Search results for “african-american history”
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Park Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial The Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial was designed to evoke a symbolic journey through struggle into hope. To enter the memorial, visitors pass through a 30-foot boulder, inscribed with the famous words from King's iconic 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech: "Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope." Just beyond the entrance, one wedge of rock distinctly emerges from the boulder — the "Stone of Hope" that stands at the centerpiece of the memorial — a contemplative statue of King overlooking the Tidal Basin. A 450-foot crescent-shaped granite wall surrounds this Stone of Hope, inscribed with quotations by King representing themes of justice, democracy, hope and love. This 2011 tribute to King's legacy is the first major memorial on the National Mall to honor an African-American and a leader who was not an American president.
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Spotlight An Insider's Guide to Gettysburg & Beyond Whether you’re interested in the Civil War or just looking for a scenic drive through vibrant downtowns and bucolic countryside, Gettysburg and its surroundings will immerse you in American history.
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Blog Post Preserving Chinatowns: How Many Are at Risk of Being Lost? The National Park Service has said Asian American and Pacific Islander history is “dramatically underrepresented” among registered landmarks and historic places. NPCA and other groups are seeking to correct that.
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Blog Post Stuck Indoors? 10 Great Books About National Parks These 10 nonfiction books will deepen your appreciation for pivotal events in American history and the national park sites that commemorate them.
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Blog Post Wild American Beauty: 10 Wilderness Areas to Explore Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act by exploring some of America’s wildest places, from remote windswept tundras to cactus-dotted mountains to serene rock-strewn beaches. Several spots are surprisingly close to major cities.
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Press Release Yellowstone Bison Quarantine Plan Another Step Toward Protecting an American Icon Advancing efforts to write a better future for iconic Yellowstone bison, the National Park Service released a new, draft environmental assessment, focused on conserving the species.
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Blog Post A Double Threat to an American Icon Two terrible development proposals threaten the Grand Canyon, but here’s why it’s too soon to take action—yet.
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Blog Post NPCA Honors Civil Rights Activist Over the summer, NPCA presented its Marjory Stoneman Douglas Award to Japanese American civil rights activist Barbara Takei for her efforts to protect the Tule Lake Unit of WWII Valor in the Pacific National Monument. We spoke with this inspiring advocate to learn more about her work and what moves her to preserve this part of American history.
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Magazine Article On the Map Two new national monuments celebrate American heroes forged during the nation’s darkest times.
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Blog Post Facts You May Know Not About 10 First Ladies In honor of Women’s History Month, here are intriguing stories about 10 of these public figures who have contributed to American history, culture and the presidency.
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Press Release Congress Resoundingly Approves Blackwell School as America's Newest National Park Site Generations of Latino children experienced segregated education in America. The Blackwell National Historic Site will shed light on this often-overlooked injustice in American history.
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Magazine Article Chasing the Dream Nebraska’s Homestead National Monument celebrates the independent farmers who shaped the American landscape.
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Blog Post The Land Beyond Hate One woman's journey to uncover her history and other missing stories of the American landscape
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Blog Post From the Mountaintop A historic African American climbing team tackles the largest peak in North America to inspire youth.
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Blog Post Labor Day Has Its Roots in Chicago's Historic Pullman Neighborhood The stories of Pullman are American stories. They are stories of hard work, immigration, race and class, wealth and poverty, and a struggle for justice.
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Press Release Federal District Court Ruling Allows Construction of Dominion Transmission Line at Historic Jamestown to Continue Today’s ruling puts centuries of American history in jeopardy.
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Press Release National Park Service Agrees: Till Story Should Be Preserved “This study confirms what many Americans across the country instinctively understand: the story of Emmett Till’s lynching, one of the most infamous hate crimes in American history, is nationally significant and worthy of preservation." -- NPCA's Alan Spears
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Blog Post Charles Young Monument Preserves Enduring Legacy of the Buffalo Soldiers At the turn of the last century, a great American hero set an enduring standard of excellence that forged the basis of the modern National Park System.
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Blog Post National Poetry Month Trivia Challenge Q: The former homes of four prolific American poets are preserved in the National Park System. Can you name these four beloved writers?
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Magazine Article In The Footsteps of a Dream Relive the history of the civil-rights movement in Alabama and Georgia.
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Blog Post Trivia Challenge: A Rare and Isolated Community Q: National parks help interpret diverse aspects of American culture, including unusual and exceptional stories from our country’s past. One unique park site preserves the history of a particularly rare and isolated kind of community: a Hansen’s disease settlement (commonly known as a leper colony). Can you name this park where former patients still live today?
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Blog Post Maryland's New Star-Spangled Land and Water Trail Baltimore offers visitors a new way to explore an iconic period in American history.
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Blog Post Trivia Challenge: The Most Celebrated People in the Park System Q: National parks don’t just preserve spectacular landscapes and wildlife. They also honor the people who have changed history and influenced American culture, from the Wright brothers to Harriet Tubman to Eugene O’Neill. Two noteworthy people have more national park sites named after them than anyone else, with four sites each. Can you name these two celebrated historic figures?
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Press Release Victory! Court Ruling Supports Park Advocates for Protecting Historic Jamestown Today’s decision could resolve six-year battle to preserve American history
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Blog Post One Step Closer to a Manhattan Project National Historical Park Advocates have been waiting more than a decade to create a national park that would preserve historic sites and artifacts involved in the development of nuclear energy and the making of the atomic bomb. Now, we could be remarkably close to seeing these once super-secret details and places in American history open and interpreted for the public.
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Magazine Article A Chance for Freedom During the War of 1812, hundreds of enslaved African Americans gained their freedom on Cumberland Island by joining the ranks of the British occupier. For some, liberation was fleeting.
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Blog Post One Step Closer to Chicago’s First National Park Today, just days after the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday, Congress is one step closer to preserving a Chicago site rich with Civil Rights and labor rights history by introducing legislation that would name the historic Pullman neighborhood as the city’s first national park.
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Blog Post Remembering a Site of Resistance History books have long taught us that Christopher Columbus first landed on the American continent in October 1492. Less well known is the first documented act of Indigenous resistance to European encroachment, which took place soon after, in 1493, at what is now a national park site.
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Blog Post Sharing the 'Real' Civil War Our collective fascination with the Civil War often brushes past the complex underlying issues of race, slavery, and politics to focus exclusively on bullets, bayonets, and tactics—but we should take every effort to broaden our concepts about what constitutes “real” Civil War history and what doesn’t.
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Press Release Trump Administration Green Lights Dominion Transmission Line That Would Irreparably Mar Historic Jamestown in Virginia With 400 years of American history at risk, parks group urges Army Corps to complete thorough assessment of project’s impacts to keep damaging project out of Jamestown.
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Blog Post FAQ: New National Monument at Pullman Shines a Spotlight on Community Spirit and Our Shared Heritage Earlier today, President Obama stood in front of hundreds of community advocates in Chicago and declared Pullman a national monument. This long-awaited event is the result of years of work by NPCA and so many people that care about this place’s significant contributions to our shared history, from the U.S. labor movement to Civil Rights.
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Report National Parks Second Century Commission Report Our vision of the National Park Service and of the national parks in American life is animated by the conviction that their work is of the highest public importance. They are community-builders, creating an enlightened society committed to a sustainable world.
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Land Based Trip The National Parks of Hawai‘i (WAITLIST ONLY) Experience the unique cultural and natural beauty within Hawai‘i’s national parks by joining expert biologists, naturalists and cultural interpreters who will share their extensive knowledge and perspectives of this remarkable place. Meet with park rangers to learn more about the work being done to protect vulnerable ecosystems and endangered animals and plants which are found nowhere else on earth. Access locations that are off the beaten path and not readily accessible to the general public. Leave with a greater appreciation of the islands, their natural and cultural history and the ongoing challenges to preserve this unique biodiversity.
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NPCA at Work Oxon Cove Park and Oxon Hill Farm Are National Treasures Worthy of Protection Protecting, interpreting and enhancing the history and environment at this urban oasis is critical. Unfortunately, development threats and underfunding have plagued this park site for decades.
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Small Ship Cruise Wild California Escape: Channel Islands National Park Cruise Embark on an unprecedented five-day expedition into wildness and wellness in the remote and remarkable Channel Islands as you learn about NPCA’s important role in the park’s history. Known as North America’s Galápagos, the Channel Islands and their surrounding waters provide habitat for more than 2,000 species of plants and animals, including 150 native species found nowhere else in the world. You’ll explore unmarred landscapes and revel in pure nature.
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Park Castillo de San Marcos National Monument This monument on the East Coast of Florida commemorates the fierce clashes between European powers over the spoils of the New World. St. Augustine, Florida, was the northernmost point of a vast Spanish empire that included Mexico, Central America and parts of South America. In the late 17th century, Spain built Castillo de San Marcos to defend the city against both pirates and British forces. The castle withstood an attack by the English in 1702 that left the rest of St. Augustine burned to the ground. Although the fortress was eventually claimed by England and later America via treaty, it was never taken by force. Today the bastion's history is told via weapons demonstrations, ranger talks and detailed museum exhibits.
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Park Franklin Delano Roosevelt National Memorial The Franklin Delano Roosevelt National Memorial is an open-air monument to the 32nd president and his leadership during some of the most challenging times in America's history.
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Park San Juan Island National Historical Park During the summer of 1859 in the San Juan Islands, the U.S. and England were poised at the brink of war--over a pig! The islands were jointly claimed by the U.S. and Britain. Tensions escalated into an international incident when an American farmer shot a pig--owned by the Hudson's Bay Company--that was rooting in his garden. Diplomacy prevailed and there were no other casualties, thanks to a cease-fire that held until an arbitration committee in Geneva turned the San Juan Islands over to the U.S.
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Park Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park Visit the home of one of America’s greatest sculptors and see more than 100 works of Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ art in his studios and gardens, from heroic monuments to expressive portraits to the intricate gold coins he designed, changing the look of American money. Take a guided tour of the grounds, enjoy an outdoor concert or star party, walk the site’s nature trails, or indulge in a sculpture class at this stately New England campus.
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Report Center for State of the Parks: Lake Clark National Park and Preserve In recognition of the significant Bristol Bay fisheries habitat, rich history, and cultural resources protected within Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, the National Parks Conservation Association’s Center for State of the Parks conducted an assessment to determine current conditions of the park’s resources.
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Resource Bird Diversity in National Parks The number of bird species in each national park site, organized from highest to lowest, as of March 2017.
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Timothy S. Good Timothy S. Good, a 26-year National Park Service veteran, is currently the superintendent at Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site, a place which commemorates the life, military career, and presidency of our 18th president. Good began his career in Washington, D.C., serving at the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park and Ford’s Theatre National Historic Site. He followed these two assignments with a 14-month detail for the NPS Washington Office Information and Telecommunications Division where he helped develop the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, a computerized database of 6.3 million soldier records and several thousand unit histories. Good then served on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.; Lincoln Home National Historic Site in Springfield, Illinois; Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Brecksville, Ohio; Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park in Dayton, Ohio; and the Midwest Regional Office in Omaha, Nebraska, before beginning his current assignment in 2009.
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NPCA at Work New Monument in Maine's Spectacular North Woods Is Under Threat In August 2016, President Barack Obama designated more than 87,500 acres of land along the East Branch of the Penobscot River in Maine as the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument. But the Trump administration could attempt to alter or rescind the national park site’s federal protections following an April 2017 executive order mandating a federal review of national monuments created since 1996.
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Jacob Ross Jacob Ross found a love for the National Park Service as an agency of the Federal Government while working as an intern in a congressional office on Capitol Hill.
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Oliver Spellman Having worked in, revitalized, and directed parks departments in three major cities around the country, Oliver brings NPCA’s Northeast team decades of innovative urban park renewal experience as the New York and New Jersey Director.
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Letter Considering the Mason-Dixon Casino Letter regarding Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board consideration of application for the Mason-Dixon Casino in close proximity to the Gettysburg National Military Park.
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Advocacy in Action Victory! President preserves the Frances Perkins Homestead in Maine as a national monument Frances Perkins was a trailblazing woman whose legacy continues to improve the lives of Americans today.
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Mark Segal Mark Segal is a pioneering figure in LGBTQ+ activism, known for his involvement in the Stonewall riots and founding membership in the Gay Liberation Front. He served as a marshal during the first Gay Pride March in 1970. In 1972, Segal initiated a campaign against LGBTQ+ invisibility on television, disrupting shows like the CBS Evening News. In 2025, Mark is working with NPCA to ensure more people know the Stonewall story and that more inclusive stories are told throughout existing park sites. Learn more at www.marksegalstonewall.com
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Land Based Trip The National Parks of Hawai‘i Experience the unparalleled cultural and natural beauty within all seven of Hawai'i’s national parks by joining expert biologists, naturalists and cultural interpreters as you journey through four Hawaiian Islands. NPCA experts and local guides will lead you on tours through the most awe-inspiring sites on the islands, including two active volcanoes, lava caves, native rainforests and the tallest sea cliffs in the world. Witness the sacred grounds and endangered species that NPCA is dedicated to saving.
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Land Based Trip Bears, Whales and Glaciers: Lake Clark and Kenai Fjords National Parks (WAITLIST ONLY) Explore two of Alaska’s most stunning national parks — Kenai Fjords and Lake Clark — and experience some of North America’s wildest places. Incredible scenery abounds, from Alaska’s rugged coastline and tidewater glaciers to lush mountain valleys covered with colorful wildflowers. This trip is a wildlife lover’s delight — we’ll visit prime habitats to seek whales and bears, among other Alaskan icons. Your NPCA expert guides will lead you through hard-to-access and lesser-known areas of the parks, while providing in-depth information on the important role of NPCA and key local partners in the ongoing efforts to preserve Alaska’s Bear Coast.
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Report Northeast Regional Office Field Reports NPCA's Northeast Regional Office produces an annual newsletter. These field reports provide timely updates and perspectives on issues of interest to our members and supporters in New York, New Jersey and New England.
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NPCA at Work An Oil Refinery Has No Place Next to Theodore Roosevelt National Park Protect the iconic North Dakota badlands from an ill-conceived facility that would pollute the air
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Staff and Government Affairs Pamela Kemper Pam Kemper joined the Government Affairs team at NPCA as Senior Coordinator in a temporary capacity in March 2014. After “test driving” the position she stepped into the role as a full-time employee.
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Victory Isle Royale – A Unique Island for Wildlife Isle Royale National Park is one of the most memorable, wild and unique national parks in the country. This remote island, located in the frigid waters of Lake Superior, is 99% federally designated wilderness and hosts the longest continuous study of any predator-prey system in the world.
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Land Based Trip California’s Desert Landscape: Joshua Tree & Death Valley Explore the best of Death Valley and Joshua Tree alongside NPCA experts and partners on this exciting journey through the Mojave Desert. These amazing Southern California national parks offer incredible trekking opportunities across diverse and mesmerizing landscapes. This tour offers a cornucopia of experiences in America’s stunning Mojave Desert with an inside look at the various threats this ecosystem faces and how NPCA is working to protect it.
Pagination