Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1925-12-11
T. w. HARRISON
SPEAKS FOR PARK
Seventh District Representative Civ
es Views In U. of Va. Bulletin

time ago, Shakespeare expressed it,
And this our life exempt from pub
lie haunts,
Finds tongues in trees, books in the
running brooks,
Sermons in stones and good in every
thing
but many centuries before Shakes |
peare, King David expressed it in his
psalm, when turning from the glor-
les of his palace. he gave voice to
his longing to be lead by still waters
and through pleasant pastures. This
idea has taken hold of this country
Judge John Barton Payne is the head
of an organization which has for its
motto a state park for every hun
dred miles,
Secretary Work of the United
States Department of the Interior
felt that something should be done
along recreational lines for the teem-
ing millions of the East, and he is
the originator of the idea Of one or
more great national parks in the
East. The federal government has
nineteen large national parks of
great interest. Eighteen of them
are situated on the west side of the
Mississippi River, far removed from
the centers of the population. They
are wonderful in many respects, but
they are so far removed from the
great centers of population that they
are only within reach of a small per
cent of the people. And yet, al
though they are so far removed, they
are crowded with tourists in the por-
lions OF the year in which they are
accessible.
Secretary Work, feeling that the
millions located in the East were en-
titled to consideration, determined to
find a park location within that sec
ton of the nation which might pos
sess all the natural phenomena that
national park requires and at the
same time be accessible to the mil
lions of people. 1t was great idea
and the only difficulty was to find
in the East a territory which modern
civilization had not invaded and de-
stroyed its natural phenomena To
this end he appointed a commission
composed of distinguished men. Rep
resentative H w. Temple, a man of
great literary attachments and wide
experience was made the chairman.
Colonel Glenn Smith represented the
Interior Department and the other
members were Major William A.
Nash, General Manager Palisades In
terstate Park, New York, Mr. Will
liam C. Gregg of Hackensack, New
Jersey, and Mr.. Harlan P Kelsey of
Salem, Massachusetts, a landscape
architect of repute and botanist of
distinction. This commission, as a
work of love without even their ex-
penses. paid devoted months to in
specting various territories. They
roughed it in many mountainous
areas, and at last reached the con-
clusion that the most logical location
for the park was on the Blue Ridge
Mountains, beginning near Front
Royal continuing seventy miles to
Waynesboro, with an average width
of some nine or ten miles. They
found this area some 1000 feet
above the sea level, all the beauties
of nature undefiled. Even the best
informed had never conceived that a
beautiful scenic territory was within
such close range of the national cap
ital and the other great cities of the
East
There is hardly species of natur-
al beauty that cannot be found in
this area, cascades, wild mountain
scenery, views of the beautiful sec
tions of the Valley and Piedmont
overlooking territory full of Colon
ial, Revolutionary and Civil War his
tory, within reach of many of the
natural phenomena that have made
this section of Virginia famous, the
great caverns, the Standing Chin
neys, and the Natural Bridge 1t is
in close proximity to great educa-
tional institutions. 1t is within two
hours ride by automobile over beau
tiful highways to Washington, the
capital of the nation
The commission was unanimous in
adopting this territory, consisting of
10000 acres, as the location of the
second national park in the East.
They recognized, however, that it
would be soon necessary to adopt
another park as supplementary in or
der to take care of the vast number
of tourists which this park would in
yite, SO they have connected up the
recommendation of the Blue Ridge
site with that of a secondary park
in the Great Smokes of Tennessee
and North Carolina.
The adoption of this site as the To-
cation of park was followed by ac-
ton on the part of Congress- The
original Investigation was simply the
unofficial act of the Secretary of the
Interior, but Congress. acting upon
the suggestion of the Secretary, pass
ed an act at its last session which
gave official status to the commits
sion and appropriated money to pay
its expenses for a thorough official