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Pilgrim Places: Civil War Battlefields, Historic Preservation, and America’s First National Military Parks, 1863-1900, Part I

Today, well over a century after the Civil War ended in 1865, it is difficult to imagine the battlefields of Antietam, Vicksburg, Shiloh, Gettysburg, Chickamauga, and Chattanooga had they been neglected, instead of preserved as military parks. As compelling historic landscapes of great natural beauty and public interest, these early military parks have been familiar to generations of Americans.

Shenandoah National Park Ranger Roy Sullivan Set the World Record for Being Hit by Lightning

The odds of being struck by lightning once in an 80-year lifetime are about one in 3,000. The odds for two strikes in a lifetime soar to one in nine million. Roy Sullivan, a park ranger at Shenandoah National Park, was struck by seven lightning bolts and survived them all. It just goes to show you something or other.

Pruning the Parks: Delisted Over a Half-Century Ago, Fossil Cycad National Monument (1922-1956) is a Cautionary Tale

South Dakota’s Fossil Cycad National Monument was supposed to protect a geologic treasure when it was established in 1922, but its marvelous surface deposits of fossilized plants had already been stripped from the site. A bill signed into law on August 1, 1956, abolished the park, which has served ever since as a cautionary tale. If you don’t protect park resources, they won’t be there for future generations.

Would You Love Zion National Park As Much If It Were Called Mukuntuweap National Park?

Established by presidential proclamation 99 years ago on July 31, 1909, Zion National Park was originally named Mukuntuweap National Monument. It acquired its present name through circumstances that included unhappy Mormons and an iconic National Park Director who suffered crippling bouts of depression.

Did the NRA Infiltrate Groups Opposed to Overhauling Gun Regulations for the National Parks?

How far will the National Rifle Association go to overthrow gun control measures? Apparently infiltrating groups who favor gun control isn't out of the question. Among the groups infiltrated? Apparently the National Parks Conservation Association.

Lawsuit Filed to Stop Expansion of Visitor Center at Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument

A group of former National Park Service chief historians and park superintendents are plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed Thursday to block expansion of the visitor center at the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument. At stake, they say, is the historic integrity of the monument.

Coming Saturday: Pilgrim Places, Our Civil War Battlefields and Their Preservation

During his National Park Service career, historian Richard West Sellars examined in-depth many facets of the National Park System and National Park Service. One of those projects focused on Civil War battlefields and how they've been preserved over the years. The Traveler presents this work, Civil War Battlefields, Historic Preservation, and America’s First National Military Parks, 1863-1900, in a seven-part series starting Saturday.