Shaping the System

When I was writing my last post on Point Reyes National Seashore, I was thinking it may have been the first National Seashore, which would have been interesting to point out. To find the answer to this question, I consulted my copy of The National Parks: Shaping the System. It turns out that it was the second, two years after Cape Cod. Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, which I mentioned in the post, was indeed the first National Lakeshore.

I love this little book. As you might expect from the title, it is devoted to telling us when each park was added to the system, both in narrative and tabular form. It is interesting reading for a National Park buff like me, and it is an excellent reference book. One especially interesting entry, on the back cover, is the history of the NPS arrowhead logo over the years. If you would like a copy of the book for yourself, you can order it from the US Government Bookstore for $12.50 or you can access a PDF version at the National Park Service web site.