WASHINGTON (March 17, 2009)—Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said Tuesday he has filed a bill co-sponsored by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, that would establish the Waco Mammoth Site as part of the National Park System.

Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, filed similar legislation in the U.S. House on March 6.

Hopefully, with bipartisan support in Congress, the legislation I have introduced will make the site’s status as National Parklands a reality. This site is a source of pride for Waco, Baylor, and the state of Texas,” Cornyn said.

The site is believed to contain the largest concentrated of remains of the prehistoric animals killed in a single event.

Since the first bones were discovered at the site nearly 30 years ago, researchers have meticulously excavated the remains of 25 Columbia mammoths that evidently perished together, possibly in a flash flood, nearly 70,000 years ago.

But while the site has attracted experts from as far away as Sweden and Great Britain, it has never been opened to the general public.

Ground was broken last year for $3.2 million visitor center and pavilion to protect the site.

The recommendation to include the site as part the National Park System came after a six-year feasibility study that Congress ordered in 2002.

Click Here For National Park Service Study Page

Click Here For Mammoth Foundation Web Site