Black History Month - HistoryMakers and the National Park Service
A photo of a mountain Yosemite National Park
PHOTO CREDITS: Simone Quary
Growing up in California, I was fortunate enough to be surrounded by a diverse ecosystem. On an unbearably hot day, my family and I would pack snacks and head to the beach. In the winter, we drove up to the mountains and went sledding. And when we’d take the occasional drive to Las Vegas, I would look out the car window at the abundance of Joshua trees as we made our way through the Mojave Desert.
Along with children at my school and their families, my family and I would take annual trips to national parks including Sequoia National Park and Yosemite National Park. However, at a young age I noticed that the number of Black people at the national parks we visited could be counted on one hand. In honor of Black History Month, this blog post will highlight African-Americans who have an integral connection to the national parks, a topic that is often overlooked.
A Joshua tree, one of the most dominant plant species in the Mojave Desert
Robert Stanton (1940-)
Robert Stanton as a park ranger in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming
PHOTO CREDITS: https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/robert-g-stanton-1940/
Before Robert Stanton (1940-) became appointed as the first Black director of the NPS (National Park Service), he served in several NPS positions. From working for the NPS in both Atlanta and Washington, D.C. to superintendent of the U.S. Virgin Islands National Park, Stanton’s involvement with the NPS spans over forty years.
Stanton’s national park experience began in 1963. Upon completion of his junior year at Huston-Tillotson College in Austin, Texas. Stanton took a summer job as a National Park Ranger at Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. He describes his experience with gratitude:
“I met some of the finest people in the National Park Service [NPS] as well as some of the native Wyomians who operated ranches there because on my lieu days I worked with Jerry Jacobson [ph.] and his family who managed the ranch there helping them put up hay to get some extra income but very, very fine. But the people, the administrators of Grand Teton in 1962 had a tremendous impact and influence on me during my entire career, thirty-five years with the National Park Service. It was just an outstanding cadre of professionals who were at Grand Teton at that time, which made a world of difference.” [1]
From 1970 to 1974, Stanton was appointed as superintendent of the U.S. Virgin Islands National Park. When asked about his greatest accomplishment in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Stanton discusses the importance o fostering a relationship with the local community:
“Well, I think I succeeded in what Director Hartzog asked I do, is to improve, substantially involve more of the native Virgin Islands in the recreational educational program, as well to improve the employment in the National Parks Service of native Virgin Islanders, and to make substantial improvements to the overall management of the park in terms of caring for the resources, enhancing the visitor experience. And it was just a great opportunity and I really enjoyed working with the community.” [2]
Robert Stanton (left) and others pictured at the U.S. Virgin Islands National Park. Stanton was featured as a keynote speaker for the Friends of the Virgin Islands National Park event in January 2023.
Robert Stanton and former president Bill Clinton who appointed Stanton as the director of NPS
PHOTO CREDITS: https://wyofile.com/stanton-heralds-park-service-preservation-of-civil-rights-sites/
For three years, Stanton served as the director of the NPS. Stanton details his accomplishments during his tenure:
“My tenure as director approved nine new parks, extended the boundary of I think twenty-something parks. And two parks that came into the system while I was director speak specifically to events associated with African Americans. Little Rock Central High School [National Historic Site, Little Rock, Arkansas], which is very close to me because the nine students who integrated Little Rock Central High School [Little Rock, Arkansas] in 1957 were my peers, and that now is a national historic site. And the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site [Tuskegee, Alabama] to commemorate the bravery of those fighters notwithstanding that the [U.S.] Army or the [U.S.] military was segregated but yet they still fought valiantly in World War II [WWII]. But I also I was very proud that congress passed legislation authorizing the [National] Underground Railroad Network to Freedom” [3]
Little Rock Central High School in Little Rock, Alabama. Under Staton’s tenure as director of NPS, he chartered Little Rock Central High School as a historic sight.
PHOTO CREDITS: National Park Service (nps.gov)
Upon reflecting on African American’s interaction with the NPS, Stanton discusses the increasing amount of African-Americans in leadership positions and how “there still is unfortunately a general perception by a large number of people that African Americans are not involved in conservation programs, and I'd like to see that diminished”. [4]
Although Stanton acknowledges an increased number of African Americans visiting “a number of [national parks] that are now located in urban centers”, he would like to see “African Americans going to some of the more remote parks, Glacier [National Park] in Montana or Yellowstone [National Park] in Wyoming. Furthermore, Stanton also “think[s] that there is some gradual increase in visitation but not on the scale that [he] would like to see”. [4]
A women shows off a Cuyahoga Valley National Park T-Shirt. Cuyahoga Valley National Park is located between the cities of Cleveland and Akron, Ohio.
PHOTO CREDITS: https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/voices/2020/10/29/nature-environment-race-black-recreation-report-for-america/6054520002/
Barry Williams (1944-)
Headshot of HistoryMaker Barry Williams (1944-)
PHOTO CREDITS: https://barrylawsonwilliams.com/about-barry
With years of finance and business management, investment consultant Barry Williams (1944-) co-founded the African American Experience Fund as part of the National Park Service. In his interview about the beginnings of the African American Experience Fund, Williams credits acknowledges a women named Falona Heidelberg who approached Barry Williams with the idea to highlight “seventeen national parks which principally deal with African American themes and because they are small parks, new parks, because they don't have bears and wolves they're not the attraction, they don't get the funding. [5].
When further asked about his work with the African American Experience Fund, Williams details spreading awareness for both known and less known historical sites:
“You would know about the Martin Luther King center [Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site, Atlanta, Georgia]. You might know about the Tuskegee Airmen site [Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site, Tuskegee, Alabama], you wouldn't know about Nicodemus [Nicodemus National Historic Site, Nicodemus, Kansas], you wouldn't know about Cane River [Cane River Creole National Historical Park, Natchitoches, Louisiana], you wouldn't know about Maggie Walker [Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site, Richmond, Virginia], you wouldn't know about Frederick Douglass site [Frederick Douglass National Historic Site, Washington, D.C.]. Frederick Douglass is my favorite site.” [5]
Frederick Douglass National Historic Site in Washington, D.C., one of Barry Williams’ favorite historical site
PHOTO CREDITS: nps.gov
Bernard & Shirley Kinsey
Bernard and Shirley Kinsey recreating a pose in front of a portrait of themselves.
PHOTO CREDITS: https://www.tallahasseemagazine.com/the-kinsey-collection-paints-a-vivid-picture-of-african-american-history/
In the early days of their marriage, management consultant Bernard Kinsey (1943-) and art collector Shirley Kinsey (1946-) practiced financial responsibility upon their move from Florida to California.
When discussing financial planning and success, Bernard Kinsey recalls his travels with his wife while budgeting:
“And I don't mean frugal that we didn't do anything, because during that period we also went to forty-one national parks, you know. But, what we would do is we would drive. I mean, we'd get, you know, we'd leave on Friday evening and drive to Utah, you know, and go to Zion [Zion National Park, Utah] or Bryce Canyon [Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah] or something like that and then be back Sunday night to go to work Monday morning. And that gave us a great deal of renewal each time we, because you go and see all this wonderful stuff, and you're ready for this next week…” [6].
Additionally, Shirley Kinsey reminisces of her travels with HistoryMaker Bernard Kinsey when discussing her emerging interest in Black art and culture:
“We used to go to national parks a lot, too. We would get in the car, in our new Mercedes [Mercedes Benz], get in the car and drive up to Yosemite [Yosemite National Park, California] and drive to Yellowstone [Yellowstone National Park] and drive to the Grand Canyon [Arizona] and just go all over” [7].
Zion National Park in Utah
PHOTO CREDITS: nps.gov/zion
SEARCHES:
National Parks (1097), “National Parks” (135), “National Park Service” (72), Yosemite (16), “Yosemite” + “park”, (15) Yellowstone (21), “Yellowstone” + “park” (16), “ “Grand Canyon” (42), “Underground Railroad”, (232), “Underground Railroad” + “National Park” (10), Zion (513), “Zion” (513), “Zion + park” (41), “Zion” + “National Park” (3),
REFERENCES
Robert Stanton (The HistoryMakers A2004.110), interviewed by Racine Tucker Hamilton, August 11, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 2, tape 2, story 3, Robert Stanton remembers working in Grand Teton National Park during the summer of 1962
Robert Stanton (The HistoryMakers A2004.110), interviewed by Racine Tucker Hamilton, August 11, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 2, tape 2, story 6, Robert Stanton talks about working as superintendent of the U.S. Virgin Islands National Park
Robert Stanton (The HistoryMakers A2004.110), interviewed by Racine Tucker Hamilton, August 11, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 2, tape 3, story 3, Robert Stanton describes his accomplishments as director of the National Park Service
Robert Stanton (The HistoryMakers A2004.110), interviewed by Racine Tucker Hamilton, August 11, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 2, tape 3, story 5, Robert Stanton reflects upon African American's interaction with the National Park Service
Barry Williams (The HistoryMakers A2005.240), interviewed by Loretta Henry, October 11, 2005, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 4, story 10, Barry Williams describes his work with the African American Experience Fund
Bernard Kinsey (The HistoryMakers A2001.037), interviewed by Julieanna L. Richardson, July 28, 2001, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 3, story 4, Bernard Kinsey discusses financial planning and success
Shirley Kinsey (The HistoryMakers A2013.340), interviewed by Larry Crowe, December 18, 2013, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 4, story 2, Shirley Kinsey recalls developing an interest in black art and culture
