The National Park Service, along with more than 430 NPS units throughout the country, celebrated its 108 birthday yesterday.
On August 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Organic Act. The act created the National Park Service and placed the 35 existing parks and monuments under its responsibility.
According to the act, NPS was created to “preserve unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations.”
Today, the park service manages over 400 national parks, monuments, seashores, historic sites, recreation areas and other sites. Combined, the sites reached a record number of 325.5 million visits last year. Park visitation helps drive the U.S. economy through what they call “Parkonomics,” with NPS reporting a contribution of over $50.3 billion to the U.S. economy in 2022.
“Over the past 108 years we have grown and shone thanks to the dedication of our employees, volunteers, and partners – and the passion of all Americans,” the service said in an official statement.
NPS invited the public to use #ParksThenAndNow to post old photos to showcase the evolution of the National Park System. Official park pages shared from their collections of historical and current images. “This campaign illustrates our commitment to conservation over the years and how millions of people continue to be active, learn something, and have fun in parks every day,” noted the NPS release.
Along with this “birthday” celebration, the park is celebrating the newest national park site. Springfield 1908 Race Riot National Monument was designated last week.
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