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[[Image:National Park Service.jpg|right|300px|thumb|]]
[[Image:National Park Service.jpg|right|225px]]
The '''National Park Service''' is a bureau within the [[United States]] [[Department of the Interior]], responsible for the oversight, maintenance, and budget for United States national parks, preserves, monuments, memorials, national historic sites, seashores, and battlefields.
The '''National Park Service''' is a bureau within the [[United States]] [[Department of the Interior]], responsible for the oversight, maintenance, and budget for United States [[national park]]s, preserves, monuments, memorials, national historic sites, seashores, and battlefields. ''The concept of national parks, that the most special places in the nation should be preserved, not for royalty or the rich, but for everyone, is a uniquely American one.'' <ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=jLUXkmCLx8gC&pg=PA92&lpg=PA92&dq=The+concept+of+national+parks+is+something+uniquely+American&source=bl&ots=LKl8mBMIa4&sig=ML7wEuHusBdsXhLoIxzN1pwjmaI&hl=en&ei=Tp6SSsK6GIL8sgOvx-AL&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6#v=onepage&q=&f=false Environmental discourse and practice: a reader, By: Lisa M. Benton, John Rennie Short - 2000 - Political Science]</ref> Naturalist, writer, and historian [[Wallace Stegner]] once said, talking about the idea for creating national parks, that it was “the best idea we ever had.”.
==Headquarters Organization==
==Headquarters Organization==
The headquarters office provides national level leadership and advocacy; policy and regulatory formulation and direction; program guidance; budget formulation; legislative support; accountability for programs and activities managed by the field and key program offices. It manages Servicewide programs that by their nature can most effectively be carried out from a central location.
The headquarters office provides national level leadership and advocacy; policy and regulatory formulation and direction; program guidance; budget formulation; legislative support; accountability for programs and activities managed by the field and key program offices. It manages Servicewide programs that by their nature can most effectively be carried out from a central location.
The Director, Deputy Directors, Comptroller, Chief Information Officer, Associate Directors, Regional Directors and the Chief, United States Park Police comprise the National Leadership Council. In consultation with the Council, the Director establishes overall policy and strategic direction for the National Park Service, determines the Service's overall legislative goals and strategies, and guides implementation of Servicewide goals and objectives. [http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/upload/nps_org.pdf]
The Director, Deputy Directors, Comptroller, Chief Information Officer, Associate Directors, Regional Directors and the Chief, United States Park Police comprise the National Leadership Council. In consultation with the Council, the Director establishes overall policy and strategic direction for the National Park Service, determines the Service's overall legislative goals and strategies, and guides implementation of Service-wide goals and objectives. [http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/upload/nps_org.pdf]
==National Program Centers==
==National Program Centers==
National Program Centers are part of the Headquarters office. They provide professional and technical support services to regions and park units:
National Program Centers are part of the Headquarters office. They provide professional and technical support services to regions and park units:
*National Program Center Location, Accounting Operations Center Herndon, VA
*National Program Center Location, Accounting Operations Center Herndon, VA
The National Park Service still strives to meet its original goals, while filling many other roles as well: guardian of our diverse cultural and recreational resources; environmental advocate; world leader in the parks and preservation community; and pioneer in the drive to protect America’s open space.
The National Park Service still strives to meet its original goals, while filling many other roles as well: guardian of our diverse cultural and recreational resources; environmental advocate; world leader in the parks and preservation community; and pioneer in the drive to protect America’s open space.
[[Category:United States]]
==Nomenclature of Park System Areas ==
The diversity of the parks is reflected in the variety of titles given to them. These include such designations as '''national park''', '''national preserve''', '''national monument''', '''national memorial''', '''national historic site''', '''national seashore''', and '''national battlefield park'''. Although some titles are self-explanatory, others have been used in many different ways. For example, the title "national monument" has been given to natural reservations, historic military fortifications, prehistoric ruins, fossil sites, and to the Statue of Liberty. In recent years, both Congress and the National Park Service have attempted to simplify the nomenclature and to establish basic criteria for use of the different official titles.
Brief definitions of the most common titles follow.
:'''National park (NP)''' contains a variety of resources and encompasses large land or water areas to help provide adequate protection of the resources.
:'''National monument (NM)''' is intended to preserve at least one nationally significant resource (usually smaller than a NP and less diversity of attractions).
:'''National preserves (PRES)'''. Areas set aside for the protection of certain resources, although activities such as hunting & fishing or the extraction of minerals/fuels may be permitted if they do not jeopardize the natural values.
:'''National reserves (RES)''' are similar to the preserves. Management may be transferred to local or state authorities.
:'''National lakeshores''' and '''national seashores''' focus on the preservation of natural values while at the same time providing water-oriented recreation.
:'''National rivers (NR)''' and '''wild and scenic riverways (W&SRR)''' preserve ribbons of land bordering on free-flowing streams which have not been dammed, channeled, or otherwise altered. Besides preserving rivers in their natural state, these areas provide opportunities for outdoor activities such as hiking,canoeing, and hunting.
:'''National scenic trails (NST)''' are generally long-distance footpaths winding through areas of natural beauty.
:'''National historic site (NHS)''' preserves places and commemorate persons, events,and activities important in the nation’s history. Often preserved or restored to reflect their appearance during the period of their greatest historical significance.
:'''National historical parks (NHP)''' are commonly areas of greater physical extent and complexity than national historic sites.
:'''National military park, national battlefield park, national battlefield site, and national battlefield''' — used for areas associated with American military history although other areas may include features associated with military history.
:'''International historic site''' refers to a site relevant to both U.S. and Canadian history.
:'''National memorial''' usually used for areas that are primarily commemorative, such as the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C.<ref>Several areas whose titles do not include the words "national memorial" are nevertheless classified as memorials. These are Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove, Theodore Roosevelt Island, Thomas Jefferson Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington Monument, and World War II Memorial in the District of Columbia; USS Arizona Memorial in Hawaii; Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in Missouri; Perry’s Victory in Ohio; and Arlington House in Virginia.</ref>
:'''National recreation areas''' were originally units surrounding reservoirs impounded by dams built by other federal agencies but now includes other lands and waters set aside for recreational use by acts of Congress s well as major areas in urban centers.<ref>There are also national recreation areas outside the National Park System that are administered by the Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture.</ref>
:'''National parkways''' encompass ribbons of land flanking roadways and offer an opportunity for driving through areas of scenic interest.
:'''Performing arts'''. Wolf Trap, Virginia (NP), Ford’s Theatre, Washington,D.C. (NHS), and Chamizal, Texas (NM) are sites designated as providing facilities for the performing arts.
{|class="wikitable" align="center"
|+Statistical Summary of National Park System<ref>[http://www.nps.gov/pub_aff/refdesk/index2005_07.pdf "Red Book" - p.13]</ref>
|-
!Type of Designation
!Total Designations
!Acreage
|-
|National Battlefields <br>National Battlefield Parks<br>National Battlefield Site<br>National Military Parks
| style="text-align:center"|24
| style="text-align:right" |61,648.16
|-
|National Historical Parks<br>National Historic Sites<br>International Historic Sites
| style="text-align:center"|122
| style="text-align:right" |210,520.23
|-
|National Lakeshores
|style="text-align:center"|4
|style="text-align:right" |228,857.29
|-
|National Memorial
|style="text-align:center"|28
|style="text-align:right"|8,406.72
|-
|National Monuments
|style="text-align:center"|73
|style="text-align:right"|2,685,065.05
|-
|National Parks
|style="text-align:center"|58
|style="text-align:right"|51,936,662.50
|-
|National Parkways
|style="text-align:center"|4
|style="text-align:right"|173,865.28
|-
|National Preserves <br>National Reserves
| style="text-align:center"|20
| style="text-align:right"| 23,742,879.74
|-
|National Recreation Areas
|style="text-align:center"|18
|style="text-align:right"|3,692,222.58
|-
|National Rivers<br>National Wild and Scenic Rivers & Riverways
| style="text-align:center"|15
|style="text-align:right"|738,089.17
|-
|National Scenic Trails
|style="text-align:center"|3
|style="text-align:right"|225,356.57
|-
|National Seashores
|style="text-align:center"|10
|style="text-align:right"|594,518.33
|-
|Other Designations
|style="text-align:center"|11
|style="text-align:right"|39,374.33
|-
!Total Units
!style="text-align:center"|391
!style="text-align:right"|84,337,466.01
|}
== Links ==
* [http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&ct=res&cd=10&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nationalparks.org%2Fdiscover-parks%2Famericas-best-idea%2F&ei=Tp6SSsK6GIL8sgOvx-AL&usg=AFQjCNGr88J8peSxUKZRCt0ZZF7I6AOHZg&sig2=B4leAatitqzfyflCc0c1HQ America's Best Idea, The National Park Foundation]
* [http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&ct=res&cd=16&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mission66.com%2F&ei=Tp6SSsK6GIL8sgOvx-AL&usg=AFQjCNGuHwX1fXGGjuV5-o9Chtfhiu4kfQ&sig2=ZE0M9SzH9rydMtd9t6fEaQ Mission 66 - Modern Architecture in the National Parks]
* [http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=l&ai=CqXP6Tp6SSufHGZbusAOal6y0AYu8kKMBy76E4AycmJ9ECAAQAVCpnOaFBGDJpoaLvKSwGaAB2Z2Y8APIAQGqBBtP0CGuQyT4aVoqhXyux-s6aiMEEH45Oq-3iNk&sig=AGiWqty8fwm-fdo4QDwcLcm8x6CtuRWKbg&q=http://www.npca.org/parks/%3Fadwords%3D1 American National Parks: National Parks Conservation Association]
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{Nb US national parks}}
[[Category:United States Government]]
[[Category:Law Enforcement]]
[[Category:Law Enforcement Agencies]]
[[Category:Systems of Support]]
[[Category:United States Government Agencies]]