SRES 532 IS
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 532
Recommending that the Langston Golf Course, located in northeast Washington, DC, and owned by the National Park Service, be recognized for its important legacy and contributions to African-American golf history, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 24, 2008
Mr. FEINGOLD submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
RESOLUTION
Recommending that the Langston Golf Course, located in northeast Washington, DC, and owned by the National Park Service, be recognized for its important legacy and contributions to African-American golf history, and for other purposes.
Whereas the Langston Golf Course was designated for construction by the Department of the Interior in the 1930s as a safe and expanded recreational facility for the local and national African-American communities;
Whereas Langston Golf Course was named for John Mercer Langston, the first African-American Representative elected to Congress from the State of Virginia, and who also was a founder of the Howard University Law School;
Whereas the Langston Golf Course is believed to be the first regulation course in the United States to be built almost entirely on a refuse landfill;
Whereas Langston Golf Course has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the Capitol City Open golf tournament has made Langston Golf Course its home for the past 40 years;
Whereas the first American-born golf professional of African-American ancestry was John Shippen, who was born circa 1878 in the Anacostia area of Washington, placed 5th in the second United States Open golf tournament in 1896 at 16 years old, and helped found the Capitol City Golf Club in 1925;
Whereas the Capitol City Golf Club, eventually renamed the Royal Golf Club and Wake Robin Women's Club, has historically promoted a safe golf facility for African-Americans in Washington, especially during an era when few facilities were available, and these 2 clubs remain the oldest African-American golf clubs in the United States;
Whereas the Langston facility continues to provide important recreational outlets, instructional forums, and a `safe haven center' for the enhancement of the lives of the city of Washington's inner city youth;
Whereas the Langston Golf Course and related recreational facilities provide a home for the Nation's important minority youth `First Tee' golf instruction and recreational program in Washington;
Whereas Langston Golf Course's operations and its related facilities seek to increase course-based educational opportunities under the auspices of the National Park Service for persons under 18 years of age, particularly those from populations of the inner-city and historically underrepresented among visitors to units of the National Park System;
Whereas the preservation and ecologically balanced enhancements via future public and private funding for the lands making up the 212 acres of the Langston Golf Course will contribute a positive benefit to the National Park System's Environmental Leadership projects program, the Anacostia River Watershed, the city of Washington, and the entire metropolitan area;
Whereas Federal funds for enhancements to the Langston course have perennially been promised but rarely provided, even after the designation of Langston Golf Course as a `Legacy Project for the 21st Century', and after significant private funding and contributions were committed and provided; and
Whereas the Langston Golf Course and related recreational facilities have traditionally provided additional quality of life value to all residents of Washington, DC, and will do more so once upgraded to meet its obvious athletic and historical promise: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
(1) Langston Golf Course, its general management, and the Royal Golf and Wake Robin Golf Clubs are to be commended for their historical and ongoing contributions to the local community and the Nation;
(2) the Director of the National Park Service and the Secretary of the Interior should give appropriate consideration to the future budget needs of this important park in the National Park System; and
(3) the Secretary of the Senate should transmit an enrolled copy of this resolution to the general manager of the Langston Golf Course.
U.S. Congress - Text of S.Res.532 as Introduced in Senate A resolution recommending that the Langston Golf Course, located in northeast Washingto...
