National parks are known as areas set aside by the national government for the preservation of a natural environment, and those in the United States have been admired for many years. In 1872, Yellowstone was the first designated national park in the entire world. It was dedicated the first national park during a period of immense publication of books regarding nature and wilderness, further influencing people to travel however they could to see the beautiful nature. Although Yellowstone was established in 1872, the National Park Service was not established until 1916. During the time between, the park’s inter-workings were supervised
by departments of War, Agriculture, and the Interior. There was quite a bit of resistance of converting more reserves and monuments into national parks, but Stephen Tyng Mather was eventually appointed the first Superintendent of Parks. Under his leadership, several new parks emerged, including the Grand Canyon, Acadia, Bryce, Zion, etc. Today, much of the parks’ histories can be found in their maps. The maps illustrate how each park was established, and how it has grown since.