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NARROWSBURG – The Upper Delaware Council, Inc. (UDC) will host a public dedication ceremony in Narrowsburg, NY on September 26 to unveil a plaque honoring former U.S. Congressman Matthew F. McHugh for his 1978 legislation which successfully added the upper segment of the Delaware River to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System to ensure its permanent protection.

The Friday event will begin at 1:00 p.m. at the riverside Big Eddy Observation Deck along Main Street and conclude with a light luncheon at the UDC office nearby at 211 Bridge St.

The 16” x 22” bronze plaque commemorates the foresight and leadership exhibited by Rep. McHugh, 86, who currently resides in northern Virginia. His 1975-79 Chief of Staff Marvin Rappaport, who recently recorded an oral history interview with McHugh that is available on the UDC’s YouTube channel, will convey his message.

This project is made possible through funding contributions by the Sullivan County Legislature (Chairperson Nadia Rajsz, District 2, and Town of Lumberland UDC Representative) and private donor Devin Corrigan, principal of Current Property and Development in Honesdale, PA and resident of Narrowsburg; in cooperation with the Tusten Town Board, which approved the plaque’s location and handled installation; and as conceived by Sullivan County native Marvin Rappaport.

During his 18-year tenure representing the New York State’s Southern Tier region in the U.S. House of Representatives (District 27 from 1975-1983 then District 28 from 1983-1993), Congressman McHugh authored the bill that designated 73.4 miles from the confluence of the East and West Branches of the Delaware below Hancock to Railroad Bridge No. 2 in Sparrowbush as the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River.

His carefully crafted legislation was groundbreaking in that it called for cooperative management of the 55,574.5 acres within two states (NY and PA), five counties, and 15 towns and townships by a partnership of federal (National Park Service), states, and local governments to be administered by an Upper Delaware Council organization.

It included special provisions to ensure that home rule authorities and property rights over the predominantly private lands in the designated corridor would be retained while the free-flowing river’s outstandingly remarkable values are conserved for perpetuity.

Following the National Park Service unit’s November 10, 1978 legislative establishment, negotiations led to the adoption in 1986 of the Final River Management Plan for the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River: New York and Pennsylvania that remains in effect to guide land and water use developments and uphold the natural, historical, and cultural resources.

For more information on the Sept. 26 plaque dedication ceremony, please contact UDC Executive Director Laurie Ramie at (845) 252-3022 or laurie@upperdelawarecouncil.org.