"Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America
in Congress assembled, That there is hereby created in the Department of the Interior a service
to be called the National Park Service..."
Article about the Bill that would become the Organic Act of 1916. Evening Star (Washington, DC), August 7, 1916. p 2:col 4. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. U.S. Library of Congress.
With this simple statement, the opening lines of The Organic Act of 1916, a new federal agency was born. Signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson, the Act created a federal agency to promote and regulate the use of the national parks, monuments, and land reservations managed by the Department of the Interior.
Over 100 years later the National Park Service has grown from a small land management agency of 37 parks and monuments to one that oversees a system of more than 400 park units and administers everything from nationally important historic preservation programs to premier natural resource management. The agency is also a leader in multiple fields of scientific and historical research and encourages and supports research on a wide variety of topics.
Today even the National Park Service's own beginnings and history are a focus of study. As one of the world's first organizations to administer a national park system, the Service's growth and change - the problems it's faced and triumphs it's achieved - are studied by researchers, students, legislators, and educators across multiple disciplines and around the world.
- To help those wanting to further study the development of this complex and multi-faceted agency, the Park History Program has put together a collection of digital resources that offer insights into the history and growth of the National Park Service.
Data Collections
The following federal repositories hold records and documents containing information about the development and history of the National Park Service.
National Park Service (NPS) Collections
IRMA (The Integrated Resource Management Applications system)
The National Park Service's primary digital data repository for books, articles, journals, studies, reports, conference proceedings, and other information about national parks, programs, research, and the National Park Service.
eTIC (Electronic Technical Information Center)
The National Park Service's digital data repository for planning, resource management, project, and technical documents. Many of these documents contain historical information about national park units and the National Park Service.
NP Gallery
The National Park Service's current and historic photo, audio, and video collection. A selection of NPS oral history interview transcripts may also be found in NP Gallery.
National Park Service History Collection: Archives and Manuscripts Collection (Harpers Ferry Center).
The physical collection is stored at the NPS Harpers Ferry Center in Harpers Ferry, WV. Anyone doing research about the NPS can consult the History Collection's finding aid and/or contact the Harpers Ferry Center Archivist for help locating collection resources.
- Finding Aid for National Park Service History Collection.
Assembled Historic Records of the National Park Service, 1856-2007 (bulk dates: 1920-2000)
National Park Service History Collection: Digital (Harpers Ferry Center)
NPS Historic Photograph Collection, NPS Object Collection, NPS Oral History Collection, NPS Uniform Collection.
National Park Service History Resources (Harpers Ferry Center)
Links to various NPS collections held by the NPS as well as other federal agencies, universities, state archives & museums, city libraries, and private collections.
The National Park Service Library Catalog (LIBRIS)
The National Park Service Library's searchable online catalog. The database also incorporates all of the public library collections located in park units, regional offices, and centers.
Department of the Interior (DOI)
U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) Library Catalog
The Department of the Interior's searchable online catalog. The website also has links to other library catalogs as well as various electronic resources and online databases and collections.
The physical collection, including the reference collection and the law library, is located at the Interior Library in the Stewart Lee Udall Department of Interior Building, Washington, DC.
National Archives (NARA)
Records of the National Park Service. 1785-2019. Record Group 79.
- Finding Aid. List of records (with descriptions) within Record Group 79. 1785-1990. (NARA)
- Inventory of the Records of the National Park Service: Record Group 79. (NPS Park History Program, 2007)
- A Collection and Repository Guide to National Park Service records at NARA facilities across the U.S. (NPS, 2002)
Records of the Civilian Conservation Corps. 1933-1953 (bulk 1933-1948). Record Group 35.
- Finding Aid. List of records (with descriptions) within Record Group 35. (NARA)
Records of the Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service. 1946-1985. Record Group 368.
- Finding Aid. List of records (with descriptions) within Record Group 368. (NARA)
Records of the Office of the Secretary of the Interior. 1826-1993. Record Group 48.
- Finding Aid. List of records (with descriptions) within Record Group 48. 1826-1985. (NARA)
Other NARA Collections with records related to the National Park Service.
Bureau of Indian Affairs. Record Group 75
Bureau of Land Management. Record Group 49
Records of the Forest Service. Record Group 95
Records of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. RG 22
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United States Congress
- The Congressional Record (1899-Present day) (U.S. Congress) The official record of the day-to-day proceedings and debates of the United States Congress. There is one volume per session of Congress (one year). Pre-1995 each volume was published in multiple parts. Each part contained approximately 10 to 20 days of Congressional proceedings. Post-1995 the volumes are by session and month.
- For Congressional Records before 1899:
The Congressional Record (1873-2016) (U.S. Government Publishing Office)
Library of Congress
- Chronicling America - Historic American Newspapers (1777-1963) A large collection of digitized American newspapers in a searchable online database.
Publications
George Wright Forum (George Wright Society/JSTOR)
The journal of the George Wright Society, a partner of the National Park Service. Articles are devoted to interdisciplinary inquiry about national parks, protected areas, and cultural sites. All articles are free and available to the public.
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The publications in the following collection all pertain to the history and development of the National Park Service. The publications are varied and include things such as general histories of the National Park Service, detailed histories of aspects or time periods of the Service, program histories, Annual Reports of the Directors and General Superintendents, and comprehensive reports that have helped shape the Service.
To read the publications: click on a publication title in the list below. The publications are in order by date published.
To sort and organize the collection: Click on the link "Source: Data Store Collection 9158" at the bottom of the collection. All publications are free and available to the public.
Source: Data Store Collection 9158. To search for additional information, visit the Data Store.
Laws and Other Legal Documents
Since its beginnings under the Organic Act of 1916 the National Park Service has been shaped by numerous federal laws, policies, executive orders, resolutions, memorandums, Acts of Congress, and other legal documents.
U.S. Congress. United States Statutes at Large Series
A valuable resource for researching any federal law or resolution having to do with the National Park Service.
- United States Statutes at Large 1789 - 1951 (Library of Congress).
A collection of every law and resolution, public and private, enacted by the United States Congress from 1798 through1951.
The statutes are published in chronological order, by session of Congress. Within each volume the statutes are in order of their date of passage. The statute that created the National Park Service is 39 Stat. 535 (volume 39 [64th Congress 1915-1916] in the Statutes at Large (Stat.), on page 535)
- United States Statutes at Large 1951 - Newest Published Volume (U.S. Government Publishing Office). For Statutes at Law published after 1951.
National Park Service Collection
The following collection contains information about various legal documents that have affected the National Park Service.
Included in the collection are such things as: The Organic Act of 1916 and supporting documents; America's National Park System: The Critical Documents 1864-1992; The Antiquities Act of 1906. History of Legislation 1882-1953; Laws Relating to the National Park Service 1872-Present Day; and Proclamations and Orders Relating to the National Park Service. 1873-2001.
To read these and other legal documents and related publications: Click on a document title. Note: documents are in order by date published.
To sort and organize the collection: Click on the link "Source: Data Store Collection 9237" at the bottom of the collection. All documents are free and available to the public.
Source: Data Store Collection 9237. To search for additional information, visit the Data Store.
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Other Resources
Many of the reports, studies, and proceedings produced for national park units or symposia (conferences) contain information on various aspects of the history of the National Park Service. Click on a link below to be taken to a page with a collection of the resource's documents.
- Administrative Histories
- Cultural Landscape Reports
- Classic Publications / Symposia Series
- NPS Oral Histories
- Park National Register of Historic Places and National Historic Landmarks listings
- Special History Studies
All Documents are free and available to the public.
- Back to Digital Resources -
National Park Service Today
- About the current National Park Service
- Current Laws, Policies, and Regulations affecting the National Park Service. The website also contains links to the Office of Policy and the Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs.
- Director of the National Park Service
- Current Organizational Structure of the National Park Service
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Last updated: August 13, 2024