The Federal Government's 1943 Acquisition of Land at Harris Neck, Georgia
Abstract
In your July 24, 1984, letter, provided in enclosure I, and, in subsequent agreements with your offices, you asked us to review various issues you raised about the federal government's 1943 Harris Neck land acquisition which, in 1962, became the Harris Neck National Wildlife Refuge in McIntosh County, Georgia. Specifically, you asked us to determine whether (1) the government's acquisition of Harris Neck land was made in accordance with applicable law, (2) the landowners at Harris Neck were fairly compensated in accordance with applicable law, (3) there was evidence that racial discrimination was a factor in determining compensation paid to owners of comparable parcels of land, (4) verbal or written statements were made by agents or officials of the federal government to the effect that the land could be repurchased by the owner(s) at some future date, and if so, would this constitute a legally binding agreement, (5) the federal government acted properly when it redesignated the land from "agricultural" to "airport" at a time when such designation would affect the disposition of questions regarding future ownership, (6) officials of the War Assets Administration (which administered the federal government's domestic surplus property disposal functions from January 1946 until June 1949) acted in accordance with the law when they granted use of the land to McIntosh County rather than permitted the original owners to reacquire it, and (7) the condemnation of Harris Neck differed from the procedures and compensation arrangements that were applied in the acquisition of lands that now comprise the Ft. Stewart Military Reservation and the Hunter Army Airfield complex in Georgia. We are also providing, at your request, a listing of lands originally acquired by the federal government for military purposes and subsequently transferred into the National Wildlife Refuge System.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 29, 1985
- Accession Number
- AD1118729
Entities
People
- J. D. Peach
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office