Today, I am thankful for an immigrant who helped our nation preserve nature.
My eyes have gazed upon some of the most beautiful places on this Earth. The stunning ruins of Rome, the spectacular sunsets of Santorini, the awe-inspiring beauty of the Taj Mahal, and the breath-taking temples of Kyoto top my list. However, of all the places I’ve visited, nothing truly compares to California’s Yosemite Valley. Its expansive meadows are surrounded by immense rock formations that permit the trickling of water down from the heavens. Its towering, ancient sequoias offer a tranquil landscape that quickly reminds you how small one truly is. Thanks to a Scottish immigrant named John Muir, this son of Greek immigrants can relish it for himself and his future progeny.
John Muir immigrated to the United States when he was only 11 years old. He went to school at the University of Wisconsin in Madison and thereafter traveled extensively throughout the country. He ultimately settled in San Francisco, but his many earlier trips and the trek to California made him appreciate the natural, awe-inspiring beauty of this country. While in San Francisco, he authored many essays and a dozen books on his adventures in nature, and, as the founder of the Sierra Club, he actively advocated for the preservation of key natural sights, such as Yosemite Valley and Sequoia National Park. His stories conjured up national pride for the natural beauty of the country and harkened many to travel to see these lands. His efforts helped galvanize other advocates to seek preservation of many national parks and monuments throughout the US, so that future generations might admire these stunning landscapes. Yosemite was first protected in 1864, and Yellowstone was designated as the first national park in 1872. Then, in 1916, President Woodrow Wilson established the National Park Service, ultimately consolidating the management of America’s parks into one Agency. Thereafter, on this day (Feb 26) in 1919, both the Grand Canyon and Acadia were added as National Parks. The Grand Tetons followed suit on this same day a decade later in 1929.
Today more than 22,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 417 national parks over a span of ~85 million acres. On average, 330 million people visit a National Park every year. That’s nearly equivalent to the entire size of the US population.
As historian Walter Stegner put it best, “The national parks are the best idea we ever had. Absolutely American, absolutely democratic, they reflect us at our best rather than our worst.”
Go demonstrate your gratitude for this idea: Go visit one of these amazing parks very soon.
Comments