Project Links
Fort Ontario Special Resource Study
Denver Service Center » Fort Ontario Special Resource Study » Document List
As directed by Congress in the Fort Ontario Study Act (Public Law 115-225), the National Park Service (NPS) prepared a special resource study of Fort Ontario in Oswego, New York, on behalf of the Secretary of the Interior. Situated at the mouth of the Oswego River and the south shore of Lake Ontario, Fort Ontario bore witness to two centuries of North American military actions. The Fort Ontario study area includes the Fort Ontario State Historic Site, the Safe Haven Holocaust Refugee Shelter Museum, and resources related to the fort's history of military use, which spans from British occupation of the site in 1755 to its decommissioning in 1953.
The 1998 National Parks Omnibus Management Act (54 United States Code 100507) established the process for identifying and authorizing studies of new national park units. A study area must meet four criteria to be recommended as an addition to the national park system. These criteria include: 1) national significance, 2) suitability, 3) feasibility, and 4) need for NPS management.
The study concludes that that a two-acre portion of the Fort Ontario study area representing the fort's use as a World-War II European refugee shelter from August 1944 to February 1946 meets all criteria necessary to be eligible for designation as a new unit of the National Park System. While the National Park Service conducted the study, which resulted in positive findings, the designation of national park units is ultimately the purview of Congress and the President. The purpose of the study was solely to evaluate the area and report to Congress.
The study was completed and transmitted to Congress for their consideration on August 1, 2024.
WHAT IS A SPECIAL RESOURCE STUDY
New national park units are typically added to the National Park Service (NPS) by an Act of Congress. However, before Congress decides to create a new park or add land to an existing park, it needs to know whether the area meets established criteria for designation as a national park unit. This evaluation is conducted through a special resource study.
The purpose of this special resource study is to gather information about Fort Ontario through historical research and public input, and then to report these findings to Congress. The special resource study will evaluate the potential for inclusion of Fort Ontario in the national park system based upon whether it meets established criteria for significance, suitability, feasibility, and the need for NPS management. Applying these criteria consistently helps the National Park Service weigh the relative merits of potential park units and to ensure that only those most deserving of designation are included within the national park system. The special resource study may also weigh other management options.
PROJECT CONTACTS
Martha Droge
Community Planner
National Park Service Northeast Regional Office
1234 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
(215) 597-2136
martha_j_droge@nps.gov
The 1998 National Parks Omnibus Management Act (54 United States Code 100507) established the process for identifying and authorizing studies of new national park units. A study area must meet four criteria to be recommended as an addition to the national park system. These criteria include: 1) national significance, 2) suitability, 3) feasibility, and 4) need for NPS management.
The study concludes that that a two-acre portion of the Fort Ontario study area representing the fort's use as a World-War II European refugee shelter from August 1944 to February 1946 meets all criteria necessary to be eligible for designation as a new unit of the National Park System. While the National Park Service conducted the study, which resulted in positive findings, the designation of national park units is ultimately the purview of Congress and the President. The purpose of the study was solely to evaluate the area and report to Congress.
The study was completed and transmitted to Congress for their consideration on August 1, 2024.
WHAT IS A SPECIAL RESOURCE STUDY
New national park units are typically added to the National Park Service (NPS) by an Act of Congress. However, before Congress decides to create a new park or add land to an existing park, it needs to know whether the area meets established criteria for designation as a national park unit. This evaluation is conducted through a special resource study.
The purpose of this special resource study is to gather information about Fort Ontario through historical research and public input, and then to report these findings to Congress. The special resource study will evaluate the potential for inclusion of Fort Ontario in the national park system based upon whether it meets established criteria for significance, suitability, feasibility, and the need for NPS management. Applying these criteria consistently helps the National Park Service weigh the relative merits of potential park units and to ensure that only those most deserving of designation are included within the national park system. The special resource study may also weigh other management options.
PROJECT CONTACTS
Martha Droge
Community Planner
National Park Service Northeast Regional Office
1234 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
(215) 597-2136
martha_j_droge@nps.gov