Naturalist John Muir described Yosemite as "the most beautiful piece of landscape I have ever beheld." Before its establishment as a national park in 1890, the 2,000-square-mile parcel including the Sequoia park was the centerpiece of a battle between those who wanted to exploit the land for their own economic purposes and those who wanted to preserve its wild beauty. Among the latter, Muir suggested strongly that the cavalry of the U.S. Army take charge of the new park. After the Civil War, the "Old Army," as Meyerson calls it, became a peacekeeping force mediating between settlers and Native Americans in the Indian wars and acting as a constabulary force in Yellowstone, the first national park. Drawing on thorough, painstaking research, Meyerson narrates the Old Army's governance of Yosemite and the protection of its natural resources. He profiles leaders like Captain Abram "Jug" Wood, who became the park's first superintendent, mapping its boundaries and guarding against zealous ranchers and homesteaders trying to claim land within the park. The hardy early "rangers" believed they provided a significant service for their country, much as they had in the Civil War, as they tracked trespassers over miles of mountainous terrain in inclement weather. Good old-fashioned communal loyalty, honest leadership, discipline and fairness were the Old Army's foundation that offered a model for the Park Service established in the 1930s. Although Meyerson sometimes loses the trail by seemingly reporting every detail, he offers, on balance, a lively account of a little known chapter in American history. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
A senior staff member at the Library of Congress's Congressional Research Service, Meyerson contends that soldiers of the Old Army (pre-Spanish American War) were the unsung heroes of the national parks. For 25 years before the creation of the National Park Service, soldiers protected, surveyed, and enforced the laws in parks like Yellowstone and Yosemite. They also built trails and roads still used by visitors today. This volume discusses the origins, character, and mission of the Old Army and the Fourth U.S. Cavalry's administration of Yosemite while also examining 19th-century American society. Meyerson reviews the challenges faced by several Fourth Cavalry commanders as acting superintendents responsible for the military-style administrative techniques later adopted by the National Park Service. Surrounded by natural beauty, troopers developed an appreciation of and love for Yosemite, and many of them joined John Muir's Sierra Club and continued as "nature's army" in civilian life. This original social and environmental history will be a welcome addition to the civics and environmental studies sections of all libraries. Patricia Ann Owens, Wabash Valley Coll., Mt. Carmel, IL
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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