How to Make History Matter: The Maurice K. Goddard Legacy Project

Abstract

On September 15, 2010, state officials, conservation leaders, and curious bystanders gathered outside of the Rachel Carson State Office Building in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, to dedicate an official Pennsylvania historical marker to the memory of Maurice K. Goddard. Speaker after speaker lauded Goddard's extraordinary career in the service of five governors as secretary of the Department of Forests and Waters and its successor, the Department of Environmental Resources. They listed his many accomplishments and told how he "expanded the state park system, establishing forests and natural and wild areas, and profes-sionalizing both forestry and environmental management." They noted that the marker, positioned at the entrance to the offices of the state's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and Department of Environmental Protection, is visible to the over 2,000 agency employees working in the office building as well as the visiting public and passersby. John Hines, executive deputy secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection, remarked that "while it was befitting that the walls of this office building be named for Rachel Carson, this plaque we are dedicating today sits at the building's solid foundation which is what Doc Goddard gave to every one of us, his commitment to Pennsylvania, to our quality of life, and to future generations."