Revocation of Prior Monument Designations

The Antiquities Act of 1906 permits a President to alter a prior declaration of a national monument, including by finding that the “landmarks,” “structures,” or “objects” identified in the prior declaration either never were or no longer are deserving of the Act’s protections; and such an alteration can have the effect of eliminating entirely the reservation of the parcel of land previously associated with a national monument.

The contrary conclusion of the Attorney General in Proposed Abolishment of Castle Pinckney National Monument, 39 Op. Att’y Gen. 185 (1938), was incorrect, and that opinion can no longer be relied upon.