Taking a Look at Natioanl Parks - 1437 Words

A national park is an area set aside by a nation’s government to protect natural beauty, wildlife, or other remarkable features. Some national parks protect entire environments like coral reefs, deserts, grasslands, mountain ranges, or rain forests. Today about 1,500 national parks protect about 1.5 million square miles. Theodore Roosevelt had a huge impact on the national parks we know today. The three I found most interesting include The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Sequoia National Park, and the Everglades National Park. Theodore â€Å"Teddy† Roosevelt had a huge impact on the national park system that extended well beyond his term in office. Teddy Roosevelt first came to the Badlands in September 1883. Big game hunting had initially brought him to the west, as he spent more time in this area, he became more and more alarmed by the damage that was being done to the land and the wildlife. After this, conservation became one of Roosevelt’s main concerns. After he became president in 1901, Roosevelt used his authority to protect wildlife and public lands by creating the U.S. Forest Service. He also established fifty-one federal bird reservations, four national game services, one-hundred and fifty national forests, five national parks and created the Antiquities Act which he used to officially declare eighteen national monuments. Roosevelt has been called many times our country’s â€Å"Conservation President† He is remembered with a National Park that bears