The Day I Met Mr. Independence National Historical Park: Former Rep. Hardie Scott

The Day I Met Mr. Independence National Historical Park: Hardie Scott

By James Patterson

In the summer of 1998, I got a call from our building’s security officer. I had an unexpected visitor.

I worked in a busy Capitol Hill office with precious little time for visitors. Still, it was a part of my job to listen to the concerns of visitors.

I recall it took me longer than usual to get to the security desk. As I maneuvered through hallways, colleagues had question after question and a few extra tasks for me to work on. There is no such thing as a slow day on Capitol Hill!

As I made my way to the security desk in our building, little did I know I was about to meet the man whose vision gave America the magnificent Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia.

When I arrived at the front desk, the security guard introduced a lady and an elderly gentleman identified as former Pennsylvania U.S. Congressman Hardie Scott. He said he was 91.  The lady was his nurse. He had represented a Congressional District in Philadelphia, he said. They had traveled from his home in Pennsylvania. I figured this could be an important meeting.

I led Scott and his nurse to my office. I settled at my desk for what was an unusual conversation. Former Congressman Scott presented me with a folder with his career highlights. I learned he served in Congress from 1947-53. By my quick calculation, he had out of Congress for about 45 years.

He showed me a frontpage newspaper photograph of himself with President Dwight Eisenhower who served from 1953-1961. While in Congress, Scott shared, he introduced legislation which authorized Independence National Historical Park.

As I was a frequent visitor to Philadelphia, I congratulated him on his vision and thanked him for this great gift to America. Scott became a bit emotional. I suspected he had not heard words of gratitude for his work in some time.  

After his career presentation, former Congressman Scott firmly said it was time for him “to get down to business.” He told me he wanted to run for Congress again.

“Congratulations on your decision,” I told him.

Scott thanked me. He said he was convinced he could take back his District. I did not know which Congressional District he was referring. Still, I nodded in agreement.

Scott said he wanted the support of some “important Washington people” for his campaign. I told him he would have to make many calls around Washington. My office specialized in political communications. I told Scott I would share his materials with our executives. He smiled and said, “That’s all I ask.”   

Scott seemed pleased. “This has been a great meeting,” he said. Scott and his nurse gathered their things to leave. I walked them out of the building to a waiting limousine. I shook hands with them and wished them a safe trip back to Pennsylvania.

“Thank you again for your leadership on Independence National Historical Park, Congressman,” I said. Those were my last words to him. He seemed touched, at a loss for words, and a bit tired.

I am so glad I found the right words for Congressman Scott that long-ago summer day. They were the words Scott needed to hear and words I needed to say. It was, you might say, a human moment.

I present this recollection in gratitude of the memory of Pennsylvania U.S. Congressman Hardie Scott. He was a grand old fellow from a grand time in the history of our Nation with a grand idea of Independence National Historical Park.

In 2016, the National Park Service estimated over 5 million people visited the Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia. The Park preserves some of our most historic sites of the American Revolution. The Park is a testament to the Great City of Philadelphia and its great gift of Independence.

I met former Congressman Hardie Scott in the summer of 1998. He was a politically ambitious 91-year-old whose wife had died in 1997. Scott died in 1999 at age 92.

“Hardie Scott; helped establish landmark,” was the title of Scott’s obituary in the Philadelphia Inquirer on November 7, 1999. It continued: “In 1948, he introduced a bill to create Independence National Historical Park. President Harry S. Truman signed the bill into law, a tribute that family members said was the legislator’s most important contribution to Philadelphia.”

I can attest that Scott considered Independence National Historical Park his “most important contribution to Philadelphia. He told me so several times during our 45-minute meeting. I thanked him each time he mentioned it.

I thank former Congressman Hardie Scott again now for his vision on Independence Historical National Park. “Thank you for your leadership, Congressman.”

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James Patterson is a former U.S. diplomat and a writer based in Washington, D.C.