1938: National Parks And Monuments

Additions for National Parks.

Olympic National Park.

Olympic National Park, established June 29, 1938, is located on the Olympic Peninsula in northwestern Washington State. The park has as its nucleus the former Mount Olympus National Monument, which was established in 1909 by President Theodore Roosevelt. The setting aside of this area is the result of a long and bitter light to save the finest remnant of the great forests of the Pacific Northwest. The Act creating this newest national park provides for immediate inclusion of 648,000 acres (1,012.5 square miles), or nearly twice the area of the National Monument, and authorizes the President to add lands from Olympic National forest and any lands that may be acquired by gift or purchase to a total of 898,292 acres. Rugged ice-capped peaks, numerous glaciers, and dark but vividly green 'rain forests' of giant moss-festooned spruce and fir are among notable features of the region, which is also the summer feeding ground of the rare Roosevelt elk.

In June 1938, a tract of 203,965 acres in Colorado and Utah was added to the original 80 acres of Dinosaur National Monument.

An addition of 86 square miles was authorized also in June 1938, for Hawaii National Park in the Territory of Hawaii, which will include 12 miles of ocean shore and areas of historic, archaeological, and scenic interest.

A particularly significant addition of 7,200 acres on the western boundary of Yosemite National Park was made July 9, 1937. This tract contains a representative stand of the rare sugar pines which grow only in California and Oregon and have been ruthlessly cut down by commercial interests because of their great lumber value. These trees attain a height of 240 ft. with an 8- or 9-ft. diameter and rank in spectacular beauty with the redwoods.

The area of Death Valley National Monument was enlarged to 1,907,720 acres on March 2, 1937; and, on Sept. 7, 1937, the entire area of Bedloe's Island in New York Harbor was added to the Statue of Liberty National Monument, which formerly had comprised only the 2½ acres actually occupied by the statue.

Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial National Monument.

Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial National Monument, on Lake Erie near Port Clinton, Ohio, was established July 6, 1936; area, 14 acres. It commemorates the famous victory of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry over the British fleet in the Battle of Lake Erie, Sept. 10, 1813; and also the 100 years peace between the United States and Great Britain, which had been consummated when the Perry Memorial was dedicated in 1913.

Yellowstone National Park.

Yellowstone National Park was the first National Park to be established in this country and was the first as such to be set aside in the entire world. It was established by President Grant, March 1, 1872, 'for the benefit and enjoyment of the people.' Yellowstone is still the largest of our national parks, comprising (June 30, 1938) 3,471.51 square miles and extending into Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. Sequoia, established Sept. 25, 1890, to preserve groves and forests of California Big Trees, was the second National Park to be set aside and was followed quickly by the establishment on Oct. 1, 1890, of both the adjacent General Grant National Park and Yosemite.

National Monuments Recently Established.

Fort Laramie National Monument.

Fort Laramie National Monument was established by presidential proclamation in July 1938. It includes 214 acres at the fork of the Laramie and North Platte rivers in eastern Wyoming. The original old fort was established in 1834 as a trading post. It became a military station on the Oregon Trail and an outfitting base for pioneers, when the great migration to the Pacific Coast began in the 1840's, and is particularly famous for its association with such romantic characters in the building of the West as Kit Carson, Jim Bridger, 'Buffalo Bill,' General John C. Fremont, and Captain Bonneville.

Channel Islands National Monument.

Channel Islands National Monument includes parts of the Anacapa and Santa Barbara islands off the coast of Southern California; area, 581.76 acres; was established by proclamation, April 26, 1938. The islands are noteworthy because of fossil remains of Pleistocene elephants, examples of ancient volcanism and unusual marine life.

Joshua Tree National Monument.

Joshua Tree National Monument, located south of the Mojave Desert in California; established Aug. 10, 1936; area, 837,480 acres; contains among other examples of unusual desert flora a representative stand of the rare and rapidly diminishing Joshua-tree. These fantastic 'trees' belong to the lily family and attain a height of 10 to 30 ft.

Pipestone National Monument.

Pipestone National Monument, situated near Pipestone, Minnesota; established Aug. 25, 1937; area, 115.39 acres; is notable for its many historical associations, but particularly for the stone quarry from which the Indians obtained the material for the peace pipes they used in their ceremonies.

Capitol Reef National Monument.

Capitol Reef National Monument, near Richfield, Utah, northeast of Bryce Canyon National Park; established Aug. 2, 1937; area, 37,060 acres; is named for the dome-shaped formations of white sandstone which crown lower strata of reddish-brown in a colorful and geologically important buttressed cliff which extends for approximately twenty miles within the boundary of the monument. Area also includes fossils, imprints of prehistoric animals, petrified trees, and cliff dwellings.

Zion National Monument.

Zion National Monument, in southwestern Utah; established Jan. 22, 1937; area, 49,150 acres; has as its principal feature the comparatively 'young' geological formation known as Kolob Canyon. The great red sandstone cliffs in this canyon are even more vivid in color than cliffs in Zion National Park. Another feature is the famous Hurricane Fault, showing cliffs that were thrust up to a height exceeding 300 ft. by splitting of the earth's crust.

Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.

Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in southwestern Arizona; established by proclamation April 13, 1937; area, 330,687 acres; contains unusually fine examples of the picturesque Organ Pipe Cactus as well as other unique forms of native plant and animal life. The historic Camino del Diablo passes through the Monument.

Ocmulgee National Monument.

Ocmulgee National Monument, situated near Macon, Georgia; established Dec. 23, 1936; area, 688.48 acres; includes Indian mounds which are significant because of the light they have shed on Indian civilization in the southeast before the arrival of the white man.

Number of National Parks and Monuments.

There are 27 National Parks under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service, with a total area of 14,802.46 square miles, or 9,473,572,569 acres (as of Oct. 1, 1938). This includes Hawaii National Park in the Territory of Hawaii and Mount McKinley National Park in Alaska.

With the establishment of Fort Laramie National Park, there are 74 National Monuments, totaling 12,791.84 square miles, or 8,186,779.27 acres.

National Park Attendance.

During the travel year ending September 1937, 8,783,289 recorded persons visited the National Parks and Monuments, representing an average of approximately 1 out of every 15 persons in the entire country and a 440 per cent increase in attendance over 1927.

A primary reason for the phenomenal increase in National Park and Monument attendance is the concentrated attention being paid by the National Park Service to the development of camping, picnicking, and other year-around recreational facilities within the areas which may be enjoyed by the public, but under the strictest supervision to prevent their abuse.

National Historical Parks.

A classification of Parks to be known as National Historical Parks has been authorized by Congress to bring Revolutionary Battle areas under the supervision of the National Park Service. The first of these parks, at Morristown, N.J., was the site of General Washington's headquarters during 1779-80 and the site of important military encampments during the Revolution. Colonial National Monument was changed to Colonial Historical Park in 1936. This Park includes Yorktown, where in 1781 Cornwallis surrendered. A third Historical Park was authorized June 1, 1938, to be established at Saratoga, N. Y., where the surrender of General Burgoyne's army to General Horatio Gates, on Oct. 17, 1777, presaged Colonial victory in the Revolution.

By an Act of Congress known as the Historic Sites Legislation, the Secretary of the Interior is vested with authority to designate historic sites of national significance to be administered by the National Park Service. The first site so designated is Salem Maritime; established March 17, 1938; area, 8,609 acres; located at Salem, Mass. It will commemorate the most flourishing epoch in New England maritime history, the period when Salem was pioneering in opening up trade with the Far East. The old Customs House, where Nathaniel Hawthorne worked, is also included.

National Parkways.

National Parkways are a new cooperative Federal and state undertaking of important recreational as well as scenic value. For these the state furnishes the necessary right of way and scenic easement, and the actual construction funds are appropriated by the Federal Government and are administered under the direction of the National Park Service. The completed Mount Vernon Highway, following the Potomac River and connecting Washington, D. C., with Mount Vernon, is the first link in the projected George Washington Memorial Parkway. The Blue Ridge Parkway, the longest single-unit recreational parkway now planned in the United States, will extend approximately 480 miles and connect Shenandoah National Park with Great Smoky National Park. Natchez Trace Parkway, approximately following the old Natchez Trace Indian Trail, will extend 466 miles from Nashville, Tenn., to Natchez, Miss.

Recreational Demonstration Projects.

Of inestimable importance in national recreation has been the establishment of 46 Recreational Demonstration Projects. These projects located in 24 states and comprising 354,787 acres (June 30, 1938) were established between June 16, 1933, and June 29, 1937. They are classified according to the following types:

1. Vacation areas for low income groups in adjacent cities and rural sections.

2. Wayside developments providing facilities for picnicking.

3. Possible additions to existing National Parks and National Monuments.

4. Scenic areas adjoining State recreational lands for possible addition to State Park Systems.

Thirty-two of the areas are being developed primarily for organized camping because of the increasing recognition of the educational value of this type of recreation for adults as well as for children.

Boulder Dam National Recreational Area is another innovation under the supervision of the National Park Service. It was established Oct. 13, 1936, and includes 1,699,573 acres in Nevada and Arizona. Boulder Dam and Lake Mead, which is 115 miles long and is the largest artificial lake in the world, are within the area. Cliffs surrounding the dam and the lake and also a canyon are utilized by the public for recreational purposes.

The United States Tourist Bureau was established, Feb. 4, 1937, within the Department of the Interior as a division of the National Park Service. This bureau is making an important contribution in the fields of recreation, economic welfare, and international relations by distributing literature, maps, and other travel information supplied by the Federal Government, by states, and by private interests in the United States. Its first field office is at 45 Broadway, New York City. Traveling and permanent exhibits will be supervised by the bureau, which will also produce motion pictures in English and foreign languages. During the first year a series of weekly short-wave programs were broadcast to Europe and South America featuring travel attractions of each of the 48 states.

Federal and State Cooperation.

A plan of Federal and state cooperation inaugurated in 1933 under the National Park Service has developed an effective nation-wide system for the master planning and achievement of state, county, and municipal Park, Parkway, and Recreational-Area projects. During the period between Oct. 1, 1936, and Sept. 13, 1937, the National Park Service cooperated with 152 separate state, county, and municipal park administrative agencies in developing 543 different areas totaling 1,244,713.72 acres in 47 states (Delaware not included). This cooperative project is resulting in a definite park and recreation program for the entire nation.