Читать книгу America's National Parks At a Glance - Thomas Crochetiere Crochetiere - Страница 4

“America’s best idea” - our National Park units! On March 1, 1872, the United States Congress, under President Ulysses S. Grant, established Yellowstone National Park. Our first National Park, Yellowstone is located in what were then the Territories of Wyoming and Montana. This park was established “as a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people” to be administered by the Department of the Interior.

Due to poaching and destruction of natural resources, the U.S. Army arrived at Mammoth Hot Springs in 1886 and built Camp Sheridan for the protection of the Yellowstone National Park. Over the next 22-years, the army constructed permanent structures and Camp Sheridan was renamed Fort Yellowstone. During this time, the army developed their own policies and regulations that permitted public access while protecting wildlife and natural resources.

In the years following the establishment of Yellowstone National Park, the United States authorized additional National Parks and Monuments. Many of these parks were carved from federal lands in the west and were also placed under the control of the Secretary of the Interior. During this time, natural and historical areas and other monument areas were administered by the War Department and the U.S. Forest Service. No single agency provided unified management of the various federal parklands.

Additions to the National Park System are now generally made through acts of Congress and National Parks can only be created through such acts. Under the “Antiquities Act” of 1906, the President has authority to establish National Monuments on lands already managed by the U.S. government. Devils Tower in Wyoming was declared to be the first United States National Monument on September 23, 1906 by President Theodore Roosevelt using the Antiquities Act.

On August 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the “Organic Act” creating the National Park Service. This new federal bureau was still under the Department of the Interior and responsible for protecting the 35 National Parks and Monuments it managed and those yet to be established. The mission of the NPS is “to conserve the scenery and natural and historic objects and wildlife therein, and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.”

American industrialist and conservationist, Stephen Mather led a public campaign to promote the creation of this unified federal agency to oversee National Park administration. On May 16, 1917, Mather was appointed as the first Director of the National Park Service. He served in that capacity until January 8, 1929, during which time he created a professional civil service organization, increased the numbers of Parks and National Monuments and established systematic criteria for adding new properties to the federal system.

When the National Park Service was created, many of the management principles developed by the army were adopted by the NPS. On October 31, 1918, the army turned over control to the National Park Service, ending their roll with the parks.

In 1933, an Executive Order was signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt transferring 56 National Monument and Military sites from the War Department and Forest Service to the National Park Service. This action was a major step in the development of today’s National Parks System; a system that includes areas of historical as well as scenic and scientific importance.

In 1970, the “General Authorities Act” was signed to improve the administration of the National Park System. “Congress declares that the National Park System, which began with the establishment of Yellowstone National Park in 1872, has since grown to include superlative natural, historic, and recreation areas in every major region of the United States, its territories and island possessions; that these areas, though distinct in character, are united through their interrelated purposes and resources into one National Park System as cumulative expressions of a single national heritage; that, individually and collectively, these areas derive increased national dignity and recognition of their superb environmental quality through their inclusion jointly with each other in one National Park System preserved and managed for the benefit and inspiration of all the people of the United States; and that it is the purpose of this Act to include all such areas in the System and to clarify the authorities applicable to the system.”

The Department of the Interior’s National Park Service makes every effort to meet its original goals, while filling many other roles as well. The Park Service is the guardian of our diverse cultural and recreational resources; environmental advocate; partner in community revitalization; world leader in parks and preservation of community; and pioneer in the drive to protect America’s open space.

The founding of Yellowstone National Park began a worldwide National Park movement. Today, more than 100-nations contain some 1,200 National Parks or equivalent Preserves. The National Park Service employs more than 20,000-employees to care for America's National Parks. Along with the help of many volunteers, partners and communities across the nation; these parks help to preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities for all to enjoy.

As of 2016, the United States National Park Service oversees 410 park units. The number of units can vary and be misleading based on the language of the Congressional legislation when each park was created. For example, Denali National Park & Preserve is counted as two units, since the same name applies to a National Park and an adjacent National Preserve. Yet Jean Lafitte National Historical Park & Preserve is counted as one unit, despite having a similar designation as Denali.

Another example would be that Rainbow Bridge National Monument is counted as a unit, even though it is adjacent to the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. However, the Grand Canyon-Parashanat National Monument is not counted even though it is adjacent to the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

Elsewhere, Alcatraz Island National Historic Site is not counted as a unit because it is considered a feature of Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Other units like the Kern River National Wild & Scenic River are not counted at all since it is managed in partnership between the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Forest Service.

National Park units are comprised of National Battlefields; National Battlefield Parks; National Battlefield Site; National Historical Parks; National Historic Sites; National Lakeshores; National Memorials; National Military Parks; National Monuments; National Parks; National Parkways; National Preserves; National Recreation Areas; National Reserves; National Rivers; National Scenic Trails; National Seashores; National Wild and Scenic Rivers and Riverways; an International Historic Site and units of Other Designations. Units are found in all 50 states, including Washington, D.C., and in the U.S. territories of Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.

Listed by state and territory, this book gives you a glance at America’s unique and amazing National Park units. With nearly every listing, you will find contact information for each park. For more information about that park, you can write or call them.

You can also visit their website for additional information. Each parks website starts off with www.nps.gov. This is followed by a / then four (4) letters unique to that park. If there is only one name for the park such as Yellowstone [National Park] you will simply use the first four letters of that parks name to complete the web address. It will look like this; www.nps.gov/yell. Generally, if the park has two names such as Devils Tower [National Monument], you will use the first two letters of the first name and then the first two letters of the second name. It will look like this; www.nps.gov/deto.

Each park is responsible for maintaining their website and posting any “park alerts.” The site will also give you options to explore that park. It will give you information about planning your visit to their park, directions and maps, camping and lodging, ranger led programs and tours, and things to do. The site will give you an option to learn more about that park, as well as other useful information. It is a good idea to visit each park’s website prior to your visit so you can be better informed for your visit.

Visiting America’s National Park units can be some of the most enjoyable and least costly alternatives during your next vacation. Most National Park units are open year round and they offer almost every adventure you can imagine.

Entrance fees are charged by 127 of National Park units. If you are planning a trip that includes multiple National Parks, you might consider purchasing an Interagency Pass (annual pass) that provides entrance to all NPS units. This pass also covers the entry cost to more than 2,000 other federally managed lands such as the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Bureau of Reclamation. This pass is part of the “America the Beautiful – the National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass” series, the cost is $80 and is available to everyone.

This pass covers entrance and standard amenity fees for a driver and all passengers in a personal vehicle at per vehicle fee areas, or up to four adults at sites that charge per person. Children under the age of 16 are admitted for free. The Interagency Pass does not provide discounts on any other amenity fee charges for facilities and services such as camping, swimming, boat launch, cave tours, parking and interpretive programs. The pass generally does not cover or reduce special recreation permit fees or fees charged by the park concessioners and stores.

There are a variety of other passes available in this series. Annual passes for U.S. Military members and dependents; the 4^th grade pass; the Senior pass; an Access pass and a Volunteer pass may also be obtained. The military pass is available to U.S. military members and dependents of deployed military in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard and also, Reserve and National Guard members. The 4^th grade pass is available to U.S. 4^th Graders (including home-schooled and free-choice learners 10-years of age) with a valid Every Kid in the Park paper pass. The Senior pass is available to U.S. citizens or permanent residents age 62 or over. The cost of this pass is $10 and is good for the holder’s lifetime. The Access pass is available to U.S. citizens or permanent residents with permanent disabilities. There is no cost for this pass. The Volunteer pass is available for volunteers with 250 service hours with federal agencies that participate in the Interagency Pass program. The Senior and Access passes do provide a 50% discount for the pass owner only, on some expanded amenity fees charged for facilities and services such as camping, swimming, boat launch and specialized interpretive services, including cave tours.

The National Parks Service also provides “fee-free” days. Park entrance fees have risen across the country, so planning your visit in advance is a smart way to look for savings. The simplest way to avoid entrance costs is to take advantage of the designated fee-free days. The fee-free days are: Martin Luther King Jr. Day in January; Presidents Day weekend in February; National Park Week in April; National Park Service Birthday on August 25^th; National Public Lands Day on September 26^th and Veterans Day on November 11^th.

In 1986, the Eastern National Parks Association introduced the “Passport to Your National Parks” program. Today, most parks have one or more National Park Passport Stamps available at their visitor centers and these stamps serve as a record of your park visit. Each park visitor center may have a uniquely different stamp from their other visitor centers and you may wish to collect more than just one for each park.

National Park Passport Stamps are available at nearly all 410 park units. These stamps are similar to passport stamps stamped in a traveler’s national passport when visiting other countries and also look like postal cancellation stamps. The stamps are available at sites administered by the National Park Service, NPS affiliated sites, National Heritage areas and National Trails.

Collecting these stamps is a popular way to preserve memories of your visit to America’s National Parks. You can purchase a passport book at most National Park stores.

In 2016, the National Park Service celebrates its centennial. Eastern National has provided NPS Centennial stamps to most National Park units. You may also wish to collect the NPS Centennial stamp in addition to the parks regular stamp.

This book gives you an introduction to America’s amazing National Park units, including the many disbanded or redesignated units, as well as some proposed new park units. The goal of this book is for you to discover and/or rediscover America’s natural and cultural history. The Department of the Interior’s National Park Service does an incredible job in preserving, protecting, commemorating and sharing our collection of past, current and future treasures for generations to come. These park units are for you and all others to experience and enjoy. Your journey begins here…