National Parks Born: Yosemite and Yellowstone Protected
Congress set aside Yosemite as a national park in 1890, following Yellowstone's designation eighteen years earlier. The move was radical: governments had never permanently locked away territory from commercial exploitation for the sole purpose of public enjoyment. John Muir's writings and lobbying convinced President Benjamin Harrison to sign the act, but the real fight was against railroads, ranchers, and timber companies who saw the Sierra Nevada as raw material. Yosemite's granite walls and giant sequoias survived because a Scottish-born naturalist argued that wilderness had value beyond board feet and cattle grazing. The national park model spread to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and eventually every continent. Today over 400 national parks exist in the United States alone.
October 1, 1890
136 years ago
Key Figures & Places
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