National Park Service
National Park Service Arrowhead
Agency overview
Formed	August 25, 1916
Headquarters	Main Interior Building (MIB), Washington, D. Events 1248 - The Dutch city of Ommen receives city rights and fortification rights from Otto III the Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year C.
Employees	15,000 permanent, 5,000 seasonal
Annual Budget	$2. 256 billion (2006)
Agency Executive	Mary A. Bomar, Director
Parent agency	Department of the Interior
Website
www.nps.gov

The National Park Service (NPS) is the United States federal agency that manages all National Parks, many National Monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations. Mary A Bomar is the 17th Director of the National Park Service of the United States. The United States Department of the Interior ( DOI) is a Cabinet department of the United States government that manages and conserves most federally The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Wikipedia_talkFeatured_lists#Proposed_change_to_all_featured_lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below -->The National Park System A National Monument in the United States is a Protected area that is similar to a National Park except that the President of the United States ^[1]

It was created on August 25, 1916, by Congress through the National Park Service Organic Act^[2] in order 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. Events 1248 - The Dutch city of Ommen receives city rights and fortification rights from Otto III the Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year The United States Congress is the bicameral Legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses

It is an agency of the United States Department of the Interior, which is a Cabinet Office of the executive branch, overseen by a Secretary nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate. A government agency is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the Machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions The United States Department of the Interior ( DOI) is a Cabinet department of the United States government that manages and conserves most federally The United States Cabinet (usually simplified as "the Cabinet" is composed of the most senior appointed officers of the Executive branch of the Federal government In Political science and Constitutional law, the executive is the branch of government responsible for the day-to-day management of the State. The United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives Most of the direct management of the NPS is delegated by the Secretary to the National Park Service Director, who must now also be confirmed by the Senate.

The NPS oversees 391 units, of which 58 are designated national parks. The Official Units of the National Park System of the United States is the collection of physical properties owned or administered by the National Park Service. A national park is a reserve of land usually declared and owned by a national Government, protected from most Human development and pollution Among the other unit designations are:

• National Monuments
• Historical Parks
• National Preserves
• National Memorials
• Historic Trails
• Scenic Trails
• Heritage Areas
• National Recreation Areas
• Wild and Scenic Rivers
• Lakeshores
• Seashores
• Battlefields and Military Parks
• Select National Cemeteries

Not all NPS properties are considered to be distinct units. A National Monument in the United States is a Protected area that is similar to a National Park except that the President of the United States A National Historical Park, National Historic Park, and National Historic Site are designations for Protected areas of national National Preserve is a designation applied by the United States Congress to Protected areas that have characteristics normally associated with U National Memorial is a designation in the United States for a Protected area that commemorates a historic person or event National Historic Trail is a designation for a Protected area in the United States containing historic trails and surrounding areas National Scenic Trail is a designation for Protected areas in the United States that consist of trails of particular natural beauty US National Heritage Areas are designated areas in the United States, authorized by the U National Recreation Area (NRA is a designation for a Protected area in the United States, often centered on large reservoirs and emphasizing water-based National Wild and Scenic River is a designation for certain Protected areas in the United States. A National Lakeshore is a protected area of Lakeshore in the United States. A National Seashore, in the United States, is a seashore area federally designated as being of natural and recreational significance as a preserved area National Military Park, National Battlefield, National Battlefield Park, and National Battlefield Site are four designations for 24 battle sites preserved 4 Fort Snelling Looking SouthwestJPG|thumb|200px| Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Minneapolis Minnesota]]" United States National Cemetery " is a designation for 139 For example, Ellis Island Immigration Museum is not an independent NPS unit; it is a dependent area of Statue of Liberty National Monument which is one of the 391 units. Ellis Island, at the mouth of the Hudson River in New York Harbor Liberty Enlightening the World (La liberté éclairant le monde commonly known as the Statue of Liberty (Statue de la Liberté was presented None of the cemeteries counts as a unit by itself. There is at least one National Park Service site in every state in the nation (and some territories), except Delaware. A state is a political association with effective Sovereignty over a geographic Area and representing a Population. Delaware ( is a state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. ^[3]

Special divisions

The U.S. Park Police is a distinct law enforcement division of the National Park Service, with jurisdiction in all NPS sites, but primarily utilized in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, New York City, and Golden Gate National Recreation Area in and around San Francisco. The United States Park Police (USPP is the oldest uniformed federal law enforcement agency in the United States. In Law, jurisdiction (from the Latin ius iuris meaning "law" and dicere meaning "to speak" is the practical Authority Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D A metropolitan area is a large population center consisting of a large Metropolis and its adjacent zone of influence or of more than one closely adjoining neighboring central The City of New York The Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA is a US National Recreation Area administered by the National Park Service that surrounds the San Francisco The City and County of San Francisco is the fourth most populous city Law enforcement services in other NPS units are provided by specially commissioned park rangers. Letters patent are a type of Legal instrument in the form of an Open letter issued by a Monarch or Government, granting an office right US National Park Service Rangers are among the uniformed employees charged with protecting and preserving areas set aside by United States Congress for the National Park Other special NPS divisions include the Historic American Buildings Survey, National Register of Historic Places, National Natural Landmarks, the Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program,^[4] the Challenge Cost Share Program,^[5] the Federal Lands to Parks,^[6] the Hydropower Relicensing Program,^[7] the Land and Water Conservation Fund,^[8] the National Trails System,^[9] and the Partnership Wild and Scenic Rivers Program. The Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS Historic American Engineering Record (HAER and Historic American Landscapes Survey (HALS are programs of the The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP is the United States government's official list of districts sites buildings structures and objects deemed worthy of The National Natural Landmark (NNL program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the United States ' natural history ^[10]

Directors

Mary A. Bomar, NPS Director

National Park System

Sample National Park Service pictographs

The National Park System is a term that describes the collection of all units managed by the National Park Service, and it is not necessary for the title or designation of the unit to include the term "park" - indeed most do not. Fran P Mainella was the 16th Director of the National Park Service of the United States and first woman to hold that position Mary A Bomar is the 17th Director of the National Park Service of the United States. A pictogram ( also spelled pictogramme) or pictograph is a Symbol representing a Concept, object, activity place or event The system encompasses approximately 84. 4 million acres (338,000 km²), of which more than 4. The acre is a unit of Area in a number of different systems including the imperial and U 3 million acres (17,000 km²) remain in private ownership. The largest unit is Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Wrangell-St Elias National Park and Preserve is a United States Alaska ( Аляска Alyaska) is a state in the United States of America, in the northwest of the North American continent At 13,200,000 acres (53,000 km²) it is over 16 percent of the entire system. The smallest unit in the system is Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial, Pennsylvania, at 0. Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial, at 301 Pine Street in Philadelphia Pennsylvania, preserves the home of Thaddeus Kosciuszko. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ( often colloquially referred to as PA (its abbreviation by natives and Northeasterners is a state located in the Northeastern 02 acre (80 m²).

In addition to "units", and other properties that the National Park Service either owns or administers, it also provides technical and financial assistance to several "affiliated areas" authorized by Congress. The largest affiliated area is New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve at 1,164,025 acres (4711 km²). New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve (also known as Pinelands National Reserve) preserves the New Jersey Pine Barrens. The smallest is Benjamin Franklin National Memorial at less than one hundredth of an acre. Benjamin Franklin National Memorial, located in the rotunda of the Franklin Institute

National Parks

Grand Canyon National Park, south rim of canyon. Grand Canyon Grand Canyon National Park is one of the United States' oldest national parks and is located in Arizona.

A National Park Service MD 900 helicopter

NPS Preliminary Survey party, Great Smoky Mountains, 1931

Since its inception in 1916, the National Park Service manages each of the United States' National Parks, which have grown in number over the years to 58. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The Great Smoky Mountains are a major Mountain range in the southern part of the Appalachian Mountains, the second ridge line forming a north-south running mountain

Yellowstone National Park was the first national park in the world — in 1872, there was no state government to manage it, so the federal government assumed direct control. A national park is a reserve of land usually declared and owned by a national Government, protected from most Human development and pollution A state government ( provincial government in Canada is the Government of a Subnational entity in States with federal The federal government of the United States is the central United States Governmental body established by the United States Constitution. Yosemite National Park began as a state park; the land for the park was donated by the federal government to the State of California in 1864 for perpetual conservation. State Park is a term used in the United States and in Mexico for an area of land preserved on account of its natural beauty historic interest recreation or other California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. Yosemite was later returned to federal ownership.

The National Park System (NPS) includes all properties mananged by the National Park Service (also, confusingly, "NPS"). The System as a whole is considered to be a national treasure of the United States, and some of the more famous national parks and monuments are sometimes referred to metaphorically as "crown jewels". The idea of National Treasure, like National epics and National anthems is part of the language of Romantic nationalism, which arose in the late 18th Metaphor (from the Greek: μεταφορά - metaphora, meaning "transfer" is language that directly compares seemingly unrelated subjects Crown jewels are jewels or artifacts of the reigning royal family of their respective country

At first, each national park was managed independently, with varying degrees of success. In Yellowstone, the civilian staff was replaced by the U.S. Army in 1886. Fort Yellowstone is a former United States Army base that currently serves as the administrative headquarters for the Yellowstone National Park. Due to the irregularities in managing these national treasures, Stephen Tyng Mather petitioned the federal government to improve the situation. In response, Secretary of the Interior Franklin K. Lane tasked him with creating a new agency, the National Park Service, to manage all national parks and some national monuments. Franklin Knight Lane ( July 15, 1864 &ndash May 18, 1921) was a Canadian - American Democratic politician Mather was successful with the ratification of the National Park Service Organic Act in 1916. Later, the agency was given authority over other protected areas, many with varying designations as Congress created them.

Although all units of the National Park System in the United States, including National Parks, are the responsibility of a single agency, they are all managed under individual pieces of authorizing legislation or, in the case of national monuments created under the Antiquities Act, presidential proclamation. The Antiquities Act of 1906 officially An Act for the Preservation of American Antiquities (16 USC 431-433 is an act passed by the United States executive order in the United States is a Directive issued by the President, the head of the executive branch of the federal government For example, Congaree National Park is almost entirely wilderness area, yet Yosemite has the Badger Pass Ski Area and the O'Shaughnessy Dam within its boundaries. Congaree National Park preserves the largest tract of Old growth bottomland Hardwood Forest left in the United States. The US National Wilderness Preservation System protects federally managed land areas that are of a pristine condition Badger Pass Ski Area (also known as Badger Pass is a resort in Yosemite National Park This article concerns the dam in the Sierra Nevada mountains For the one near Columbus Ohio see O'Shaughnessy Dam (Ohio. Death Valley National Park actually has an active mine within its boundaries. Death Valley National Park is a mostly Arid United States National Park located east of the Sierra Nevada mountain range in southern Inyo County

Many parks charge an entrance fee ranging from US$3 to $25 per week. The United States dollar ( sign: $; code: USD) is the unit of Currency of the United States; it has also been One can buy a federal interagency annual pass, known as the America the Beautiful – National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass, allowing unlimited entry to federal fee areas (USDA Forestry Service, National Park Service, US Fish & Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management, and Bureau of Reclamation) for $80 per year. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's Public lands totaling approximately The Bureau of Reclamation (formerly the United States Reclamation Service) is an agency under the U This pass applies to entry fees, only; other applicable fees such as camping, backcountry access, etc. still apply. Those U. S. citizens who are 62+ years old may purchase a version with the same privileges, for $10, and citizens with permanent disabilities may receive a free version. ^[12]

National Park Service holdings

Concessions

In an effort to increase visitation and allow for a larger audience to enjoy national park land, the National Park Service has numerous concession contracts with private businesses to bring recreation, resorts, and other compatible amenities to their parks. A concession is a business operated under a Contract or License associated with a degree of exclusivity in business within a certain geographical area NPS lodging opportunities exist at places such as Wawona Hotel in Yosemite National Park and the Fort Baker Retreat and Conference Center (currently under renovation / construction, due to open in 2008) in Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The Wawona Hotel is a historic Hotel located within Yosemite National Park. Fort Baker is one of the most famous components of California 's Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA is a US National Recreation Area administered by the National Park Service that surrounds the San Francisco These "adaptive reuses" have raised some controversy, however, from concerns about the historical integrity of these buildings after such extensive renovations, and whether such alterations fall within the spirit and/or the letter of the preservation laws they are protected by. Adaptive reuse is the process of adapting old structures for new purposes The National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA Public Law 89-665 16 U

At many Park Service sites a bookstore is operated by a cooperating association. The largest example is Eastern National, which runs bookstores in 30 states. Eastern National (also known as EN) is a Non-profit organization based in Fort Washington Pennsylvania that partners with the National Park Service

Offices

Headquarters are located in Washington, D.C., with regional offices in Anchorage, Atlanta, Lakewood, CO (Denver), Omaha, NE, Oakland, CA, Philadelphia, and Seattle. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D The City of Lakewood is a Home Rule Municipality that is the most populous city in Jefferson County, Colorado, United States The City and County of Denver (pronounced /ˈdɛnvɚ/ is the Capital and the most populous city of Colorado, in the United States Oakland (ˈoʊklənd founded in 1852 is the eighth-largest city in the U Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə

Centers

The National Park Service operates four archeology-related centers: Harpers Ferry Center in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, the Midwest Archeological Center in Lincoln, Nebraska, the Southeast Archeological Center in Tallahassee, Florida, and the Western Archeological and Conservation Center in Tucson, Arizona. The Harpers Ferry Center specializes in interpretive media development and object conservation. The other three focus to various degrees on archaeological research and museum object curation and conservation.

Training centers include: Horace Albright Training Center, Grand Canyon; Stephen Mather Training Center, Harpers Ferry, West Virginia; Historic Preservation Training Center, Frederick, Maryland; and Capital Training Center, Washington, D. C.

See also

• List of areas in the National Park System of the United States
• List of the United States National Park System official units
• U.S. National Park Rangers
• U.S. National Monument
• U.S. National Memorial
• U.S. National Heritage Area
• National Park Foundation
• National park passport stamps
• National Park Service Rustic, the style of architecture used in many National Park structures, also known as parkitecture. Wikipedia_talkFeatured_lists#Proposed_change_to_all_featured_lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below -->The National Park System The Official Units of the National Park System of the United States is the collection of physical properties owned or administered by the National Park Service. US National Park Service Rangers are among the uniformed employees charged with protecting and preserving areas set aside by United States Congress for the National Park A National Monument in the United States is a Protected area that is similar to a National Park except that the President of the United States National Memorial is a designation in the United States for a Protected area that commemorates a historic person or event US National Heritage Areas are designated areas in the United States, authorized by the U The National Park Foundation, was given a Congressional charter on December 18 1967 in. At nearly all of the American National Park units (and many of the National Park Service 's affiliated areas one or more National Park Passport Stamps ( National Park Service Rustic, also colloquially known as Parkitecture, is a style of architecture that arose in the United States National Park System to create buildings that
• Ansel Franklin Hall: the first Chief Naturalist and first Chief Forester of the National Park Service
• Stephen Tyng Mather: first Director of the National Park Service
• Harry Yount: considered by many the progenitor of the modern national park ranger

References

External links

• NPS official site
• Designation of National Park System Units ("national monument" vs "national park", etc. )
• Criteria for inclusion in the National Park System
• National Park System Timeline
• Gallery of all US National Parks (does not include National Park System units of any other designation)
• Gallery of National Park "Welcome" Signs
• Community Assistance Available from the National Park Service
• National Park Service Meeting Notices and Rule Changes from The Federal Register RSS Feed