Today our "Crown Jewel" National Park System ranges from the diamond hard face of "the Great One" - Mount Denali in Denali National Park, Alaska to the welcoming turquoise waters of the US Virgin Islands National Park and archaeological records dating back to 800 BC. So today I rejoice in the knowledge that the American people truly recognize and prize our Crown Jewel National Park System. A study released last week by the National Park Foundation shows that Americans assign a value of $92 BILLION to the System and the services provided by its caretaker agency, the National Park Service. When we took our independence from Britain we eschewed the trappings of monarchy including this Imperial Crown of State, and created a new system of government and a new system of Crown Jewels - National Parks. The ethereal vision of Yosemite Valley that Albert Bierstadt portrayed in his paintings inspired President Lincoln to set aside the valley as our fist state park, later expanded to become Yosemite National Park.

Source: Huffington Post July 04, 2016 18:00 UTC