The Dark History of American National Parks

Stolen Land: The Displacement of Indigenous Peoples

When Americans think of national parks, they often imagine pristine wilderness untouched by human hands. But this idea erases the painful truth that nearly all national parks were established on land forcibly taken from Native American tribes.

For example, the creation of Yellowstone National Park in 1872 led to the expulsion of the Shoshone, Bannock, Crow, and other tribes from their ancestral lands. Research by the Native Land Conservancy estimates over 80 tribes were displaced to create today’s parks.

These forced removals often involved violence, broken treaties, and the destruction of traditional ways of living. Modern park plaques rarely acknowledge this legacy.

Instead, they focus on “preservation,” ignoring the fact that Indigenous stewardship shaped these landscapes for thousands of years. The ongoing movement for land acknowledgment and tribal co-management is a step toward addressing these historical injustices.

Yosemite and the Mariposa Battalion

Yosemite’s breathtaking cliffs and waterfalls hide a violent past. In 1851, the Mariposa Battalion, a California state militia, raided the Yosemite Valley and forcibly evicted the Ahwahneechee people.

Historical records, including those from the National Park Service, detail how villages were burned and survivors were marched out at gunpoint. The event was part of California’s broader campaign to remove native inhabitants during the Gold Rush.

The area was later designated a public park without the consent of its original residents. The echoes of this trauma linger in the stories shared by Ahwahneechee descendants, some of whom still fight for recognition and a role in park stewardship.

Yellowstone: Myths and Forced Removals

Yellowstone is celebrated as the world’s first national park, but its founding came at a steep human cost. The U.S.

Army enforced the removal of Native American tribes such as the Sheepeaters, Crow, and Bannock throughout the late 1800s. According to the National Parks Conservation Association, these groups were wrongly painted as threats to visitors and wildlife.

The myth of Yellowstone as “untouched wilderness” was used to justify military actions, including violent confrontations and the burning of native encampments. Recent scholarship recognizes that tribes sustainably managed the land for generations before their removal.

The Buffalo Soldiers: Forgotten Black Rangers

After the Civil War, the U.S. Army’s all-Black regiments, known as the Buffalo Soldiers, were assigned to patrol and protect parks like Yosemite and Sequoia.

Despite facing racism and segregation, these soldiers built trails, fought wildfires, and enforced park rules. Their story was largely omitted from park histories until recent years, when the National Park Service began to highlight their contributions.

The Buffalo Soldiers’ legacy is now recognized through interpretive programs and monuments, yet their pioneering role in conservation remains underappreciated compared to white park founders.

Japanese American Internment and Manzanar

During World War II, the National Park Service managed the Manzanar War Relocation Center, where over 10,000 Japanese Americans were unjustly imprisoned. Today, Manzanar is a National Historic Site, preserving the memory of lives disrupted by government order.

Research from the Densho Project documents how prisoners created gardens and built a sense of community amid harsh desert conditions. The park’s existence is a reminder of how national security was used to justify racial discrimination, and how parks can become sites of both beauty and sorrow.

The Tragedy at Glacier National Park

Glacier National Park’s boundaries were drawn in 1910, cutting through Blackfeet territory. The U.S.

government negotiated a deal for the land, promising the Blackfeet continued hunting and fishing rights. However, once the park was established, these rights were soon revoked, leading to economic hardship and loss of cultural practices.

Blackfeet activists have spent decades fighting for compensation and recognition. According to the Blackfeet Nation, unresolved disputes over land and rights continue to strain relationships with park authorities.

Segregation in Shenandoah National Park

In the early 20th century, Shenandoah National Park in Virginia was developed with racially segregated facilities. Black visitors were restricted to separate picnic areas and cabins, such as those at Lewis Mountain.

This policy mirrored Jim Crow laws across the South. The National Park Service only desegregated parks after World War II, following pressure from civil rights groups.

Today, the legacy of segregation is acknowledged through historical interpretation, but many visitors remain unaware of this chapter.

Environmental Racism: Urban Parks and Redlining

Not all national parks are in remote wilderness. Urban national parks, like Gateway National Recreation Area in New York, reveal a history of redlining and environmental racism.

Studies by the National Park Service and the Environmental Protection Agency show that Black and Latino neighborhoods were often denied access to clean, safe green spaces. Parks were sometimes used as buffers to reinforce racial boundaries.

This legacy persists, as communities of color are still less likely to live near national parks or benefit from park funding.

Supai Village and Grand Canyon National Park

The Havasupai people have lived in the Grand Canyon for centuries. When the park was established in 1919, most of their land was seized, and they were confined to a small section of the canyon.

Legal battles for land return lasted until 1975, when Congress restored a portion of their territory. Despite this partial victory, the Havasupai still face limited access to traditional hunting and gathering grounds, and the influx of tourists has brought new challenges to their community.

Mount Rushmore: Sacred Land and Broken Promises

Mount Rushmore is carved into the Black Hills, a region sacred to the Lakota Sioux. The 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie guaranteed the Black Hills to the Lakota, but the U.S.

government broke this agreement after gold was discovered. The mountain was later transformed into a national monument, erasing Indigenous history in favor of presidential faces.

In 1980, the Supreme Court ruled that the land was stolen, awarding financial compensation, which the Sioux have refused, insisting on the return of their land instead.

Trail of Tears National Historic Trail

This national trail commemorates the forced removal of Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Muscogee, and Seminole peoples from their homelands in the Southeast. Between 1830 and 1850, thousands died of disease, starvation, and exposure during the marches westward.

The National Park Service estimates at least 4,000 Cherokee perished. The Trail of Tears is now marked by interpretive sites, but for many, it remains a symbol of government betrayal and cultural loss.

Everglades: Draining Wetlands and Displacing People

The creation of Everglades National Park in Florida was hailed as a conservation triumph, but it followed decades of draining wetlands for agriculture and development. This not only devastated ecosystems but also displaced Seminole and Miccosukee tribes, whose traditional ways depended on the region’s unique environment.

Recent studies highlight ongoing conflicts between park management and tribal sovereignty, especially regarding water rights and restoration projects.

Denali: “Wilderness” and Homesteader Removal

Denali National Park in Alaska is often described as untouched wilderness, but its history includes the removal of local homesteaders and Alaska Natives. According to research from the University of Alaska, some families were evicted to create the park’s boundaries, losing homes and access to traditional hunting grounds.

These actions were justified in the name of conservation, but they erased generations of human history from the landscape.

The Bison Slaughter and Native Livelihoods

Bison once roamed freely across what are now several national parks, including Yellowstone. In the late 1800s, U.S.

policies encouraged the mass slaughter of bison to undermine Plains tribes’ food sources, leading to near-extinction. The National Park Service now manages bison populations, but this conservation success is built on a foundation of loss for Native peoples who relied on the animal for survival, spirituality, and economy.

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park: Native Dispossession

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park preserves sacred sites of Native Hawaiians, but its creation in 1916 led to the displacement of families and loss of traditional land stewardship. Research from the University of Hawaii shows that many sacred sites were fenced off or repurposed for tourism, disrupting cultural practices.

Recent efforts focus on collaborative management with Native Hawaiian groups to restore cultural access and traditional knowledge.

Sequoia and Kings Canyon: Forgotten Native Presence

Before becoming national parks, the lands of Sequoia and Kings Canyon were home to the Mono and Yokuts peoples. The establishment of these parks led to the eviction of native residents, who had lived in the region for generations.

Park exhibits often focus on natural wonders, overlooking the complex history of human habitation and removal. Current interpretive programs work to correct this omission by including Indigenous voices and stories.

Olympic National Park and Elwha River Dams

Olympic National Park in Washington is famous for its temperate rainforests and wild rivers. However, the construction of the Elwha River dams in the early 20th century, partly to support park development, destroyed salmon runs central to the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe’s culture and diet.

The recent removal of these dams marked a major environmental restoration, but it also highlighted the long-term harm caused by prioritizing tourism and industry over tribal rights.

The Role of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)

The CCC was a New Deal program that built much of the infrastructure in national parks during the 1930s. While it provided jobs during the Great Depression, the CCC was racially segregated, and Black workers were often excluded or relegated to the toughest jobs.

Native Americans participated in a parallel program, but faced poor working conditions and low pay. The legacy of the CCC is visible in park trails and lodges, but its inequalities are less well known.

Gateway Arch and Urban Displacement

The Gateway Arch in St. Louis is a national park site with a hidden history of urban displacement.

Its construction in the 1960s required the demolition of a vibrant Black neighborhood known as Mill Creek Valley. Thousands of residents were evicted, and their community was erased to make way for the monument.

Historians, including those from Washington University in St. Louis, document how this displacement was justified as “urban renewal,” reflecting broader patterns of exclusion in park creation.

Climate Change and Unequal Impacts

National parks are often seen as refuges from environmental harm, but climate change is threatening their ecosystems and the people who depend on them. Studies from the National Parks Conservation Association show that Indigenous and rural communities near parks face disproportionate risks from wildfires, droughts, and loss of traditional food sources.

Climate adaptation efforts increasingly involve tribal knowledge, but the legacy of exclusion makes collaboration challenging.

Contemporary Land Back Movements

Across the U.S., Indigenous groups are demanding the return of ancestral lands now managed as national parks. The “Land Back” movement has gained traction, with some parks exploring co-management agreements.

In 2022, the National Park Service signed a historic agreement with the Oglala Sioux to co-manage portions of Badlands National Park. These efforts seek to address historic injustices, restore cultural practices, and redefine what it means to protect America’s natural treasures.

End.