Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, I learned about the Civil War through books, movies, and plastic action figures. There just weren’t any battlefields in Oregon for a ten-year-old to experience first-hand. So, when I started traveling east, I was drawn to iconic battlefields like Gettysburg and Antietam. Until I started my quest to visit all the national park units, I had no idea of the sheer number of battlefields or how integrated into local communities they were and still are.

Congress has passed legislation to give the National Park Service permission to expand Petersburg National Battlefield in Virginia by more than 7,200 acres. The park currently consists of approximately 2,700 acres; however, with the passing of this legislation, it now has the opportunity to expand by another 7,238 acres.

While Americans this weekend honor those who gave their lives in defense of the country, the National Park Service is investigating looting that took place at a Civil War battlefield this week. The initial assessment at Petersburg National Battlefield in Virginia identified a large number of excavations in the park.

The past year took me across the National Park System, from Cape Lookout National Seashore on the North Carolina coast to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve in Alaska. The stories that spooled out from these trips into the National Park System told of advocacy and nurturing, of history and recreation, and even of controversy. Here's a look back.