The Army’s battlefield parks in the US national park system: From grafted branch to poisoned fruit

The first set of parks created by the United States government under uniform administration was a set of Civil War battlefields under the control of the War Department, or Army. The first battlefield parks were created in the 1890s and expanded into a much larger system stretching across the country. The Army developed these parks with visitor facilities and extensive memorials and monuments. In 1933 the entire system was transferred to the National Park Service and became part of the national park system. These units had been sought by the Park Service to expand the geographical and thematic diversity of its holdings. This work explores the creation of this system by the Army and what has happened to these units after their absorption into the park system. While most were expanded and became more typical park units, others were removed from the system, leaving two in their original condition.