ALASKA By virtue of the authority vested in me by section 1 of the act of July 9, 1918, c. 143, 40 Stat. 845, 848 (U.S.C., title 10, sec. 1341), and as President of the United States, it is ordered that, subject to valid existing rights, the public lands in the following-described area be, and they are hereby, withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the public-land laws, including the mining laws, and reserved for the use of the War Department as an aerial bombing and gunnery range: FAIRBANKS MERIDIAN From said initial point, by metes and bounds, Northerly, between sees. 32 and 33; 28 and 29; 20 and 21; 221.92 chains, to corner of secs. 16, 17, 20, and 21; Thence westerly, between secs. 17 and 20; 18 and 19; 154.57 chains, to corner of secs. 13, 18, 19, and 24, Tps. 1 S., Rs. 1 E. and 1 W.; Thence westerly, between secs. 13 and 24, T. 1 S., R. 1 W., 79.98 chains, to corner of secs. 13, 14, 23, and 24; Thence southerly, between secs. 23 and 24; 25 and 26; 35 and 36; 225.61 chains, to meander corner between secs. 35 and 36 on the left bank of Tanana River; Thence easterly, down stream along the left bank of Tanana River, at mean highwater, to the confluence with Wood River; Thence westerly, up stream along the right bank of Wood River, at mean high water, to latitude 64°20' N.; Thence east, along the parallel of latitude 64°20' N., to the left bank of Tanana River; Thence northwesterly, down stream along the left bank of Tanana River, at mean high water, to a point due south of the meander corner between seos. 32 and 33, T. 1 S., R. 1 E., Fairbanks Meridian; Thence north, across the Tanana River to the meander corner between secs. 32 and 33, the point of beginning. The area described, including both public and non-public lands, aggregates 655,000 acres. FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT The White House, August 8, 1941.
Executive Order 8847—Withdrawing Public Lands for Use of the War Department as an Aerial Bombing and Gunnery Range
Executive Brief • At a Glance
Subject to valid existing rights, the public lands in the following-described area be, and they are hereby, withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the public-land laws, including the mining laws, and reserved for the use of the War Department as an aerial bombing and gunnery range: FAIRBANKS MERIDIAN From said initial point, by metes and bounds, Northerly, between sees. 32 and 33; 28 and 29; 20 and 21; 221.92 chains, to corner of secs. 16, 17, 20, and 21; Thence westerly, between secs. 17 and 20; 18 and 19; 154.57 chains, to corner of secs. 13, 18, 19, and 24, Tps. 1 S., Rs. 1 E. and 1 W.; Thence westerly, between secs. 13 and 24, T. 1 S., R. 1 W., 79.98 chains, to corner of secs. 13, 14, 23, and 24; Thence southerly, between…
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 August 8, 1941, this order concerns Withdrawing Public Lands for Use of the War Department as an Aerial Bombing and Gunnery Range. Subject to valid existing rights, the public lands in the following-described area be, and they are hereby, withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the public-land laws, including the mining laws, and reserved for the use of the War Department as an aerial bombing and gunnery range: FAIRBANKS MERIDIAN From said initial point, by metes and bounds, Northerly, between sees. 32 and 33; 28 and 29; 20 and 21…
Key Directives & Operative Actions
Subject to valid existing rights, the public lands in the following-described area be, and they are hereby, withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the public-land laws, including the mining laws, and reserved for the use of the War Department as an aerial bombing and gunnery range: FAIRBANKS MERIDIAN From said initial point, by metes and bounds, Northerly, between sees. 32 and 33; 28 and 29; 20 and 21; 221.92 chains, to corner of secs. 16, 17, 20, and 21; Thence westerly, between secs. 17 and 20; 18 and 19; 154.57 chains, to corner of secs. 13, 18, 19, and 24, Tps. 1 S., Rs. 1 E. and 1 W.; Thence westerly, between secs. 13 and 24, T. 1 S., R. 1 W., 79.98 chains, to corner of secs. 13, 14, 23, and 24; Thence southerly, between…
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
Engages state and local partners in cooperative federalism programs.
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. 8847 (Aug. 8, 1941), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-8847-withdrawing-public-lands-for-use-the-war-department-aerial-bombing.