Recognizing the Dacor Bacon House Bicentennial Day

Floor Speech

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Mr. BEYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize June 10th as the DACOR Bacon House Bicentennial Day. With its rich history, the DACOR Bacon House stands as a powerful symbol of our Nation's commitment to diplomacy and the rule of law.

The House was built on land previously owned by David Burnes, a Revolutionary War veteran whose other real estate holdings were used for key national landmarks, including the White House and National Mall.

The House's site was acquired in 1815 by Tobias Lear V, George Washington's personal secretary and subsequent U.S. Consul General to Algiers. He was also the only person to hear President Washington's final words. ``Tis well.''

The current structure was completed in 1825 by Tench Ringgold, U.S. Marshal and Keeper of the Keys to the Capitol, using enslaved labor. Ringgold helped lead President James Madison and several members of his Cabinet to safety during the British burning of the White House years earlier during the War of 1812.

Former Maryland Governor Samuel Sprigg purchased the property for his daughter and nephew William Thomas Carroll, Clerk of the Supreme Court and member of the prominent Carroll family. William Thomas Carroll provided President Abraham Lincoln with the Bible that was used for his first inauguration, which has since become known as the ``Lincoln Bible.''

The House flourished under the ownership of the Carroll Family, during which time they entertained numerous dignitaries.

The House later served as the official residence of numerous prominent foreign and domestic figures in the United States, including Russian Imperial Minister Nikolai Shishkin from 1875 to 1878 while he was dispatched to Washington, D.C. as his country's top diplomatic representative to the United States. Chief Justice Melville Fuller and his family resided at the House from 1896 to 1910, during which time the House remained a fixture in Washington, D.C. high society and hosted President Grover Cleveland, President Theodore Roosevelt, and Secretary of War William Howard Taft. Illinois Senator Medill McCormick and his wife, the future Congresswoman Ruth Hanna McCormick, resided in the House during the 1920's when they entertained lawmakers and their spouses.

In 1973, the House was added to the National Register of Historic Places, paying homage to its nearly 150 years of contributions to American history and society. Virginia Murray Bacon then established the Bacon House Foundation which worked hand in hand with the Diplomatic and Consular Officers, Retired (DACOR) Education and Welfare Foundation to establish the DACOR Bacon House Foundation which was tasked with caring for the historic House in perpetuity.

On May 23, 1986, Secretary of State George P. Shultz attended the dedication ceremony marking the DACOR Bacon House Foundation's new ownership of the building and charged those present to ``protect and advance the interests and ideals of America.''

Since such time the DACOR Bacon House has served as the headquarters of DACOR, a premier organization of foreign affairs professionals, whose members include ambassadors, Foreign Service Officers, military and intelligence officials, political appointees from both major parties, Members of Congress and their staffs, Peace Corps and International Monetary Fund officials, global business leaders, and other professionals dedicated to promoting American interests and diplomatic relations.

Through DACOR and the DACOR Bacon House Foundation, which host regular educational discussions, policy programs, leadership development opportunities, and musical events, the House continues to be a vibrant center of cultural and diplomatic exchange, a museum of American life, and the home of the foreign affairs community.

Two hundred years after its construction, the DACOR Bacon House remains a pillar of strength in the President's Neighborhood, pays tribute to the legacy of its prior owners, enslaved workers, and distinguished guests, and serves as a unique prism for understanding the history of both the District of Columbia and the United States of America.

I therefore ask my colleagues in the House of Representatives to join me in recognizing the historic importance of the DACOR Bacon House to the history of American diplomacy, the Supreme Court, and Congress. I also wish to recognize both the DACOR Bacon House Foundation and the Diplomatic and Consular Officers, Retired (DACOR) organization for their decades-long efforts to preserve this unique gem located in the heart of our Nation's Capital.

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