Long-term trends in prairie vegetation at three national parks: 1998?2022

This section contains a summary of Research Activities within the National Park Service areas cooperating with the U.W.-N.P.S. Research Center in 1985, including Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, Canyonlands National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Custer Battlefield National Monument, Devils Tower National Monument, Dinosaur National Monument, Fort Laramie National Historic Site, Glacier National Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Golden Spike National Historic Site, Grand Teton National Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site, Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Wine Cave National Park, Yellowstone National Park and Zion National Park.

This section contains a summary of research activities within the National Park Service areas cooperating with the U.W.-N.P.S. Research Center, 1987 including Badlands National Park, Big Hole National Battlefield, Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, Bryce Canyon National Park, Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Natural Bridges National Monument, Capitol Reef National Park, Custer Battlefield National Monument, Dinosaur National Park, Fort Laramie National Historic Site, Glacier National Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Grand Teton National Park, Grant-Kohns Ranch National Historic Site, Jewel Cave National Monument, Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site, Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Wind Cave National Park, Yellowstone National Park and Zion National Park.

Type sections are one of several kinds of stratotype. A stratotype is the standard (original or subsequently designated), accessible, and specific sequence of rock for a named geologic unit that forms the basis for the definition, recognition, and comparison of that unit elsewhere. Geologists designate stratotypes for rock exposures that are illustrative and representative of the map unit being defined. Stratotypes ideally should remain accessible for examination and study by others. In this sense, geologic stratotypes are similar in concept to biological type specimens; however, they remain in situ as rock exposures rather than curated in a repository. Therefore, managing stratotypes requires inventory and monitoring like other geologic heritage resources in parks. In addition to type sections, stratotypes also include type localities, type areas, reference sections, and lithodemes, all of which are defined in this report. The goal of this project is to consolidate information pertaining to stratotypes that occur within NPS-administered areas, in order that this information is available throughout the NPS to inform park managers and to promote the preservation and protection of these important geologic heritage resources. This effort identified six stratotypes designated within four park units of the Sonoran Desert Inventory & Monitoring Network (SODN): Chiricahua National Monument (CHIR) has three type areas; Coronado National Memorial (CORO) has one type area; Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument (GICL) has one type area; and Saguaro National Park (SAGU) has one type area. Table 1 provides information regarding the six stratotypes currently identified within SODN parks. There are currently no designated stratotypes within Casa Grande Ruins National Monument (CAGR), Fort Bowie National Historic Site (FOBO), Montezuma Castle National Monument (MOCA), Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument (ORPI), Tonto National Monument (TONT), Tumacácori National Historical Park (TUMA), or Tuzigoot National Monument (TUZI). However, CHIR, MOCA, SAGU, and TUZI contain important rock exposures that could be considered for formal stratotype designation as discussed in the “Recommendations” section. The inventory of geologic stratotypes across the NPS is an important effort in documenting these locations so that NPS staff may recognize and protect these areas for future studies. The focus adopted for completing the baseline inventories throughout the NPS has centered on the 32 inventory and monitoring (I&M) networks established during the late 1990s. Adopting a network-based approach to inventories worked well when the NPS undertook paleontological resource inventories for the 32 I&M networks and was therefore adopted for the stratotype inventory. The Greater Yellowstone I&M Network (GRYN) was the pilot network for initiating this project (Henderson et al. 2020). Methodologies and reporting strategies adopted for the GRYN have been used in the development of this report for the SODN. This report includes a recommendation section that addresses outstanding issues and future steps regarding park unit stratotypes. These recommendations will hopefully guide decision-making and help ensure that these geoheritage resources are properly protected and that proposed park activities or development will not adversely impact the stability and condition of these geologic exposures.

Historian Wallace Stegner characterized America’s National Park system as “the best idea we ever had.” One can quibble with that, but, indeed, it was a pretty good idea! This book specifically is a guide and a celebration of 30 of those national parks, national historical parks, and national monuments that, each in its own way, reveals the histories and cultures of America’s first inhabitants, the Native Americans. Its pages will take you to: great mounds in Ohio where the dead were laid to rest in sumptuous splendor 2,000 years ago a place in Iowa where 1,000 years ago, Native Americans sculpted earth into the forms of giant bears and birds a quarry in Minnesota where Native People have, for hundreds of years, extracted blood-red stone for their ceremonial pipes the remains of a village in North Dakota visited by Lewis and Clark in the early 1800s and the home of their guide Sacagewea truly breathtaking, more than 700-year-old cliff dwellings in Arizona and Colorado, that will astonish you in their ethereal beauty and architectural ingenuity phantasmagorical images of 7-foot-tall, wide-eyed spirit beings in Utah painted more than 1,000 years ago And many more. All of these sites have in common the fact that, at the insistence of Native and non-Native people, men and women, the federal government of the United States set them aside as places to preserve, study, and revere as part of the American story no matter where your ancestors came from, how they got here, or how long ago. Read this book and visit the historically sacred sites enshrined in our national parks, national historical parks, and national monuments, places that reveal the creativity and genius of the Native People of North America. With 180 color photographs and complete visitor information, this is a wonderful guide to Native American archaeology in our national parks and monuments.

"Historian Wallace Stegner characterized America’s National Park system as “the best idea we ever had.” One can quibble with that, but, indeed, it was a pretty good idea! This book specifically is a guide and a celebration of 30 of those national parks, national historical parks, and national monuments that, each in its own way, reveals the histories and cultures of America’s first inhabitants, the Native Americans. Its pages will take you to: great mounds in Ohio where the dead were laid to rest in sumptuous splendor 2,000 years agoa place in Iowa where 1,000 years ago, Native Americans sculpted earth into the forms of giant bears and birdsa quarry in Minnesota where Native People have, for hundreds of years, extracted blood-red stone for their ceremonial pipesthe remains of a village in North Dakota visited by Lewis and Clark in the early 1800s and the home of their guide Sacageweatruly breathtaking, more than 700-year-old cliff dwellings in Arizona and Colorado, that will astonish you in their ethereal beauty and architectural ingenuityphantasmagorical images of 7-foot-tall, wide-eyed spirit beings in Utah painted more than 1,000 years agoAnd many more.All of these sites have in common the fact that, at the insistence of Native and non-Native people, men and women, the federal government of the United States set them aside as places to preserve, study, and revere as part of the American story no matter where your ancestors came from, how they got here, or how long ago. Read this book and visit the historically sacred sites enshrined in our national parks, national historical parks, and national monuments, places that reveal the creativity and genius of the Native People of North America. With 180 color photographs and complete visitor information, this is a wonderful guide to Native American archaeology in our national parks and monuments."

The National Park Service (NPS) administers a very complex, and often confusing, organizational landscape. While many people might readily identify Yellowstone, Yosemite, and the Everglades as national parks, they might not realize that in official NPS nomenclature, sites such as the Mount Rushmore Memorial, Gettysburg National Military Park, and the Cape Cod National Seashore are not. Actually, properties labeled “national parks” number only 59 of the 401 official units that are included in what is called the national park system. Making up the other units of the national park system are national battlefields (11), national battlefield parks (4), national battlefield sites (1), national military parks (9), national historical parks (46), national historic sites (78), international historic sites (1), national lakeshores (4), national memorials (28), national monuments (79), national parkways (4), national preserves (18), national reserves (2), national recreation areas (18), national rivers (15), national scenic trails (3), national seashores (10), and other designations (11). 1 Despite the technicality that only 59 units are really officially categorized as national parks, it is common practice to refer to all units administered by the Park Service as national parks. Friends groups and cooperating associations serve all NPS designations.KeywordsNational ParkOrganizational FrameworkCrater LakeFriend GroupNational Park ServiceThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

Purpose: The Southern Colorado Plateau Network (SCPN) used satellite-derived normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) data over a 20-year period (2003–2022) to examine trends and patterns of variability in 12 grassland and shrubland study areas within SCPN park units. Methods: SCPN developed daily NDVI records for each study area, from which analyses and visualizations were derived. Raster graphs were created to facilitate data interpretation. Trends were calculated for each ranked day of the spring and monsoon seasons: For each study area, season, and year, each day was ranked from the highest NDVI value to the lowest. Total NDVI change was then estimated for the spring and monsoon season NDVI peaks (day-rank = 1) as well as all other non-peak day ranks for each season. The same analyses were also applied to subsets of pixels corresponding to more productive and less productive pixels within each study area. Results: The study areas had many “likely” trends in NDVI for ranked-daily values, with a smaller number of “very likely” and “highly likely” trends. Monsoon season trends were consistently negative or neutral for more northerly parks—Aztec Ruins National Monument (NM), Chaco Culture National Historical Park (NHP), and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (NRA); and consistently positive or neutral for more southerly parks—Petrified Forest National Park (NP), Petroglyph NM, and Wupatki NM. Spring season trends varied spatially and included both positive and negative trends. Aztec Ruins NM and Glen Canyon NRA exhibited consistently negative or neutral trends for both seasons. Raster graphs revealed patterns including the variability in timing and intensity of seasonal greenness peaks and multi-year patterns. The raster graphs and associated data release can be used to evaluate the potential for the phenological patterns to correlate with on-the-ground conditions for wildlife resources that depend on vegetation. These data may also be used to parameterize models that relate climate to vegetation condition. Multi-year consecutive seasons of below-average NDVI were found in some records: At Wupatki NM, low NDVI from spring 2017 to spring 2021 corresponded in time with a widespread juniper dieback in 2021 in the adjacent pinyon-juniper woodlands of the area. Consecutive seasons of low NDVI also occurred in Petroglyph NM from 2008 to 2013 and at Aztec Ruins NM from 2020 to 2022. These records show the potential to link plant community stress to disturbance response thresholds, which is a subject of ongoing SCPN research.

Type sections are one of several kinds of stratotypes. A stratotype is the standard (original or subsequently designated), accessible, and specific sequence of rock for a named geologic unit that forms the basis for the definition, recognition, and comparison of that unit elsewhere. Geologists designate stratotypes for rock exposures that are illustrative and representative of the map unit being defined. Stratotypes ideally should remain accessible for examination and study by others. In this sense, geologic stratotypes are similar in concept to biological type specimens, however, they remain in situ as rock exposures rather than curated in a repository. Therefore, managing stratotypes requires inventory and monitoring like other geologic heritage resources in parks. In addition to type sections, stratotypes also include type localities, type areas, reference sections, and lithodemes, all of which are defined in this report. The goal of this project is to consolidate information pertaining to stratotypes that occur within NPS-administered areas, in order that this information is available throughout the NPS to inform park managers and to promote the preservation and protection of these important geologic heritage resources. This effort identified two stratotypes designated within two park units of the Southern Plains Inventory & Monitoring Network (SOPN): Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument (ALFL) has one type locality; and Capulin Volcano National Monument (CAVO) contains one type area. There are currently no designated stratotypes within Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site (BEOL), Chickasaw National Recreation Area (CHIC), Fort Larned National Historic Site (FOLS), Fort Union National Monument (FOUN), Lake Meredith National Recreation Area (LAMR), Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park (LYJO), Pecos National Historical Site (PECO), Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site (SAND), Waco Mammoth National Monument (WACO), and Washita Battlefield National Historic Site (WABA). The inventory of geologic stratotypes across the NPS is an important effort in documenting these locations in order that NPS staff recognize and protect these areas for future studies. The focus adopted for completing the baseline inventories throughout the NPS has centered on the 32 inventory and monitoring (I&M) networks established during the late 1990s. Adopting a network-based approach to inventories worked well when the NPS undertook paleontological resource inventories for the 32 I&M networks and was therefore adopted for the stratotype inventory. The Greater Yellowstone I&M Network (GRYN) was the pilot network for initiating this project (Henderson et al. 2020). Methodologies and reporting strategies adopted for the GRYN have been used in the development of this report for the SOPN. This report includes a recommendation section that addresses outstanding issues and future steps regarding park unit stratotypes. These recommendations will hopefully guide decision-making and help ensure that these geoheritage resources are properly protected and that proposed park activities or development will not adversely impact the stability and condition of these geologic exposures.

This section contains a summary of research activities within the National Park Service areas cooperating with the U.W.-N.P.S. Research Center in 1986, including Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, Canyonlands National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Custer Battlefield National Monument, Dinosaur National Monument, Fort Laramie National Historic Site, Glacier National Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Grand Teton National Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site, Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Wind Cave National Park, Yellowstone National Park and Zion National Park.

Water quality monitoring in National Park Service units of the Northern Colorado Plateau Network (NCPN) is made possible through partnerships between the National Park Service Inventory & Monitoring Division, individual park units, the U.S. Geological Survey, and the Utah Department of Environmental Quality. This report evaluates water quality data from site visits at 42 different locations within and around eight park units in Utah and Colorado from October 1, 2018 through September 30, 2022. Data are compared to state water quality standards for the purpose of providing information to park managers about potential water quality problems. Parks included for evaluation are Arches National Park (NP), Bryce Canyon NP, Canyonlands NP, Capitol Reef NP, Dinosaur National Monument (NM), Hovenweep NM, Timpanogos Cave NM, and Zion NP. Evaluation of water quality parameters relative to state water quality standards indicated that 21,644 (96.8%) of the 22,356 total designated beneficial-use evaluations completed for the period covered in this report met state water quality standards. The most common parameters that did not meet a standard include fecal indicator bacteria (Escherichia coli), water temperature, and total dissolved solids (TDS). While TDS can be an indicator of pollution, in NCPN parks, it mostly occurs downstream of rock outcrops that naturally increase TDS in streams. Phosphorus concentrations were often greater than acceptable thresholds but were rarely associated with indicators of impairment such as algal blooms, fish kills, or low dissolved oxygen. Sites monitored in Arches NP, Bryce Canyon NP, Capitol Reef NP, Dinosaur NM, Hovenweep NM, and Zion NP all had occurrences when fecal indicator bacteria concentrations were greater than associated state standards. State-coordinated plans to reduce waste contamination are in place for the North Fork Virgin River (Zion NP) and the Fremont River (Capitol Reef NP). The plans have resulted in a decrease in the number of chronic and acute standard violations at Zion. Elevated water temperatures occurred at sites in Canyonlands NP, Capitol Reef NP, and Zion NP. Water temperature is strongly correlated with air temperature in surface waters across the Colorado Plateau. Additional issues of management concern include low dissolved oxygen in Salt Wash at Wolfe Ranch (Arches NP) and Square Tower Spring (Hovenweep NM), as well as selenium in the Colorado River (Arches NP and Canyonlands NP). State-coordinated plans to reduce selenium concentrations in the Upper Colorado River basin are in place.

This section contains a summary of research activities within the National Park Service areas cooperating with the U.S.-N.P.S Research Center, 1987, including Big Hole National Battlefield, Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, Bryce Canyon National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Custer Battlefield National Monument, Dinosaur National Park, Fort Laramie National Historic Site, Glacier National Park, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Grand Teton National Park, Jewel Cave National Monument, Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site, Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Wind Cave National Park, Yellowstone National Park and Zion National Park.

T he Bandelier National Monument, established in 1916, was the focus of an important conflict between the National Park Service and the Forest Service. The conflict lasted from 1925 until President Hoover transferred the site from the Forest Service to the Park Service in 1932. Conservationist and preservationist values clashed over the tract, which included resources valuable to the constituencies of both. The 22,400 acres of national forest land in northcentral New Mexico that became the Bandelier monument included important archaeological ruins of interest to the Park Service. From the Forest Service's perspective, the Bandelier also contained large areas of valuable timberland that Park Service management would prevent area residents from using. Although the Park Service office in Washington worked to make a national park out of the Bandelier National Monument, Frank Pinkley, the Park Service superintendent of southwestern national monuments, prevented the conversion of the monument against the wishes of his immediate superiors in Washington. Pinkley strongly favored an identity for national monuments separate from that of the national parks. Pinkley's problem was compounded as the most spectacularly scenic national monuments were converted to national park status during the aggressive tenure of the Park Service's first director, Stephen T. Mather, and his chief advisor, Horace M. Albright. By law, archaeological sites were designated as national monuments. Pinkley fought to keep them in that category, an idea that contrasted with the Mather-Albright ideal: making the best example of any kind of site into a national park. He was even willing to go against the prevailing Park Service sentiment to ensure that the category of sites for which he was responsible would, in the long run, get its due. Yet Pinkley believed that all the reserved archaeological sites should be administered as national monuments by the Park Service, which had begun to focus on providing educational services in the parks under the Mather regime. He saw the monuments as the class of areas designated by law to preserve the nation's archaeological treasures. As the field officer in charge of archaeological sites in the Southwest, when he informed Washington that the Bandelier was not suited for a national park, he forced a temporary conciliation between the Park Service and the Forest Service. Pinkley and the National Monuments

Climate and hydrology are major drivers of ecosystems. They dramatically shape ecosystem structure and function, particularly in arid and semi-arid ecosystems. Understanding changes in climate, groundwater, and water quality and quantity is central to assessing the condition of park biota and key cultural resources. The Sonoran Desert Network collects data on climate, groundwater, and surface water at 11 National Park Service units in southern Arizona and New Mexico. This report provides an integrated look at climate, groundwater, and springs conditions at Chiricahua National Monument (NM), Coronado National Memorial (NMem), and Fort Bowie National Historic Site (NHS) during water year (WY) 2019 (October 2018–September 2019). Overall annual precipitation at Chiricahua NM and Coronado NMem in WY2019 was approximately the same as the normals for 1981–2010. (The weather station at Fort Bowie NHS had missing values on 275 days, so data were not presented for that park.) Fall and winter rains were greater than normal. The monsoon season was generally weaker than normal, but storm events related to Hurricane Lorena led to increased late-season rain in September. Mean monthly maximum temperatures were generally cooler than normal at Chiricahua, whereas mean monthly minimum temperatures were warmer than normal. Temperatures at Coronado were more variable relative to normal. The reconnaissance drought index (RDI) indicated that Chiricahua NM was slightly wetter than normal. (The WY2019 RDI could not be calculated for Coronado NMem due to missing data.) The five-year moving mean of annual precipitation showed both park units were experiencing a minor multi-year precipitation deficit relative to the 39-year average. Mean groundwater levels in WY2019 increased at Fort Bowie NHS, and at two of three wells monitored at Chiricahua NM, compared to WY2018. Levels in the third well at Chiricahua slightly decreased. By contrast, water levels declined in five of six wells at Coronado NMem over the same period, with the sixth well showing a slight increase over WY2018. Over the monitoring record (2007–present), groundwater levels at Chiricahua have been fairly stable, with seasonal variability likely caused by transpiration losses and recharge from runoff events in Bonita Creek. At Fort Bowie’s WSW-2, mean groundwater level was also relatively stable from 2004 to 2019, excluding temporary drops due to routine pumping. At Coronado, four of the six wells demonstrated increases (+0.30 to 11.65 ft) in water level compared to the earliest available measurements. Only WSW-2 and Baumkirchner #3 have shown net declines (-17.31 and -3.80 feet, respectively) at that park. Springs were monitored at nine sites in WY2019 (four sites at Chiricahua NM; three at Coronado NMem, and two at Fort Bowie NHS). Most springs had relatively few indications of anthropogenic or natural disturbance. Anthropogenic disturbance included modifications to flow, such as dams, berms, or spring boxes. Examples of natural disturbance included game trails, scat, or evidence of flooding. Crews observed 0–6 facultative/obligate wetland plant taxa and 0–3 invasive non-native species at each spring. Across the springs, crews observed six non-native plant species: common mullein (Verbascum thapsus), spiny sowthistle (Sonchus asper), common sowthistle (Sonchus oleraceus), Lehmann lovegrass (Eragrostis lehmanniana), rabbitsfoot grass (Polypogon monspeliensis), and red brome (Bromus rubens). Baseline data on water quality and water chemistry were collected at all nine sites. It is likely that that all nine springs had surface water for at least some part of WY2019, though temperature sensors failed at two sites. The seven sites with continuous sensor data had water present for most of the year. Discharge was measured at eight sites and ranged from < 1 L/minute to 16.5 L/minute.

In 2012 and 2013, the Pacific Island Network Inventory and Monitoring program established transects to monitor non-native, invasive plant species at Haleakalā National Park. Belt transects were utilized to monitor non-native species frequency and abundance in two plant communities, wet forest and subalpine shrubland. Repeated monitoring of these plant communities is planned to occur at five year intervals with objectives to detect change in non-native plant composition, distribution frequency, and cover. Because this report represents the first read of transects, an analysis of change over time is not possible. Instead, the objectives of the initial report are to 1) summarize and compare non-native richness at the plant community level, 2) determine the most common (i.e., most frequent) non-native species within each plant community, and 3) document the spatial distribution of non-native species cover across each plant community. The wet forest plant community, encompassing Kīpahulu Valley, ranged from 240-2280 m, while the subalpine shrubland ranged from 1980-3000 m, encompassing the park’s summit, headquarters, and several hiking trails open to the public. These plant communities have a history of feral ungulate disturbance along with recent and ongoing efforts to control non-native plants and animals. The study area included approximately 7,000 ha and a total of 60 non-native species were documented. Eight species of management concern to the park were recorded in the wet forest. Three of these species were the most frequently encountered non-native plants; including the shrub, Clidemia hirta, the herb, Hedychium gardnerianum, and the tree, Psidium cattleianum. Neither C. hirta nor H. gardnerianum were documented along transect surveys conducted 24 years prior. Non-native plant cover within the wet forest generally decreased with increased elevation. Ten species of management concern to the park were recorded in the subalpine shrubland. However, these species occurred at relatively low frequencies along transects. Overall, non-native plant frequency was higher in the subalpine shrubland than in the wet forest. This was largely due to the herb, Hypochaeris radicata, and the grass, Holcus lanatus, the most frequently encountered non-native species in the subalpine shrubland plant community. The results from the established invasive plant species monitoring provide a snap-shot assessment of the non-native plants in these relatively intact plant communities and compliment other plant monitoring protocols conducted by I&M, such as Focal Terrestrial Plant Community Monitoring and Early Detection of Invasive Plant Species. In addition to supplementing less-frequent surveys conducted by the park’s Resource Management division, these data collected by I&M are intended to contribute to the science-based management of Haleakalā National Park and provide consistent vegetation monitoring across the parks within the Pacific Island Network. Importantly, future I&M monitoring efforts will allow for change detection along these permanent transects and increase spatial sampling area with newly established temporary transects.

A Fly in the Amber:Route 66 Architecture at Petrified Forest National Monument Lillian Makeda (bio) Located in eastern Arizona, Petrified Forest National Park is renowned for its spectacular geography and outstanding paleontological resources. The area was set aside as one of the first national monuments created by President Theodore Roosevelt after the passage of the Antiquities Act of 1906.1 Living trees are few and far between in the rolling landscape of this bleak and desolate region, where the remains of ancient forests endure as some of the most important deposits of petrified wood in the world (Figure 1). The arrival of sightseers by way of the Thirty-Fifth Parallel Transcontinental Railroad Line and the National Old Trails Road (later to become Route 66) prompted both the National Park Service and private enterprise to develop architecture that would frame the touristic experience of Petrified Forest. Diverging objectives produced sharply contrasting designs for buildings. The National Park Service favored the Spanish-Pueblo Revival style from 1929 to 1942, and the International Style from 1958 through 1965.2 Private enterprise, along Route 66, built commercial vernacular buildings that epitomized the "flamboyant hucksterism" often found in contemporary roadside architecture.3 The Park Service at Petrified Forest viewed these types of ventures as "undesirable" and worked assiduously to remove them from the landscape. The most contentious business site was known as the Painted Desert Park or, alternatively, the Lion Farm, a small operation that sold gasoline, souvenirs, and snacks. Between the late 1950s and mid-1960s, archetypal examples of each of these three styles—Spanish-Pueblo Revival, the International Style, and commercial vernacular—comprised the only buildings on a plateau overlooking the Painted Desert in the northern part of the monument and were located a short distance from each other (Figure 2). This striking architectural juxtaposition would have been further heightened by the area's flat, barren terrain. In 1930, the National Park Service embarked on a lengthy campaign to take control of the architecture in and around Petrified Forest and eliminate the Lion Farm. The built environment of the park as it appears today reflects a plan conceived exclusively by the Park Service, which finally triumphed after a protracted battle that pitted federal and state governments against small-scale entrepreneurs who sought to make a living near the Painted Desert. The conflict at Petrified Forest represents only one instance of what has been an ongoing endeavor to assert government influence over the property within and around national parks and monuments. On a national level, these efforts have met with varying degrees of success, but when it came to Petrified Forest, the Park Service ultimately prevailed. Petrified Forest National Monument Accounts of petrified wood in eastern Arizona began to receive wide distribution after the completion of the Atlantic and Pacific railway line in 1883.4 The railroad furnished the primary means of approach for over thirty years, and the area became one of several attractions that would be packaged by the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe as "the American Southwest." Charles Lummis, famous for Mesa, Cañon, and Pueblo and other publications describing his travels in the region, [End Page 53] Click for larger view View full resolution Figure 1. Petrified Forest National Monument, 1946. From 1906 to 1932, the boundaries of Petrified Forest National Monument were located south of the Thirty-fifth Parallel Transcontinental Railway Line; most visitors disembarked at Adamana or Holbrook. The development of Route 66 was followed by the addition of the Painted Desert to the monument in 1932. Detail from a map located in the Petrified Forest National Park Archives. [End Page 54] helped popularize the beauty of Petrified Forest National Monument. A 1912 article published in Santa Fe Employee's Magazine exclaimed: And the sight of them! The Titan trunks lying as they were felled by some unknown cataclysm, their chameleon chips paving an area half the size of the state of Rhode Island and shimmering at sunrise or at sunset as Sinbad never saw; their broken cross sections so radiant, bark and fiber, as no man ever before beheld outside his dreams!5 Tourism at Petrified Forest steadily increased during the early twentieth century as automobile...