Effigy Mounds celebrates NPS anniversary with special presentation
Chief Ranger, Bob Palmer, discussed the historical figures who had large roles in the founding of both the National Park Service and Effigy Mounds National Monument. (Photo by Caitlin Bittner)
By Caitlin Bittner
On Thursday, Aug. 25, the National Park Service (NPS) celebrated its 100th anniversary as an organization. In order to commemorate the anniversary, Effigy Mounds National Monument held a special presentation regarding the foundings of the NPS and the monument itself. According to Chief Ranger Bob Palmer, who gave the presentation, you’d be surprised how many connections you can draw to Iowa.
Prior to 1916, there were 12 national parks in the United States, the first of which was Yellowstone National Park, founded on June 30, 1864, by President Abraham Lincoln.
The first congressional voice of the conservation movement was Major John F. Lacey, of Iowa. Lacey, Palmer said, was the one who pushed the passage of legislation which still protects land and wildlife today. “It was legislation to prosecute poachers and protect plants and animals,” explained Palmer.
Aside from the Lacey Acts, the Antiques Act of 1906 was also passed, allowing the president the power to create national monuments as long as the United States owned the land for the monument.
What is the difference between a national park and a national monument? “Well, in order to create a park, Congress will need to write up and pass a bill, then the president needs to sign off on it,” said Palmer.
In fact, because of the easier process, many of today’s national parks, like the Grand Canyon, actually began as national monuments. “People thought that monuments were small, but that’s actually not the case,” added Palmer.
On Aug. 24, President Barack Obama created the newest national monument, the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, previously owned by the former owner of Burt’s Bees. The 87,500 acres of land in Maine is only one of the recent updates. Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, in Hawaii, was also honored by the president, with an expansion on Aug. 26. Currently, there are 151 national monuments in the United States, but historically, there have been many more.
April 6, 1909, was the beginning of the quest to add a local national park. On that day, George Schulte, of Elkader, made a speech toward the founding of a park, stretching from Winona, Minn. to Dubuque, for the Mississippi river confluence where the Wisconsin and Mississippi rivers meet.
In 1915, United States Senator William Dodge made a speech to Congress arguing for the park to be made in order to preserve the natural beauty and wildlife of the area. Nine years later, the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge Act established a refuge eventually encompassing more than 200,000 acres of wildlife habitat.
But, the dreams of a national park came crashing down following a May 1931 visit by Yellowstone National Park Superintendant Roger Toll, who concluded that a national park was not necessary, but that a national monument featuring the mounds would be a great idea.
During the harsh economic climate of the Great Depression, Ellison Orr, of northeastern Iowa, raised $100 to buy four acres of land from the Fish brothers farm. Yet, the NPS turned down the land in 1936, requiring at least 1,000 acres for the designation.
It wasn’t until Aug. 21, 1949, that a land title was given to the NPS, presenting the opportunity for President Harry Truman to create Effigy Mounds National Monument on Oct. 25, 1949.
Other changes to Effigy Mounds were made following the NPS’s 50th anniversary, which launched an initiative to build visitor’s centers to accommodate the parks’ guests.
According to Palmer, only one question remained to be answered following his presentation. “Why were all of these people involved in this?” he asked.
Pulling up two different PowerPoint slides, Palmer demonstrated the shift the has occurred in Iowa’s landscape. “Iowa is the most altered state landscape-wise. Less than one-tenth of one percent of the original prairie remains,” said Palmer. “Those people did this to make a better world,” he said.
Palmer ended the presentation by asking people to reflect on a 1901 quote by Lacey. “The immensity of man’s power to destroy imposes responsibility to preserve.”
