EXPLORATION, ENCOUNTER, EXCHANGE IN HISTORY
A crisis in the competition between conservationist and business
interests came when the city of San Francisco lobbied to dam
Yosemite’s Hetchy Valley to create a reservoir. Strict natural
preservationists like John Muir called on Congress to ban the
dam, to preserve the area’s natural wilderness. In 1913, however,
Congress permitted that dam to be built. Preservationists came to
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the conclusion that a centralized agency was needed to oversee
and coordinate management of national parks.
ealthy businessman and park preservation supporter
Stephen T. Mather was called on by the secretary of the
Interior in 1915 to serve as his assistant regarding park affairs.
Horace M. Albright was appointed as Mather’s aide. Mather and
Albright set to work to promote the creation of a national parks
bureau, pointing to the economic benefits of tourism in national
parks through a media campaign in magazines and railroad
tourism publications. In 1916, Congress would respond to that
campaign, passing the Organic Act, which created the National
Park Service. Stephen T. Mather was selected by Secretary of
the Interior Franklin K. Lane to serve as the Park Service’s
first director.
The first 100 years of the National Park Service would see eras
where presidents favored expansion and establishment of new
parks and areas, as well as periods under other administrations
more interested in maintaining and preserving existing parks. A
major 10-year initiative instituted in the 1950s, known as Mission
66, sought to rebuild park infrastructure and create new visitor
centers that provide expanded exhibits, audiovisual programs and
other public services. President Jimmy Carter signed the Alaska
National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980, which would
double the size of the National Park System by adding over 47
million acres of wilderness to its management. As we approach
the 100th anniversary of the Organic Act, the National Park
Service has recommitted to connecting with the public
and re-establishing itself as the world’s largest informal
educational agency.
This article has drawn much of its content from “The National
Park Service: A Brief History,” by Barry Mackintosh.
(Top) The Wawona Tunnel Tree, Yosemite National Park, 1929
National Park Service Historic Photograph Collection / Henry G. Peabody
(Middle) Sylvan Lake, Yellowstone National Park, 1916
National Park Service Historic Photograph Collection / Haynes
(Bottom) Grand Teton National Park, 1960s
National Park Service Historic Photograph Collection
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