WHAT WE DO

Declared a Biosphere Reserve by the United Nations in 1976 in recognition of its spectacular resources, Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska attracts more than 300,000 visitors annually, inspired by the massive scale of the park's mountains, sweeping natural landscape, and abundant wildlife. But the park's often-overlooked cultural treasures, likely to hold clues to a better understanding of how and when the Americas were populated, are in trouble.

Only a few items in the park's extensive museum collection of nearly 450,000 items, including mining tools, cultural artifacts, and archaeological objects, are used in park interpretation programs. For lack of a full-time museum curator and archivist, 88 percent of Denali's 340,000 archival documents, including historic photographs, is not processed and remains inaccessible to researchers, staff, and park visitors.

Without additional staff and funding to protect Denali's cultural heritage, the rich history of this land and the people that survived here will be neither fully realized nor protected for future generations.

Prized Possessions

Many Americans equate the Park Service with preserving splendid vistas of lush forests, stunning deserts, and snow-capped mountaintops, but the agency is also charged with preserving our shared history. Thousands of objects representing our culture are displayed in the Smithsonian Institution, stored under glass and carefully protected in "the nation's attic" in the shadow of the Capitol. But artifacts in the national parks remain in the exact context where they first defined our culture. That means that visitors from across the country have a greater chance to appreciate their significance - if the artifacts are preserved and their stories told.

Nearly every national park preserves artifacts of some cultural or historical significance: All told, more than 105 million museum objects in 350 parks unlock the stories of American history, cultural experiences, and scientific phenomenon in the parks. The weapon that John Wilkes Booth used to shoot President Abraham Lincoln, botanical specimens from Yosemite, a Union soldier's backgammon set, and Frederick Douglass' books are counted among museum collections, as are thousands of artifacts from ancient cultures.

In Need of Cataloging, Greater Care

Sadly, although the value of many of these treasures is quite clear, the quantity, scope, and condition of artifacts in the national parks is less clear. A full 54 percent of the items in Park Service museums and archival collections have yet to be catalogued. Of those items catalogued, 61 percent are in good condition, 31 in fair condition, and 8 percent in poor condition. Items not yet catalogued have received even less attention than these, so their condition is likely much worse.

The Great Smoky Mountains' archival and museum collections contain more than 357,000 items, including tools, equipment, clothing, and household furnishings that belonged to the people who once lived in the region. In 2004, nearly 99 percent of the park's cultural and historical museum objects were moved to a storage facility 100 miles from park headquarters, where the objects can be protected, but not viewed by the public. The park has requested funds to build a new museum storage facility onsite, but Congress has not yet approved this request. For now, the park's archival collections remain in three separate locations, including an attic infested with insects and mice.

In Maine's Acadia National Park, a pair of Revolutionary War-era dueling pistols and museum objects that are centuries old sit in boxes at park headquarters. These treasures, along with more than a million others, need to be cataloged and preserved-the first steps before they can be fully enjoyed by park visitors.

At Point Reyes National Seashore in California, more than 460,000 archival documents from the historic RCA transmitting station, used to contact the Pacific Fleet in World War II, have yet to be cataloged and are not accessible to researchers or the public because the Park Service lacks an appropriate level of the necessary archival expertise.

Although Ocmulgee National Monument in Georgia protects one of the five largest archaeological collections in the entire park system, there is no museum curator on staff to monitor or catalog the collection. As a result, unique artifacts like a Mississippian-era (700 AD to 1300 AD) copper sun disk are not adequately preserved.

Key Recommendation: Take Up a Collection

As of 2002, cultural resource protection received roughly 6 percent of the overall Park Service operating budget. According to business plans that NPCA and the Park Service have completed in nearly 100 parks, cultural resources are typically among the most poorly funded and poorly staffed segments of the national parks.

The Park Service is entrusted with the nation's keepsakes and Congress and the administration must do all they can to make sure these national treasures are preserved in the coming years. Years ago, Congress established the Natural Resource Challenge to specifically fund Park Service efforts to protect plants, animals, and the natural environment in the parks - now it's time for a Historic and Cultural Resources Challenge to preserve America's shared heritage.

Take Action

• Send a letter to your members of Congress encouraging them to support and co-sponsor the National Park Centennial Act.
• Volunteer >> in a national park; those with special interests or skills in archiving, curation, or preservation may want to contact the Park Service's Center for Cultural Resources, which contains information on more specific programs. 

Learn More

• Read More >> For more information about the condition of museum collections in the national parks, read NPCA's State of the Parks® reports. 
• Learn more >> about the Park Service's efforts to preserve cultural artifacts. 

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