Dates: Tuesday, September 1st or Thursday, September 3rd

Location:  See your e-mail for the Zoom link!

Website: https://tnstateparks.com/parks/booker-t-washington

During the 1800s, Americans adhered to the idea of ‘Manifest Destiny’, to expand westward ‘from sea to shining sea’. As they expanded, they encountered the stunning wilderness of the West, from Wyoming's Yellowstone River to California’s Yosemite Valley. Early travelers and writers, like naturalist John Muir, brought the wonders of the West’s wild places to those who had never seen them. Muir and others like him helped to inspire a sort of national pride in the wilderness of America. 

California's very own Yosemite was very much at the center of the movement to establish a National Parks Service. It was given to the state of California as a protected space during the Civil War, eight years before the country's first National Park was established!

In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln responded to their pressure by creating the Yosemite Grant Act to protect land in the Yosemite Valley. The Yosemite Act set a precedent for the creation of the national parks. It was the first time the U.S. federal government had set aside land specifically for preservation and public use.

When we think of the National Park Service, we often think immediately of Theodore Roosevelt, but the first National Park was actually established under President Ulysses S. Grant. Grant, who had been one of Lincoln's generals during the Civil War, along with Congress, established the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act in 1872. The bill’s creators envisioned a “pleasuring ground” for the enjoyment of all Americans—except for Native Americans, who would be effectively excluded from park land.

President Ulysses S. Grant signed the landmark bill into law on March 1, making Yellowstone America’s—and the world’s—first national park.

The Act, which set aside 1,221,773 acres of public land in the future states of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho, broke with the established policy of transferring public lands in the West to private ownership.

The Yellowstone National Park Protection Act says “the headwaters of the Yellowstone River … is hereby reserved and withdrawn from settlement, occupancy, or sale … and dedicated and set apart as a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people.” In an era of expansion, the federal government had the foresight to set aside land deemed too valuable in natural wonders to develop.

To read the entire Act, you can click here: https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/management/yellowstoneprotectionact1872.htm

After Yellowstone, more national parks followed, including Mackinack National Park (now a Michigan state park), Sequoia National Park, Kings Canyon, and Yosemite National Park (up until then, Yosemite was still a state park managed by the state of California).

You can read an article about their trip here: http://www.yosemite.ca.us/library/yosemite/56-3.pdf

President Theodore Roosevelt was one of the park system’s greatest patrons. During his administration (1901-09) five new parks were created, as well as 18 national monuments, four national game refuges, 51 bird sanctuaries, and over 100 million acres of national forest. In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Antiquities Act, which gave presidents the authority to create national monuments to preserve areas of natural or historic interest on public lands. The purpose of the Act was largely to protect prehistoric Native American ruins and artifacts.

This week for our reading, we have a longer virtual tour talking about the Donner Party and the tragedy that befell their group, as well as the Stephens-Murphy Townsend journey. Chances are high you’ve heard of the first group but likely not the second! Before we get to the video, here are some helpful maps and documentation. The guide in the first video (at the end of this reading) will show very similar materials and reference them, but it’s helpful to have them available while she talks, if you want to orient yourself on the journey. 

In 1892, President Benjamin Harrison had preserved one square mile in the Arizona Territory surrounding the Casa Grande Ruins—an archaeological site once inhabited by the ancient Sonoran Desert people. But Roosevelt helped push along the idea that unique sites should be saved from development for future enjoyment.

After the nation established national parks, many states moved to further preserve important places and spaces. 

Check out this brief overview of the development of state parks (you can also read it here: https://www.americasstateparks.org/history-of-state-parks/

The Beginning: Yosemite Valley Grant (1864)

In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Yosemite Grant Act, transferring Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Big Tree Grove to the State of California. This marked the first time any government set aside scenic land specifically for public use and recreation. The concept of “public parks” was revolutionary.

Early Growth: 1900s–1930s

The early 20th century saw states across the country beginning to establish their own park systems. New York created the nation’s first state park commission in 1885 to protect the Adirondacks and Niagara Falls. By the 1920s, most states had at least one designated state park.

The New Deal era of the 1930s transformed state parks forever. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built lodges, trails, shelter houses, and swimming areas in hundreds of parks. Many of these stone-and-timber structures still serve visitors today and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Post-War Boom: 1950s–1970s

The post-war population boom and the rise of automobile culture drove massive expansion. The Mission 66 program for national parks had a parallel effect on state parks: states invested heavily in campgrounds, day-use areas, and boating facilities to meet surging demand.

Modern Era: Challenges & Growth

Today, America’s state parks protect over 18 million acres and welcome nearly 800 million visits annually – roughly twice the visitation of all national parks combined. Despite chronic underfunding and a maintenance backlog exceeding $20 billion, state parks remain the most accessible gateway to nature for most Americans.

Tennessee founded its own state park system in 1937 to preserve the unique natural, cultural, and historic resources of the area. The state is one of the most biodiverse island states in North America, with a variety of natural landscapes. A few quick statistics:

• Tennessee State Parks boast more than 1,100 miles of trails

• they offer 36 campgrounds 

• 6 different lodges

• 9 golf courses

• 80 waterfalls!

You can read more about the parks program here: https://tnstateparks.com/about

Booker T. Washington State Park

We will be visiting with the Booker T. Washington State Park in Tennessee to talk about the life of a park ranger. But here is a little background about the park namesake and the park itself!

The state park was initially largely built by African American units of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) during the Great Depression. To read more about the work of the CCC, you can click here: https://www.history.com/articles/civilian-conservation-corps

Originally, the park was intended for use by only Black Americans, as part of the segregation efforts of the South. It remained a segregated park until the Civil Rights Act of 1064 banned discrimination in public accommodations. 

Read more about the park itself, and its history, here: https://tnstateparks.com/parks/booker-t-washington/highlights

Join us this week to talk to rangers from the wonderful park! See you soon!

https://www.ada.gov/ada_intro.htm

https://www.disabled-world.com/disability/statistics/american-disability.php

https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/disabilityandhealth/disability-strategies.html

https://tnstateparks.com/inspiration/tennessee-state-parks-and-the-history-of-tennessee

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booker_T._Washington_State_Park_(Tennessee)