![]() | Natural Museums: U.S. National Parks, 1872-1916 In 1872, the world's first national park was founded at Yellowstone. Although ideas of nature conservation were not embraced generally by the American public, five more parks were created before the turn of the century. By 1916, the year that the National Park Service was born, the country could boast of fourteen national parks, including such celebrated areas as Yosemite and Sequoia. Kathy Mason demonstrates that Congress, park superintendents, and the American public were forming general, often tacit notions of the parks' purpose before the new bureau was established. Kathy S. Mason is an Associate Professor of History at the University of Findlay, Ohio, and has published widely in the areas of environmental history, women's history, and social and cultural history. |
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