He wrote that they might be preserved “by some great protecting policy of government…in a magnificent park…a nation’s park, containing man and beast, in all the wild (ness) and freshness of their nature’s beauty”.
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As the National Park Service celebrates its 100th birthday on Thursday, the Department of the Interior is taking a step back to reflect on the story of America’s history and the importance of preserving the diverse cultures that the service is striving to portray.
“Saguaro National Park is grateful for the donation of this unique parcel of land along Rincon Creek”, said Ray O’Neil, acting superintendent of the park.
On August 25, 1916 President Woodrow Wilson signed a bill into law to create the National Park Service to oversee the already-established national parks and “such other national parks and reservations of like character as may be hereafter created by Congress”.
The time to get out and experience all that our national parks have to offer is now.
The United States Mint is also commemorating the anniversary with three limited-edition coins. About half of the infrastructure needs are for maintenance of park roads. But the park 300 miles northeast of Las Vegas will celebrate the centennial on Thursday by burying a time capsule and dedicating a new research telescope.
Admission to the Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site, the state’s national park for the arts, will remain free all weekend to celebrate the National Park Service’s centennial.
If you want to support programs and get involved, a list of upcoming 2016 park projects can be found here.
Other national parks and what makes them monumental will also be highlighted during the events.
Americans love their national parks.
Artist George Catlin is known as the person who formed the first ideas of national parks around 1832. Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir were among those involved with the effort.
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One-hundred years later, there are 412 sites within the park service. Those parks include: Crater Lake National Park in Oregon, Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota, Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado and the Chickasaw National Recreation Area in Oklahoma.
