Encore: National Parks | Playgrounds of the People | 5

American History Tellers

Wondery

Society & Culture, Kids & Family, History, Education For Kids

4.7 • 18.3K Ratings

🗓️ 15 September 2021

⏱️ 40 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In 1914, America’s National Parks had a problem: no one was using them. And those few that were faced unmaintained roads, trails strewn with garbage, and a lack of amenities that made it hard for the average American to enjoy themselves. One man had enough, and went to Washington on a mission: establish a new National Parks Service, and transform these neglected, magic spaces into clean, approachable, fun vacation destinations.

But in taking the reins, mining tycoon and marketing genius Stephen Mather would face many challenges: wolves, bears, fires, and his own internal torment.

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, here are some additional resources:

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-8255

National Alliance on Mental Illness: 1-800-950-6264

Crisis Text Line: Within the US, text HOME to 741741

Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance: 1-800-826-3632

Listen to new episodes 1 week early and to all episodes ad free with Wondery+. Join Wondery+ for exclusives, binges, early access, and ad free listening. Available in the Wondery App https://wondery.app.link/historytellers.

Support us by supporting our sponsors!

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hey, Prime Members, you can listen to American History Tellers add free on Amazon Music,
0:05.6	download the app today.
0:08.5	This is a special encore presentation of our series on America's National Parks, as many
0:13.6	of us return to traveling but remain mindful of social distancing.
0:17.3	Our National Park System is experiencing record attendance, but many visitors may be unaware
0:22.4	of the turbulent and sometimes controversial histories behind such natural wonders as
0:27.1	Eosemite, Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.
0:30.1	In this series, we'll meet the naturalists, politicians and eccentric who fought to preserve
0:35.1	the most beautiful and unblumished corners of our country.
0:38.1	And we'll also meet the indigenous peoples and early settlers who sometimes fought back.
0:43.7	Imagine it's an early morning on May 16th, 1924, and you're driving up a newly paved
0:59.1	road to the entrance of Yellowstone National Park.
1:02.3	You're a school teacher and the wife of a successful lumber yard owner.
1:06.5	It's true you support the two of you when your husband was first starting out, but now,
1:10.3	10 years later, the construction business is booming and the lumber yard is going strong.
1:15.9	Last year, the two of you splurged on a brand new Dodge Brothers Touring sedan.
1:20.6	You were the first in town to have one and all the other teachers at school were complimenting
1:24.8	you on.
1:25.8	You were excited about the purchase, but more so about where you plan to take it, Yellowstone
1:31.0	National Park.
1:33.0	Your husband is a nature lover, but you were raised reading Teddy Roosevelt's books on
1:36.9	the outdoors and have always wanted to visit the National Parks.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Wondery, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Wondery and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.