In 1916, Woodrow Wilson signed the National Parks Service into law, which now spans 30 states and 84 million acres of land. Here is the surprising history behind America’s national parks.
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Grand Canyon National Park
Grand Canyon National Park
Originally founded in 1890, President Woodrow Wilson made the Grand Canyon a national park after an aide told him how long the echo is after you yell “penis” into the gorge.
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Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua Tree National Park
Officially recognized as a national park in 1994, Joshua Tree obtained protected status after dedicated conservationists realized the area was in grave danger of hosting a future EDM festival.
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Kyle’s Parents’ Summer House
Kyle’s Parents’ Summer House
Even the federal government had to recognize the importance of a place right on the beach with a hot tub and no adults for the whole weekend.
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Kings Canyon National Park
Kings Canyon National Park
Founded in 1890, John Muir designated Kings Canyon a national park as part of a massive marketing campaign to make the Grand Canyon seem better by comparison.
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Petrified Forest National Park
Petrified Forest National Park
In 1962, the Petrified Forest was declared protected land in order to stop developers from turning the entire state of Arizona into a golf course.
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Grand Teton National Park
Grand Teton National Park
Grand Teton National Park was actually a gift sent overseas from France in 1886 after they realized the Statue of Liberty looked like shit.
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Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Cuyahoga Valley National Park
This became a national park in 2000 because Ohio kept bitching about not having one.
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Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park
Formed in 1872, President Ulysses S. Grant declared Yellowstone the first national park after he saw a sick-ass YouTube video of a bison slamming into a screaming family’s minivan.
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Mt. Fuji
Standing at over 12,000 ft tall, FDR claimed Mt. Fuji as a U.S. national park in 1941 as retaliation for the Pearl Harbor Bombings.
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Zion National Park
Zion National Park
Established in 1919, Woodrow Wilson dedicated this majestic Utah park to hikers who really seemed to get off on defecating in public.
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Sequoia National Park
Sequoia National Park
Visitors and conservationists like John Muir were inspired to preserve the trees of Sequoia National Park in order to one day build a 400-foot bed frame.
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Bryce Canyon National Park
Bryce Canyon National Park
It’s hard to believe due to its breathtaking size, but Bryce Canyon actually formed over millions of years by erosion from tourists’ spit.
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Rocky Mountain National Park
Rocky Mountain National Park
The Rocky Mountain Range is the only geological formation in the United States to have a train full of light beer bust out of it, solidifying its status as a national park in 1915.
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Pleasure Zone Adult Video Store
Pleasure Zone Adult Video Store
Just head down the i44 and get off the first exit in Rolla, Mo. You’ll know it when you see it.
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Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
As part of the Great New Deal, FDR created this park so that cheapskate husbands can take their wives somewhere nice for free.
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Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park
In 1864, conservationists convinced President Lincoln to declare a public trust of California in order to protect the space from Native Americans who had wrongfully claimed the land.
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Everglades National Park
Everglades National Park
Made a national park in 1934 to prevent development that might disturb secrets best left swallowed by the swamp.
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Carlsbad Caverns
Carlsbad Caverns
This giant area was utterly useless until leases for oil and gas drilling were opened in 2020.
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