From the Grand Canyon to Mt.

Rushmore to the Blue Ridge Mountains,

the National Park Service.

It's the government agency responsible for maintaining

America's abundance of natural and cultural wonders.

By the mid-1800s, Americans settlers

were moving west and discovering new landscapes

as they laid claim to lands in Texas, California,

New Mexico, and Arizona.

Many Americans were enamored with the natural beauty

of the Trans-Mississippi west, which was so different

from the east coast and Europe.

Some enterprising travelers realized

these natural sites would make good spots

for tourism and recreation.

In 1855, a British man named James Hutchings, along with two

Indian guides, visited the Yosemite Valley

and began to write articles promoting

California's scenic wonders.

Almost overnight, Yosemite became a destination.

It was so popular that President Abraham

Lincoln put it under protection during the Civil War.

But Yosemite was not the first national park.

In 1872, President Ulysses S. grant declared Yellowstone

the first-ever national park.

It wasn't until 1890 that John Muir,

a Scottish-American naturalist, successfully convinced Congress

to protect the Yosemite area.

Muir would continue to have a major influence on the creation

and preservation of new parks, along with President Theodore

Roosevelt. Between 1901 and 1909,

President Teddy Roosevelt, who believed that experiencing

nature was instrumental in building American character,

created five new parks, including Yosemite,

and claimed over 100 million acres of national forest.

He also signed the 1906 Antiquities Act,

which gave the President of the United States authority

to create national monuments from federal lands.

National parks were springing up all over the country.

But it wasn't until 1916 that President Woodrow Wilson signed

an act to establish a National Park Service,

run by the federal government.

The Organic Act gathered the 14 national parks

and 21 national monuments into a federal system.

Congress declared the fundamental purpose

of the national park system, "to conserve the scenery

and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife

therein, and to provide for the enjoyment of the same

in such manner and by such means as will

leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment

of future generations."

For the next two decades, Congress

expanded the national park system,

adding the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Acadia,

the Great Smoky Mountains, and Shenandoah

to the list of national parks.

Throughout the 20th century, the service

continued to expand, thanks to some important pieces

of legislation.

The Historic Sites Act of 1935 allowed

the government to give historic properties protected status.

The Wilderness Act of 1965 created a policy

of securing wilderness areas for the benefit

of the American people.

In 1990, the Native American Graves Protection

and Repatriation Act required museums, including those

in the national parks, to return excavated

remains to their cultural descendants.

By its 100th anniversary in 2016,

the National Park Service employed more than 20,000

people and upwards of 300,000 volunteers,

presiding over more than 400 parks,

monuments, and other sites.

Today, the National Park Service still

works with communities across America,

preserving nature, local history,

and providing the public with places

to explore, learn, and reflect.