To direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study to evaluate the significance of the Mill Springs Battlefield located in Pulaski and Wayne Counties, Kentucky, and the feasibility of its inclusion in the National Park System, and for other purposes.

I thank the chairman for yielding me this time.

Madam Speaker, in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, we have dozens of historic sites and landmarks that demonstrate our Nation's proud history to thousands of visitors every year. I am pleased that one of these sites is the Mill Springs Battlefield, which sits in my home county of Pulaski and my birth home county of Wayne, Kentucky. The bill we have before us would give the National Park Service 3 years to complete a study on including this historic battlefield into the National Park System.

The Battle of Mill Springs is a source of great pride and interest to my constituents especially. In late 1861, Confederate forces had advanced into Kentucky on its southern border, and on January 19, 1862, they launched an attack on the Union Army camp that was stationed at Logan's Crossroads, later to be called Mill Springs. After a heavy night of marching, the Confederate troops attacked but were driven back, with their commander, Brigadier General Felix Zollicoffer, being killed in the fighting. In the confusion, the Union troops received reinforcements and were able to repel another Confederate attack, this time driving them back into Tennessee.

Although this battle did not generate the number of casualties seen at such battles as Antietam or Gettysburg, it was a critically important battle and one of the first major Union victories in the Civil War. As a border State in the conflict between the North and South, Kentucky sat at a dangerous and strategically critical crossroads, with both sides vying for control of its territory. In fact, President Lincoln has been quoted as saying, ``I hope to have God on my side, but I must have Kentucky.'' Victory in the Battle of Mill Springs held off the Confederate advance into Kentucky and laid the groundwork for later Union successes at Fort Donelson, in now Nashville, Tennessee, in February 1862, and at Shiloh, in April, under General Ulysses S. Grant.

Despite the importance of this battle, like many battlefields throughout the country, the site of the Battle of Mill Springs became threatened over the years by disrepair and development. In the early 1990s, the U.S. Department of the Interior classified the site of the Battle of Mill Springs as one of the most endangered battlefields in Kentucky. It might have slipped into the pages of history with no living monument to it had it not been for a group of concerned citizens in the community who came together in 1992 out of concern that the site would be lost forever.

Today, thanks to the Mill Springs Battlefield Association, along with determination from State and local officials and the Civil War Trust and the National Parks Conservation Association, hundreds of acres of battlefield land have been diligently preserved. Through a partnership of public and private funds, the association has constructed a fantastic 10,000-square-foot Mill Springs Battlefield Visitor Center and Museum, established interpretive signage, and led driving and walking tours of the battle. Above all, they have created a vibrant tourist attraction which hosts thousands of visitors and students each year, preserving the memory of this historic battle for generations to come. Periodically, Madam Speaker, there is a reenactment of the Battle of Mill Springs with thousands of participants from all across the country.

After years of work preserving this precious historic site, the Mill Springs Battlefield Association has expressed its desire to turn the site over to the National Park Service and the people of the United States so that the joy of learning and history will be enjoyed by many more people through the years. This bill, H.R. 298, will start this process by evaluating the feasibility of adopting this important site into the Park Service. I am proud to associate myself with this effort and to have this battlefield and generous group of citizens in my district.

Madam Speaker, our Nation has been truly blessed. We have a remarkable array of natural beauty which people from all over this country and the world flock to see. Additionally, we have a great number of historical sites which have been dutifully and faithfully preserved so that new generations can appreciate what this country has been through and what their forefathers cared for. The Mill Springs Battlefield is a jewel of this group and will be an excellent addition to the National Park Service.

I am proud of the work that they have done, and I look forward to many years of this site being an inspiring and educational attraction for our Nation. So I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill, and I thank the gentleman for yielding the time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman, and I would like to thank the gentleman from my home State, Mr. Rogers, for his advocacy of this important issue, and I appreciate Mr. Young yielding me some time to talk about this legislation that I am proud to cosponsor, which would study the feasibility of including the historic Mill Springs Battlefield within the National Park System.

Perhaps nowhere more than the Commonwealth of Kentucky does the maxim that the Civil War ``pit brother against brother'' ring truer. While it never seceded, a slaveholding Kentucky had rival Union and Confederate governments and was represented by the central star of the Stars and Bars. It is no exaggeration to say that Kentucky families and communities were often split along blue and gray lines.

A border State at the nexus of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, Kentucky was of vital strategic importance to both the Union and Confederate causes. As Chairman Rogers pointed out, President Abraham Lincoln noted, ``I hope to have God on my side, but I must have Kentucky.'' The loss of the Commonwealth would have been a significant blow to the cause of keeping the Union intact.

Both sides recognized this, and so in the first 2 years of the war, some of the bloodiest fighting occurred in the Commonwealth. Major hostilities in the Bluegrass State were bookended by the Union victories at Mill Springs in January 1862, which largely ended the Confederacy's eastern Kentucky offensive, and the Battle of Perryville in October of that year, which ended the Confederacy's hope of victory in the Kentucky Campaign.

The Battle of Mill Springs is notable not only as the first major battle and Union victory in Kentucky, but also the first battle of the Western Theater in which a Confederate general--Brigadier General Felix Kirk Zollicoffer--would be killed in action.

Inclement weather the night before the battle had slowed the Confederate infiltration of the area costing them the benefit of a surprise attack. Despite early success by Confederate troops, a Union rally in the fog and gun smoke that clouded the dense woods sowed confusion and disarray among the rebels.

I thank the gentleman.

As the Confederate lines fell back, Brigadier General Zollicoffer was separated and mistakenly approached the 4th Kentucky Infantry and, believing them to be his own troops, was cut down.

The result of the battle of Mill Springs was a hasty retreat by Confederate forces across the Cumberland River back into Tennessee. In hindsight, it was the last opportunity for the Confederacy to gain a foothold in eastern Kentucky. For the Union Army, which had been humiliated at the Battle of First Manassas in the summer of 1861, the battle was its first major victory of the war and a needed boost to morale.

In 1991, the National Park System placed Mill Springs Battlefield on its list of the Most Endangered Battlefields. Today, thanks to the coordinated efforts of the Mill Springs Battlefield Association and several other public and private organizations, the battlefield has been largely restored and now offers walking and driving tours, as well as a 10,000-square-foot visitor center and museum.

H.R. 298 is an important step to recognize and build upon the good work of these organizations and passionate Civil War history enthusiasts from eastern Kentucky and throughout the country. While the feasibility study would only be a first step in the process, inclusion in the National Park System would help ensure that the story of Mill Springs and the battlefield itself are preserved and maintained for future generations and that the memories and sacrifices of the fallen are never forgotten.

Again, I commend Chairman Rogers on his efforts to preserve this piece of American and Kentucky history, and I am a proud cosponsor of

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 298) to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study to evaluate the significance of the Mill Springs Battlefield located in Pulaski and Wayne Counties, Kentucky, and the feasibility of its inclusion in the National Park System, and for other purposes.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

At this time, I yield whatever time he may consume to the gentleman from Kentucky, Mr. Hal Rogers.

At this time, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Barr).

I yield the gentleman an additional 2 minutes.

I have no requests for further speakers, so I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I would congratulate the gentleman from Kentucky on his eloquent description of Mill Springs and its significance in our history in the Civil War. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1993, but the gentleman

makes an eloquent case that it should be upgraded from a National Historic Landmark to look at as a part of the National Park System.

This bill would allow the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study in anticipation of making this a part of the National Park System. And I want to congratulate the gentleman on his advocacy and thank him for his dedication to protecting and promoting this resource.

With that, I yield back the balance of my time.