1 Oct 1890: Yosemite becomes National Park

On this day in 1890, U.S. Congress established Yosemite National Park, making it the third national park after Yellowstone (1872) and Sequoia (September 25, 1890).

Some facts about Yosemite (some of which you might have seen in Double Jeopardy! on Tuesday’s episode):

• It was founded with the help of naturalist John Muir, who took President Theodore Roosevelt on a camping trip there in 1903
• Ribbon Fall (a.k.a. “Virgin’s Tears”) is the tallest uninterrupted waterfall in the U.S., at 1,612 feet
• Half Dome, a large granite outcropping, rises 5,000 feet over its surroundings; it was once thought impossible to climb
• Photographer Ansel Adams had an area of the park named for him in 1984

There are now 59 National Parks under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service, which was established in 1916. The most recent, Pinnacles National Park in California, was established in 2013.

Six of the seven largest National Parks are in Alaska; the sole exception is Death Valley, which clocks in at #5.

Image: President Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir in 1903 (Library of Congress)