Americans love David vs. Goliath stories, and more than a half-century ago, a solitary Monroe County housewife took on the federal government and won.

Her name - Nancy Michael Shukaitis. She lived much of her life in an 18th century homestead along the Delaware River in Smithfield Township near Shawnee, where she and her husband, Joe, raised four children. Shukaitis died on March 4, the day after her 96th birthday. Joe died in 2014 at the age of 89. The Shukaitises had been married for 67 years.

Shukaitis was not born an activist, nor was she a bra-burning feminist of the 1960s, but in her own quiet way she became an inspiration because of what she was able to accomplish. She didn’t do it by screaming profanities at government officials; she did it with a low-key consensus-building and a research-driven approach, which ultimately won the admiration of even her fiercest critics.

Following the death and destruction of the devastating 1955 flooding that accompanied the aftermath of Hurricane Diane, pressure built on the federal government to do something about the destruction that occurred in the Delaware River Basin. There had been talk of a dam across the Delaware as far back as 1933, but it remained largely talk until the big flood.

So was born the proposal to build a dam near Tocks Island, which would span the Delaware 6 miles north of the Delaware Water Gap. Although it would require the acquisition of acres of prime farmland and the lands once roamed by the Lenni Lenapes in Monroe and Pike counties in Pennsylvania and Warren and Sussex counties in New Jersey, the government cited studies that showed the cost-benefit ratio would favor construction of the dam and bring with it thousands of good-paying jobs, lessen the impact of future disastrous floods and provide a more sustainable clean drinking water supply for New York City and Philadelphia.

When completed, the dam would have created a 37-mile lake between the two states with a depth of up to 140 feet. Surrounding the lake, the government envisioned a massive playground for fishermen, hunters, bikers, boaters, hikers and others hungry for outdoor activity in a pristine surrounding. This project would be known as the Tocks Island National Recreation Area and was pitched as one of the East Coast gems operated by the National Park Service.

Although the projects were embraced by unions and the business community, the federal government was also confronted by angry local residents who did not want to move from their bucolic paradise and by environmentalists who were convinced that such a massive dam project would do incalculable damage to this Pocono paradise.

To make a long story short, the dam was never built - thanks largely to Nancy Shukaitis, who led a cadre of bistate opponents to protests and hearings. It started when she went to Washington to testify at a congressional hearing on the proposed project and found she was the only one to speak against it, She asked that a hearing be held locally for the convenience of residents but was reprimanded by the committee chair who scoffed at the notion of holding hearings in every “nook and cranny.”

Never wavering from that humble start, Shukaitis and her allies fought the project until they won the day, but the 72,000 acres that the government had acquired through condemnation and eminent domain became what is today the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Among those acquisitions were the Shukaitis family homestead and farm.

Shukaitis was one of the lead organizers of the Delaware River Conservation Association, which had strong allies in New Jersey Govs. William Cahill and his successor, Brendan Byrne. The group’s rallying cry became “Nix on Tocks.” She also was co-founder of the Save the Delaware Coalition and the Lenni Lenape League.

In 1975, the Delaware River Basin Commission voted 4-1 against building the dam because of not only the stiff opposition but also funding problems and concerns over the safety of an earthen dam at that location. In addition, alternatives had been found to flood control and maintaining safe drinking water for the big cities. Only Pennsylvania voted for the project. The dam was not fully deauthorized, however, until 2002.

In 1967, Shukaitis was the first woman elected to the office of Monroe County Commissioner, where she served for 16 years, the last eight as board chair.

Shukaitis was awarded he Environmental Stewardship Award by the National Park Service for a “lifetime of public service.”

Lehigh University houses the “Nancy Shukaitis Papers,” which chronicle her struggle against the federal government. “Nancy Shukaitis’ acts of resistance protected a scenic landmark from destruction, and her efforts can be appreciated more today than ever before,” wrote Lehigh authors Rachael Bucci and Berto Sicard.

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com

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