Redesignating Mammoth Peak as Mouth Jessie Benton Fremont

Floor Speech

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Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1192 would redesignate Mammoth Peak in Yosemite National Park as Mount Jessie Benton Fremont.

The bill is brought to us by a group of local park enthusiasts and historians, with the support of the El Dorado County Historical Society. Its purpose is to recognize this pioneer who played a significant role in establishing Yosemite National Park.

Jessie Benton Fremont was the daughter of U.S. Senator Thomas Hart Benton, a prominent Democrat who was a leading proponent of the Nation's westward expansion. In 1841, she married John C. Fremont, a prominent Republican, an American military officer, explorer, and--later--a Presidential candidate.

She traveled to California in 1849 and, soon thereafter, became one of the most influential advocates for establishing Yosemite National Park.

When we think of Yosemite, we think of John Muir. Ironically, John Muir's first visit to the park didn't occur until 4 years after the park was established. It only came to his attention, as it came to the attention of so many, because Jessie Benton Fremont saw the beauty of the valley, she appreciated its importance, and she began a passionate crusade to preserve it for the American people to enjoy.

Jessie Benton Fremont was herself a gifted writer, and she used her skill to transform her husband's travel and exploration into popular narratives that were used by pioneers to guide their route west.

After she came to California in 1849, Yosemite became her passion. She published many accounts of the valley and hosted scores of dignitaries to see its wonders.

It was her deep love of Yosemite, coupled with her ceaseless agitation, her boundless energy, and her political connections in both parties that set in motion and drove the events that led to Congress passing, and President Abraham Lincoln signing, the Yosemite Grant Act 150 years ago.

Remember, she did all of this in an age when women were expected to be seen and not heard. She set an example of leadership that gave inspiration and guidance to the next generation that ultimately produced the movement toward women's suffrage.

The Yosemite Grant Act was revolutionary in its day. It was the first time in the Nation's history that land had been set aside, in the words of the Act, ``on the express condition that the premises shall be held for public use, resort, and recreation ..... for all time.''

Now, this act led ultimately to the creation of the National Park Service in 1916 and to the preservation of so many other landscapes for the American people to enjoy for their use and resort and recreation.

The Norman and Plantagenet kings of old set aside vast tracts of land as their exclusive preserve, in which only a select few, with their blessing, could enjoy. The Yosemite grant was the very opposite of that. It set aside the most beautiful land in the Nation entirely for the people.

The current name of the peak, Mammoth Peak, has absolutely no historical significance. The name was originally conferred on that peak because it was big. That is it.

Furthermore, this naming will eliminate a constant source of confusion with Mammoth Mountain, a place that we have all heard of. That is the major ski resort just a few hours outside of Yosemite National Park. The Mammoth Peak we are referring to is inside Yosemite, and if you find that confusing, well, so too do many tourists.

The fine point of the matter comes down to this: other persons who had lesser or comparable roles in establishing Yosemite are all commemorated by attaching their names to prominent features of the park--Horace Greeley, Carlton Watkins, Thomas Starr King, and U.S. Senators John Conness and Edward Baker.

The name of the dynamic force that moved all of those people, Jessie Benton Fremont, is nowhere to be found on the names of features within the park. This is a century-and-a-half oversight that we can correct today by passing H.R. 1192.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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