HomeMy WebLinkAboutHPC Packet 2016-08-10 HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION - AGENDA
REGULAR MEETING 5:15 P.M. August 10, 2016
I. 5:15—CALL TO ORDER:
II. 5:15—ROLL CALL: Declaration of Quorum
III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
May 11, 2016
IV. 5:15—OLD BUSINESS:
A. None
V. PUBLIC HEARINGS:
A. None
VI. WORKSHOP:
A. Discuss "Historic Pasco' Presentation
(1) Discuss Frank Pontarolo, Joe Jackson, Bob Christensen (Railroad)
interviews and propose potential clips for Historic Pasco Railroad Pasco
segment.
b) Discuss potential questions for the following interviewees/segments
(1) Brad Peck (Moore Mansion)
(2) Altha (Skogley) Simmelink-Perry (NAS Pasco)
(3) John Morgan (Schools)
II. 5:55—OTHER BUSINESS:
A. Underrepresented Community Grant Proposal
B. Next Meeting September 14, 2016
III. 6:00—ADJOURNMENT
HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMISSION - Minutes
REGULAR MEETING 5:15 P.M. May 11, 2016
I. 5:15—CALL TO ORDER:
II. 5:15—ROLL CALL: Present: Present: Marilynn Baker, Tom Brandon, Dan
Stafford, Devi Tate; Absent: Malin Bergstrom (Excused)
III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES:
March 9, 2016--Approved
IV. 5:15—OLD BUSINESS:
A. None
V. PUBLIC HEARINGS:
A. None
VI. WORKSHOP:
A. Commissioner Tate shared a packet with the Commission detailing Moore
Mansion history; she requested the Commissioners read and advise which
salient parts should be included in the Moore Mansion narration.
B. Commissioners discussed upcoming interviews with the following:
(1) Frank Pontarolo (Railroad) Friday May 13, 2016 at 1:00 pm.
(2) Joe Jackson 8v Bob Christensen (Railroad) Tuesday May 17, 2016 at
1:00 pm.
(3) John Morgan (Schools); arrangement for interview assigned to
Commissioner Brandon.
II. 6:35—OTHER BUSINESS:
A. Commissioner Baker requested a copy of the most recent Open Public
Meetings Act, including the language referring to Personal liability, Civil
penalty, Attorneys' fees and costs.
B. Next Meeting June 8, 2016
III. 6:40—ADJOURNMENT
City of Pasco Underrepresented Community Grant Proposal
To Document Properties of Significance to African Americans in East Pasco
A. Community and Historic Resources
This project would address the underrepresentation of the African American community in East Pasco,
Washington in the history and stories of the city and the larger extended community of the Tri-Cities,
Washington. Pasco is the fastest growing community in the state of Washington, yet its dynamic and
multiracial history, particularly its African American history, is little known.
Prior to World War II, the black population in Pasco was small. Only 27 African Americans were listed in
the 1940 census, and most of those residents consisted of a few families connected to jobs working on
the Northern Pacific Railroad. World War II changed that. The construction of the Hanford Nuclear
Reservation, part of the federal government's Manhattan Project, and the opening of the Pasco Naval
Air Station brought in approximately 15,000 African American workers and their families to the Tri-
Cities. Most of those African Americans came from the South (the majority from East Texas with a
portion migrating from Arkansas and Louisiana)for the good paying jobs available at Hanford and had
been recruited by the DuPont Corporation, the chief contractor for Hanford. Many of those new arrivals
expected not only good paying jobs, but an escape from the oppressive segregation they had faced in
the South.
Upon arrival in the Tri-Cities,though,the new African American residents faced a hastily constructed
system of Jim Crow that included segregated housing and jobs at Hanford and segregated housing,
stores and restaurants in Pasco, Richland and Kennewick. A large number of African Americans left the
area once construction of Hanford ended, but some African Americans remained. Most African
Americans settled on the east side of Pasco—on the "wrong side" of the proverbial tracks--the one area
of the city where they were allowed to live. There was a lack of city services--sewer, water and garage
collection—in this neighborhood. By the mid-1940s, 1,200 blacks lived in East Pasco.
During the 1940s and 1950s,African Americans established a vibrant black community in East Pasco,
transformed the Tri-Cities area and contributed greatly to the construction of the Hanford site and to
the economy, politics and culture of the region. African Americans in Pasco established churches and
community and civil rights organizations that helped blacks forge a growing community.
This system of Jim Crow would take decades of efforts by local residents and regional and national civil
rights organizations to overturn. In the 1960's African Americans, including more educated
professionals who were part of a new wave of black migration to the Tri-Cities, challenged and
eventually broke down the system of housing segregation in Kennewick and Richland. Their efforts
included a civil rights march in Kennewick in 1963 and an economic boycott in Pasco in 1970 protesting
stores that continued to discriminate against black patrons. These methods mirrored strategies taking
place on behalf of blacks in other parts of America. Even with post-integration's racial strides, East
Pasco remained the heart of the Tri-Cities' African-American community.
1
Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
Over the past several decades,though,the African American population in Pasco has shrunk as a
percentage of the city's overall population. In fact, based on the 2010 census, blacks comprised less
than 2% of the total population of Pasco and a smaller percentage in the neighboring cities of Richland
and Kennewick. That being said black numbers as a percentage of the total population in Pasco (1.9%)
remain slightly larger than those in Kennewick(1.7%) or Richland (1.4%). For that matter Kennewick's
total population (73,917) exceeds Pasco's (59,781) and Richland's (48,058). Pasco's remaining racial-
ethnic breakdown is 55.7% Hispanic, 38.7%, and 2%Asian Pacific Islander. In fact, the section of East
Pasco where the black community once thrived,with the exception of some holdouts, is now largely
Latino. Over the last year and a half,the City of Pasco's Latino population received national and even
global attention based on two incidents—the police shooting of Mexican national Antonio Zambrano-
Montes and Kennewick City Councilman Bob Parks' Facebook post about the city's Mexicans population.
This information offers context for how the history and stories of African Americans in the region are
woefully underrepresented and underappreciated, and often forgotten.
Indeed, no sites of significance to the history of African Americans in Pasco and the Tri-Cities are listed
on the National Register of Historic Places or have any historic designation on the state or local level.
For numerous reasons the proportion of listings associated with African Americans does not equal either
the population's numbers historically nor their roles in American history. As the major steward of
historic documentation in the United States, the National Parks Service has gone to great lengths to
reverse this trend surrounding culturally diverse places. The current Underrepresented Communities
grant is proof of this, and this proposal re: East Pasco reflects the desire for African American history to
be recognized at the national, state, and local level. No comprehensive inventory of African American
sites within the state of Washington has ever been completed. While the City of Pasco has a historical
preservation commission and recently obtained Certified Local Government status, it does not currently
designate landmarks.
This would be the first survey of its kind in Pasco or the Tri-Cities. In a 2013 Historic Preservation Work
Plan 2014-2019 created for the City of Pasco by Brum &Associates,the authors noted that "little has
been written about the contributions ethnic groups have made to Pasco's history, and should be
explored in future surveys and historic register nominations." The importance of Pasco's black
community,then, is clearly underrepresented and little understood. A historic site survey and the
eventual preparation of a National Register nomination would go a long way toward remedying that
situation.
B. Briefly summarize your project emphasizing the primary objectives and results
The City of Pasco, a Certified Local Government, and African Americans for Community, Cultural, and
Education Success (AACCES), a non-profit located in Washington State's Tri-Cities, seek to document
properties in East Pasco associated with African Americans. While the current population of East Pasco
is largely Latino, preserving the history of this neighborhood is important to all members of the Tri-
Cities. AACCES and the City of Pasco, working through a network of local organizations and schools, will
employ various strategies to not only inform youth about the project, but also to engage with the
important piece of Tri-Cities history.
2
Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
City of Pasco Underrepresented Community Grant Proposal
To Document Properties of Significance to African Americans in East Pasco
A. Community and Historic Resources
This project would address the underrepresentation of the African American community in East Pasco,
Washington in the history and stories of the city and the larger extended community of the Tri-Cities,
Washington. Pasco is the fastest growing community in the state of Washington, yet its dynamic and
multiracial history, particularly its African American history, is little known.
Prior to World War II, the black population in Pasco was small. Only 27 African Americans were listed in
the 1940 census, and most of those residents consisted of a few families connected to jobs working on
the Northern Pacific Railroad. World War II changed that. The construction of the Hanford Nuclear
Reservation, part of the federal government's Manhattan Project, and the opening of the Pasco Naval
Air Station brought in approximately 15,000 African American workers and their families to the Tri-
Cities. Most of those African Americans came from the South (the majority from East Texas with a
portion migrating from Arkansas and Louisiana)for the good paying jobs available at Hanford and had
been recruited by the DuPont Corporation, the chief contractor for Hanford. Many of those new arrivals
expected not only good paying jobs, but an escape from the oppressive segregation they had faced in
the South.
Upon arrival in the Tri-Cities,though,the new African American residents faced a hastily constructed
system of Jim Crow that included segregated housing and jobs at Hanford and segregated housing,
stores and restaurants in Pasco, Richland and Kennewick. A large number of African Americans left the
area once construction of Hanford ended, but some African Americans remained. Most African
Americans settled on the east side of Pasco—on the "wrong side" of the proverbial tracks--the one area
of the city where they were allowed to live. There was a lack of city services--sewer, water and garage
collection—in this neighborhood. By the mid-1940s, 1,200 blacks lived in East Pasco.
During the 1940s and 1950s,African Americans established a vibrant black community in East Pasco,
transformed the Tri-Cities area and contributed greatly to the construction of the Hanford site and to
the economy, politics and culture of the region. African Americans in Pasco established churches and
community and civil rights organizations that helped blacks forge a growing community.
This system of Jim Crow would take decades of efforts by local residents and regional and national civil
rights organizations to overturn. In the 1960's African Americans, including more educated
professionals who were part of a new wave of black migration to the Tri-Cities, challenged and
eventually broke down the system of housing segregation in Kennewick and Richland. Their efforts
included a civil rights march in Kennewick in 1963 and an economic boycott in Pasco in 1970 protesting
stores that continued to discriminate against black patrons. These methods mirrored strategies taking
place on behalf of blacks in other parts of America. Even with post-integration's racial strides, East
Pasco remained the heart of the Tri-Cities' African-American community.
1
Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
Over the past several decades,though,the African American population in Pasco has shrunk as a
percentage of the city's overall population. In fact, based on the 2010 census, blacks comprised less
than 2% of the total population of Pasco and a smaller percentage in the neighboring cities of Richland
and Kennewick. That being said black numbers as a percentage of the total population in Pasco (1.9%)
remain slightly larger than those in Kennewick(1.7%) or Richland (1.4%). For that matter Kennewick's
total population (73,917) exceeds Pasco's (59,781) and Richland's (48,058). Pasco's remaining racial-
ethnic breakdown is 55.7% Hispanic, 38.7%, and 2%Asian Pacific Islander. In fact, the section of East
Pasco where the black community once thrived,with the exception of some holdouts, is now largely
Latino. Over the last year and a half,the City of Pasco's Latino population received national and even
global attention based on two incidents—the police shooting of Mexican national Antonio Zambrano-
Montes and Kennewick City Councilman Bob Parks' Facebook post about the city's Mexicans population.
This information offers context for how the history and stories of African Americans in the region are
woefully underrepresented and underappreciated, and often forgotten.
Indeed, no sites of significance to the history of African Americans in Pasco and the Tri-Cities are listed
on the National Register of Historic Places or have any historic designation on the state or local level.
For numerous reasons the proportion of listings associated with African Americans does not equal either
the population's numbers historically nor their roles in American history. As the major steward of
historic documentation in the United States, the National Parks Service has gone to great lengths to
reverse this trend surrounding culturally diverse places. The current Underrepresented Communities
grant is proof of this, and this proposal re: East Pasco reflects the desire for African American history to
be recognized at the national, state, and local level. No comprehensive inventory of African American
sites within the state of Washington has ever been completed. While the City of Pasco has a historical
preservation commission and recently obtained Certified Local Government status, it does not currently
designate landmarks.
This would be the first survey of its kind in Pasco or the Tri-Cities. In a 2013 Historic Preservation Work
Plan 2014-2019 created for the City of Pasco by Brum &Associates,the authors noted that "little has
been written about the contributions ethnic groups have made to Pasco's history, and should be
explored in future surveys and historic register nominations." The importance of Pasco's black
community,then, is clearly underrepresented and little understood. A historic site survey and the
eventual preparation of a National Register nomination would go a long way toward remedying that
situation.
B. Briefly summarize your project emphasizing the primary objectives and results
The City of Pasco, a Certified Local Government, and African Americans for Community, Cultural, and
Education Success (AACCES), a non-profit located in Washington State's Tri-Cities, seek to document
properties in East Pasco associated with African Americans. While the current population of East Pasco
is largely Latino, preserving the history of this neighborhood is important to all members of the Tri-
Cities. AACCES and the City of Pasco, working through a network of local organizations and schools, will
employ various strategies to not only inform youth about the project, but also to engage with the
important piece of Tri-Cities history.
2
Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
AACCES has already identified 7 public and private sites (a school, a park, a bridge, a commercial
building, 3 churches) of significance and community members have referred to additional private
residences.
Once a survey of existing sites is completed,these 7 places plus any additional properties will be
inventoried. Data will be posted to WiSAARD, Washington State Department of Archeology and Historic
Preservation's database of places.
The research completed will inform the context document and the resulting National Register
nomination(s).
Tasks& Products
Surveying: As Project Manager,Tanya Bowers will work with AACCES and the City of Pasco to
gain exposure for the project. By partnering with other non-profits (Afro-Americans for Academic
Success, the Tri-Cities chapter of the Links Inc., Women of Wisdom) and churches (New Hope Missionary
Baptist, Morning Star Baptist, St.James Methodist) serving African Americans, community meetings will
be held during which names and locations of additional sites will be solicited. Conducting inquiries at
events like church functions or the annual Juneteenth celebration held at Kurtzman Park, one of the
sites identified, will enable valuable information to be obtained. The Juneteenth Celebration functions
as a homecoming for East Pasco natives who have moved. These events will need to be recorded.
Survey questionnaires will also be generated which can be handed in, mailed, scanned, or filled out
online. Washington State University Tri-Cities (WSU TC) students will be available to assist community
members in completing surveys and completing individual interviews following these community
meetings with specific members of the community to add flesh to the list of places. Some of these
interviews will fall under the category of oral histories.These will be videotaped and transcribed.
Supporting materials like historic photos will also be archived. The surveys should be completed in the
first half of 2017.
Inventorying: WSUTC Students will take photos of the resulting properties. They will go through
City of Pasco records to retrieve historical information about the sites. They will go through church
archives. It should be noted that relevant information will have already been obtained through the
Hanford History Project,the Franklin Historical Society, the former CREST museum, and the REACH
Museum, so a thorough search of their archives will also be necessary. The inventorying will be finalized
by the end of 2017.
Context: Being that the sites in question would most likely be nominated on the basis of their
social history rather than architectural integrity, historic context would need to be prepared. In
preliminary conversations with the State Historic Preservation Office, related contexts (documentation
around Manhattan Project sites,the Great Migration, or the rise of a military-industrial complex in the
Pacific Northwest) were not able to be identified. Ms. Bowers and Dr. Bauman will author the narrative
in 2018.
3
Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
AACCES has already identified 7 public and private sites (a school, a park, a bridge, a commercial
building, 3 churches) of significance and community members have referred to additional private
residences.
Once a survey of existing sites is completed,these 7 places plus any additional properties will be
inventoried. Data will be posted to WiSAARD, Washington State Department of Archeology and Historic
Preservation's database of places.
The research completed will inform the context document and the resulting National Register
nomination(s).
Tasks& Products
Surveying: As Project Manager,Tanya Bowers will work with AACCES and the City of Pasco to
gain exposure for the project. By partnering with other non-profits (Afro-Americans for Academic
Success, the Tri-Cities chapter of the Links Inc., Women of Wisdom) and churches (New Hope Missionary
Baptist, Morning Star Baptist, St.James Methodist) serving African Americans, community meetings will
be held during which names and locations of additional sites will be solicited. Conducting inquiries at
events like church functions or the annual Juneteenth celebration held at Kurtzman Park, one of the
sites identified, will enable valuable information to be obtained. The Juneteenth Celebration functions
as a homecoming for East Pasco natives who have moved. These events will need to be recorded.
Survey questionnaires will also be generated which can be handed in, mailed, scanned, or filled out
online. Washington State University Tri-Cities (WSU TC) students will be available to assist community
members in completing surveys and completing individual interviews following these community
meetings with specific members of the community to add flesh to the list of places. Some of these
interviews will fall under the category of oral histories.These will be videotaped and transcribed.
Supporting materials like historic photos will also be archived. The surveys should be completed in the
first half of 2017.
Inventorying: WSUTC Students will take photos of the resulting properties. They will go through
City of Pasco records to retrieve historical information about the sites. They will go through church
archives. It should be noted that relevant information will have already been obtained through the
Hanford History Project,the Franklin Historical Society, the former CREST museum, and the REACH
Museum, so a thorough search of their archives will also be necessary. The inventorying will be finalized
by the end of 2017.
Context: Being that the sites in question would most likely be nominated on the basis of their
social history rather than architectural integrity, historic context would need to be prepared. In
preliminary conversations with the State Historic Preservation Office, related contexts (documentation
around Manhattan Project sites,the Great Migration, or the rise of a military-industrial complex in the
Pacific Northwest) were not able to be identified. Ms. Bowers and Dr. Bauman will author the narrative
in 2018.
3
Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
Nomination: While funding to complete National Register nomination(s) is not being included in
the City of Pasco's submission at this time, an application for preparing the nomination will be
submitted for the 2018 grant period. While there are several contenders, a clear idea of the work
entailed will exist once the survey, inventory, and context have been completed.
Obviously the African-American layer is one piece of East Pasco's multi-racial history. Given that
Latinos configure prominently into the recent past of East Pasco, the City of Pasco realizes that a place
holder must be laid as more scholarship and research gets completed around Latino contributions to
Washington State's Columbia River Basin.
Budget
Public meetings: $3,000
Survey and inventory: $16,500
Oral histories:$5,000
Context statement:$19,500
Project Management: $3,500
The$47,500 budget above does not include services and items provided pro-bono through partnerships.
C. Preservation of Resources and Cultural Assets
This project would preserve the history and some of the key resources significant to the African
American community in Pasco and the Tri-Cities. Completing historic building surveys of key sites of
African American community history, such as Morningstar Baptist Church, New Hope Missionary Baptist
Church,the Whittier School, and Kurtzman Park, and preparing nominations for the National Register of
Historic Places or an amendment to a National Register listing for the now demolished the Pasco-
Kennewick Columbia River Bridge, would allow for the preservation of the community histories linked to
those sites.
Those represent the establishment and development of a budding and thriving black community in
addition to places of worship and refuge, where African Americans gathered to forge a community and
at times challenged the segregation and racial discrimination they faced in the Tri-Cities. Residents
themselves erected many of the homes in East Pasco; neighbors would help one another with whatever
aspect of construction reflected their trade. The residences which previously lined Wehe Street to the
west of Kurtzman Park were destroyed when the railroad expanded. Unfortunately, most of the stores,
black barber shops and beauty shops, on what was once East Pasco's main street, no longer stand. One
native son remarked on the lack of a preservation ethic, "Moving on up meant moving on out."
D. Alignment with public preservation goals
This project speaks to aspirations set forth in both Washington State and the City of Pasco's
preservation plans.
The strategy and task of Goal 2 Strategy D (i) in the statewide preservation plan 2014-19, Getting the
Future Right, is:
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Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
Encourage more National Register nominations that reflect the diversity of our heritage,
especially with properties related to underrepresented communities.
The discussion in the plan speaks more specifically to this need to enhance the State's inventory with
data on under-represented groups in "Properties Associated with Under-represented Groups":
There is growing acknowledgement that past historic preservation planning efforts have focused
on properties derived from European settlement in the nation. As a result, national and state
register listings are largely comprised of the homes, institutions, and business of Euro-American
cultures. Often overlooked are cultural and historic resources associated with groups that are
under-represented in the national's historic narrative including African,Asian/Pacific Islander,
Latino, and Native American cultures. For example, analysis of DAHP [Department of
Archaeology and Historic Preservation]'s Historic Property Inventory indicates that only 37
properties have been identified as primarily associated with ethnic heritage. This is in contrast
to properties associated with other historic contexts such as transportation with 698,
manufacturing/industry with 504, and agriculture with 2,277.
The Latino Heritage Youth Summit convened in Yakima County in 2012 and served as a wake-up
call to preservationists, reminding them that Washington State has a rich heritage associated
with Latino settlement. However, it was also learned that this heritage is largely unrecognized
and not being passed down to future generations.The same is true of other cultures that have
lived and settled in Washington such as African American and Asian American populations.
Gradually, some progress is being made recognizing that several important sites associated with
under-represented groups have been surveyed and/or designated in Washington. Also,these
resources are recognized as a priority in CLG grant applications where these types of
preservation planning projects are given special consideration.An expanded effort to support
the survey and inventory of these properties is established as a priority in the Plan (see Goal 2.D.
(i). Encourage more National Register nominations that reflect the diversity of our heritage,
especially with properties related to underrepresented communities).
Pasco's City Council adopted a Historic Preservation Plan in 2013. In Pasco Historic Preservation
Workplan 2014-2019"Part IV. Pasco's Heritage: History and Architecture",the Ethnic Heritage section
reads:
The ethnic history of an area is sometimes overlooked,yet plays an important role in the
development of any city. Little has been written about the contributions ethnic groups have
made to Pasco's history, and should be explored in future surveys and historic register
nominations.
In "Appendix A- Pasco's Heritage: History and Architecture", Ethnic Heritage continues:
The ethnic history of an area is sometimes overlooked,yet plays an important role in the
development of any city.
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Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
Taken from "Appendix B: Public Outreach," during interviews conducted to get input on the historic
preservation plans,the following sentiment was voiced:
Historically,the Black community lived in East Pasco; now many from second and third
generations are still here; we need to acknowledge that as well as Latino history. If the physical
structures don't exist,the contributions from that community should be still conveyed in a
connection to downtown.
This proposal would enable the City to progress with the following goals, objectives, and actions laid out
in Section "VII. Creating the Future—Goals and Action Steps":
Goal 1: Enhance Protection and Preservation of Historic Buildings and Sites
Objective 1.A.1 Strengthen the Capacity of the Historic Preservation Program
Objective 1.13 Identify Historic Properties through new Historic Surveys
Action 1.13.1: Increase access to information on historic buildings
Action 1.13.3: Hire a professional to update historic survey information on Pasco
buildings.The historic survey provides a database of properties that are eligible
for historic designation.
Objective 1.0 Protect Historic Buildings
Action 1.C.5: Improve visibility of and access to historic resources.
Goal 3: Increase Heritage Tourism
Objective 3.A Encourage research that uncovers more of Pasco's rich and layered
history.
Action 3.A.1: Research local history as a basis for promoting Pasco's past.
Historic themes to be explored include Chinese history, Black history, Hispanic
history,women's history, railroad history, World War II history, and aviation
history.The research will provide information for marketing materials.
Action 3.A.2: Establish a system for the collection of register nominations on
Pasco history to be used as a resource for marketing materials
Objective 3.6 Disseminate information to build an appreciation of the History of Pasco.
Action 3.6.1: Create a "Pasco Walk," a walking tour brochure of Pasco Historic
Places
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Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
Action 3.B.2: Establish a Pasco Cultural Web Site to create a citywide one-stop
resource for the wide variety of cultural entities and tourism opportunities in
Pasco.
Goal 4: Strengthen Public Awareness and Partnerships
Objective 4.A Improve partnerships and collaboration
Objective 4.13 Establish a coordinated communication strategy by producing consistent
materials and reports in a variety of media.
Action 4.13.3: Communicate with a variety of media; be relevant to all ages and
cultures using social media.
Objective 4.0 Educate the community by involving a wide variety of people in outreach
efforts.
E. Public-private partnerships and community engagement
AACCES, a non-profit organization born as a 501c3 in 2003, aspires to improve the quality of life for
African-American people and to raise the total consciousness of the community through cultural and
educational activities and outreach programs. From June 2001 to Feb 2002 AACCES's History and
Recognition committee (HRC) recorded interviews with 9 or 10 former Hanford workers and local
residents that had businesses during the Manhattan Project era (and a few years after). Through
fundraising events the HRC covered the costs of supplies.
In the time since,the local public television affiliate (WSUTC/KNTW) and the Department of Energy,
Richland Field Office have taped interviews with several interviewees. The Atomic Heritage Foundation
also reached out to AACCES in 2003 re: a DVD about the Manhattan Project.
In 2012 the AACCES HRC produced a 10-minute promotional video BlackAmerican History at Hanford:
The Manhattan Project,with the help of local journalists using historic, declassified photos from the US
War Department.The short film helped get the stories into the public view, including into the REACH
Museum (a few interviews can be seen on the REACH Museum website; see REACH Stories entitled
"Black Americans at Hanford During WWII") and Black Life in Hanford exhibit Northwest African
American Museum (NAAM) in Seattle. AACCES partnered with Washington State University Tri-Cities to
digitize these interviews.
AACCES is one of a handful of community organizations and churches which serve African Americans in
the Tri-Cities. The children and grandchildren of the WWII and Cold War era African American migrants
who came to work at Hanford run the current community organizations. Through these organizations,
this project will provide opportunities to engage younger descendants in the history of their elders as
well as children of newer arrivals of African descent in local black history. Local school districts are
always looking for programming during Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday and Black History Month, so
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Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
that all pupils can learn about the area's multi-layered history. Mid-Columbia and Richland Libraries are
equally supportive of relevant content.
Dr. Robert Bauman, associate professor of history at WSU Tri-Cities, wrote the seminal work about the
African Americans who migrated to area to build the Hanford Labs. Professor Bauman teaches
American history and public history, including courses on the civil rights movement, immigration,
migration, ethnic identity and the Cold War. His professional experience includes serving as historian of
the photo archives and oral history projects for the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and as
historian for History Associates Inc., a Maryland-based consulting firm. In Spring 2017 he will teach a
course on African American history. The course will, in part,focus on the history of the local African-
American community. Students in the course will have the opportunity to conduct some of the research
and documentation of the historic sites in Pasco for the historic site survey.
Through the Hanford History Project, WSU TC leads a coalition of community partners (including
AACCES) preserving—and enabling research on—the history of the greater Hanford community.
Through a contract with the US Department of Energy and donations from community partners,the
Hanford History Project is developing an archive and museum from major collections of never-before-
seen documents and unique artifacts. The Hanford History Project conducted and digitized a collection
of oral histories, which include AACCES's,to make them available for relevant researchers. These oral
histories would inform and link with the historic building surveys and the resulting National Register
nominations,thereby further preserving and enriching the community stories around those sites and
allowing for the preservation of the history of African Americans and enriching the history of Pasco and
the Tri-Cities. Student interns with the Hanford History Project are already cataloging the archival
collections we have received from the Department of Energy, after which we will turn towards
developing finding aids and making the collections accessible to scholars. In addition, students in WSU
TC's digital technology and culture program will help with geocoding the data which comes out of these
inquiries. Robert Franklin, a staff member from the Hanford History Project, has previously written a
National Register nomination (with another pending) in Hawaii, six local nominations in Pullman, and a
site report for Weippe Prairie at the Nez Perce National Historical Park in Idaho will eventually assist
with preparing the nominations.
The Pacific West Region's Seattle Office recently received funding to expand interpretation at the
Manhattan Project National Historic Park's Hanford site around African American Civil Rights in the 20th
Century. The Hanford History Project has been designated as the conduit through which much of this
research takes place. As oral histories are conducted throughout the Tri-Cities and the Seattle area, the
location where many African-American workers who chose to leave the Tri-Cities went, staff have
agreed to share data which are relevant.
The City of Pasco will hold Tanya Bowers responsible for project management of this effort around
African-American places in East Paso. The former Director for Diversity at the National Trust for Historic
Preservation, Ms. Bowers moved to Pasco in 2014. In the short period she has lived in the Tri-Cities, she
has become a commissioner on Pasco's Planning Commission, a member of AACCES, and an inductee of
the Tri-Cities chapter of the Links Inc. Having written her undergraduate honors thesis on neighborhood
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Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016
change on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx and completed Columbia Graduate School of Architecture,
Planning, and Preservation's Shape of Two Cities: New York/Paris, Ms. Bowers is well-versed in
documenting the intersection of diverse communities and place. She will work with Pasco's Historic
Preservation Commission to see that information about places unearthed gets displayed in their current
presentation about historic places in Pasco.
Please see resumes attached for Dr. Bauman, Ms. Bowers, and Mr. Franklin.
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Pasco, WA African-American Places Documentation Underrepresented Communities Grant 2016