National Park Service Free Weekends
Summer 2009

In order to help folks struggling with the bad economy, the National Park Service has announced three free weekends where entrance to national parks will be free. One weekend each month: June 20-21.  July 18-19. August 15-16.  Might be a great time to Visit America and our national parks and historic sites.

Smithsonian With Another Find
June 2009

The legacy of Abraham Lincoln keeps getting its holes filled in, and with a newly found letter from Lincoln to Salmon Chase on November 14, 1863, just a few days before he would address the audience at Gettysburg, another piece to the puzzle of Lincoln's presidency has found its place.  The letter had been originally removed from a book of Chase's correspondence prior to getting into the National Archives.

Washington Headquarters @ Valley Forge
May 2009

On May 18, the Washington Headquarters area of Valley Forge National Park will show off its most recent renovations.  A new parking area, orchard plantings, the restored train station which will serve as an adjunct area visitor center with exhibits, new sidewalks, and a general redo.  If you haven't been to Valley Forge in awhile, these changes provide an interesting new twist to the park.

Casino Approved Near Valley Forge
April 2009

Just when you thought a casino would not go next to a national park, in comes the Pennsylvania Gaming Commission with the ruling this April that will allow 500 slots in a building within eyesight of Washington's encampment at Valley Forge.  Even though this "resort" casino inside the Valley Forge Convention Center hotel complex will only be an allowed use to hotel or convention patrons, and not the outside public, this disregard of the historic site at Valley Forge is just another in a long line of bad decisions near the park.  Housing, convention centers, one of the biggest mall complexes in the USA, and a whole lot more have surrounded the park on its north and east sides.  While the remainder of the park is a great oasis of history and nature, the addition of slots nearby is certainly not great news, once again, for making historic sites like Valley Forge a priority in the communities where they exist.

Congress Passes Omnibus Lands Bill
April 2009

The lands management bill for 2009 has been passed by Congress and signed into law.  This bill will assist over forty national parks, inc luding expansion at Minute Man National Historical Park, Little River Canyon National Preserve, and Fort Davis National Historical Site.

CWPT List of History Under Siege Park Revealed for 2009
March 2009

Once again, our nation's Civil War historic sites are threatened by a variety of causes, as stated in the new History Under Siege report by the Civil War Preservation Trust.  The trust every year lists the 10 most endangered areas, plus 15 more that are under significant threat.  This year's top 10 list includes Cedar Creek, Fort Gaines, Gettysburg, Monocacy, New Market Heights, Fort Gibson, Sabine Pass, South Mountain, Spring Hill, and the Wilderness.  Most of these lands are under threat of development, although this year the development seems to be coming more from power plants and mining companies than previously year's lists, however the causes include erosion, hurricane damage, and others as well.

National Park Attendance Winners and Losers in 2008
March 2009

The top National Park Units stayed the same in 2008, although for most parks, with the current economic climate and high gas prices in 2008, there was lower attendance at many sites.  Great Smokey Mountain National Park remained the top National Park historic site with the Blue Ridge Parkway remaining the top park unit overall, including parkways, seashores, and national recreation areas.  For a full top ten list, as well as a list of the top winners and losers, see National Park Stats.

The Tuskegee Airman National Historic Site saw the largest increase in attendance among National Park units in 2008, over a 200% increase from 2007.  35,646 more people witnessed the site that honors the courage of the Tuskegee corps for their service to our nation.  Photo top right, the Tuskegee Airmen in Ramitelli, Italy, 1945.  Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Two Historic Sites Refurbished and Reopen
February 2009

Two historic site icons of Lincoln lore are reopening this February in Washington, D.C. and Gettysburg.  Ford's Theatre, a National Park unit that tells the story of the last day's of Lincoln, will reopen during the week of February 9, with a refurbished theatre and exhibits.  On a more positive note, the Wills House in downtown Gettysburg will reopen during that same week, this time as part of Gettysburg National Military Park.  The  home in downtown Gettysburg is the site where President Lincoln stayed and finalized the Gettysburg Address in November of 1863, and is being incorporated into the park for the first time.

Lincoln, King, and the Obama Inauguration
January 2009

At noon on January 20, 2009,  Barack Obama will be sworn in as President of the United States, completing, in some ways, an arc that began on the fields of Antietam in September 1862 when the victory by Union forces allowed Abraham Lincoln to announce the Emancipation Proclamation.  It would continue through the next century to the Civil Rights days led by Martin Luther King, during his I Had a Dream speech at the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963 when he captivized a nation and pushed it toward true integration.  As we witness history again during this January with the Obama inauguration, it would be a good time to reflect on the history of all three men, and many others, who made this moment possible.  For a souvenir of these three historic events, visit the Obama Inauguration page at teepossible.com. 

More Historic Site News and Information

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