History of Yellowstone National Park PDF

H IS T ORY People have spent time in the Yellowstone region for more than 11,000 years. Rock structures like this are evidence of the early presence of people in the area. History of the Park The human history of the Yellowstone region extends to learn how people continue to affect an...

H IS T ORY People have spent time in the Yellowstone region for more than 11,000 years. Rock structures like this are evidence of the early presence of people in the area. History of the Park The human history of the Yellowstone region extends to learn how people continue to affect and be af- back more than 11,000 years. The stories of people in fected by these places, many of which have been Yellowstone are preserved in archeological sites and relatively protected from human impacts. Some objects that convey information about past human alterations to the landscape, such as the construction activities in the region and in people’s connections to of roads and other facilities, are generally accepted the land that provide a sense of place or identity. as necessary to accommodate the needs of visitors Today, park managers use archeological and today. Information on the possible consequences of historical studies to help understand how people modern human activities, both inside and outside lived here in the past. Ethnography helps us learn the parks, is used to determine how best to preserve how groups of people identify themselves and their Yellowstone’s natural and cultural resources and the connections to the park. Research is also conducted quality of the visitor experience. History of Yellowstone National Park Precontact First organized expedition explored Park Management Evolves People have been in Yellowstone Yellowstone in 1870. 1963:“Leopold Report” released, more than 11,000 years, as shown recommending changes to how Protection of the Park Begins by archeological sites, trails, and wildlife is managed in the park. Yellowstone National Park oral histories. established in 1872. 1970: New bear management Although the Tukudika (a.k.a. plan eliminated open-pit garbage Railroad arrived in 1883, allowing Sheep Eaters) are the most well- dumps in park. easier visitor access. known group of Native Americans 1988: “Summer of Fire.” to use the park, many other tribes The US Army managed the park and bands lived in and traveled from 1886 through 1918. 1995: Wolves restored to the park. through what is now Yellowstone Automobiles allowed into the park 1996: Federal buyout of gold mine National Park prior to and after in 1915, making visits easier and northeast of Yellowstone protected European American arrival. more economical. the park. European Americans Arrive National Park Service created in European Americans began 1916. exploring in the early 1800s. First boundary adjustment of the Osborne Russell recorded visits in park made in 1929. the 1830s. History of the Park 13 H IS T ORY Humans in Yellowstone Paleoindian Period ~11,000 years ago 10,000 years ago A Paleoindian point from Sites all over the park yield. this period was made from paleoindian artifacts, particularly obsidian quarried from concentrated around Yellowstone Obsidian Cliff. Lake. Clovis peoples hunted large Hell Gap game and gathered resources point, across North America. made 9,600 to 10,000 years ago The Earliest Humans in Yellowstone such as deer and bighorn sheep. Human occupation of the greater Yellowstone area This favorable climate would continue more than seems to follow environmental changes of the last 9,000 years. Evidence of these people in Yellowstone 15,000 years. How far back is still to be determined— remained uninvestigated long after archeologists there are no known sites in the park that date to began excavating sites elsewhere in North America. this time—but humans probably were not using this Archeologists used to think high-elevation regions landscape when glaciers and a continental ice sheet such as Yellowstone were inhospitable to humans covered most of what is now Yellowstone National and, thus, did little exploratory work in these areas. Park. The glaciers carved out valleys with rivers that However, recent research in the park has located ar- people could follow in pursuit of Ice Age mammals chaeological sites at high elevations, with several sites such as the mammoth and the giant bison. The last over 10,500 feet above mean sea level (AMSL). Today, period of ice coverage ended 13,000 to 14,000 years archeologists study environmental change to better ago. Sometime after that, but before 11,000 years ago, understand human uses of areas such as Yellowstone humans were here on this landscape. through time. Archeologists have found physical evidence of More than 2,000 archeological sites have been human presence in the form of distinctive stone tools documented in Yellowstone National Park, with and projectile points. From these artifacts, scientists the majority dating to the Archaic period, spanning surmise that they hunted mammals and gathered ber- from about 8,000 to 1,500 years ago. Obsidian from ries, seeds, and plants. several sources in the park was used as toolstone. As the climate in the Yellowstone region warmed Sites contain evidence of an increase in hunting a and dried, the animals, vegetation, and human wide variety of game, including bison, bear, deer, lifestyles also changed. Large Ice Age animals that sheep and goats, felines, rabbits, birds, and other were adapted to cold and wet conditions became small game. Campsites and trails in Yellowstone also extinct. The glaciers left behind layers of sediment provide evidence of early use. Some of the trails used in valleys in which grasses in the park today have likely been used by people and sagebrush thrived, and since the Paleoindian period. pockets of exposed rocks that provided protected areas for Increased Use aspens and fir to grow. The People seem to have increased their use of the uncovered volcanic plateau Yellowstone area beginning about 3,000 years ago. sprouted lodgepole forests. During this time, people deepened their reliance on People adapted to these bison hunting. Technological innovations during changing conditions. As early this period in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem as 9,500 years ago, they were include use of tipis as the main form of shelter, bison eating a diverse diet including jumps and corrals, sheep traps, and evidence of medium and small animals widespread trade across North America. Bow and arrow technology, adopted after 1,500 before pres- Cody knife (c. 9,350 years ago) from the Yellowstone National ent (BP), replaced the atlatl, or spear-thrower, that Park museum collection had been used for thousands of years. The number 14 Yellowstone Resources and Issues Handbook, 2023  H IS T ORY Paleoindian Period 9,350 years ago 9,000 years ago A site on the shore of the 9,000 years ago until 1,000 Yellowstone Lake has been common era (CE), people leave radiocarbon dated to 9,350 traces of camps on the shores years ago. People seem to have of Yellowstone Lake. occupied this site for short seasonal periods. CE = Common Era (replaces AD) of radiocarbon dates in the park rapidly increases in the park after 1,500 BP, with a peak between 1,200 Obsidian Cliff National Historic Landmark and 1,000 BP. This increased use of Yellowstone likely occurred when the environment was warmer, favoring extended seasonal use on and around the Yellowstone Plateau. Archeologists and other sci- entists are working together to study evidence such as plant pollen, landforms, and tree rings to better understand how the area’s environment changed over time. Location Some of the historic peoples from this area, such Grand Loop Road between Mammoth and Norris. Significance Obsidian is found in volcanic areas where the magma is rich in silica and the lava flow has cooled without forming crystals, creating a black glass that can be honed to an exceptionally thin edge. Unlike most obsidian, which occurs as small rocks strewn amid other formations, Obsidian Cliff has an exposed vertical thickness of about 98 feet (30 m). Obsidian was first quarried from this cliff for tool- making more than 11,000 years ago. It is the United States’ most widely dispersed source of obsidian by hunter-gatherers. It is found along trade routes from western Canada to Ohio. Obsidian Cliff is the primary source of obsidian in a large concentration of Midwestern sites, including about 90% of obsidian found in Hopewell mortuary sites in the Ohio River Valley (about 1,850–1,750 years ago). Recent History About 90% of the forest on Obsidian Cliff plateau burned in 1988. The fire did not damage the cliff face, but it cleared the surface, creating optimal conditions for An ancient trail, now called the Bannock Trail, is shown archeological surveys. Those surveys added substantially in two possible locations. Physical evidence of the trail to knowledge about how obsidian was mined from the is extremely difficult to find. Historic maps and journals bedrock and collected as cobbles from the overlying glacial do not match modern maps, and oral histories of tribes till. Staff are now researching the intensity of use of this do not always correlate with what little evidence exists obsidian, both within the park and across North America. of the trail. The solid line shows the trail’s location as The kiosk at Obsidian Cliff, constructed in 1931, was the interpreted from 1878 to about 1960. Some scholars first wayside exhibit in a US national park. It was listed on today think the dashed line shows the main Bannock the National Register in 1982. The site was designated a Trail more accurately, but it is still subject to discussion National Historic Landmark in 1996. because of the many known ‘spokes’ of the trail and some errors on the 1869 map. History of the Park 15 H IS T ORY Archaic Period (8,000–1,500 years ago) 8,000 years ago 3,000 years ago 1,500 years ago Vegetation similar to what Bison jumps and corrals begin to Bow and arrow begins to replace we find today begins to be used in the Rocky Mountain atlatl (throwing spear). Sheep traps appear. This period is region. Oral histories of the begin to be used in the mountains. characterized by use of large Salish place their ancestors in the side-notched projectile points Yellowstone area. and atlatl technology. as the Crow and Sioux, arrived sometime during the 1500s and around 1700 CE, respectively. Prehistoric vessels known as “Intermountain Ware” have been found in the park and surrounding area, linking the Shoshone to the area as early as approximately 700 years ago. The Little Ice Age Climatic evidence confirms the Yellowstone area ex- perienced colder temperatures during what is known as the Little Ice Age—mid-1400s to mid-1800s. Fewer archeological sites date to this time, suggesting a de- creased human presence. Campsites appear to have been used by smaller groups of people, mostly in the summer. Such a pattern of use would make sense in a cold region where hunting and gathering were practi- Tribes used hydrothermal sites ceremonially and cal for only a few months each year. medicinally. The Mud Volcano area is especially significant for the Kiowa. Their tradition says that a hot spring called Dragon’s Mouth (above) is where Historic Tribes their creator gave them the Yellowstone area for their Greater Yellowstone’s location at the convergence home. The Crow also have stories about this feature. of the Great Plains, Great Basin, and Columbia Plateau American Indian cultures means that many tribes have traditional connections to the land and its resources. For thousands of years before Yellowstone became a national park, it was a place where people hunted, fished, gathered plants, quarried obsidian, and used the thermal waters for religious and medici- nal purposes. American Indian tribes’ oral histories indicate more extensive use of the area during the Little Ice Age. Kiowa stories place their ancestors here from around 1400 to 1700 CE. Ancestors to contempo- rary Blackfeet, Cayuse, Coeur d’Alene, Bannock, Nez Perce, Shoshone, Crow, Sioux, Lakota, and Umatilla, among others, continued to travel the park on the already established trails. They visited geysers, Wickiups provided temporary shelter for some Native Americans while they were in Yellowstone. No conducted ceremonies, hunted, gathered plants and archeological, standing wickiups are known to remain minerals, and engaged in trade. The park’s associated in the park. 16 Yellowstone Resources and Issues Handbook, 2023  H IS T ORY 500-1700 CE 1400 1450 Oral histories of the Kiowa place their Little Ice Age begins ancestors in the Yellowstone area from this time through the 1700s. historians believe the horse fundamentally changed A Note About Terms their lifestyles because tribal members could now Native American is typically used in political and travel faster and farther to hunt bison and other ani- academic matters. When Native Americans refer to mals of the plains. themselves and to personal matters, they might use Indian, American Indian, First American, First Peoples, or Indigenous Peoples instead of Native American. Tukudika, or Sheep Eaters Ethnocentrism—a tendency to see other cultures The Tukudika, or Sheep Eaters, are a band of through the lens of one’s own culture; relatedly, the belief Mountain Shoshone that lived for thousands of years that one’s cultural practices and beliefs are superior to in the area that would become Yellowstone National those of other groups Park. Throughout the park, archeological sites reflect use of resources within this landscape by the Tukudika and other American Indian tribes. tribes report family groups came to lands now part The Name Tukudika of Yellowstone to gather obsidian, which they used Traditionally, Shoshone names were derived from to field-dress bison. Some associated tribes used the places the bands traveled to or from foods they Fishing Bridge area as a rendezvous site. hunted or gathered. Tukudika (also Tukudyka’a, The Crow occupied the area generally east of Tukadika) means “eaters of the mountain sheep.” the park, and the Blackfeet occupied the area to the The Tukudika lived in northwestern Wyoming, north. The Shoshone, Bannock, and other American southwestern Montana, and eastern Idaho. Other Indian tribes of the plateaus to the west traversed the Shoshone bands bore the names “salmon eaters,” park annually to hunt on the plains to the east. Other “elk eaters,” and “bison eaters.” Shoshonean groups hunted in open areas west and Because the name Sheep Eater can appear to south of Yellowstone. equate this American Indian tribe with the bighorn In the early 1700s CE, some American Indian sheep itself, the term was once considered deroga- tribes in this region acquired the horse. Some tory. The name Sheep Eater suggests a Shoshone Quick Facts The Tukudika were skilled hunters The Tukudika remained in the Chief Togwotee was the Tukudika and artisans known for their horn park until the late nineteenth guide for President Chester bows, obsidian arrows and tools, century when they were forcibly A. Arthur’s 1883 trip through stone-and-timber game and fish removed to reservations. They were Yellowstone. traps, sheepskin clothing, and incorporated into the Wind River steatite bowls. Shoshone and Fort Hall Shoshone- Bannock tribes. Some descendants At least 50% of the Tukudika’s diet prefer the name Mountain People. consisted of plants, roots, nuts, and berries; the bighorn sheep was the primary source of meat. History of the Park 17 H IS T ORY 500–1700s CE 1600s 1700s North American tribes in the southwest begin Lakota Sioux begin acquiring horses in the mid- to late 1600s. exploring the Ancestors of the Crow may have come into Yellowstone area. the Yellowstone ecosystem during this time. When situated against a rock face, these newe-gahni (Shoshone houses, houses built to suit a specific purpose) proved sturdy and resistant to the elements. These structures are similar to, but probably distinct from, the wickiup, or conical timber lodge, a struc- ture found throughout the park and associated with several tribes. When they lived in the park, the Tukudika quar- ried obsidian (dupi or tuupi) at Obsidian Cliff. Working in family groups, tribal members quarried obsidian with shovels made from bison or elk bone. A family group photo, possibly taken by W.H. Jackson. After quarrying the obsidian, the Tukudika worked Bannock elders reported this may be a photograph of the material with elk antlers. A cantaloupe-sized rock Chief Tendoy, Chief of the Lemhi Shoshones. Tendoy yielded two to three arrowheads. It is reported that Falls on Ferris Fork in the southwestern part of the park is named after him. because of its sharpness, obsidian was the primary material for arrowheads and tools. The Tukudika paired arrowheads manufactured social hierarchy on which the Tukudika occupied from obsidian and other stone materials with well- one of the lowest rungs: whereas other Shoshone designed, extremely durable hunting bows made bands were hunting and consuming the “grander” from the horns and sinews of bighorn sheep. The bison and elk, the Tukudika were hunting the “in- Indians soaked the horns in geothermal waters to ferior,” elusive, mountain-dwelling bighorn sheep. soften them, then shaped the pliable horns into bows. Contemporary understanding of this name is more These highly effective bows were sought-after objects nuanced. The name does not signify that Tukudika which the Tukudika traded with other tribes through- ate only bighorn sheep; it means, simply, that the big- out the Rocky Mountains and the Northern Plains. horn sheep was this group’s primary source of meat. Sheepskin was used to make distinctive, high-quality Indeed, the Tukudika’s diet consisted of at least 50% clothing, another desirable trade good from this plants, roots, nuts, and berries. Native American group. The Tukudika were skilled hunters. They designed Tukudika Culture drive lines and corrals to aid in the hunting of big- Traveling in extended-family groups, the Tukudika horn sheep, and they built fish traps of stone and followed the park’s rivers and streams to hunt game, timber. Unlike most other American Indian tribes harvest plants, and find suitable campsites. They of the western United States, including other bands traveled to higher elevations in the warmer months of Shoshone, the Tukudika did not adopt the horse. and stayed at lower elevations during the colder Instead, they continued to hunt on foot, accompa- months. According to the Shoshone-Bannock tribes nied by dogs (satii, sadee). These medium to large of southeastern Idaho, some Tukudika stayed in the dogs resembled both wolves and huskies, and served park year-round. as both work dogs and companions. Some scholars The Tukudika built simple yet versatile shelters have speculated that hunting on horseback would composed of curved lodgepole and grass thatching. have hindered the group’s techniques for alpine 18 Yellowstone Resources and Issues Handbook, 2023  H IS T ORY Associated Tribes of Yellowstone National Park Assiniboine and Sioux Eastern Shoshone Northern Cheyenne Turtle Mountain Band of the Chippewa Blackfeet Flandreau Santee Sioux Oglala Sioux Umatilla Reservation Cheyenne River Sioux Gros Ventre and Rosebud Sioux Assiniboine Yankton Sioux Coeur d’Alene Salish and Kootenai Kiowa Note: Map shows modern Comanche Shoshone–Bannock Little Shell Chippewa tribal reservations; it does not Colville Reservation Sisseton Wahpeton show historic territory. Lower Brule Sioux Crow Spirit Lake Nez Perce Crow Creek Sioux Standing Rock Sioux Northern Arapaho hunting. Dogs were used to pull travois (two-pole Encounter sleds) laden with game or belongings. Evidence that The stories that a culture creates and transmits are Native Americans, possibly Tukudika, were bur- rooted in that culture’s traditions, customs, social ied with their dogs has been found throughout the mores, and belief system. When two cultures en- Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. counter one another, misunderstandings and con- For cooking and storage, the Tukudika crafted flicts can arise. In the Rocky Mountain West, some bowls and other containers out of steatite, or soap- of the first recorded stories of encounter between stone, a metamorphic rock soft enough to scratch European-Americans and American Indians came with a fingernail. Although steatite is a soft stone, it from Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery expedi- is surprisingly durable. Steatite deposits are plenti- tion of 1804–6. Thirty years later, Osborne Russell, ful throughout the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, then a young fur-trapper, wrote some of the first but archeologists have not yet determined whether descriptions of European-American–Tukudika en- this material was quarried in the park. Steatite vessels counters in the park. In 1835, he met a small group may have been cached and returned to, season after of Tukudika in the Lamar Valley, and he portrayed season. The containers may also have been heirlooms them favorably, if somewhat romantically. Other or ceremonial vessels transported from site to site. explorers and trappers were not so open-minded. These stone bowls are distinct from Intermountain Many accounts were one-sided, prejudiced, fearful, Ware, a type of pottery made from different clays and or even hostile. These stories and reports failed to tempers and associated with Shoshone groups. consider the American Indian tribes’ agency, self- sufficiency, and vast knowledge of Yellowstone’s landscape and resources. History of the Park 19 H IS T ORY Prior to the establishment of Yellowstone National More Information Park, the military was in the last stages of moving Haines, A.L. 1996. The Yellowstone Story: A History of Our First National Park, Volume One. University Press of American Indian tribes onto reservations throughout Colorado: Boulder. the west. Early park superintendents actively discour- Janetski, J.C. 2002. Indians in Yellowstone National Park. aged tribes from visiting the newly established park University of Utah Press: Salt Lake City. to hunt or collect resources. Loendorf, L., and N.M. Stone. 2006. Mountain Spirit: The Sheep Eater Indians of Yellowstone. University of Utah Press: Salt Lake City. Change MacDonald, D.H. 2018. Before Yellowstone: Native The Tukudika continued to inhabit the Greater American Archaeology in the National Park. University Yellowstone area for several years after Yellowstone of Washington Press: Seattle. National Park was established in 1872. By 1900, Madsen, B. 2007. The Northern Shoshoni. Caxton Press: Caldwell, ID. the Tukudika were incorporated into the Eastern Nabokov, P., and L. Loendorf. 2004. Restoring a Presence: Shoshone tribe of the Wind River Reservation in American Indians and Yellowstone National Park. central-western Wyoming, and into the Mountain University of Oklahoma Press: Oklahoma City. and Lemhi Shoshone and Bannock tribes of the Park, R. Obsidian: The MVP of Yellowstone’s “Stones.” Yellowstone Science. 26(1). Fort Hall Reservation in southeastern Idaho. Once Spence, M.D. 1999. Dispossessing the Wilderness: Indian confined to reservations, the Tukudika suffered the Removal and the Making of the National Parks. Oxford partial collapse of their traditional lifeways. Although University Press: New York. the Tukudika continued to live traditionally for a generation or two after their removal to reservations, Videos: they eventually adapted to the ways of these other The Sheep Eaters: Masters of the Mountains. Wind River Historical Center, 2001. tribes, whose own cultural practices had already been The Sheep Eaters: Gifts of the Mountains. altered by their earlier removal to reservations. Today, The Sheep Eaters: Archers of the Yellowstone. some Tukudika descendants live on both of the afore- The Sheep Eaters: Life in the Mountains. Produced for the mentioned reservations. Some of these descendants Dubois Museum by Everyman Productions, LLC, 2002. prefer the name Mountain People to Tukudika or Sheep Eater for its emphasis upon place rather than Staff Reviewers food source. Tobin Roop, Chief, Branch of Cultural Resources Beth Horton, Park Archeologist 20 Yellowstone Resources and Issues Handbook, 2023  H IS T ORY late 1700s-1806 CE late 1700s 1804–1806 Fur traders travel the rivers into the The Lewis and Clark Expedition passes within Yellowstone region. Tribes in the Yellowstone 50 miles of Yellowstone. area begin using horses. European Americans Arrive Looking for Gold In the late 1700s, fur traders traveled the great tribu- Between 1863 and 1871, prospectors crisscrossed tary of the Missouri River, the Yellowstone, in search the Yellowstone Plateau every year, searching for of Native Americans with whom to trade. They called gold and other precious minerals. Although gold was the river by its French name, “Roche Jaune.” As far as found nearby, no big strikes were made inside what is historians know, pre-1800 European Americans did now Yellowstone National Park. not observe the hydrothermal activity in this area, but they probably heard about these features from Native Expeditions Explore Yellowstone American acquaintances. Although Yellowstone had been thoroughly tracked The Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804–1806), by tribes and trappers, in the view of the nation it sent by President Thomas Jefferson to explore the was really “discovered” by a series of formal expe- newly acquired lands of the Louisiana Purchase, by- ditions. The first organized attempt came in 1860 passed Yellowstone. They had heard descriptions of when Captain William F. Raynolds led a military the region but did not explore the Yellowstone River expedition, but this group was unable to explore the beyond what is now Livingston, Montana. Yellowstone Plateau due to late spring snow. The A member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Civil War preoccupied the government during the John Colter, left that group during its return journey next few years. Immediately after the war, several to join trappers in the Yellowstone area. During his explorations were planned, but none got underway. travels, Colter probably skirted the northwest shore of Yellowstone Lake and crossed the Yellowstone The 1869 Folsom-Cook-Peterson Expedition River near Tower Fall, where he noted the presence In 1869, three members of one would-be expedition of “Hot Spring Brimstone.” set out on their own. David E. Folsom, Charles W. Not long after Colter’s explorations, the United Cook, and William Peterson ignored the warning of States became embroiled in the War of 1812, a friend who said their journey was “the next thing which drew men and money away from explora- to suicide” because of “Indian trouble” along the tion of the Yellowstone region. The demand for way. From Bozeman, they traveled down the divide furs resumed after the war and trappers returned between the Gallatin and Yellowstone rivers, crossed to the Rocky Mountains in the 1820s. Among the mountains to the Yellowstone and continued them was Daniel Potts, who published the first into the present park. They observed Tower Fall, the account of Yellowstone’s wonders as a letter in a Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone—“this master- Philadelphia newspaper. Osborne Russell also pub- piece of nature’s handiwork”—continued past Mud lished an account of his fur trapping in and around Volcano to Yellowstone Lake, then south to West Yellowstone during the 1830s and early 1840s Thumb. From there, they visited Shoshone Lake and Mountain man Jim Bridger also explored the geyser basins of the Firehole River. The expedi- Yellowstone during this time. Like many trappers, tion updated an earlier explorer’s map (DeLacy, in Bridger spun tall tales as a form of entertainment 1865), wrote an article for Western Monthly maga- around the evening fire. His stories inspired future zine, and refueled the excitement of scientists who explorers to travel to see the real thing. decided to see for themselves the truth of the party’s As quickly as it started, the trapper era ended. By tales of “the beautiful places we had found fash- the mid-1840s, the market for beaver dropped, and ioned by the practiced hand of nature, that man had trappers moved on to guiding or other occupations. not desecrated.” History of the Park 21 H IS T ORY 1807–1835 CE 1807–1808 1834–1835 John Colter first known. Trapper Osborne Russell European-American to visit encounters Tukudika (“Sheep present-day Yellowstone. Eaters”) in Lamar Valley. The 1870 Washburn-Langford-Doane in addition to an artist, a photographer, and sup- Expedition port staff. The survey brought back scientific cor- In August 1870, a second expedition set out for roboration of the earlier tales of thermal activity. Yellowstone, led by Surveyor-General Henry D. The expedition gave the world an improved map of Washburn, Montana politician and businessman Yellowstone and visual proof of the area’s unique cu- Nathaniel P. Langford, and attorney Cornelius riosities through the photographs of William Henry Hedges. Lt. Gustavus C. Doane provided military Jackson and the art of Henry W. Elliot and Thomas escort from Fort Ellis (near present-day Bozeman, Moran. The expedition’s reports excited the scien- Montana). The explorers traveled to Tower Fall, tific community and aroused national interest. Canyon, and Yellowstone Lake, followed the lake’s Hayden noted that in terms of scientific value, eastern and southern shores, and explored the “The geysers of Iceland…sink into insignificance in Lower, Midway, and Upper geyser basins (where they comparison with the hot springs of the Yellowstone named Old Faithful). They climbed several peaks, de- and Fire-Hole Basins.” scended into the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and attempted measurements and analyses of several Birth of a National Park of the prominent natural features. In the United States, 1872 was a year of possibilities. Falling at the tail end of the Reconstruction Era and The 1871 Hayden Expedition the beginning of the Gilded Age, this time marked a Ferdinand V. Hayden, head of the US Geological and tumultuous shift in the direction of the country. Just Geographical Survey of the Territories, led the next two years prior, the final confederate states were re- scientific expedition in 1871, simultaneous with a admitted to the Union and the 15th Amendment was survey by the US Army Corps of Engineers. ratified, granting freed black men the right to vote. The history of science in Yellowstone formally At the same time, the Gilded Age was a dynamic time began with Hayden’s expeditions. Hayden’s 1871 of expansion and industrialization. The Homestead survey team included two botanists, a meteorologist, Act had been in effect for a decade, and many fami- a zoologist, an ornithologist, a mineralogist, a topog- lies moved west with hope for a better life. Railroads rapher, and an agricultural statistician/entomologist, would soon follow. As the country went through this transitional period, former Union General Ulysses S. Grant was serving as President. He presided over the Plains Indian Wars in the West, which were slowly waning with the Battle of Little Bighorn and the Flight of the Nez Perce still a few years away. In this age of consumption, expansion, and na- tional identity formation, a small group of citizens, businessmen, state officials, and members of ex- ploratory parties lobbied the United States Congress to reserve around two million acres in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming territories as a “public pleasur- ing ground,” setting the area aside from settlement or exploitation. After little debate, President Grant The continued reports by mountain men about the wonders of the Yellowstone area, artist renderings of signed the Yellowstone National Park Act on March the area, and reports by explorers contributed to the 1, 1872. On the face of it, the Act was to protect the establishment of Yellowstone National Park in 1872. natural wonders that had caught the imagination of 22 Yellowstone Resources and Issues Handbook, 2023  H IS T ORY 1850s–1871 CE 1850s 1860 1862 1869 1870 1871 Little Ice Age ends, First organized Gold strikes Folsom–Cook– Washburn–Langford–Doane First Hayden climate begins to expedition attempts, northwest of Peterson Expedition; Old Faithful Expedition. warm. but fails, to explore the Yellowstone. Expedition. Geyser named. Yellowstone Plateau. The world’s first national park quickly became a point of national pride, putting America on even footing with Europe. According to the late historian Richard A. Bartlett, “Europe had her Greek and Roman ruins, her gloomy castles and gothic cathe- drals, but Americans could boast of natural scenery that Europe could not duplicate [...] a variegated can- yon painted by nature [...] and a high-altitude lake to match the beauties of Switzerland’s Lake Constance. Here, in a region sixty-two by fifty-two miles, was picturesque America, mountainous, unusual, and beautiful, concentrated and on display for all the world to see.” And see it they did. Visitors from around the world began making the arduous trek to this remote outpost and eventually, the national park idea spread to nations across the planet. Formative Years The park’s promoters envisioned Yellowstone National Park would exist at no expense to the government. Nathaniel P. Langford, member of the Washburn Expedition and advocate of the Yellowstone National Park Act, was appointed to the unpaid post of superintendent. (He earned his living elsewhere.) He entered the park at least twice during five years in office—as part of the 1872 Several early trappers and expeditions passed by Tower Hayden Expedition and to evict a squatter in 1874. Fall, depicted here by painter Thomas Moran, who Langford did what he could without laws protect- accompanied the Hayden Expedition. One of the first ing wildlife and other natural features, and with- trappers may have been John Colter, who left the Lewis and Clark Expedition as they returned east to join fur out money to build basic structures and hire law trappers in the Yellowstone area. He probably crossed enforcement rangers. the Yellowstone River near Tower Fall. Political pressure forced Langford’s removal in 1877. Philetus W. Norris was appointed the second the nation—the thousands of geysers and hot pools, superintendent, and the next year, Congress au- the colorful Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, and thorized appropriations “to protect, preserve, and the “glass mountain” of Obsidian Cliff. But with that improve the Park.” Act, Congress created a new cultural norm as well: Norris constructed roads, built a park headquar- that the American federal government would reserve ters at Mammoth Hot Springs, hired the first “game- land by creating imaginary boundaries, even crossing keeper,” and campaigned against hunters and van- state or territory lines, for the public wellbeing. Thus dals. Much of the primitive road system he laid out marked an important step in public land conserva- remains as the Grand Loop Road. Through constant tion and was one of the early markers in the emerging exploration, Norris also added immensely to geo- field of environmentalism. graphical knowledge of the park. History of the Park 23 H IS T ORY 1872–1891 CE 1872 1877 1883 1885 1886 1891 March 1, Yellowstone 1st budget for park; Northern First hotel at Old Army arrives to manage First Lake Hotel National Park Established; Nez Perce (Nee-me- Pacific Railroad Faithful opens, Yellowstone, creating the built. first “hotel” in park poo) flee US Army arrives near known as the temporary Camp Sheridan at opens at Mammoth. through Yellowstone. Gardiner, MT. Shack Hotel. Mammoth. Flight of the Nez Perce C A N A D A Bear Paw Battlefield M O N T A N A Missoula ! Canyon ND Clearwater Creek Battlefield Big Hole National Battle Battlefield SD White Bird ! ! Billings Battlefield Bozeman ! Red Lodge West Yellowstone ! Camas I D A H O Meadows Battle ! Idaho Falls W Y O M I N G Summer 1877 brought tragedy to During the time they crossed the park, Many of these sites are also on the the Nez Perce (or, in their language, the Nez Perce encountered about 25 1,170-mile (1,882-km) Nez Perce Nimi’ipu or Nee-Me-Poo). A band of visitors in the park, some more than National Historic Trail, established in 800 men, women, and children— once. Warriors took hostage or attacked 1986 and managed by the US Forest plus almost 2,000 horses—left their several of these tourists, killing two. The Service. The route extends from homeland in what is now Oregon and group continued traveling through the Wallowa Lake, Oregon, to the Bear’s Idaho pursued by the US Army. Settlers park and over the Absaroka Mountains Paw Mountains in Montana. The were moving into their homeland and into Montana. The Army stopped historic trail goes through the park, and the US Government was trying to them near the Bear’s Paw Mountains, it is considered a sacred place by many force them onto a reservation. At Big less than 40 miles (64 km) from the Nez Perce who continue to honor their Hole, Montana, many of their group, Canadian border. This is where it is ancestors and carry on their memories including women and children, were believed the flight ended and Chief through ceremonies conducted in the killed in a battle with the Army. The Joseph said, “From where the sun now park. Beginning in 2006, the National remainder of the group continued stands, I will fight no more forever.” Park Service undertook a multiyear fleeing, and entered Yellowstone Some Nez Perce escaped to Canada, but archeological inventory project along National Park on August 23. after fierce fighting and a siege, the rest the Nez Perce trail through the park. of the band surrendered on October 5, These efforts not only identified In Yellowstone and most of the survivors were sent to locations of several Nez Perce, US Only a small part of the route taken the Indian Territory in Oklahoma Army, and tourist encampments, but by the Nez Perce who fled from also clarified the general route the Nez the US Army in 1877 went through Nez Perce Commemorative Sites Yellowstone, and the Native Americans Perce followed through the Absaroka The Nez Perce National Historical Park, largely eluded their pursuers while in Mountains. established by Congress in 1965 and the park. However, the 13 days that the managed by the National Park Service, Nez Perce National Historic Trail: Nez Perce spent in Yellowstone became includes 38 sites in Idaho, Montana, http://www.fs.usda.gov/npnht/ part of the tragic story they continue to Oregon, and Washington that have Nez Perce National Historical Park: pass down to their children. been important in the history and http://www.nps.gov/nepe/ culture of the Nez Perce. 24 Yellowstone Resources and Issues Handbook, 2023  H IS T ORY FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION: Did other national parks exist before Yellowstone? Some sources list Hot Springs in Arkansas as the first national park. Set aside in 1832, forty years before Yellowstone was established in 1872, it was actually the nation’s oldest national reservation, set aside to preserve and distribute a utilitarian resource (hot water), much like our present national forests. In 1921, an act of Congress established Hot Springs as a national park. Yosemite became a park before Yellowstone, but as a state park. Disappointed with the results of state management, 26 years later in 1890, Congress made Yosemite one of three additional national parks, along with Sequoia and General Grant, now part of Kings Canyon. Mount Rainier followed in 1899. As an older state park, Yosemite did have a strong influence on the founding of Yellowstone in 1872 because Congress actually used language in the state park act as a model. It’s entirely possible that Congress may have preferred to make Yellowstone a state park in the same fashion as Yosemite, had it not been for an accident of geography that put it within three territorial boundaries. Arguments between Wyoming and Montana territories As Yellowstone’s second superintendent, Philetus that year resulted in a decision to federalize Yellowstone. Norris set the future course of national parks on many fronts: protection, addressing visitors’ needs and interests, and science-based management. Despite a because they feared the hydrothermal features, es- lack of support from the Department of the Interior or Congress, he pleaded for legislation that would pecially the geysers. This idea belied evidence to the adequately protect the park, and he had grand contrary, but the myth endured. aspirations for Yellowstone. Norris fell victim to political maneuvering and was removed from his post in 1882. He was succeeded Norris’s tenure occurred during an era of war- by three ineffectual superintendents who could not fare between the United States and many Native protect the park. Even when ten assistant superinten- American tribes. To reassure the public that they dents were authorized to act as police, they failed to faced no threat from these conflicts, he promoted stop the destruction of wildlife. Poachers, squatters, the idea that Native Americans shunned this area woodcutters, and vandals ravaged Yellowstone. The Army Arrives In 1886 Congress refused to appropriate money for ineffective administration. The Secretary of the Interior, under authority given by the Congress, called on the Secretary of War for assistance. On August 20, 1886, the US Army took charge of Yellowstone. The Army strengthened, posted, and enforced regulations in the park. Troops guarded the major attractions and evicted troublemakers, and cavalry patrolled the vast interior. The most persistent menace came from poachers, whose activities threatened to exterminate animals Soldiers pose with bison heads captured from poacher such as the bison. In 1894, soldiers arrested a man Ed Howell. When Howell returned to the park that named Ed Howell for slaughtering bison in Pelican year, he was the first person arrested and punished Valley. The maximum sentence possible was banish- under the National Park Protection Act, passed in 1894. ment from the park. Emerson Hough, a well-known History of the Park 25 H IS T ORY 1894–1917 CE 1894 1904 1908 1915 1916 1917 1st Lacey Act makes Old Faithful Inn Union Pacific train Automobiles allowed The National Park Private and it illegal to kill opens. service begins at West on park roads. Service Organic commercial horse- wildlife in the park. Yellowstone. Act establishes drawn conveyances the National Park banned on Park Service. Roads. journalist, was present at the arrest and wired his The National Park Service Begins report to Forest & Stream, a popular magazine of the National parks clearly needed coordinated admin- time. Its editor, renowned naturalist George Bird istration by professionals attuned to the special Grinnell, helped create a national outcry. Within two requirements of these preserves. The management months Congress passed the National Park Protection of Yellowstone from 1872 through the early 1900s Act, which increased the Army’s authority for protect- helped set the stage for the creation of an agency ing park treasures. (This law is known as the Lacey whose sole purpose was to manage the national Act, and is the first of two laws with this name.) parks. Promoters of this idea gathered support from Running a park was not the Army’s usual line of influential journalists, railroads likely to profit from work. The troops could protect the park and ensure increased park tourism, and members of Congress. access, but they could not fully satisfy the visitor’s The National Park Service Organic Act was passed desire for knowledge. Moreover, each of the 14 other by Congress and approved by President Woodrow national parks established in the late 1800s and early Wilson on August 25, 1916. 1900s was separately administered, resulting in uneven Yellowstone’s first rangers, which included veter- management, inefficiency, and a lack of direction. ans of Army service in the park, became responsible Guidance for Protecting Yellowstone National Park Yellowstone Purpose Statement exceptional concentration and and pleasuring ground for the Yellowstone National Park, the world’s diversity of terrestrial, aquatic, benefit, enjoyment, education, first national park, was set aside as a and microbial life. Here, natural and inspiration of this and future public pleasuring ground to share the processes operate in an ecological generations. Visitors have a range wonders and preserve and protect the context that has been less subject of opportunities to experience its scenery, cultural heritage, wildlife, and to human alteration than most unique geothermal wonders, free- geologic and ecological systems and others throughout the nation—and roaming wildlife, inspiring views, processes in their natural condition for indeed throughout the world. cultural heritage, and spectacular the benefit and enjoyment of present This makes the park not only an wilderness character. and future generations. invaluable natural reserve, but a Yellowstone Mission Statement reservoir of information valuable Significance of Yellowstone Preserved within Yellowstone National to humanity. Yellowstone National Park is the Park are Old Faithful and the majority world’s first national park, an idea Yellowstone contains a unique of the world’s geysers and hot springs. that spread throughout the world. and relatively pristine tapestry of An outstanding mountain wildland prehistoric and historic cultural with clean water and air, Yellowstone is Yellowstone was set aside because resources that span more than home to the grizzly bear and wolf and of its geothermal wonders—the 11,000 years. The archeological, free-ranging herds of bison and elk. planet’s most active, diverse, and architectural, historical, and Centuries-old sites and historic buildings intact collections of combined material collections constitute one that reflect the unique heritage of geothermal, geologic, and of the largest and most complete America’s first national park are also hydrologic features and systems— continua of human occupation in protected. Yellowstone National Park and the underlying volcanic activity the western US, and collectively serves as a model and inspiration for that sustains them. represent the material remains of national parks throughout the world. The park is the core of the Greater the birth of the National Park and The National Park Service preserves, Yellowstone Ecosystem, one of the conservation movement. unimpaired, these and other natural last, largest, nearly intact natural and cultural resources and values for the Yellowstone was the first area set ecosystems in the temperate enjoyment, education, and inspiration aside as a national public park zone of Earth. It preserves an of this and future generations. 26 Yellowstone Resources and Issues Handbook, 2023  H IS T ORY 1918–1948 CE 1918 1919 1930s 1934 1943–1944 1948 NPS takes over Horace Albright CCC and other NPS Director’s Order Much of the park Yellowstone receives one management of becomes government- prohibits killing closes for WWII. million visitors. Yellowstone and the first NPS funded work crews predators. Army leaves. superintendent. complete work in Yellowstone. for Yellowstone in 1918. The park’s first superin- Two “Organic Acts” tendent under the new National Park Service was Horace M. Albright, who served simultaneously The laws creating Yellowstone National Park and the as assistant to Stephen T. Mather, Director of the National Park Service (also called “enabling legislation”) are both referred to as “The Organic Act” because each National Park Service. Albright established a man- created an entity. However, the name most often refers agement framework that guided administration of to the law that created the National Park Service. To avoid Yellowstone for decades. confusion, we refer to the laws by their names as listed in the US Code Table of Popular Names: The Yellowstone National Park Protection Act and The National Park Service Boundary Adjustments Organic Act. Almost as soon as the park was established, people National Park Service Organic Act began suggesting that the boundaries be revised to Passed in 1916, this law created the National Park Service conform more closely to natural topographic fea- and established its mission: tures, such as the ridgeline of the Absaroka Range “to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life therein and to pro- along the east boundary. Although these people had vide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.” National Park Service Mission The National Park Service preserves unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and values of the National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations. The National Park Service This box represents cooperates with partners to extend the benefits of natural the original boundary of and cultural resource conservation and outdoor recreation throughout the United States and the world. Yellowstone National Park. Adjustments were made in 1929 and 1932. included the headwaters of the Lamar River and part of the watershed of the Yellowstone River. (The Yellowstone’s headwaters remain outside the park in Bridger-Teton National Forest.) In 1932, President Hoover issued an executive order that added more than 7,000 acres between the north boundary and the Yellowstone River, west of Gardiner. These lands provided winter range for elk and other ungulates. the ear of influential politicians, so did their op- Efforts to exploit the park also expanded during ponents—which at one time included the United this time. Water users, from the town of Gardiner States Forest Service. Eventually a compromise was to the potato farmers of Idaho, wanted the park’s reached, and, in 1929, President Hoover signed water. Proposals included damming the southwest the first bill changing the park’s boundaries: The corner of the park—the Bechler region. The failure of northwest corner now included a significant area of these schemes confirmed that Yellowstone’s wonders petrified trees; the northeast corner was defined by were so special that they should be forever preserved the watershed of Pebble Creek; the eastern boundary from exploitation. History of the Park 27 H IS T ORY 1949–1963 CE 1949 1955 1959 1963 1963 First motorized Mission 66 begins West of Yellowstone, a 7.5 M Leopold Report leads to Robert Reamer- oversnow vehicles in Yellowstone to earthquake strikes, killing campers the last of the bear-feeding designed Canyon allowed in park. revitalize lodging, in the Custer-Gallatin NF and dumps closing over the Hotel burns to the dining, education, and affecting thermal features and following several years. ground. infrastructure. infrastructure in the park. World War II World War II drew away employees, visitors, and money from all national parks, including Yellowstone. The money needed to maintain the park’s facilities, much less construct new ones, was directed to the war effort. Among other projects, the road from Old Faithful to Craig Pass was unfinished. Proposals again surfaced to use the park’s natural resources—this time in the war effort. As before, the park’s wonders were preserved. Visitation jumped as soon as the war ended. By 1948, park visitation reached one million people per year. The park’s budget did not keep pace, and the neglect of the war years quickly caught up with the park. Mission 66 Neglected during World War II, the infrastructure in national parks continued to deteriorate as visitation Yellowstone Superintendent Horace Albright, shown here with future president Herbert Hoover in soared afterward, leading to widespread complaints. 1928, was involved in the creation of the National In 1955, National Park Service Director Conrad Park Service. Later, as agency’s director, he greatly Wirth persuaded Congress to fund an improve- increased the number of parks east of the Mississippi ment program for completion by the National Park and expanded the agency’s mandate to include preservation of historic sites, creating a more truly Service’s 50th anniversary in 1966. Although also de- “national” park system. signed to increase education programs and employee Park Superintendents Formative Years Captain James B. Erwin, 1897–1899 Roger W. Toll, 1929–1936 Nathanial P. Langford,1872–1877 Captain Wilbur E. Wilder, 1899 John W. Emmett, 1936 Philetus W. Norris, 1877–1882 Captain Oscar J. Brown, 1899–1900 Edmund B. Rogers, 1936–1956 Patrick H. Conger, 1882–1884 Captain George W. Goode, 1900–1901 Lemuel A. Garrison, 1956–1964 Robert E. Carpenter, 1884–1885 Captain John Pitcher, 1901–1907 John S. McLaughlin, 1964–1967 David W. Wear, 1885–1886 General Samuel B.M. Young, 1907– Jack K. Anderson, 1967–1976 1908 John A. Townsley, 1976–1982 Under the US Army Major Harry C. Benson, 1908–1910 Robert Barbee, 1983–1994 Captain Moses Harris, 1886–1889 Colonel Lloyd M. Brett, 1910–1916 Michael Finley, 1994–2001 Captain Frazier A. Boutelle, 1889–1891 Chester A. Lindsley, 1916–1919 Suzanne Lewis, 2002–2010 Captain George S. Anderson, Dan Wenk, 2011–2018 1891–1897 National Park Service Cameron Sholly, 2018–Present Captain Samuel B.M. Young, 1897 Horace M. Albright, 1919–1929 28 Yellowstone Resources and Issues Handbook, 2023  H IS T ORY 1965–1975 CE 1965 1966 1970 1971 1975 Park sees The thermophile Thermus New bear management plan Overnight winter Grizzly bear listed as 2,000,000 visitors aquaticus is discovered in begins, which includes closing lodging opens in threatened species in the for first time. a Yellowstone hot spring. open-pit dumps in park. park and continues lower 48 states. yearly. Today’s National Park Service When Frances Pound applied for a position Implementing the National Park Service Mission in 1926, Yellowstone The National Park Service mission includes the responsibility to Superintendent preserve the natural and cultural resources and values of the Albright suggested she National Park System. Consistent with this high standard of use her nickname, Jim. care, the National Park Service makes these areas accessible She was one of the for public use and enjoyment. first women hired to Natural resources (biological and physical, natural do law enforcement in sounds, night skies, scenic vistas, and other aesthetic Yellowstone. Today’s values) are managed to maintain, rehabilitate, and National Park Service perpetuate their inherent integrity. Native species that workforce aims to have been exterminated are reintroduced and nonnative reflect our nation’s species eliminated, if possible. Livestock grazing, hunting, diversity. and resource extraction are prohibited in National Park System areas, with a few exceptions. Cultural resources (prehistoric and historic structures, National Battlefields 11 landscapes, archeological and ethnographic resources, National Battlefield Parks 4 and museum collections) are preserved. National Battlefield Site 1 International Leadership National Military Parks 9 The National Park Service example has inspired countries around the world to establish more than 100 national parks— National Historical Parks 61 modeled in whole or part on Yellowstone National Park and National Historic Sites 75 the National Park Service idea. Additionally, the National Park Service lends its experienced staff to other countries to International Historic Sites 1 evaluate park proposals, management plans, and resource National Lakeshores 3 issues. As the first national park, Yellowstone also continues National Memorials 31 to be a leader in developing and implementing policies in the National Park Service. National Monuments 84 The National Park Service manages approximately 83 million National Parks 63 acres in all 50 states, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Guam, National Parkways 4 and American Samoa. National Preserves 19 National parks are the oldest, most well-known part of the system and are usually areas of spectacular natural National Reserves 2 scenery relatively untouched by human development. National Recreation Areas 18 National parks are established by acts of Congress. National Rivers 4 National monuments are areas of historic or scientific National Wild and Scenic Rivers and interest established by presidential proclamation. 10 Riverways National historical parks and national historic sites National Scenic Trails 3 are set aside to commemorate some facet of the history of the people of those areas. National Seashores 10 Many national memorials fit the description for Other Designations 11 national historical parks or national historic sites, but Total Units 424 some of these are also set aside because of important historical issues not specifically linked to the site of the As of March 20, 2023. memorial, such as Mt. Rushmore and Vietnam Veterans. For a complete list see www.nps.gov/faqs.htm Total National Park Service sites = 424 History of the Park 29 H IS T ORY 1988–2000 CE 1988 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 2000 Wildfire burns Clean Air Act Park sees Congress enacts Wolves New World 1st Interagency approximately Amendments require 3,000,000 visitors a law allowing a reintroduced. Mine, near Bison 36% of the park. air-quality monitoring for the first time. percentage of park park’s northern Management at sites including entrance fees to be boundary, Plan. Yellowstone, a Class I kept in the parks. halted. airshed. Yellowstone Park Concession Employee Slang, c. 1920s Concession employees in the 1920s were often college students looking for adventure on their summer breaks. Many of them came back to Yellowstone multiple times, met their spouses here, and made life-long friends. As a sign of their youthful enthusiasm, they soon developed a unique lingo to use among themselves. Concession Employees: Savages Visitors on full-package tours: Dudes The elk and bison populations were actively managed until the mid-1960s, when park managers allowed Campers: Sagebrushers “natural regulation.” Dishwashers: Pearl Divers Maids: Pillow Punchers Work in Yellowstone included the development Laundry Workers: Bubble Queens and Kings of Canyon Village. Aging visitor use facilities were Laundry Carts: Mollies replaced with modernistic visitor use facilities de- signed to reflect American attitudes of the 1950s. Waitresses: Heavers Visitor services were arranged around a large parking Porters: Pack Rats plaza with small cabins a short distance away. The Bus Drivers: Gearjammers first Mission 66 project initiated by the National Park Courting in the evenings: Rotten Logging Service, Canyon Village opened in July 1957. Modern Management housing, Mission 66 focused mainly on visitor facili- Until the mid-1960s, park managers actively managed ties and roads. Trained as an architect, Wirth encour- the elk and bison of Yellowstone. Elk population lim- aged the use of modern materials and prefabricated its were determine