Ideals and Controversies of National Park Expansion Since the early 1920s to the 1970s, there has been a debate regarding the perceptions and standards by which national parks should be established and limiting the expansion of national parks, limiting access for people living in urban areas and threatening open spaces due to urban sprawl and over population. Gradually traditional perceptions gave way to the preservationists’ viewpoints which redefined and gradually expanded federal definition of national parks. This was to include areas that may not be extraordinarily scenic but still required environmental protection or allowed recreational access for urban citizens, allowing for expansion and more funding. In 1872, Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming became the first national park to be established by Congress and President Grant with the signing of the Act of Dedication Law. “It followed that any national park established subsequently would be measured against Yellowstone’s significance in American culture.” (Runte, 2010, p. 190) This is based on its impressive geological features, and majestic and monumental scenery. By the early 1900s, there was controversy surrounding the criteria as to what would define a national park, as President Roosevelt had signed in several tracts of lands as national parks that did not hold scenic value, where not especially expansive tracts of land, and one was utilized as a gaming preserve by a governmental branch. One proponent to the
From what I had learned, Yellowstone National Park was the first national park ever to be established in the world. It had over 3,500 square miles of beautiful scenery and wildlife. The park itself was mostly located in Wyoming, however, less than 5% was located in Montana and Idaho. Yellowstone has been a park since March 1st, 1872, and since then there have been hundreds of thousands of tourists that go there each year to see the amazing things it has to offer. Old Faithful, one of Yellowstone's main attractions, is a
“The human history of the Yellowstone region goes back more than 11,000 years. From then until to the very recent past, many groups of Native Americans used the park as their homes, hunting grounds, and transportation routes. These traditional uses of Yellowstone lands continued until a little over 200 years ago when the first people of European descent found their way into the park. In 1872 a country that had not yet seen its first centennial, established Yellowstone as the first national park in the world. A new concept was born and with it a new way for people to preserve and protect
In the United States, there are millions of acres of land dedicated to our national parks. Over half of the states in our country have land dedicated to national parks, and according to Linda J. Bilmes and John Loomis, the National Parks Service protects 412 of these places. The amount of land dedicated to these parks is quite a considerable amount and it has drawn the attention of the federal government. The government believes there should be cut backs on the amount of land dedicated to places such as Yellowstone and Ellis Island. However, if these parks, monuments, etc. were to be reduced in size, the United States would lose protection of a magnitude of important things such as areas of land and water, animal habitats, historical sites, monuments, and areas sacred to
Yellowstone is the worlds first national park. It was origanally home to Native Americans who lived in the Yellowstone area for at least 11,000 years.The U.S. Army was first commissioned to oversee the park just after its establishment in late 1960. In 1917, administration of the park was transferred to the National Park Service. Yellowstone National Park spans an area of 3,468.4 square miles (8,983 km2), mostly comprising lakes, rivers canyons and mountain ranges. The national park is located primarily in the state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the U.S. Congressand signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872.
All around the world we have National Parks that are protected areas by the government. John Muir was enraptured by it and Ansell Adame immortalized it, while Teddy Roosevelt created the National Park Service to protect these National Parks. These nationals parks are very important to keep for the environment, we all need to work together to keep these parks as nature as possible.
Theodore Roosevelt created the National Parks Service in hopes of preserving natural land for future generations. The National Parks Service provides services including land management, fire control, animal populations, air quality, water quality, hiking trails, and campsites.
“Conservation laws” (document 8) positively impacted the environment, especially the National Conservation Commision (1909) which was put in place to conserve US natural resources. The National Reclamation Act raised money from the sale of public lands which funded irrigation programs in western states. This Act was installed by Theodore Roosevelt in 1902 “to increase” the land’s “usefulness” (document 6), the irrigation systems allowed crops, animals, and people to prosper. In addition, perhaps the most important act, the National Park Service Act which was enacted in 1916 by Woodrow Wilson after he expressed that “we have not stopped to conserve the exceeding bounty of nature (document 2). The Act was put in place to conserve “scenery”, “natural and historic landmarks”, “wildlife therein” and to “provide enjoyment for future generations”(The National Park Service Act). Environmental issues in the Gilded Age such as resources depletion, ecosystem destruction, air pollution, and public land exploitation all lead to the environmental reforms of the Progressive
The idea to preserve America’s greatest natural landmarks through a national park system began decades before the creation of the National Park Service. On June 30, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln signed a law preserving the Yosemite Valley of California, a piece of land over a thousand miles away, a place Lincoln had never seen. Yosemite, at the time, was not considered a national park. The first national park anywhere was created under President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872 when Yellowstone National Park received designation. The original preservation of Yellowstone contained more than two million acres of land in the northwestern corner of Wyoming. In 1889 Congress authorized the President to reserve the land where Casa Grande Ruin
Yellowstone National Park is one of the largest and oldest national parks in American history. Yellowstone was the first park to be protected by private investment on March 1, 1872, and the first to be put under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service in 1918, no doubt due to its unique and inspiring landscape and geothermal features. In fact, Yellowstone National Park is home to half of the world’s total hydrothermal features. These awesome attractions draw an incredible amount of visitors, an average of two to three million each year, to Yellowstone’s immense landscape. The park has a total size of 28,125 square miles, is found in three distinct states, and is considered to be one of the largest
It is believed that Native Americans inhabited the lands of what is now Yellowstone National Park for more than 11,000 years, until approximately 200 years ago, when European settlers began to drive many of them from their homelands. In 1872 Yellowstone was declared the world’s first national park as a way to preserve and protect the land for the “benefit and enjoyment of future generations.” (National Park Service) Yellowstone National Park covers a vast area in the Northwestern United States. Its landscape is very complex and ever changing thanks to the many geological forces that are found there. In fact, the unique geological features such as the geysers, hot springs, steam vents, among many others, are what lead to
The National Park Service was created in 1916 and was passed by congress through the National Park Service Organic Act. The National Park Service protected Americas National Parks. Today The National parks bring tourists to see how beautiful
The National Park Service (NPS) plays a gargantuan role in the preservation of many national parks, monuments, and historical sites. But most recently the government proposed significant budget cuts to the NPS, which will reduce financial support for preserving national parks, monuments, historical sites, and the programs that teach kids about nature and history. Keeping these national parks and monuments busy and wellfunded is imperative because without those Americans will be losing an important historical insight of the initiation that the country was built on. Although, some may debate that the government should not fund the NPS because it takes control away from the locals, it is important that NPS is funded because it will ensure the
After the civil war, America worked diligently on a way to recreate a national identity and national pride; however, the country was in disarray - rapid migration into cities caused overpopulation, widespread diseases, and horrendous living conditions. This highlighted the separation of the country, people wanted to forget and move past the Civil War; however, it appeared as if no one knew where to start. Manifest Destiny - being the belief that Americans have a divine right over the land influenced the decision to establish national parks, as well as clean up the cities. National parks were the way in which the country healed; they created a sense of American pride in their beauty and grandeur, while the muckraking journalism called to maintain the identity national parks created.
The website for the national and state park systems helps to enlighten the public on the subject of impending changes in policy and regulations, as well as new developments in different parks. Due to this, the parks and recreation districts judge that individuals and families will be more agreeable to the idea of traveling to parks in different states because of the easy accessibility of directions and information about the parks. Owing to the latest rise in interest of campgrounds and recreation areas, there has been an increase in funds. This new revenue has made possible the purchase of more parkland throughout the United States. Without prevailing use of the Internet, this most likely would not have been possible. The East Bay Park District has been able to purchase 1,476 of land. This is the single largest acquisition that the Park has made in over twenty years. The York Center Park District been able to purchase and protect a 20-acre area in the last five years. This is the largest area they manage. With the acquisition of supplementary parkland, it is more likely that this land will continue in its natural condition and not be converted into an urbanized region.
Our nations incredible 401 National Parks are some of the most iconic places on the face of the earth. From the Grand Canyon to the Great Smoky Mountains our nation's national parks are something we should be proud to have. Lately our National Parks have been under threat from both Environmental and Political issues both putting our National Parks at risk. We need preserve the National Parks for generations to come. The National Parks show the most amazing parts of this great nation, they are the source of billions of dollars in revenue, and they are the home to countless forms of wildlife.