Bill to expand Shiloh National Military Park introduced again

U.S. Senators Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) on Wednesday introduced legislation to expand Shiloh National Military Park, which they said will help attract more visitors to Tennessee, boost local economies, and protect the site for future generations.

A reenactor portraying an injured Confederate soldier is helped off the field at a 2017 reenactment held near Shiloh National Military Park.

“Learning from the past helps us become better Americans in the future, and preserving and protecting these sites will allow future generations to learn their history by walking these fields,” Alexander said. “Expanding the park will also provide an opportunity to attract more visitors to Tennessee and boost local economies.”

“Expanding Shiloh National Military Park and giving these sites the resources needed for their upkeep is a crucial part of maintaining Tennessee’s military history,” Blackburn said. “I look forward to seeing our National Park System grow in Tennessee.”

The Shiloh National Military Park Boundary Adjustment and Parker’s Crossroads Battlefield Designation Act would designate battlefields at Davis Bridge and Fallen Timbers in Tennessee, and Russell House in Tennessee and Mississippi, as part of Shiloh National Military Park.

The legislation also designates Parker’s Crossroads as an affiliated area of the National Park System. The National Park Service has already determined that these battlefields are nationally significant and in need of preservation and protection. The majority of the land included in this legislation is currently owned by the State of Tennessee and the Civil War Trust.

Alexander and Blackburn also introduced the Shiloh National Military Park Boundary Adjustment and Parker’s Crossroads Battlefield Designation Act last Congress.