“Yosemite Valley, to me, is always a sunrise, a glitter of green and golden wonder in a vast edifice of stone and space.”
-Ansel Adams, American photographer
-Ansel Adams, American photographer
Yosemite Valley
Rise to Fame
In the mid-19th century, Yosemite Valley in California attracted many explorers and entrepreneurs, bringing the area out of anonymity.
"In 1855, a second group of white people led by James Mason Hutchings entered Yosemite Valley. Hutchings hoped to make a fortune by promoting California's scenic wonders and running a tourist hotel in the valley. In 1859, Hutchings returned to Yosemite with a photographer. News and images of the incomparable beauty of Yosemite quickly spread, bringing more tourists to the area."
-Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in National Parks: America's Best Idea |
-Bruce H. Hamilton, Deputy Executive Director of the Sierra Club, in a personal interview
"[Yosemite is] the greatest glory of nature... the union of the deepest sublimity with the deepest beauty."
-Frederick Law Olmsted, designer of New York City's Central Park
-Frederick Law Olmsted, designer of New York City's Central Park
Establishment of Yosemite State Park
Meanwhile, loggers were actively cutting down Giant Sequoias; many environmentalists feared the safety of Mariposa Grove within Yosemite Valley.
-Bruce Hamilton [on the reasons for establishing Yosemite] in a personal interview
"On May 17, 1864, Senator John Conness of California... introduced a bill to Congress that proposed something totally unprecedented in human history: setting aside a large tract of natural scenery for the future enjoyment of everyone."
-National Parks: America's Best Idea -Bruce Hamilton in a personal interview
|
|
Impact
"On June 30, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln signed an act of Congress ceding the Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias to the state of California."
-National Parks: America's Best Idea The establishment of Yosemite State Park was monumental in the sense that it was one of the first areas to be set aside for preservation. It would pave the way for the preservation of many other areas, natural and historical, in the future.
|