Présentation

National Parks in the United States, 1872-1964

Yellowstone was established as a National Park by an Act of Congress in 1872 "as a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people". This class aims at exploring the reasoning, surveys, and legislation behind the creation of National Parks in the US, which also encompass national monuments and military sites, in their different objectives (enjoyment, preservation, teaching…). We will also study the legislative process involved in the process (Antiquity Act of 1906, creation of the National Park Service in 1916, executive orders, Wilderness Act of 1964 etc.).

A selection of articles from Jstor and other online resources will be made available on Moodle, and you will be encouraged to do your own research. The class and the evaluation will be based on primary source analysis.