Final Conclusions

It has been quite an adventure to explore how the National Park Service works to share and preserve history and nature with visitors.  As I toured through Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park, the Blue Ridge Parkway, Shenandoah National Historical Park, and Harper’s Ferry National Historical Park, I learned about numerous initiatives to carry out the NPS mission.  Each park had a little bit of different focus whether it be history or nature… but all strove to communicate effectively with visitors and protect their sites for future generations.

Ways to Preserve:

• 

  The NPS works with partners at Belle Grove

  Developing partnerships with other organizations is a great way for National Parks to preserve historical and natural sites!  Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park is a good example of a partnership park since the NPS only owns about 70 of the 1500 acres and works with groups like the National Trust for Historic Preservation and Belle Grove, Inc to put on programs.  Particularly during an economic recession, partnerships are the way to split up costs to keep parks clean and preserved.  Even larger parks like Shenandoah National Historical Park work with partner organizations to enhance public communication and funding.  For example, the Shenandoah National Park Association creates park books and products to sell and gives the money made to NPS education programs.  The Shenandoah National Park Trust also works within the local community to raise money for park projects.

• A key to successful preservation is getting visitors involved.  Park rangers can encourage the public to not litter or feed animals by giving informational talks or passing out pamphlets.  The ultimate goal is to help the public build a closer relationship with nature, learn to respect their surroundings, and develop a desire to preserve parkland for the future.

• 

  Scenic Easements help protect the view

  Environmental initiatives put in place by the Park Service help to protect natural surroundings and wildlife.  The scenic easements along the Blue Ridge Parkway, for example, prevent too much human development from scarring the Valley.  Also, the Natural Resource Management Program at Shenandoah National Park records plants and animals within the park area and helps to monitor their numbers.

• One way to preserve historic buildings is to research their histories in depth.  For example, researchers spent months of careful study to restore Belle Grove plantation to way it would have looked in 1700s.

Ways to Share:

• Education programs are fantastic ways to share history and nature with visitors.  At Shenandoah National Park, people can attend a number of different programs like a “Birds of Prey” lesson where they can see raptors up close.  Harper’s Ferry offers battlefield tours as well as information sessions on the significant events that helped shape the town.  Historic events become all the more interesting when you actually get to see and explore the areas they took place.  Many of the parks also host nature hikes where rangers describe and point out the local flora and fauna.

• 

  Big Meadows Museum

  Museums allow people to read about and explore park history.  Seeing pictures and hearing stories truly makes the remote past seem a lot closer.  Shenandoah National Park had a large museum at Big Meadows celebrating the creation of the park and the environmental policies the Park Service follows today.  This museum also had several interactive elements that enhanced the visitor learning process.

• Reenactment programs capture attention and really draw visitors into the time period.  We got to witness the Great Train Raid at Cedar Creek Battlefield where a group of reenactors created the historic train pull along the Valley Pike that took place during the Civil War.  There were also lots of people in period dress at Harper’s Ferry to answer questions and help with the kids programs.

• Visual Diagrams can show how particular areas are laid out as well as make ranger talking points a little more clear.  The Shenandoah Valley diagram that a ranger created for us at Cedar Creek really helped me to understand the Valley’s set up and gave me a sense for how the Great Train Raid would have worked.

• In addition to visual diagrams, educational materials like pamphlets and brochures can provide a lot of basic information about the sites with parks.  All four of the parks I visited handed out informative maps and literature describing famous stories or highlighting areas of interest.

• 

  Harper's Ferry Kids Program

  Kids Programs are great ways to inspire early interest in history and nature.  The hands-on approach to learning at Harper’s Ferry looked to be both fun and informative at the same time.

All About Balance

In simple terms, balancing is the key to the National Parks’ success!  It all comes back to the National Park Service’s mission to:

“… promote and regulate the use of the… national parks… which purpose is to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life 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”  (National Park Service Organic Act, 16 U.S.C.1.).

Although the goals presented in the mission statement seem to compete with one another, the NPS has taken great efforts to balance them.  The NPS Symbol visually shows the balancing act Park’s must perform.  The bison and sequoia tree represent animals and plants, the mountains and lake stand for human recreational enjoyment, and the encompassing arrowhead represents historical focus and preservation.

So here are my final thoughts on why National Parks are great places to visit and important to preserve:

• Parks provide areas relatively untouched by human development so visitors can reconnect with nature and enjoy calm reflection.  Limited human development also helps to protect plants and wildlife.

• Parks promote a sense of “shared national identity” by preserving and sharing sites that help make America a unique place (Vail Agenda, 13– see June 8 “A Balancing Act” entry for complete citation).  Blue mountains, expansive forests, historic buildings, and old battlefields all contribute to the American story.

• Parks can be fun and informative at the same time.  There are numerous recreation opportunities like hiking, biking, and rafting as well as educational programs about surrounding wildlife and historical stories.

I have really enjoyed my time exploring the parks of the Shenandoah Valley.  I hope you take the time to hike along a forested trail, listen to birds singing, read a park publication, bike on a parkway, tour a historic home, attend a ranger presentation, or simply take a enjoy a quiet moment of contemplation in a National Park.  You’ll be glad you did!!!

Peace Out! : )

Education and Fun at Harper’s Ferry

The town of Harper’s Ferry is located at the junction of the B and O Railroad and Winchester Potomac Railroad as well as the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers.  As it is also situated between three states (Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia) and located at the top of the Shenandoah Valley, it has been an extremely important industrial area in the past.  Today it is a quaint town to visit with lots of history packed in.

Lots of visitors went on the tour of Bolivar Heights Battlefield

After first parking the car, we went into the visitor center to grab a map and some information about programs for the day.  Luckily, a ranger program was just about to depart, so we hopped on a biodiesel bus for a tour of Bolivar Heights and explanation of the major 1862 battle that took place there.  On the way to and from the battlefield, the bus driver played a tape pointing out sites of interest and filling visitors in on the background history.  (Just a quick tip if you visit, be sure to not sit near the back of the bus because it is hard to hear from there).  The bus was full on a Tuesday afternoon with people of all ages, ranging from young kids and teenagers, to adults and older couples.

The ranger leading our tour had a plethora of knowledge—he named numerous generals who were key to the Civil War.  He would start on one idea and then jump to the next, making it a little hard to keep up, but I still learned a lot.  The ranger brought maps to point out the Union position on Bolivar Heights, where the Confederate troops were situated, and how the battle would have worked.  As he led our group across the battlefield, he pointed out different mountains surrounding Harper’s Ferry as well as earthwork trenches still existing from the Union position on Bolivar Heights.  Bolivar Heights gets its name from Simon Bolivar, a Venezuelan leader, who helped to gain independence for South American areas from the Spanish Empire.  A statue of him is actually located right across the street from the Department of Interior in Washington D.C. which I visited the first week of my project.  I had snapped a picture of the statue without really knowing anything about Simon Bolivar.  I think it is great that his name turned out to be significant to my project in some way—it makes me feel like my project is coming full circle!

Simon Bolivar Statue in DC

Here is some of the information I learned about the 1862 Battle of Harper’s Ferry from our tour:

The Confederate army led by Robert E. Lee entered into the Northern land of Maryland with the hopes of driving the Union army from Harper’s Ferry and gaining access to the Shenandoah Valley.  As I mentioned before, Harper’s Ferry was situated at the union of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers and had access to two major railroad lines, so it was coveted by both sides.

Lee split up his men into four different sections and sent three sections out to surround and attack the town of Harper’s Ferry.  The first section led by Brigadier General John G. Walker took control of Loudoun Heights, the second section led by Major General Lafayette McLaws took over Maryland Heights which was the highest point by the town, and finally Major General Stonewall Jackson came up behind Harper’s Ferry and settled on School House Ridge (The 1862 Battle of Harper’s Ferry).  The three sections fired mercilessly on the town and greatly reduced the morale of the Union soldiers within.  As Louis Hull, a Union soldier, wrote: “All seem to think that we will have to surrender or be cut into pieces” (The 1862 Battle of Harper’s Ferry).  General A.P. Hill led in a fourth section of troops to contest against Union men who held Bolivar Heights.  After several days of attack, the Union army raised white flags of surrender from Bolivar Heights and Jackson’s Confederate army was able to achieve its largest capture of Union troops.

Kids participate in a battle reenactment

After the Bolivar Heights tour, my family and I stayed on the bus to ride into the town for free.  One of the great sharing programs that I noticed upon entering the town was a kid’s history and science exploration program.  Groups of kids ran around with wooden muskets, acting out a battle.  We could hear cheers of “Hip Hip Hooray” ringing through the streets as we walked around.  One ranger informed us that there were currently 250 kids participating in the program on that particular day and 25000 kids total last year.  I found a radio clip from Shenandoah Radio online about the Harper’s Ferry kid learning program.  Occurring every Tuesday to Saturday in the summer from 11am to 3pm, this program is a great ways to teach kids about science or history.  Often run by local high school students, the activities can vary from day to day.  Kids can participate in everything from reenacting battles, to researching water quality of the rivers, to playing games from the 1800s (Shenandoah Valley Radio).  It is a great hands-on learning experience that kids really enjoy.  I particularly like how the program is focused towards tourists and their kids as opposed to just school groups.  No pre-registration is required and people can simply bring their kids to join in on the fun the same day of the program.

Arsenal Firehouse where John Brown was cornered

Sprinkled throughout the town were numerous museums that visitors could wander through.  There were no docents inside to explain certain events in more depth, so it was really just self-exploratory experience.  However, the museums provided a vast amount of information and presented numerous artifacts.  We explored the Civil War museum that gave a broad background as well as the John Brown museum that shared the story of the famous raid at Harper’s Ferry.  John Brown was an abolitionist who believed that action and violence was necessary to bring an end to slavery in the South.  On October 16, of 1859, he and twenty-one of his followers entered the Harper’s Ferry and took possession of the armory.  Brown believed that once the town slaves realized a rebellion was going on, they would willingly join in and gain freedom (Roark, 333-334).  Things did not work out according to plan however, since the slaves did not join in and Brown and his men were quickly trapped and stopped by Colonel Robert E. Lee’s troops.  John Brown’s failed raid on Harper’s Ferry contributed significantly to North and South tensions just before the Civil War (Roark, 334).  Southerners thought that the North was trying to undermine the institution of slavery by leading slave insurrections, while Northerners were upset by the South’s order to hang John Brown, who they believed to have been acting in a just manner.  Just outside the John Brown Museum was the arsenal firehouse where John Brown and his men were cornered by Lee’s troops and eventually captured.  It was neat to review some of the history inside the museum and then walk right outside the doors to see where the event actually took place.

Jefferson Rock!

My favorite part of visiting Harper’s Ferry was hiking up to Jefferson Rock, named after Thomas Jefferson (our famous W&M alum!) who wrote high praise of the view it offered of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers below.  Climbing up a series of steep stone stairs, we made our way past two old churches and eventually came upon the rock, which has its top piece raised on four legs to keep it from tumbling away.  Visitors cannot actually climb up onto the rock itself since it is unstable, but we were still able to witness the expansive view and gain a real sense of Jefferson’s words:

View from Jefferson Rock

“The passage of the Patowmac through the Blue Ridge is perhaps one of the most stupendous scenes in Nature.  You stand on a very high point of land.  On your right comes up the Shenandoah, having ranged along the foot of the mountain a hundred miles to seek a vent.  On your left approaches the Patowmac in quest of passage also.  In the moment of their junction they rush together against the mountain, rend it asunder, and pass off to the sea… This scene is worth a voyage across the Atlantic” (Jefferson).

And so it is.  Harper’s Ferry National Historical Park is truly a wonderful place for the whole family to visit.  It offers a wide range of historical and nature tours, kids activities, and great views of the surrounding area.  I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for an educational and fun adventure.

Here’s the link to the Harper’s Ferry National Historical Park website:  http://www.nps.gov/hafe/index.htm

Works Cited

Jefferson, Thomas.  Notes on the State of Virginia.  1785.  Accessed online at <http://www.nps.gov/hafe/historyculture/thomas-jefferson-at-harpers-ferry.htm&gt;.

Roark, James L, et al.  The American Promise.  Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2010.

“This Week: Kid-Friendly History at Harper’s Ferry.”  Shenandoah Valley Radio, June 24, 2011. <http://shenandoahvalley.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=478:harpers-ferry-national-historic-park-ramps-up-summer-programs-for-kids&catid=8:today-in-the-valley>.

Keeping the Drive “Wild and Wonderful”

Driving the entire 105 miles of the Skyline Drive across the Blue Ridge Mountains was a calming experience.  We wound our way through dappled sunlight and forest green, and stopped at some of the overlooks to see the surrounding valley and mountains in the distance.  I loved seeing the North fork of the Shenandoah River shining like a nike swoosh mark as the sun set in the late afternoon.

The Shenandoah River shimmers in the sunlight

We also saw a lot of wildlife during our journey along the roadway.  My Dad rode his bike for about 20 miles and came within a few feet of a rattlesnake that was sunning itself on the side of the road.  As my Mom and I drove along towards Big Meadows, we came upon a baby black bear ambling up a grassy embankment.  I did not even see him until the car came around a bend so I was not able to stop to take a picture.  But perhaps that is just as well… Scenic drives can sometimes keep people moving through park areas and lower human disturbance of the wildlife.

The black half-circle on the far right is a bear

As we continued our journey the next day, however, there were several cars pulled over to the side of the road. We slowed up and asked what was going on.  In a hushed voice, one man excitedly gripped the binoculars hanging around his neck and pointed over to the woods across the road.  “There’s a black bear feeding right over there.”  What amazed me is that people were actually out of the car and walking around within a couple yards of a wild animal…and not any wild animal but full-grown bear.  One lady even opened up the door and encouraged her ten-year-old daughter to get out of the car to take a picture…. Sounds totally safe right?  We stayed in the car and I tried to take a picture through the open car window but there was so much dense underbrush that it was hard to see the bear  (It’s there though I promise you!). The bear went right on about its business and seemed not at all nervous that a small crowd was gathering to observe him.

Visitors observe a deer in the Big Meadows Parking Lot

We also spotted a lot of deer grazing serenely in the fields of Big Meadows who did not seem afraid of people.  One deer did not even raise its head when a motorcycle went rumbling by or when a father and son walked within five feet of it.  The Shenandoah park rangers want people to appreciate nature and realize this is best achieved through real-life encounters.  However, they also strive to give the animals some privacy and a chance to live in the wild without people disrupting their daily activities.  If animals become too used to human presence, they can become more vulnerable to hunters or getting hit by cars.  They can also potentially become dangerous or raid human campsites.  Promoting public interest in wildlife while at the same time protecting animals from humans continues to be a challenge now and into the future, but the NPS rangers have come up with creative ways to share and preserve.  For example, the NPS has a “Birds of Prey” program where visitors can see rescued raptors from the Wildlife Center of Virginia up close and learn about their importance in the natural environment.  The park also encourages visitors to follow the guidelines on a “Leave No Trace” website to make a minimal impact on the natural environment.

Trash cans with bear protection lids

At Big Meadows, my family and I stopped at the restaurant to grab a snack and sat out to a picnic table to observe the scenery.  Someone played the banjo, bikers relaxed after a long ride, and butterflies lolled throughout the long grass.  It was truly a peaceful day in the mountains.  I noticed that the park had put in place trash cans with special lids so wildlife, bears in particular, could not nose their way in and eat the trash.  Just another example that preserving wildlife means interacting with them as little as possible and leaving them to be wild.

Next to the restaurant was the Big Meadows Museum, which shared information about the foundation of Shenandoah National Park.  Most of the museum focused on human history, but towards the end it also had some information about environmental preservation.  On one wall was a timeline listing and explaining important policies that Shenandoah National Park follows.  For example, the timeline lists the Air Pollution Control Act of 1955, which promotes the reduction of atmospheric contamination, as well as the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, which encourages the preservation of historical and environmental areas that are integral to America’s identity.

A forest scene in Big Meadows Museum

I was also impressed at the many interactive elements the museum held to give visitors a sense of exploring history and preservation for themselves.  Instead of simply looking at the pictures on the walls or reading captions, visitors could actually flip through copies of old appraisal documents, twiddle their fingers on a typewriter to get the feel of typing up official letters, and walk through a forest scene.  One interactive element was a wheel that visitors could turn to see different ways of managing the meadows.  Each management decision corresponded with a different result on the meadow environment.  For example, if the Park Service managed the meadows for human recreation, water use would increase and the meadows’ wetlands would suffer.  On the other hand, if the Park Service did not manage the meadows at all, trees from the surrounding forests would encroach onto the area, driving away some of

Visitors observe the meadows from viewing windows

the birds and butterflies and ruining all evidence of human history.  I thought that the spinning wheel was a creative way to share various preservation options.  Visitors could gain a sense for the trade-offs that National Park officials must make when trying to balance human use with natural conservation.

Shenandoah National Park has a Natural Resource Management Program that strives to preserve animals, plants, and natural features and environmental quality.  Members of this program work to make a comprehensive inventory of plants and animal species that live in the park as well as monitor trends in the species’ populations (Natural Resource Program Components).  If they notice any unsettling change in the trends, they can try to track down the cause of the disturbance.  For example, when staff members noticed that some native plant populations were declining, they realized that the rapid spread of invasive plants was the cause.

The Natural Resource Management Program also hires scientists to perform more in-depth studies of state of natural resources (Natural Resource Program Components).  Since parks are protected from human development and kept relatively natural, they are good locations for scientists to carry out studies.  Many scientists jump at the opportunity to research in national parks because these areas can serve as great indicators of environmental health for the surrounding lands.  For example, scientists have picked up signs of air pollution from their research in Shenandoah National Park.

The key to making a difference in natural resource preservation is composing concrete plans and then implementing them (Natural Resource Program Components).  In Shenandoah’s program, they have a broad General Management Plan as well as more specific preparation and action plans.  Staff members evaluate the effectiveness of these plans and think through potential outcomes.  Essentially, they want to make sure the plans comply with national environmental legislation, take into account the public’s opinion, and work to improve or solve the problem in the best way possible (Natural Resource Program Components).

From the drive along the Skyline Drive and the visit to Big Meadows, I gained a better sense of the wildlife and human interactions.  While many visitors to the park never see black bears, we chanced upon two of them, thus proving that some of the Park programs to protect wildlife are working.  Through public outreach initiatives like the “Birds of Prey” talks, “Leave No Trace” website, and Big Meadows Museum, as well as planning committees like the Natural Resource Management Program, Shenandoah National Park is making a clear effort to protect its environment and preserve it for future generations.

Works Cited

Natural Resource Program Components.  National Park Service, 2011. <http://www.nps.gov/shen/naturescience/resource_man.htm&gt;.

Creation and “Re-creation”

I am so excited to be carrying out my project this summer because it is the 75^th Anniversary of the Shenandoah National Park.  Located only about three hours away from Washington DC, this park has been a favorite getaway for the many people who live in the area.  In honor of the anniversary, park service officials have created a special website in celebration of the park’s history, launched a program of special events for the summer, and printed a brochure with the top 75 reasons to visit Shenandoah National Park!

As one of the first major parks established on the East Coast, Shenandoah National Park has an immense amount of history behind it.  Enthused by the success in the West, NPS officials sought to create some parks in the East that would be more accessible and affordable for middle class families.  In 1924, congress set up a Southern Appalachian National Park Committee (SANPC) to examine potential areas to place a park (Engle, web).  The five-person committee composed a questionnaire for local residents provide information and opinions on land areas.  The questionnaire asked where natural features were located, whether the land was currently divvyed up into small or large properties, and what range of altitudes the area covered (SANPC questionnaire).  Based on answers to the questionnaire and their own inspections, the committee members eventually settled on part of the Shenandoah Valley surrounding the already-established Skyland Resort.  In its report to Congress, the SANPC advocated for a park along the Blue Ridge since these mountains were “within a day’s ride of 40,000,000 of our inhabitants” who lived in and around the Nation’s capital (Engle, web).  The committee also introduced the idea of creating a “skyline drive” along the ridge tops of the mountains, which would provide visitors with scenic overviews and a pleasant sense of the Valley (Engle, web).

Gathering Land and Displacing Mountain Families

Calvin Coolidge signed the bill to authorize Shenandoah National Park in 1926 and the accumulation of land and fundraising for the development got underway.  At Governor Harry Flood Byrd’s urging, Virginia set up the State Commission on Conservation and Development to oversee the process of the park’s creation (Engle, 19).  Out west, the government owned large tracts of land and could easily establish parks that extended for miles.  In the East, however, land was divided into multiple privately owned properties and the government only owned small portions (Engle, 16).  Therefore, in order to gain enough land for a large-scale National Park, the government needed to gather land from the numerous landholders.  William Carson was appointed as the leader of the new State Commission and oversaw the appraisal and purchase of about 4,000 different properties (Engle, web).  To make the process easier, Congress composed a condemnation policy that enabled government officials to buy farms from private landowners and essentially force them off the property.  Needless to say, many local residents were furious with the policy and felt that their personal rights were being violated.

Records of land purchased for park

I watched a video called “The Iris Still Blooms” on the relocation of mountain families from their homes to make room for the National Park and Skyline Drive.  Many had no desire to leave the houses and land they had lived on for years but were forced to give way to the government’s policy (The Iris Still Blooms).  The video provided moving interviews with individuals who lived there as children and also followed the timeline of the park’s creation.  Since the relocation process is one of the unpleasant pieces of the park’s history, I was surprised but glad to see that the museum at Big Meadows provided information about it.  There were records of all the different pieces of land that were purchased for the park as well as some pictures and stories of people who lived in the Mountains.  One story in particular caught my attention.  Herbert Cliser, who owned a local gas station and farm in the mountains, did everything in his power to keep his property.  He wrote numerous letters to National Park Service officials in complaint of the land condemnation policies and refused to accept the government’s payment for his land.  Eventually, however, he and his wife, Carrie were evicted from their home and forced to leave the area.  I think it is important for visitors to hear the stories of people who called the Blue Ridge Mountains their home, and learn about the policies the government firmly enforced to create the park.

Building Across the Sky

Skyline Drive Postcard ( Big Meadows Museum)

While William Carson was overseeing the land accumulation process, he also made an effort to get the President of the United States, Herbert Hoover at the time, actively involved in the park’s development.  Carson encouraged Hoover and his wife Lou to build their personal retreat from the White House in the secluded and peaceful woods of the proposed Shenandoah Park (Engle, 26).  As Hoover spent weekends fishing and relaxing at “Rapidan Camp”, he became more invested in Park decisions and also brought media attention to the area (Engle, 26).  I was actually a little surprised to learn about Hoover’s attachment and promotion of the Park.  President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, with his CCC initiatives, usually gets the credit for improving Shenandoah National Park, but Hoover was also a major presidential supporter of developing the area.  Hoover actually voted in favor of using government money to establish the first piece of the Skyline Drive from Rapidan Camp to Big Meadows, Skyland, and Thornton Gap (Engle, web).  Construction of the drive began before all the land had been accumulated and the rest of the park had been established (Engle, 30).

View from the Skyline Drive

Stephen Mather and Horace Albright, the two original leaders of the National Park Service, felt that drives through national parks should blend with the natural surroundings: “In the construction of roads, trails, buildings, and other improvements, particular attention must be devoted always to the harmonizing of these improvements with the landscape” (Engle, 12—National Park Service Statement of Policy in 1918).  When the government first started work on the Skyline Drive, it only had access to a hundred foot right-of-way (Engle, web).  In order to fit the road into the narrow environment, workers had to build steep embankments on the edges that often caused erosion and landslides.  The problem was later remedied by the Civilian Conservation Corps men who built “cribs” of woven tree trunks and filled them with dirt and seeds to prevent loose sediment from tumbling down onto the road (Engle, 78).

Commitment of the CCC

CCC men clearing trees on an embankment of the Skyline Drive

When Franklin Delano Roosevelt became President in 1933, he helped to create the Civilian Conservation Corps as a part of his “New Deal” program to give Americans job opportunities during the Great Depression.  The first two CCC camps were opened at Skyland and Big Meadows and the young boys who were employed there helped to extend and improve the Skyline Drive, as well as build park facilities like rest stops and hiking trails.  The NPS website has links to recorded interviews with men who worked in the Shenandoah CCC camps.  These interviews are extremely interesting to read since they provide a personal sense of what a typical day would have been like.  The CCC camps were fashioned in a similar fashion to military camps with an early start and flag salute in the mornings, several hours of physical labor during the days, and some down time and education programs in the evenings (CCC Oral Histories).  Interviewees reported eating pretty good food, keeping their barracks clean for inspection, and developing great friendships with the other boys that worked there.  One interviewee said that he felt like the CCC really got him into shape and he would willingly do it all over again.  Although not all of the boys probably felt this way, many were satisfied with the conditions and glad to be getting some money.  The hard work of the CCC boys made Shenandoah National Park a reality.

The Dedication Ceremony

By 1936, many miles of the Skyline Drive had been established and facility construction was underway.  On July 3^rd, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt delivered the official dedication of Shenandoah National Park.  He particularly emphasized the importance of preserving natural areas for the future saying:

“We seek to pass on to our children a richer land—a stronger nation.  I, therefore, dedicate Shenandoah National Parks to this and to succeeding generations of Americans for the recreation and for the re-creation which we shall find here” (Roosevelt).

“Re-creation” means starting anew, beginning fresh, and awakening a positive outlook on life!  Roosevelt saw an opportunity for Shenandoah National Park to reinvigorate the American people, particularly after the Great Depression.  By exploring park areas, people could reconnect with nature and escape from their daily worries and financial problems.  Roosevelt shared the story of American families setting out on vacation adventures:

“All across the nation at this time of year people are starting out for their vacations in national and state parks.  They will put up at roadside camps or pitch their tents under the stars, with an open fire to cook by, with the smell of the woods and the wind in the trees.  They will forget the rush and the strain of all the other long weeks of the year, and for a short time at least, the days will be good for their bodies and good for their souls” (Roosevelt).

Video of FDR delivering Dedication Speech (Big Meadows Museum)

Visiting a national park can certainly have a reinvigorating effect!  In the museum at Big Meadows, there is a video of FDR delivering his dedication speech.  The screen is set up behind a podium so visitors passing by can experience what it would have been like to see and hear the ceremony.  This Saturday (June 25, 2011), the park is having an anniversary dedication ceremony in honor of the years of negotiations and planning to create the park and the 75 years it has existed since then.

Here’s the link to the 75th Anniversary Website… This is a great summer to go visit the Park! :  http://www.celebrateshenandoah.org/

Works Cited 

“CCC Oral Histories.” <http://www.nps.gov/shen/historyculture/cccoralhistories.htm&gt;.

Engle, Reed L.  Historical Overview.  National Park Service, 2011. <http://www.nps.gov/shen/historyculture/historicaloverview.htm&gt;.

Engle, Reed L.  The Greatest Single Feature… A Sky-line Drive: 75 Years of a Mountaintop Motorway.  Bridgewater, Virginia: Good Printers, 2006.  Copyright by Shenandoah National Park Association, Inc.

Roosevelt, Franklin Delano.  The Dedication of Shenandoah National Park.  July 3, 1936.  <http://www.guidetosnp.com/web/portals/0/documents/pdfs/Roosevelt-SNP-Dedication-July1936.pdf&gt;.

Southern Appalachian National Park Committee (SANPC).  ”Answer to Government Questionnaire Concerning Proposed Southern Appalachian National Park.”  (document from Shenandoah National Park Library).  <http://www.nps.gov/shen/historyculture/upload/s.a.n.p.c._questionnaire.pdf&gt;.

 

Making the Journey the Destination

The beautiful thing about driving down the Blue Ridge Parkway is that the views are always shifting and changing.  Just when you think you have seen the most lovely array of flowers and trees, you wind around the corner and encounter an even more breathtaking sight of the misty valley below.  The Parkway extends for 469 miles through Virginia and North Carolina, connecting Shenandoah National Park with the Great Smokey Mountains National Park (Firth).  It was created as a scenic drive for people to observe natural surroundings from the comfort of an automobile and travel easily between the two parks.  Since the roadway is so long and narrow, it incorporates the surrounding valleys and mountains into its viewshed.  Essentially the horizon line is the boundary. The use of scenic easements, or land that is technically owned by other individuals, has proved to be a way to safeguard the expansive view (Abbott).  The park has had to work with local landowners and organizations to preserve the scenery and prevent human developments like factories and crowded urban centers from scarring the valley.

View of Abbott Lake

In addition to dealing with human development, the park is currently trying to lower air pollution that decreases visibility at the overlooks along the drive.  Air pollution can lower the clearness of distant land features by about 40% in the winter and up to 80% in the summer (Blue Ridge Parkway Directory and Travel Planner, 12).  Most air pollutants are carried by the wind from distant cities and trapped between the mountains, making it difficult for the NPS pinpoint the exact source and stop it completely.  Despite this drawback, the NPS has tried to raise awareness of the problem by including information about it in brochures and placing signs at some of the overlooks to remind people to turn off their cars while enjoy the view.

The Blue Ridge Parkway provides scenic diversity because it runs through both small towns and natural areas, and also goes through valleys instead of sticking strictly to the mountaintops (Firth).  Stanley Abbot, the primary landscape architect for the Parkway and “father of the Blue Ridge Parkway,” wrote:

“Like the movie cameraman who shoots his subject from many angles to heighten the drama of his film, so the shifting position of the roadway unfolds a more interesting picture to the traveler. The sweeping view over the low country often holds the center of the stage, but seems to exit gracefully enough when the Parkway leaves the ridge for the more gentle slopes and the deeper forests” (Firth).

Architects designed the road so it would curve with the mountains, making it more scenic for travelers and preventing immense scarring of the landscape.  They essentially strove to integrate human

A sign about Preserving the Parkway from the early 1900s

development into the natural environment.  By sloping the land on the edges of the roadway, pruning some of the vegetation, and building rest stops to look like rural cabins, they helped the road blend with its surroundings (Firth).  The Linn Cove Viaduct serves as a great example of a design that coexists peacefully with the environment.  By 1966, the majority of the road had been completed except for a 7.7 mile section at Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina.  Architects had to figure out a way to construct the road over the mountain without ruining the rugged terrain.  The solution ended up being to construct a concrete bridge that curved around the mountain instead of going through or over it (Quinn).

The Blue Ridge Parkway Association has put together a wonderful booklet highlighting different areas to visit and attractions to see when driving the parkway.  My family and I decided to hike up Sharp Top Mountain, one of the Peaks of Otter located in Bedford, Virginia.  It was a 1.5 mile hike marked as “strenuous” in the Park booklet, but we were up for the challenge and I figured it would be a good way to get my workout in for the day.  Hiking gave me an opportunity to observe how the National Park Service worked to share and preserve history and nature of an environmental-focused area.

Stone steps to help with hiking

At the start of the hike, it felt great to stretch my legs and hear the birds singing.  As we progressed farther and farther up the mountain, however, there were more rocks and we really had to pay attention to where we were stepping so as not to trip. The National Park Service had taken steps to preserve the trail and help hikers.  For example, rangers had put in place railings on the really steep switchbacks to prevent people from toppling over.  They also concreted some loose rocks together to create steps so climbing would be a little easier at the top.  After hiking for about an hour, my legs began to get a tired and all I could think about was getting back to the base of the mountain to enjoy a refreshing ice cream.  Once we reached the top, however, it was totally worth the intense exercise.  Rising 3875 feet above sea level, Sharp Top Mountain provides a wonderful 360 degree view of the Valley as well as Abbott Lake located at the Peaks of Otter Lodge.  The NPS has built several outcropping overlooks and positioned signs to mark elevations or describe points of interest.  It was beautiful to be up so high— it made me feel free and alive!

People participate recreational activities like hiking to escape from their busy lives and get back in touch with nature.  The woods provide a wonderful opportunity to let your feet and your mind wander.  I was surprised at how many fellow hikers we passed on the path.  There were a lot of families with young children who scrambled up the rocks with enthusiasm, as well as individuals with their dogs.  On our way back down to the base of the mountain, a wild turkey ran right across our path and disappeared into the foliage, serving as a reminder that wildlife was around even if we did not always see it.

At the top of Sharptop!!

The Parking Lot was full!

Back at the Peaks of Otter Lodge, there was a flurry of activity.  Cars filled the parking lot to the brim and there were several family reunions and picnics on the grassy shores of Abbott Lake.  The Blue Ridge Parkway is one of the most popular areas owned by the National Park Service and gets about 17 million visitors per year (Abbott).  It offers people access to different towns, camping sites, and natural wonders, making it a great getaway destination.  The Ranger station had a small museum explaining some of the Parkway’s history and displaying different kinds of wildlife that people might see on their hikes.  Interactive

A family exploring the museum

stations and colorful signs made it a kid-friendly environment and captured visitors’ interest.  My favorite section in the museum was a display about two sisters named Helen and Julia Smith who took pictures and recorded observations about wildflowers along the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The sisters encouraged Parkway officials to lower the amount of mowing along the edges of the roadway so wildflowers could grow where drivers could see them.  The museum had several of their sketch books and flower slides on display.  Behind the ranger station was an amphitheater where rangers could give talks and share insights on wildlife or park development.  Throughout my visit, I witnessed numerous efforts to share and preserve history and nature.  The Blue Ridge Parkway is clearly living up the NPS mission and making the journey the destination.

Works Cited

Abbott, Carlton.  The Parkway: Purpose- Idea- Creation. 75th Anniversary Symposium in Roanoke, VA.  15 October, 2010.  Powerpoint Presentation.  <http://blueridgeparkway75.org/files/Parkway_Purpose_Idea_Creation-Abbott.pdf&gt;

Firth, Ian.  Historical Significance of the Blue Ridge Parkway.  University of Georgia, 2008. <http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/sero/appalachian/sec2.htm

Quinn, Richard.  History of the Parkway.  Blue Ridge Parkway 75, 2009.  <http://blueridgeparkway75.org/more-than-a-road/history&gt;

Here’s the link to the Blue Ridge Parkway Directory and Travel Planner online: http://mydigimag.rrd.com/publication/?i=61023

A Balancing Act

Here is just a quick thought on the National Park Service’s mission.  As a reminder, the NPS strives to:

“… promote and regulate the use of the… national parks… which purpose is to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life 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”  (National Park Service Organic Act, 16 U.S.C.1.).

The National Park Service has continually had to balance wildlife and historical preservation with human use and enjoyment.  Particularly with the rapid increase in visitors starting in the 1950s, the parks have had to face significant trade-offs and make decisions to share and preserve in the best ways possible.  For example, in one of the Blue Ridge Parkway newsletters, I read that rangers had to decide whether to clear away spruce trees at scenic overlooks or leave them to provide habitat for the declining Flying Squirrel population.  The rangers ended up compromising between the two extremes and leaving the spruce trees evenly spaced so people could enjoy the view and squirrels could still use the trees.

The Park Service arrowhead, which serves as the organization’s symbol, serves as a visual representation of balance.  The towering sequoia tree in the foreground and grazing buffalo symbolize plant and animal life protected in the parks.  The snowcapped mountains and watering hole in the distance signify the scenic landscapes and recreational opportunities for visitors.  Finally, the arrowhead shape in which these images are placed, represents archeological discoveries and the rich history behind the parks (“Frequently Asked Questions”).  With the symbol pulling all these different values together into peaceful harmony, the general public can gain a better understanding of the Service’s mission to balance, as well as successfully share and preserve, diverse values.

The National Park Service seeks to promote a sense of “shared national identity” through education programs, recreational activities, and communication initiatives (Vail Agenda, 13).  Instead of simply describing an event that took place on a particular site, NPS officials have a duty to communicate how the event played into the nation’s broader history and impacted countrywide development.  Every expansive vista of blue mountaintops, every educational program exploring the local flora and fauna, and every recreational hike through the mountains has distinct meaning and fits into a larger national picture.  The National Park Service essentially strives to weave different sites and stories into a single American tapestry.

Works Cited

“Frequently Asked Questions.”  National Park Service, 2011. <http://www.nps.gov/faqs.htm&gt;.

National Parks for the 21st Century: The Vail Agenda.  Vermont: Capital City Press, 1991.

Partnering to Preserve

A hay wagon makes its way through the grounds of Belle Grove

Created in 2002, Belle Grove and Cedar Creek National Historical Park is a relatively new addition to the National Park Service and serves as a great example of a park in mid-development.  It is currently a partnership park under the ownership of many different historical and preservation organizations like the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Belle Grove Inc, and Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation.  After seeing well-kept premises and numerous visitors, I think that maintaining parks through partnerships can be a great way to preserve sites, particularly during an

This monument lists private land owners and companies who are responsible for preserving the view

economic recession.  Organizations can split up some of the costs and share the responsibilities of funding and maintaining the area.  One of the rangers informed me that the National Park Service only owns seventy out of the 1500 acres, with the rest being owned by private organizations.  That equates to a mere 4.7% of the land.  Because of its young age and small land ownership, the park currently has about five rangers, there is no ranger station, and they only do public outreach programs on the weekends.  Although the park was clearly still in stages of development, I was impressed at the amount of activity and significant passion and interest that both workers and visitors expressed.  For example, there was a steady flow of people to tour Belle Grove Plantation every hour between 10:15am and 3:15pm.  Despite its small percentage of land ownership, the NPS can serve as a kind of glue to connect areas together.  For example, the ranger program we attended on the Belle Grove lawn helped to link the plantation home with Cedar Creek battlefield and provide a clear picture of the Shenandoah Valley.

We attended a tour of the Belle Grove Plantation house to gain an understanding for the historical past of the building.  Our tour guide was a high school student who had a lot of energy and spoke with clear conviction.  I thought it was great that high school students were helping to give the tours.  It confirmed that younger people still had an interest in preserving history and it aligned with the NPS mission of sharing with future generations.  The manor house was constructed in the 1790s for Major Isaac Hite Jr. (a William and Mary graduate!) and his wife, Nelly Conway Madison, who was sister to later President James Madison (“Belle Grove History”).  Thomas Jefferson helped with the interior design and incorporated numerous symmetrical aspects into the house’s layout.  In the entertaining room, for example, Jefferson added a fake door

Belle Grove Plantation

on the left of a wall to match a real one on the right, for the sole purpose of balancing the room.  The exterior of the home was also completely symmetrical until a later wing was added to accommodate a growing family.  When Nelly Madison passed away, Hite married Ann Tunstall Maury and raised 12 children, making it necessary to expand living space as much as possible (“Belle Grove History”).  Other of Jefferson’s projects included built-in cabinets with adjustable shelves and lunette glass windows above doors to let light flow through the house.  Although it appeared to be two stories from the outside, the house was made up of one main level with high ceilings and only had a small attic area accessible by a twisting, narrow staircase closed off from view.

One of the challenges that Belle Grove and Cedar Creek Park has had to face is expanding human development in its surrounding area.  At one point, a Walmart was supposed to be established across the street from the Battlefield.  This would have definitely detracted from the peaceful feel of the park as well as its dignified presence.  Luckily, preservation organizations were able to combat the addition and the plan fell through.

Inside the Belle Grove plantation home, we learned about some of the preservation measures to protect the historic building.  Researchers spent months of careful study to remodel the house as it would have appeared during the late 1700s and early 1800s.  For example, when historians did not know the carpet pattern of the dining room, they tracked down the English company that had made it.  The company then checked its records for carpets shipped to the United States in that time period, and lighted on a pattern that would have probably been used.  The carpet was remade to match the original pattern and restored to the house.  In all the rooms, historians used records and documents from the time period to figure out how living spaces might have been arranged.  They also tried to use furniture pieces from the original time period as well as ones that were constructed to look like they were from an older era.  In the children’s bedroom, there was a remade horsehair mattress that had been left partially open so visitors could see and feel how scratchy it would have been to sleep on.  From beds like this came the common bedtime saying, “Sleep tight and don’t let the bed bugs bite.”  “Sleep tight” refers to when slaves would come in every evening to tighten the ropes stretch across the bed frame, while “bed bugs” refers to the numerous critters that would crawl in the horsehair mattress and creep up on people while they slept.  Historians essentially worked with bits of past information to piece together an enormous 3D puzzle.

Belle Grove Garden

Icehouse

I thought that the grounds surrounding the house were also well preserved.  The Garden Club of Virginia outfitted and maintained the Belle Grove garden with herbs, crops, and a great array of colorful flowers that would have been grown in the early 1800s.  Another site of interest was the icehouse, which had a door with protective rails so people could peer down into the cool, dark depths below.  I also enjoyed stopping by the blacksmith shop where men were molding metal in a burning fire.  Belle Grove and Cedar Creek National Park was created solely for the purpose of preserving historical sites.  Although it lacks an environmental focus, partnering organizations have taken measures to keep the grounds looking relatively natural to keep with its 19^th century appearance.  It will be interesting to see how this historical park compares with more nature-oriented parks like Shenandoah National Park.  Let the adventure continue!

Works Cited

Belle Grove History. Belle Grove Inc, 2011. <http://www.bellegrove.org/index.php?/about/history&gt;.

Below is also the link to the main homepage of the Belle Grove website in case you would like to arrange a visit.  It costs $10 ($8 if you are a AAA member) to tour the house.

http://www.bellegrove.org/index.php