the grand canyon
enormous
iconic
breathtaking
2019 marks grand canyon national park's
100th anniversary
but how did it get to be such a beloved
destination
archaeological artifacts suggest that
people lived in and around the canyon
some 12 000 years ago
today it's still considered a sacred
place to 11 native american tribes
despite being moved onto reservations in
the 1800s
the united states didn't really explore
the area until the treaty of guadalupe
hidalgo seeded over 500 000 square miles
of land to the u.s including the grand
canyon
so in 1857 the u.s government sent an
expedition led by lieutenant joseph ives
to explore the colorado river
while ives admired the scenery in his
report he wrote the region is of course
altogether valueless
ours has been the first and will
doubtless be the last party of whites to
visit this profitless locality
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history proved ives wrong but throughout
the late 1800s companies struggled to
make the area profitable and few were
considering this harsh landscape as a
tourist destination
even so president benjamin harrison saw
the need to protect this inspiring place
and created the grand canyon national
forest reserve in 1893
the grand canyon's popularity grew
tremendously after that
in 1901 a new rail line ran directly to
the grand canyon village where most
tourists to this day start their visit
a comfortable train ride and the brand
new el tovar hotel enticed the elite
class to visit the grand canyon
including president theodore roosevelt
his 1903 visit he emphasized the
importance of preserving the grand
canyon in a speech
leave it as it is
you cannot improve on it not a bit the
ages have been at work on it and man can
only mar it
and in 1908 roosevelt declared the grand
canyon a national monument
during this time more visitors made use
of the traditional native american
walking trails like the bright angel
trail for mule rides and hiking
and more people meant more lodging
architect mary elizabeth jane coulter
was hired to design many of the park's
most iconic buildings
her groundbreaking work earned her the
nickname grand canyons architect
and finally three years after the
national park service was created
on february 26 1919 president woodrow
wilson signed the grand canyon national
park into law making it the nation's
17th national park
over 37 000 people visited the newly
enshrined park in its first year
today the park has hosted more than 211
million guests
but all this momentum led to some
growing pains
commercial flights which were gaining
popularity in the 1950s would treat
passengers to a view of the grand canyon
while enroute to their destination
this led to disaster in june of 1956
when two commercial planes crashed over
the grand canyon killing all 128 people
on board
it was the deadliest aviation disaster
of the time and motivated congress to
regulate the then largely uncontrolled
skies
the 21st century has brought its own set
of challenges
helicopter tours have increased so much
that a part of the canyon has been
nicknamed helicopter alley
and development companies are proposing
new retail and lodging which might
interrupt the natural beauty of the
canyon
but conservationists and native
americans are fighting to preserve the
natural integrity of the park just like
they have in the past
for future generations to enjoy
through it all the grand canyon has
solidified itself in the hearts and
minds of americans and to this day it's
one of the most visited national parks
in the country
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