NATIONAL PARK - CALIFORNIA UNITED STATES Historic Events DEPARTMENT of the Kings INTERIOR 1862 First White Man of Record Entered Area
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I II NATIONAL PARK - CALIFORNIA UNITED STATES Historic Events DEPARTMENT OF THE Kings INTERIOR 1862 First white man of record entered area. Joseph Hardin Thomas discovered the General Grant Tree, then unnamed. HAROLD L. ICKES, Secretary Canyon OPEN NATIONAL 1867 General Grant Tree measured; named by ALL Lucretia P. Baker, member of pioneer YEAR PARK family of the district. CALIFORNIA 1870 First settlers occupied Fallen Monarch MULE DEER ARE SEEN EVERYWHERE huge hollow log. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE IN THE PARK NEWTON B. DRURY, Director 1872 The Gamlin brothers built log house now COKTEi^rs known as Gamlin Pioneer Cabin and INGS CANYON NATIONAL rates the two great South Fork and used as museum. K PARK was created by act of Middle Fork Canyons. The Middle North Dome ........ Cover Congress, March 4,1940. It comprises Fork is reached only by trail by cross Cover photo by Laval Co., Inc. 710 square miles of superlative moun ing over Granite Pass or Cartridge A Description of Kings Canyon by 1878 Preemption claim surrounding the Gen eral Grant Tree surrendered to the Gov tain scenery in the heart of the Sierra Pass, by traversing the 12,000-foot John Muir (1838-1914) .... 4 ernment by Israel Gamlin. Nevada and three groves of giant se Mather Pass on the John Muir Trail, The Groves 6 quoias. In the creation of this park, the or by descending from road end at Forests and Flowers 6 Crabtree Camp on the North Fork of 1890 General Grant National Park (now Gen former General Grant National Park, Wildlife 6 eral Grant Grove Section of Kings Can with the addition of the Redwood the Kings into Tehipite Valley to Fishing 7 yon National Park) created by act of Mountain area, became the General view the famous Tehipite Dome. Trails 7 Congress on October 1. Grant Grove Section. This portion is In this new wilderness park accom Park Season 8 the gateway to the Kings Canyon and modations will be kept to a minimum. Administration 8 1891 General Grant National Park first ad High Sierra wilderness and is a center The real beauties of the park are for tourist travel. The main portion Naturalist Service 10 ministered by Capt. J. H. Dorst, United available only to those who ride States Cavalry. of the park includes watersheds of the horseback or hike the many trails Free Campgrounds 10 South and Middle Forks of the Kings which lead to unexcelled camp Christmas Tree Ceremony .... 10 River and the Evolution Creek and grounds. Church Services 10 1914 Walter Fry appointed first civilian super intendent of both parks. Goddard Cany on watershed, tributary The John Muir Trail follows Railroad, Bus, and Airplane to the South Fork of the San Joaquin through the entire summit region of Services 10 River. It includes also the crest of the the park for 78 miles, seldom below Approach to Park by Highway and 1925 General Grant Tree designated as Na Sierra Nevada and western slope from tion's Christmas Tree. 8,500 feet, and crosses five high moun Trail 11 Junction Peak to Mount Lamarck, a tain passes. Accommodations and Expenses . 14 summit area containing four peaks Fourteen miles southeast of the Miscellaneous Services 15 1940 Kings Canyon National Park established over 14,000 feet in altitude, and more General Grant Grove Section lies the on March 4 by act of Congress absorbing than twenty others above 13,000 feet Saddle Horses and Pack Stock . 15 General Grant National Park which be Sequoia National Park. The two Big Selected Bibliography 15 came General Grant Grove Section. in altitude. Tree national parks are linked by Granite gorges, mountain meadows, one of the finest mountain roads in and trout-filled streams and lakes America—the Generals Highway. abound. The Monarch Divide sepa This highway reaches a 7,600-foot 2 Kings Canyon National Park * California Kings Canyon National Park * California 3 altitude at Big Baldy Saddle, passing gliding softly with scarce a ripple over through heavy forests of pine, fir, beds of brown pebbles, now rushing cedar, and Sequoia gigantea the whole and leaping in wild exultation across length of 30 miles between General avalanche rock-dams or terminal mo Grant Grove in Kings Canyon Na raines, swaying from side to side, tional Park and Giant Forest in Se beaten with sunshine, or embowered quoia National Park, and affording with leaning pines and firs, alders, spacious views of the mountain and willows, and tall balsam poplars, foothill country. which with the bushes and grass at their feet make charming banks. A DESCRIPTION OF KINGS Gnarled snags and stumps here and CANYON BY JOHN MUIR there reach out from the banks, mak (1838-1914) ing cover for trout which seem to "In the vast Sierra wilderness far to have caught their colors from rain the southward of the famous Yosemite bow spray, though hiding mostly in Valley, there is a yet grander valley shadows, where the current swirls of the same kind. It is situated on the slowly and protecting sedges and wil south fork of King's River, above the lows dip their leaves. most extensive groves and forests of ****** the giant sequoia, and beneath the shadows of the highest mountains in "From the brink of the walls on the range, where the canyons are either side the ground still rises in a deepest and the snow-laden peaks are series of ice-carved ridges and basins, crowded most closely together. It is superbly forested and adorned with called the Big King's River Canyon, many small lakes and meadows, where or King's River Yosemite, * * * . It is deer and bear find grateful homes; about ten miles long, half a mile while from the head of the valley wide, and the stupendous rocks of mountains other mountains rise be purplish gray granite that form the yond in glorious array, every one of walls are from 2,500 to 5,000 feet in them shining with rock crystals and height, while the depth of the valley snow, and with a network of streams below the general surface of the moun that sing their way down from lake tain mass from which it has been to lake through a labyrinth of ice- carved is considerably more than a burnished canyons. The area of the mile. basins drained by the streams entering the valley is about 450 square miles, and the elevation of the rim of the "The bottom of the valley is about general basin is from 9,000 to upward 5,000 feet above the sea, and its level of 14,000 feet above the sea; while the or gently sloping surface is diversified general basin of the Merced Yosemite with flowery meadows and groves and has an area of 250 square miles, and open sunny flats, through the midst of its elevation is much lower. which the crystal river, ever changing, PADILLA STUDIOS PHOTO ever beautiful, makes its way; now AN ANGLER IN KINGS CANYON 4 Kings Canyon National Park * California Kings Canyon National Park * California 5 "At the head of the valley the river ceeding 2 feet, and, though many of main along the crest of the Sierra. forks, the heavier branch turning the older trees show fire scars, there Bears are found throughout the park, northward, and on this branch there have been no recent fires. but not in large numbers. Feeding of is another Yosemite, called from its Adding to the grandeur of the se these animals by visitors is strictly pro flowery beauty Paradise Valley; and quoia groves of Redwood Mountain hibited. When this regulation is fol the name might well be applied to the and Canyon are superlative stands of lowed, the bears cause very little main canyon, for notwithstanding its sugar pines and ponderosa pine, many trouble to campers. Pine martens, tremendous rockiness, it is an Eden of them 200 feet tall, a few even taller, marmots, and conies inhabit the high of plant-beauty from end to end." accompanied by an abundance of elevations. The Columbia gray squir young growth of their own kind and rel is a common sight as it dashes THE GROVES by a scattering of firs, cedars, and a across roads and trails, a blue-gray The General Grant Tree in the few other species. The net result is a vision that at times appears to be all Grant Grove of Big Trees is so huge primeval forest of supreme wilderness tail. The Douglas squirrel, or Sierra its size is difficult to comprehend. Its beauty, as yet largely unspoiled, with chickaree, gray-brown in color, is greatest horizontal diameter is 40.3 thousands of sequoias ranging from well known for its amusing habit of feet at the base, and at 200 feet above tiny seedlings up to magnificent old scolding. Birds are numerous. Moun the ground its diameter is about 12 patriarchs perhaps 3,000 years old. tain quail and Sierra grouse are en feet. This tree is 267 feet high and is countered on trail trips, and notable FORESTS AND FLOWERS one of the most celebrated trees in the birds of the high mountain areas are: United States, having been dedicated Coniferous trees predominate. There golden eagle, rosy finch, Clark's nut as the Nation's Christmas Tree. Huge are eight species of pines found in cracker, and water ouzel. The Park specimens of sugar and ponderosa the park, including the one-leaved, or Information Office at General Grant pine, fir, and cedar in this grove and pinon pine. The mountain hemlock Grove Section is headquarters for in in the nearby North Grove arouse and whitebark pine are timber-line formation about plants, birds and interest second only to that of the trees.