ALASKA It is hereby ordered that the land hereinafter described be, and the same is hereby, withdrawn subject to valid existing rights as provided by the act of June 25, 1910 (36 Stat. 847-848), as amended by the act of August 24, 1912 (37 Stat. 497), for the use of the War Department as a site for the Army radio station at Point Barrow, Alaska: Beginning at a point in the shore line of Nerravak Lagoon, said point being in the northerly extension of the easterly line of the Presbyterian Mission Property and 30 ft., more or less, from the northeast comer thereof, in approximate latitude 71° 17.7', longitude 156° 30'. Thence from said initial point by metes and bounds: In a general easterly and southeasterly direction along the said shore line of Nerravak Lagoon, 850 ft., more or less, to a point; Southerly, 600 ft., more or less, parallel to the said easterly line of the Presbyterian Mission Property to a point; Westerly, 940 ft. parallel to the southerly line of the Presbyterian Mission Property to a point, said point being in the southerly extension of the westerly line of the said Presbyterian Mission Property; Northerly, 460 ft. along said southerly extension of the westerly line of Presbyterian Mission Property to the southwest corner thereof; Easterly, 475 ft., more or less, along the southerly line of the Presbyterian Mission Property to the southeast corner thereof; Northerly, 475 ft., more or less, along the aforementioned easterly line of the Presbyterian Mission Property to the northeast corner thereof; Northerly, 30 ft., more or less, along the northerly extension of the said easterly line of the Presbyterian Mission Property, to the place of beginning. The tract as described contains an area of 14.1 acres, more or less. This order shall continue in full force and effect unless and until revoked by the President or by act of Congress. FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT The White House, May 15, 1933.
Executive Order 6132—Withdrawing Land for Army Radio Station
Executive Brief • At a Glance
The land hereinafter described be, and the same is hereby, withdrawn subject to valid existing rights as provided by the act of June 25, 1910 (36 Stat. 847-848), as amended by the act of August 24, 1912 (37 Stat. 497), for the use of the War Department as a site for the Army radio station at Point Barrow, Alaska: Beginning at a point in the shore line of Nerravak Lagoon, said point being in the northerly extension of the easterly line of the Presbyterian Mission Property and 30 ft., more or less, from the northeast comer thereof, in approximate latitude 71° 17.7', longitude 156° 30'.
Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis
Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.
Signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on May 15, 1933, this order concerns Withdrawing Land for Army Radio Station. The land hereinafter described be, and the same is hereby, withdrawn subject to valid existing rights as provided by the act of June 25, 1910 (36 Stat. 847-848), as amended by the act of August 24, 1912 (37 Stat. 497), for the use of the War Department as a site for the Army radio station at Point Barrow, Alaska: Beginning at a point in the shore line of Nerravak Lagoon, said point being in the northerly extension…
Key Directives & Operative Actions
The land hereinafter described be, and the same is hereby, withdrawn subject to valid existing rights as provided by the act of June 25, 1910 (36 Stat. 847-848), as amended by the act of August 24, 1912 (37 Stat. 497), for the use of the War Department as a site for the Army radio station at Point Barrow, Alaska: Beginning at a point in the shore line of Nerravak Lagoon, said point being in the northerly extension of the easterly line of the Presbyterian Mission Property and 30 ft., more or less, from the northeast comer thereof, in approximate latitude 71° 17.7', longitude 156° 30'.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
Policy Areas & Topics
The Framers' Constitutional Council
1787 PrismEvaluating this order against the constitutional debates of 1787 and the limits of Article II executive power.
"When the President acts in absence of either a congressional grant or denial of authority, he can only rely upon his own independent powers, but there is a zone of twilight in which he and Congress may have concurrent authority."
James Madison
Separation of Powers & Legislative Primacy
"Power is of an encroaching nature, and it ought to be effectually restrained from passing the limits assigned to it." — Federalist No. 48 (1788)
Madison would view this order with watchful scrutiny. Operating in the 'Zone of Twilight' where Congress is silent, each such directive establishes an administrative precedent that steadily expands the executive perimeter at the expense of legislative primacy.
Alexander Hamilton
The Energetic Executive & Unified Command
"The direction of war implies the direction of the common strength; and the power of directing and employing the common strength must be under the direction of the single hand of the Executive." — Federalist No. 74 (1788)
Hamilton would forcefully champion executive discretion here. For foreign entanglements, commerce defense, and national security, deliberative assemblies are too slow and faction-ridden. A unified, energetic Executive exercising swift command is precisely what the Philadelphia Convention intended for national preservation.
George Mason
Bill of Rights, Due Process & 10th Amendment
"The president will be surrounded by flatterers and sycophants... and the great powers of the executive will gradually absorb the liberties of the people." — Cato IV (Anti-Federalist, 1787)
The Anti-Federalist prism advises continuous democratic vigilance. Even routine administrative directives aggregate centralized federal power away from town halls and state assemblies toward a distant executive apparatus.
Five Measurable "Constitutional Friction" Dimensions
An objective audit measuring potential separation-of-powers tension against the United States Constitution and established Supreme Court doctrine.
Legislative Encroachment & Purse
Operates within delegated statutory execution without modifying legislative appropriations or taxing powers.
Executive Scope & Faithfulness
Exercises standard supervisory executive authority to faithfully execute existing statutes.
Federalism & State Sovereignty
Confined strictly to internal federal jurisdiction, federal property, or direct military command.
Due Process & Individual Rights
Focuses on internal governmental operations with no direct impairment of private rights or property.
Youngstown Jacksonian Tier
The order relies on inherent Article II executive discretion, civil service management, or foreign diplomacy where Congress has neither expressly approved nor prohibited action.
This order operates within Justice Jackson’s Zone of Twilight, resting upon concurrent presidential authority or congressional silence.
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 6132 (May 15, 1933), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-6132-withdrawing-land-for-army-radio-station.