrence, and small glass vials utilizedto pass secret messages between prisoners.

Mary Bomar, Director of the NationalPark Service, declared, “The National ParkService is proud to partner with the GulagMuseum, a historic site dedicated to preser-

vation, education, and connecting his-tory to contemporary concerns. In thespirit of our National Park Service CivicEngagement initiative, this exhibit exam-ines the meaning of liberty and the com-plex relationship of history, memory, andthe present.”

The National Park Service providedthe major funding for this exhibit. Addi-tional funding was provided by TheBodman Family Foundation, The Trustfor Mutual Understanding, Eastern Na-tional, The Lynde & Harry Bradley Foun-dation, Amnesty International USA, andgenerous individuals.

A companion exhibition will run con-currently at the Boston University ArtGallery, located at 855 CommonwealthAvenue. Territories of Terror: Mytholo-gies and Memories of the Gulag in Con-temporary Russian-American Art, curatedby Svetlana Boym, Curt Hugo ReisingerProfessor of Slavic Languages and Litera-tures and Professor of Comparative Lit-

erature at Harvard University, is one of thefirst attempts to tackle the history and my-thology of the Gulag through contemporaryart. The exhibition features works by a distin-guished group of internationally recognizedcontemporary artists including: GrishaBruskin, Irina Nakhova, Komar & Melamid,Vadim Zakharov, Eugene Yelchin, and Le-onid Sokov.

—MARTY BLATT

Mary’s confirmation and eager to continueworking with her in her new capacity asdirector,” said Boston National HistoricalPark Superintendent Terry Savage. “She is acareer park professional with proven leader-ship and invaluable on-the-ground experi-ence.”

From 2003 to 2005, Bomar was Superin-tendent of Independence National HistoricalPark in Philadelphia. She also served as thefirst Superintendent at the Oklahoma CityNational Memorial, the first NPS OklahomaState Coordinator, Acting Superintendent atRocky Mountain National Park and Assis-tant Superintendent at the San Antonio Mis-sions National Historical Park. Prior to join-ing the National Park Service, Bomar workedin a managerial capacity at the Department ofDefense.

—SEAN HENNESSEY

Bomar Sworn In(Continued from page 1)

GULAG Exhibit Comes to Boston

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Park Funding Assists With Old State House Preservation Project

WORK CONTINUES on the Bunker HillMonument with a scheduled reopening ofthe Monument and Lodge on April 2, 2007,and a grand opening of the new museumplanned to correspond with Bunker Hill Weekactivities in June 2007. This project is a majorrehabilitation to preserve the Monument,Lodge, and site and to improve the visitorexperience.

Work on the monument and groundsbegan in May. A “crow’s nest” was builtaround the top of the monument that sup-ported swing scaffolding to allow repointingof the granite blocks on the Monument’sNorth and East faces, the top four courses onall faces, and the entire top, or pyramidian.

New pedestrian-scale lighting will illu-minate the newly paved perimeter walk at thetop of the hill and the Monument will be litwith all new exterior lighting. Barrier-freeaccess will be provided from the street intothe base of the Monument through a newwheelchair ramp on the site and a new en-trance into the side of the Lodge. A ramp willconnect the Lodge to the base of the Monu-ment. The Monument was built between1825 and 1843 and the Lodge was built in1902. The site attracts almost 200,000 visitorseach year.

The Bunker Hill Museum building, athree-story brick structure located adjacentto the grounds on Monument Square, isbeing renovated as an interpretive facilitythat tells the story of the Battle of Bunker Hill,the story of the Bunker Hill Monument, andthe history of the Charlestown community.There will be interpretive panels, historicartifacts, and an audio-visual display to aid inthe presentation. The museum will be handi-capped-accessible with new accessiblerestrooms and an elevator to all three floors.The top two floors will house the new exhibitswith a community meeting space on the groundfloor. The National Park Service is working inpartnership on the renovation project withthe City of Boston, which owns the BunkerHill Museum building, and with theCharlestown Historical Society. Supplement-ing National Park Service funds were gener-ous donations from the Grand Lodge ofMasons in Massachusetts and OsramSylvania and contributions from PartnersHealthcare and Boston Duck Tours.

For more information, please visit theCharlestown Navy Yard Visitor Center at theBunker Hill Pavilion, 55 Constitution Road;call 617-242-5601; or view the park web site.

—RUTH RAPHAEL

Bunker Hill Monument Project Progresses

A worker on the scaffolding erected at the top of theBunker Hill Monument repoints a joint between itsgranite blocks.

Preservation consultant Judith Selwyn took thisimage of the Old State House surrounded byscaffolding during the recent repointing project.

THE OLD STATE HOUSE has recently hadits exterior masonry repaired in order to cor-rect years of leaking walls that were ruiningthe interiors of the Council Chamber. TheBostonian Society, with funds provided byBoston National Historical Park and a grantfrom the Massachusetts Historical Commis-sion, contracted with Lee Kennedy Con-struction Co. to undertake the masonry reha-bilitation along with repairs to windows andinterior paneling and trim damaged by waterpenetrating the brick walls. Work started thispast July under the direction of DonaldTellalian, AIA, and David Storeygard, AIA,of Tellalian Associates Architects & Plan-ners with technical preservation support byDr. Judith Selwyn of Preservation Technol-ogy Associates.

Approaching 300 years old and sub-jected to changes ranging from the construc-tion of the MBTA station to restorative cam-paigns, the brick walls of the Old State Housetell a vivid story of the building’s long andillustrious history. But this patchwork quiltof brick and failing repointing fails to keep thedriving rains of a typical Nor’easter blowingtheir way through the canyon of highrise

towers surrounding this historic structurefrom penetrating the walls and soaking partsof the interior.

Faced with the dilemma of wanting tosave as much of what was left of the original1713 brickwork yet make the walls resistive torain moving through them it was decided torepoint only the most exposed north and eastwalls and to retrofit the interior of the wallswith a venting system that would trap anymoisture before it reached the interior fin-ishes. This work has recently been com-pleted along with extensive window repairsand to the delight of all who were involvedwith this state-of-the-art restoration you cannot tell that it ever occurred.

But this is not the end of the BostonianSociety’s preservation efforts for the OldState House. Scaffolding encasing the woodtower will soon be erected so that it too canreceive needed repair and replacement ofrotted woodwork and siding. This portion ofthe rehabilitation will be documented by theHistory Channel this winter requiring thework to be conducted under wraps to protectit from the cold of New England Winters.

—BILL BARLOW

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ONE OF THE HIGHLIGHTS of my young life,growing up in Everett and Malden in the lateforties and early fifties, was to take what istoday called the Orange Line from EverettStation into downtown Boston. When theelevated train crossed the CharlestownBridge, I would excitedly stand up, turnaround, kneel down on the old woodenbenches and press my nose against the glass.As far as the eye could see, the old NavyYard, now nearly empty of ships, was filledwith ships of the U.S. Navy.

What made the sight even more excitingfor me was the fact that my dad, “Happy”Vaughan, worked there. Too old to enlist forthe armed forces in 1941 ( he fought with theYankee Division in World War I), he went towork as a civilian at the Naval OperatingBases in Quonset, R.I., and Argentia, New-foundland, before coming to work at theBoston Navy Yard in 1943 as an electrician.When John Manson and Ethan Beeler askedme if I would like to continue my interpretiveduties at the Navy Yard, my joy was com-plete. Once here, I sought to do somethingspecial in memory of my dad.

When I learned from Bill Casey that hehad painstakingly saved most of the photosand text panels from the dismantled “Servingthe Fleet” exhibit that had been in Building125, I said “Let’s get them out where thepublic can see them!” Impressed by thepower and beauty, even, of these historicimages, I envisioned nothing fancy.

Any visit to the Charlestown Navy YardVisitor Center/ Bunker Hill Pavilion on Con-stitution Road prior to May 2006 would leaveone puzzled as to its connection to the his-toric facility beyond Gate 1. Display panels

were already in place at the Visitor Center justawaiting a little realignment, and, of course,the correct positioning of these icons of themen and machinery that “served the fleet” for174 years. And why not the models of USSCassin Young and USS Mason that werestored away safely from public view?

Hours of scraping black adhesive off the

"Serving the Fleet"

A Navy Yard photographer captured this image of an elevated train crossing the Charlestown Bridgein Oct. 1967. The tops of various cranes serving the yard can be seen in the distance. The tall structureto the left of center is the Boston & Maine Railroad grain elevator. The Navy Yard Visitor Center is nowlocated on that site. (BOSTS-8667)

These two views show portions of the temporary "Serving the Fleet" exhibit in the Navy Yard VisitorCenter. Both the Visitor Center and a new, permanent version of the exhibition are scheduled to moveinto rehabilitated space in Building 5 in the Navy Yard in 2007.

backs of masonite panels and some sixty feetof velcro later, a modest exhibit emerged bythe middle of May. “Serving the Fleet” lives,albeit truncated; but one hopes that the visi-tor will get a stronger sense that the Charles-town Navy Yard Visitor Center does, indeed,serve the Navy Yard.

—TERRENCE M. VAUGHAN

Park Holds Health and Safety FairON OCTOBER 25, 2006, the Boston NHP Human Resources Officeand the park Safety Committee jointly sponsored an Employee Healthand Safety Fair in the Hull Room in Building 5.

Representatives of various groups which provide healthcareservices to federal employees provided information on their offerings(photo at right), while the Safety Committee showed a series of

safety-related videos and sponsored a "hands-on" fire extinguishertraining (photo at left).

The event was well attended by Boston NHP employees as wellas those from several other area parks.

—STEPHEN P. CARLSON

Civic Engagement National Park ServiceU.S. Department of the Interior

Boston National Historical Park

Roxbury and the American Revolution:Fostering relationships to expand park’s partners

After cannons were placed by colonial troops on Dorchester Heights, just south of Boston, British GeneralWilliam Howe decided to evacuate Boston on March 17, 1776 with 6,000 soldiers and 1,000 loyalists. Theevacuation, stemming from an eleven month siege by the colonial militia, became General GeorgeWashington’s first military victory in the American Revolution. The nearby town of Roxbury played animportant part in this victory due to its strategic location to Dorchester Heights.

230 years later the National Park Service (NPS) Northeast Region awarded Boston National HistoricalPark (NHP) $4,500 for a civic engagement proposal to explore the role of Roxbury and Washington’s firstvictory. In this proposal Boston NHP will establish a relationship with Discover Roxbury, a non-profitorganization, offering programs on the history and culture of one of Boston’s most diverse communities.By first establishing a sustainable and dynamic relationship with Discover Roxbury and the affiliatedhistoric sites, Boston NHP hopes to foster stewardship beyond the park’s boundaries and expand thepark’s story of Boston and the American Revolution.

Together, Boston NHP and Discover Roxbury staff will collaborate to develop education and publicprograms to tell Roxbury’s story in the American Revolution.

Comments from Boston Public School Students attendingthe Roxbury in the Revolution program, spring 2006.

“Listening to this history made merealize that I live in a great placebecause history is right in my backyard.”

“I found it a little shocking to know that our own troops were hereand used to live in the neighborhood where I live now.”

“Another thing that sticks out in my mind is the two hundredAfrican American soldiers from Massachusetts that served inthe Revolutionary War. That surprised me because I did notknow that they allowed black soldiers in the army.”

Photo Credit: Discovery Roxbury

Discover Roxbury “We are eager to learn about the earlier history of our local community. Our vision is to develop our studentsinto spokespeople for their community’s early history and to create opportunities for the children to share thathistory with their families and even the public. Uncovering the roots of Roxbury’s history is an essential piece oflearning for our students who, more than any other population, deserve to know their community’s importantrole in our country’s history.”

Ilene Carver, Third Grade Teacher, Orchard Gardens Pilot School, Roxbury

Historical Background

Community Involvement

After the beginning of the American Revolution atLexington and Concord, Massachusetts on April 19,1775, colonial troops from New England laid siegeto British-occupied Boston. In Philadelphia, colonialdelegates who had created the first nationalgovernment of these united colonies appointed amilitary leader, George Washington. He arrived inCambridge, July 2, 1775, two weeks after the Battleof Bunker Hill.

His daunting task was to drive the British regularsfrom Boston and create a unified army from adisparate group of local militia. More than a quarterof these troops, including African Americans andNative Americans were encamped in Roxbury, eyeto eye with British regulars on Boston Neck.

Our key planning meeting took the form of a brain storming session in December, 2005. This gatheringbrought together Roxbury community leaders, teachers, college professors, historic site staff, DiscoverRoxbury volunteers and board members and NPS staff to view the sites and reach a consensus on howbest to proceed.

This group identified specific goals for 2006. The group suggested that research was needed to provide amore inclusive story for future programs. The group also explored the idea to collaborate with SouthBoston Citizen’s Association for the March 2006 Evacuation Day event commemorating the fortification ofDorchester Heights. Most importantly, the gathering served to initiate the development of the piloteducation programs by May 2006.

E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R A M E R I C A

Washington accomplishedthese tasks in less than a year.He assigned the command ofthese colonial troops to alocal man, General JohnThomas. On March 4, 1776General John Thomas and hismen fortified DorchesterHeights.

This prompted the evacuation of British forces andloyalists on March 17, 1776. This evacuationbecame General Washington’s first victory in theAmerican Revolution.

Left to right: Dec. ‘05Brain StormingSession; Rep. ByronRushing conductingtour

Photo credit:Boston NHP

Washington at Dorchester HeightsOriginal Artist: Gilbert Stuart

Research

DevelopingEducation Program

A central goal of the Discover Roxbury educationprogram is interpreting the role of AfricanAmericans and Native Americans in the Siege ofBoston, specifically their involvement at theRoxbury camp. Boston NHP’s study, Patriots ofColor, illustrated these contributions at Lexingtonand Concord and the Battle of Bunker Hill. Moreresearch was needed to expand the scope of thecontributions of people of color.

Eleven Harvard Extension students from Dr. BobAllison’s History of Boston class volunteered for theassignment. With the expertise of Suffolk Universityarchivist Beth Bower, they uncovered a wealth ofinformation at the Massachusetts Historical Society,The Boston Public Library, The New EnglandGenealogical Society and the Massachusetts StateArchives.

Boston NHP staff and Discover Roxbury developedthe Roxbury in the Revolution program, aninteractive walking tour for students of all ages.They also trained twelve Roxbury residents whowere hired as docents to present the new program.Over 450 young people and adults from Boston andsuburban schools, summer camps, and collegesparticipated in Roxbury in the Revolution.

Harvard Extension student, Lauretta Woods, researchingprimary sources at the Massachusetts Historical SocietyPhoto credit: Harvard University Gazette, April 6, 2006

Park Rangers with Discovery Roxbury Docentsat Dorchester Heights Photo credit: Discover Roxbury

“Two Hills, Two Generals”Evacuation Day Event

The South Boston Citizen’s Association (SBCA)annually plans the Evacuation Day event with thepark staff commemorating March 17, 1776 andDorchester Heights Monument. SBCA collaborateswith park staff to preserve Dorchester HeightsMonument and to educate the local communityabout the national significance of this site.

Recognizing the opportunity to expand the event,SBCA President Mike Bare contacted and met withRoxbury historic site representatives and BostonNHP staff. Together they created an event whichtold the story of the fortification of DorchesterHeights and its connection with the Roxburyhistoric sites. Mt. Washington Bank and the MBTAEmployee’s Credit Union provided the majority offinancial support for this event.

Top to bottom: Dillaway ThomasHouse; First Church in Roxbury,

First Graders at theDillaway Thomas House;

Students at Fort Hill.Photo credit: Discover Roxbury

Top to bottom: Dorchester HeightsMonument; Crowd attending the event;

Ft. Toconderoga Fife and Drum Corp;Contest Winner Winston Yu and SBCA

President Mike Bare at First Church inRoxbury; Shirley Eustis House.

Photo credit: Boston NHP

“Historically connecting the dots from Fort Hill inRoxbury to Dorchester Heights in South Boston,highlighting an ‘inner city Freedom Trail,’ is, and Ihope will continue to be, a great way of helping kids ofall ages from Roxbury, Dorchester and South Bostonexperience and breathe in a sense of pride in theirrespective neighborhoods. After all, these are the placesat which America’s Freedom began. The ‘Two Hills,Two Generals’ Project was a collaborative success,initiated by the (Boston) NHP, which retied the knotthat bound these communities historically andsocially. My intent was historical commemoration, thehealing of old wounds and building of newrelationships are by-products, though extremelywelcome ones.”

Mike Bare, SBCA President

DevelopingEducation Program

A core group of five teachers from Boston andWellesley schools will contribute to the furtherdevelopment of the program.

Stops on the tour include the Dillaway ThomasHouse, headquarters for General John Thomas,commander of the Roxbury troops; the FirstChurch in Roxbury, (both the green where thepatriots troops camped, and the interior) and thesite of Fort Hill, strategically placed to guard theland route out of Boston and still a dramatic andscenic vista.

Crossing the street from the Dillaway ThomasHouse to First Church, docents always point outDorchester Heights Monument which can be seenin the distance, making the historical connectionbetween Roxbury and Dorchester Heights, nowSouth Boston.

E X P E R I E N C E Y O U R A M E R I C A

The Future of theCivic EngagementProject

Boston NationalHistorical Parkwishes to thank:

Boston NHP is still in the embryonic stages of developing a relationship with the Roxbury community.Collaborating with Discover Roxbury and the Roxbury historic sites opens the door for the park toconnect with residents who live in its backyard. This civic engagement project offers many opportunitiesfor the park staff to develop a relationship with neighbors and uncover the history that binds us all.

As a result of the first year’s collaboration NPS Northeast Region awarded the park a second, larger grantto continue the research aspect of the program and to incorporate this research into the educationprograms and future public programs. It is hoped that uncovering the untold stories of Roxbury willincrease the public’s awareness and understanding of local history. We trust that this awareness andunderstanding will lead to increased joint stewardship of the Roxbury historic sites and Boston NHP’sresources.

Mayor Thomas Menino and City of BostonRepresentative Byron RushingDiscover Roxbury Director Marcia ButmanRoxbury Historical SocietyRoxbury Heritage State ParkShirley Eustis HouseFirst Church in RoxburyMike Bare, President and the South BostonCitizen’s AssociationDudley Square Main StreetsDudley Street Neighborhood InitiativeSuffolk UniversityEastern NationalMBTA Employee Credit UnionMt. Washington BankBostonian SocietyOld South Meeting House

For more information on Roxbury historic sites andBoston NHP visit www.discoverroxbury.org andwww.nps.gov/bost/.

Special thanks to the following people whocontributed to this article:Marcia Butman, Mike Bare, Dr. Robert Allison,Bill Foley, Julia Mize, Kim Hebert, Emily Prigot andSheila Cooke-Kayser

In a March 12, 2006 article, Boston Globe reporter Michael Kenney interviewed Michael Bare and CarlosHenriquez, vice president of the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative’s board of directors, about theupcoming Evacuation Day event. Mr. Kenney described these gentlemen :

“as leaders in their respective communities who have come together to plan this collaborative event. Both mensaw the reenactment as bringing together two communities that have viewed each other with suspicion, if notoutright hostility, in more recent decades.”

‘I’m very cognizant that the image of bringing the two communities together is in the background of this,’ saidBare.‘We share a lot of history,’ said Henriquez.‘This is a good way to bridge two neighborhoods which havealways been next to each other, but not always with each other.’

Boston Globe, March 12, 2006Article by Mr. Michael Kenney

Due to the perseverance and energy of SBCA President Michael Bare, the event was successful in creatingpossibilities for future collaborative events. Over 200 local residents from Roxbury and South Bostonparticipated in the activities throughout the day.

During the event, Boston’s Mayor Thomas M. Menino, Congressman Michael Capuano, Suffolk CountySheriff Andrea Cabral, and Carlos Henriquez joined representatives from the Roxbury historic sites,Roxbury Historical Society, Dorchester Historical Society, Fort Ticonderoga Museum, Henry Knox Lodgeand Prince Hall Grand Lodge and many other organizations.

Mayor Menino also introduced Boston Latin School 10th grader Winston Yu, who won the essay writingcontest. Winston won a two week summer internship at Fort Ticonderoga Museum.

“Two Hills, Two Generals”Evacuation Day Event,“Continued”

“The National Park Service acted as a catalyst, bringing together an eclectic group ofcommunity leaders, students, academic historians, and many ordinary citizens whohave been inspired to research and to present to the broader public the story of Bostonand Roxbury in the American Revolution.”

Dr. Robert Allison, Chair, History Department,Suffolk University

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WHEN ONE THINKS of providinghandicap accessibility to a historicstructure, wheelchairs are whatimmediately come to mind. Barrier-free access, to use the proper termi-nology, for a building can involveanything from eliminating a singlestep up to a doorway by regradingto the construction of extensivesystems of ramps and wheelchairlifts. Inside, ramping and elevatorsare the primary means of providingaccess to levels other than that ofthe entry point. The guidelinesestablished under the Americans With Dis-abilities Act (ADA) encourage “mainstream-ing” of accessible entrances to avoid havingwheelchair users feel like second-class indi-viduals shunted off to some back entrance.1

Retrofitting of historic structures re-quires a careful balancing act between pro-viding access and destroying the character-defining features of the building in the pro-cess. Architects have become extremelycreative in balancing these needs.

The problems of providing accessibilityare even greater when one looks at historicships. Not only were ships intended for theable-bodied, but they have to move with thetide as they sit at piers. Ships are also lessable to be physically modified for wheelchairmovement once a wheelchair user is aboard.The six-inch distance between a hatchwayand the deck is part of the historic characterof the ship’s structure, and thus cannot besimply cut away (most hatchways are alsotoo narrow for wheelchairs).

All of these factors came into play whenBoston National Historical Park began toplan for providing accessibility to USS CassinYoung (DD-793), berthed at Pier 1 East of theCharlestown Navy Yard. The Fletcher-classdestroyer had a distinguished World War IIrecord; that record was recognized by herdesignation as a National Historic Landmark(NHL) by the Secretary of the Interior in 1986.More important to the interpretive programof the Navy Yard, the ship’s current physicalconfiguration is the product of modificationwork undertaken by the Boston Naval Ship-

Accessibility for USS Cassin Young (DD-793): More Than Ramps and Lifts

yard in the 1950s. The National Park Service(NPS) has recently completed an historicfurnishings report which calls for the furnish-ing of the ship as she was at the time of thecompletion of her last major overhaul in 1958.

Boston Harbor has a ten-foot tidal range.To access the ship, visitors first climb stepsto a five-foot high pier platform and thentraverse a brow which can be at extremeangles at high or low tide. For this reason, thebrow surface has cleats to provide traction.Almost as soon as they step onto the deck,visitors encounter a large winch. Undernormal operation, the main deck, includingthe interior of the forward deckhouses, isopen for self-guided tours. Visitors can ac-cess areas above and below the main deckonly on guided tours which are offered on ascheduled basis during the peak season.

To solve the problem of getting wheel-chair users on board the vessel, the parkconsulted with the City of Boston’s Commis-sion for Persons with Disabilities. The Cityof Boston is a growing cruise ship port, andthus has considerable experience in provid-ing wheelchair access to ships. Those con-sultations led to a recommendation that ratherthan installing an extensive ramping system,the park should acquire a manual portablewheelchair lift and replace the current browwith one having a smooth surface. Everyonerecognized that accessibility could not beprovided at either tidal extreme.

Following up on these recommenda-tions, the park submitted a funding requestfor the project to the NPS regional office.Once the park was notified that the projecthad been funded, it began the procurementprocess. First, it purchased a new aluminum

pier stand and smooth-surfacedbrow. Then, it acquired a manualwheelchair lift. Once these werereceived, it became evident thatthe smooth surface of the acces-sible brow would present severeproblems to visitors walking on itat extreme tides and under wetconditions. Thus, the park choseto retain the existing wooden plat-form and aluminum cleated browat the quarterdeck and locate thenew platform, lift, and brow at thefantail. Because the five-foot rise

is the maximum for the lift and there is no needfor it to be constantly moved, the park hastaken additional measures to stabilize andsecure the lift.

Most accessibility projects would havebeen considered complete at this point.However, getting wheelchair users on boardis only a part of the solution. Short of majorphysical modifications which would destroythe historic integrity of the ship, wheelchairvisitors are still limited to the exterior of themain deck aft of the forward breakwater bulk-head. In addition, visitors who are not inwheelchairs but have other mobility issues(many visitors are in the senior citizen cat-egory) find it difficult to negotiate the steepladders required to participate in guided toursabove and below the main deck.

Thus, the park decided to undertakewhat is known under ADA as programmatic

1 As federal property managed by a federalagency, USS Cassin Young is technically subject tothe Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS)issued under the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968rather than the regulations issued under the Ameri-cans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The two sets ofguidelines, while not identical, are very similar incontent.

Protected by a black plastic cover, the wheelchairlift sits next to the new aluminum brow at the fantailof USS Cassin Young. This view was taken at lowtide, which creates an angle that is too steep toallow wheelchair access.

As Park Safety Officer Art Norris looks on, ParkRanger Emily Prigot pushes a wheelchair withUSS Cassin Young maintenance worker EdCoughlin playing the passenger onto the lift duringstaff training on June 29, 2006.

(Continued on page 6)

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Accessibility for USS Cassin Young (DD-793): More Than Ramps and Lifts

(Continued from page 6)

accessibility. This involves providing per-sons with disabilities with alternative meansof experiencing the resource. In this in-stance, the chosen approach was to producevideo tours of the ship. These tours wouldbe available on a portable player at piersideand also at the Navy Yard’s visitor center. Inaddition to serving the mobility impaired,they could also provide an interpretive expe-rience for visitors coming on days when theship was closed due to weather conditions orstaff shortages.

The simplest way of providing suchtours would be a “cinema verité” video re-cording of the normal tour route. While thisapproach would meet the technical require-ments of accessibility, it would provide littlein the way of interpretation. Thus, the parkdecided to hire a professional documentaryfilm production firm to produce the tour vid-eos. Based on the general expectations as tolength, the park requested proposals fromaudio-visual production firms on contract tothe NPS Harpers Ferry Center, which is itscentral exhibit and audio-visual productionoffice. The successful bidder was SignatureCommunications, a firm based in Hunting-town, Maryland.

Once Signature was on board, the parkconvened an on-site meeting involving boththe contractor and the park staff. The resultsof this meeting were not only preliminarydecisions as to what spaces each tour wouldencompass but also a decision that the pri-mary interpretive theme of the programs wouldbe teamwork. One of the key additions to thevideo involved inclusion of the fire room andengine room, spaces which are not normallyaccessible to any visitor. Based on materialswhich the park supplied, including the text ofexisting interpretive labels on main deck com-

partments, histories of the ship, and videosof ranger-led tours, the contractor producedinitial drafts of scripts for each tour.

In the process of reviewing the scripts,it became apparent that they were somewhatdry in their approach. Thus, the park recom-mended that quotations from the extensiveoral history program undertaken by the parkshortly after it first acquired Cassin Young in1978 be incorporated. To that end, the con-tractor expanded a proposed two-day filmingschedule to three days to allow time to revieworal history transcripts.

The first rough cuts of the video prod-ucts, with temporary narration, revealedomissions which needed to be addressed.For example, the main deck tour included theemergency radio room and captain’s in-portcabin; radio central and the captain’s seacabin, both on the above decks tour, had notbeen included. The rough cuts also demon-strated that the videos were too sterile, lack-ing a human component. Thus, the parkarranged for a two-day additional visit by thecontractor. The first day provided the con-tractor the opportunity to review the park’sarchive of ship photographs and cruise books

with a view to obtaining historical images toinclude in the videos. The second day wasset aside for additional on-board filming.This included the additional spaces not ad-dressed during the original visit as well asretakes of sequences in other spaces to cor-rect problems (such as a missing chair backin the wardroom) seen in the rough cut.

Throughout the process, the park con-tinued to refine the script. Once that processwas completed, the contractor recorded thefinal narration using professional narrators.This final narration was included in the sec-ond cut reviewed by the park. Everyoneagreed that the inclusion of historic imagesprovided the human element missing in thestraight contemporary footage, and most ofthe comments involved the introduction ofadditional historic imagery.

The last step in the production ad-dressed another portion of the disabled com-munity. Both videos were closed captionedso that persons with hearing difficulties couldread the narration.

The final tour videos are on DVD, withmenus which allow viewers to either play anentire program or simply view the individualchapter covering the space they are inter-ested in seeing. Each program runs approxi-mately twenty minutes. Because the DVDallows for considerably more material, thepark has placed a documentary which it hadproduced internally in 1990 on the WorldWar II kamikaze attacks on the ship on theDVD. This, too, has been closed captioned,something it had not been in its originalvideotape version.

By going beyond what people normallythink of when they hear “handicapped acces-sibility”—wheelchair access—Boston Na-tional Historical Park has made USS CassinYoung accessible to a much wider group ofindividuals. Indeed, the video aspect of theproject goes beyond simply showing peopleunable to board the ship or climb the ladderswhat they are missing. It provides an oppor-tunity to bring the ship to a wider audience ina way that helps them understand not onlywhat they are seeing in terms of a physicalresource but also what it was like for sailorsserving on a “tin can” during both WorldWar II and the Cold War.

—STEPHEN P. CARLSON

Editor's Note: This article originally appeared inthe June-July-August 2006 issue of Anchor Watch,the quarterly journal of the Historic Naval ShipsAssociation.

Boston Children’s Theatre performed Saluteto the Sea, a medley of nautical songs andpoems, in front of USS Cassin Young on July27. These very talented actors also performedJohn Brown’s Body based on Stephen VincentBénét’s poem about the Civil War inside FaneuilHall on August. 14. This summer marks the55th year of Boston Children’s Theatre’s sum-mer touring program in parks, camps, com-munity centers, and theaters throughout theGreater Boston Area. Eastern National gen-erously funded the performances for BostonNHP visitors.

Salute to the Sea

7

BNHP News Notes• Our condolences to Sheila Cooke-Kayser

and Bill Casey on recent losses in theirfamilies.

• Long-time Maintenance employee and shuttledriver John Goggin retired in June.

• Changes in the Protection Division have in-cluded the transfers of Park Rangers DaveBallam and Jamie Potratz to Prince WilliamForest Park and New River Gorge NationalRiver, respectively, and the arrival of LaurenSchorr, Dave Lamere, Greg Morse, andPeter Reitchel.

• Josue DelValle has joined the Maintenancestaff; he formerly worked for the Navy Yardsecurity guard contractor.

• Phinazee Brown returned to the park as aPipefitter in September.

• Bob Stackowski of the Contracting Officetransferred to a position at the NortheastRegional Office in Boston in September.

• USS Cassin Young lost a dedicated volunteerin Nick Colella when he moved from theBoston area in June.

• Park Ranger Dan Gagnon was on detail toSalem Maritime NHS from September 7 to 28.

• Education Specialist Sheila Cooke-Kayserand Discover Roxbury Executive DirectorMarica Butman presented a paper on theDiscover Roxbury Civic Engagement projectat the American Association for State andLocal History conference on Presidential Sitesand Libraries at Hyde Park, N.Y., on June 22.

• The National Moment of Remembrance onMay 29 saw Moments of Silence on USSCassin Young and at the Visitor Center. OnUSS Cassin Young “Taps” was played alongwith a reading of the names of those killed onthe ship during World War II.

Gene Gabriel Retires

Boston NHP Facilities Manager Gene Gabriel,seen here with Superintendent Terry Savage, re-tired on November 3, 2006, after more than thirtyyears of service with the National Park Service.Gene, who came to Boston in 2002 after manyyears in the same position at Adams NationalHistorical Park in Quincy, was honored by col-leagues from both parks at a November 2 recep-tion in the Commandant's House.

HMS Chatham (F-87) Visits Charlestown Navy YardTHE ROYAL NAVY FRIGATE HMS Cha-tham (F-87) visited the Charlestown NavyYard in early November 2006. She is the latestvessel to participate in Boston National His-torical Park's Visiting Ships Program, inaugu-rated in July 1976 by HMY Britannia.

HMS Chatham, a Batch 3 Frigate, wasbuilt on the Tyne by Swan Hunters Ship-builders Ltd. Chatham and her sister shipsfulfil a variety of roles including anti-surfacewarfare, anti-submarine warfare, intelligencegathering, and boarding operations.

The Boston port visit occurred duringthe return leg of a six-month deployment tothe South Atlantic during which Chathamreached the milestone of having steamed ahalf million miles since commissioning in1990.

—STEPHEN P. CARLSON

HMS Chatham (F-87) is seen at Pier 1 West at the Charlestown Navy Yard on November 3, 2006. Notethe ship's Lynx helicopter on her flight deck. In the foreground can be seen the floating barrier installedacross the Fitchburg Slip between Pier 1 and Hoosac Pier in mid-October as part of the upgrade ofsecurity measures for USS Constitution.

CHARLESTOWN NAVY YARD MaritimeDay on July 27 was a success despite the hightemperatures! The events featured perfor-mances of Salute to the Sea by the BostonChildren's Theater and Gary Foreman of theUSS Constitution Museum doing BuildingTeamwork Through Song. The day alsofeatured special programs by staff includinga talk on Rosie the Riveter, a Navy YardScavenger Hunt,and a Paper Chain Forgeactivity. Special recognition goes to EmilyPrigot, Dan Gagnon, and Sheila Cooke-Kayserfor their work in putting it together.

—SHEILA COOKE-KAYSER

Charlestown Navy Yard Maritime Day Successful

Rosie the Riveter (Park Ranger Emily Prigot,second from right) poses with participants in thePaper Chain Forge activity held during MaritimeDay at the Charlestown Navy Yard.

• The May visit of The CAT, Canada’s high-speed car ferry, sponsored by Nova Scotia/Prince Edward Island Tourism Promotion,drew nearly 15,000 people to the CharlestownNavy Yard.

• Boston African American NHS’s program AnAbolitionist Independence Day on June 24,2006, with Merrill Kohlfoer and GuyPeartree portraying Frederick Douglass andHenry David Thoreau was very successfuland very well attended.

• The Museum of African American Historysponsored a program at the African MeetingHouse on July 19, 2006, to celebrate therelease of the book Slavery and Public His-tory: The Tough Stuff of American Memory byDrs. James and Lois Horton.

• Following the return of the Northeast Mu-seum Services Center staff to the MarineBarracks in June, the Olmsted Center forLandscape Preservation moved into QuartersC in the Navy Yard in July.

8

UNITED STATESDEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

NATIONAL PARK SERVICEBOSTON NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK

CHARLESTOWN NAVY YARDBOSTON, MA 02129-4543

OFFICIAL BUSINESS

THE BROADSIDE, the information bulletin ofthe Boston National Historical Park, is producedquarterly by Boston National Historical Park,Charlestown Navy Yard, Boston, MA 02129-4543. Contributions are welcomed from allemployees of the park and its cooperators.Except as otherwise credited, all photographsare by NPS staff or from park archives.

Public Affairs Officer – Sean HennesseyManaging Editor – Stephen CarlsonEditor – Dianne Donnelly

Boston National Historical ParkNational Park ServiceU.S. Department of the Interior

THE BROADSIDENUMBER 2, 2006

Did you know ...?That the African Meeting House on

Boston's Beacon Hill will be celebrating itsbicentennial in December 2006.

Park Sites & PartnersBoston Marine Society

Building 32, Charlestown Navy Yardwww.bostonmarinesociety.org

617-242-0522

Bunker Hill MonumentMonument Sq., Charlestown

www.nps.gov/bost/Bunker_Hill.htm617-242-5641

Charlestown Navy Yard Visitor Center55 Constitution Rd., Charlestown

www.nps.gov/bost/Navy_Yard.htm617-242-5601

Dorchester HeightsThomas Park, South Boston

www.nps.gov/bost/Dorchester_Heights.htm

617-242-5642

Downtown Visitor Center15 State St., Bostonwww.nps.gov/bost

617-242-5642617-242-5689 (TDD)

Faneuil HallFaneuil Hall Sq., Boston

www.nps.gov/bost/Faneuil_Hall.htm617-242-5675

Old North Church(Christ Church in the City of Boston)

193 Salem St., Bostonwww.oldnorth.org

617-523-6676

Old South Meeting House(Old South Association)

310 Washington St., Bostonwww.oldsouthmeetinghouse.org

617-482-6439

Old State House(Managed by The Bostonian Society)

206 Washington St., Bostonwww.bostonhistory.org

617-720-3292

Paul Revere House(Paul Revere Memorial Association)

19 North Sq., Bostonwww.paulreverehouse.org

617-523-2338

USS Constitution(U.S. Navy)

Pier 1, Charlestown Navy Yardwww.ussconstitution.navy.mil

617-242-7511

USS Constitution Museum(USS Constitution Museum Foundation)

Building 22, Charlestown Navy Yardwww.ussconstitutionmuseum.org

617-426-1812

Civic Engagement: A Special Supplement

THIS ISSUE of THE BROADSIDE highlightstwo of the many Civic Engagement projectsthat the National Park Service has beeninvolved with over the past year.

The first project is the Boston appear-ance of the travelling exhibit GULAG: SovietForced Labor Camps and the Struggle forFreedom. Boston National Historical ParkChief of Cultural Resources/Historian MartyBlatt and his predecessor, Louis Hutchins,now with the Northeast Museum ServicesCenter, were the principal organizers of thisinternational project.

Closer to home, the park has been in-volved in a Civic Engagement project withDiscover Roxbury. Roxbury and the Ameri-

can Revolution, the subject of a special four-page insert in this issue, involves workingwith a variety of groups to develop a tour andeducation program on Roxbury's role duringthe 1775-1776 Siege of Boston.

"Collaborating with a community to tellthis important story is vital to the mission ofBoston National Historical Park," said Super-intendent Terry Savage. "Civic Engagementprojects revive community interest in localhistory, particularly the nearly forgotten storyof the role of local African-Americans, andgive young people in the community a clearand powerful voice in reclaiming their his-tory," he added.

—STEPHEN P. CARLSON