History & Culture

A Look Into the Past

Indigenous Peoples in the Early Years

The Sierra Nevada mountain range contains some of the oldest national parks in the nation. These parks occupy spectacular volcanic and glacial landforms, as well as distinctive subalpine and alpine habitats, setting these parklands apart from the wider landscape of central and southern California. The location’s uniqueness has made it especially important to Native Americans as well.

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are the homelands of the Mono (Monache), Yokuts, Tübatulabal, Paiute, and Western Shoshone. Native peoples have used, tended, occupied, and valued the lands of the high Sierras in many ways, and they still maintain deep connections to the parks today.

 

Henry E. Roberts

America's Second National Park (1890)

On September 25th, 1890, President Benjamin Harrison signed legislation establishing the second national park in America – Sequoia National Park. Created to protect giant sequoia trees from logging, this national park was the first formed specifically to protect a living organism.

Only one week later, Sequoia gained a neighbor: four square miles of parkland that became General Grant National Park. Although small, General Grant National Park remained on the map of California until 1940, when it became a part of the newly established Kings Canyon National Park.

 

In the first decades of the national parks, park protection fell to the US Cavalry

NPS Photo

The First Rangers (1891-1913)

With the creation of America's national parks in the late 19th century, the need for protection became evident after people began exploiting park resources for commercial gain. At this time, there was no agency in charge of the nation's park lands, so the Army was designated to oversee these federal public lands instead.

From 1891 through 1913, U.S. Army Cavalry troops were detailed from the Presidio of San Francisco and sent to the Sierra Nevada to protect the new parks. These Buffalo Soldiers were led by Charles Young, who would become the first Black military superintendent in 1903. While in the parks, the soldiers’ duties included fighting wildfires, curbing poaching of the parks' wildlife, ending illegal livestock grazing on federal lands, and constructing roads, trails, and other infrastructure. During this time, the pack road to the Giant Forest was expanded and completed in Sequoia National Park. This meant that for the first time, the “big trees” were accessible by wagon to the general public.

 

Originally, wood stairs were the way to climb to the top of Moro Rock.

NPS Photo

Our First Superintendent (1914-1916)

In July 1905, Walter Fry became a civilian park ranger, one of a handful appointed to assist the Army cavalry troops in charge of the parks. Then, in the summer of 1914, World War I began, and the troops left the park to civilian management. Walter Fry became the first civilian superintendent of Sequoia and General Grant National Parks, a position he would hold for the next six years.

New Park Service, New Infrastructure (1916-1940)

In 1916, the National Park Service was created, and the responsibility of protecting public lands was officially transferred from army soldiers to civilians. This plus the growing popularity of automobile travel led to the building of the Generals Highway in 1926. The Ash Mountain entrance, which can be accessed via Highway 198 through Visalia, became the main gateway to Sequoia. In 1927, park visitors sometimes even experienced traffic at the check-in station!

Better access to the Giant Forest led to more visitors, which led to a need for more visitor amenities. During the Great Depression, the Civilian Conservation Corps worked in the parks to build and improve campgrounds, trails, buildings, and other facilities. One of the first projects was the construction of the first steps to the summit of Moro Rock.

Backcountry trail construction also became a priority. In 1932, the new High Sierra Trail was completed- connecting the Giant Forest and Mount Whitney, the highest mountain in the contiguous United States.

 

NPS / Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Roberts Collection

General Grant National Park Becomes a Part of Kings Canyon National Park (1940)

In 1940, Congress and President Franklin D. Roosevelt created a new national park to include the glacially formed splendor of Kings Canyon. The newly established Kings Canyon National Park absorbed the four miles that made up General Grant National Park. Since then, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks have been overseen by one administration.

Two Parks in the Modern World

Over the past 125 years, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks have grown to encompass 1,353 square miles of land, 97% of which is designated and managed as wilderness. Today, more than 1.5 million people enjoy these special places each year. After all these years of time and history, the parks' purpose remains: to protect and preserve these public lands for future generations.

This timeline is just a drop in the ocean of history and culture surrounding our parks. For a deeper dive, check out our StoryMap, which covers over 100 different aspects of the whos, whats, wheres, and hows of southern Sierra Nevada. For those who would like to enjoy reading more about history, the Challenge of the Big Trees by Larry Dilsaver and William C. Tweed is available online through the National Park Services's Park History program.

 

 

Native Americans of the Southern Sierra

Brigadier General Charles Young

Giant Forest Development History

Digital Archive