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President Roosevelt proclaims an area of Colorado designated on an attached map as Wheeler National Monument. This declaration does not remove the area from the Rio Grande National Forest or Cochetopa National Forest, but applies additional protections over the area.
1908-12-07
Frank C. Spencer reviews the history of Wheeler National Monument, including both the history of the area under Native Americans and European explorers, as well as his own involvement in the designation of the area as a National Monument. The area is formed by an eroded lava flow, and Spencer and his companions named various formations many different fanciful names when they traveled there. Spencer was a strong advocate for this location, and helped convince President Roosevelt to set the area aside as Wheeler National Monument.
1924-03
President Coolidge, recognizing that several areas of ruins intended to be included in Theodore Roosevelt’s original proclamation establishing Chaco Canyon National Monument were left out, expands the boundaries of Chaco Canyon National Monument.
Chaco Canyon National Historical Park
1928-01-10
President Roosevelt, using the authority granted to him under the Antiquities Act of 1906, establishes Chaco Canyon National Monument for the protection of the prehistoric remains in that area, and for the public good.
Chaco Canyon National Historical Park
1907-03-11
Forest Supervisor Tyler responds to a letter from Schuyler Colfax Hain that he received upon returning from a trip into the field. Tyler informs Hain of the reasons why the Monterey National Forest service pressed for the elimination of the Pinnacles Division from the National Forest. The recommendation included the preservation of the area through the establishment of Pinnacles National Monument, with the surrounding land neither being current nor future forest land, having scarce grazing, and experiencing little watershed impact. Tyler has not heard back on the final disposition of the Pinnacles, and will forward Hain’s letter to the District Forester regarding the perpetuation of the State Game Preserve if the Pinnacles Division is removed.
1910-02-28
Secretary of the Interior Garfield submits for President Roosevelt’s signature the proclamation creating Pinnacles National Monument in California. Garfield explains the location of the proposed monument and offers a brief description.
1908-01-14
Secretary of Agriculture Wilson recommends to Secretary of the Interior Ballinger the creation of Pinnacles National Monument within the Pinnacles National Forest. The proposed monument totals approximately 2,080 acres.
1908-01-08
President Taft issues a proclamation changing the boundaries of the Monterey National Forest and eliminating the Pinnacles Division of the forest. He notes that removing this land from the National Forest does not affect the reservation of the land as a national monument.
1910-12-12
RepresentativeNeedham responds to David Starr Jordan’s letter regarding the Pinnacles. The National Forest Service intends to abandon the area’s designation as national forest but assures continued protection of the Pinnacles as a national monument. Needham has asked Chief Forester Gifford Pinchot to delay action until Needham has had the opportunity to talk with interested parties. Needham suggests that Jordan write to Pinchot on the topic.
1908-05-04
The author writes to John P. Babcock, chief deputy of the California Fish and Game Commission, enclosing a letter from Schuyler Colfax Hain regarding Pinnacles National Monument. He argues that while it is not worth maintaining the region in question for the sake of its timber, it should be preserved as a breeding ground for animals and birds.
1911-01-07
Botanist William Russel Dudley writes to District Forester Olmsted regarding the elimination of the Pinnacles National Monument as a national forest. Dudley opines that while he does not know about the area surrounding the national monument, it seems like there must have been good reason for its designation at one point, and that the people of San Benito County, California, should be consulted about getting rid of it. He agrees on the whole, however, with the reasoning for removing the major part of Pinnacles National Monument from the national forest.
1910-07
Representative Needham responds to David Starr Jordan’s letter regarding the Pinnacles. The National Forest Service intends to abandon the area’s designation as national forest but assures continued protection of the Pinnacles as a national monument. Needham has asked Chief Forester Gifford Pinchot to delay action until Needham has had the opportunity to talk with interested parties. Needham suggests that Jordan write to Pinchot on the topic.
1908-05-04
President Roosevelt thanks William Kent for his donation of Redwood Canyon to the government, to be used as a park for the preservation of redwood trees. The park will be named Muir National Monument. Roosevelt believes that Kent has “conferred a great and lasting benefit upon the whole country.”
1908-01-22
William Kent thanks President Roosevelt for his message of appreciation and hopes Roosevelt knows Kent will “attempt to save more of the precious and vanishing glories of nature.” Kent appreciates Roosevelt’s suggestion to change the name of the park but cannot accept it. Kent tells Roosevelt that he has five “good husky boys” who will carry on the family name, and if they cannot keep it alive, he is willing to let it be forgotten. Kent sends Roosevelt several photographs of Muir Woods.
1908-01-30
Clyde Leavitt received the copies of District Forester William B. Greeley’s letters to David Starr Jordan and Schuyler Colfax Hain. Leavitt argues that little would materially change if the Pinnacles Division were eliminated from Monterey National Forest, as the Pinnacles would still be protected as a national monument. He suggests that if Jordan and Hain understood that, their opposition to the proposal might be lessened. He acknowledges, however, that provision for fire suppression and protection from vandalism would be lost.
1910-07-20
Hero Eugene Rensch reports that the explorer Captain George Vancouver wrote the most about the Pinnacles in 1794, and that they were relatively undocumented from that time until Harold W. Fairbanks wrote about them in the 1890s. After 1900, local newspapers and tourism booklets mentioned the Pinnacles “as unusual wonders of nature.” It was David Starr Jordan, the President of Stanford University, taking an interest in the Pinnacles which spurred President Theodore Roosevelt to create Pinnacles National Monument.
1936-02-07
In this article, which appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, the location of Pinnacles National Monument is described, along with information on the Pinnacles’ discovery by George Vancouver, and their designation as a national monument through the efforts of Theodore Roosevelt and David Starr Jordan.
1917-04-08
A proclamation by President Franklin D. Roosevelt expanding the lands designated as part of Pinnacles National Monument.
1941-12-05
A proclamation by President Herbert Hoover expanding Pinnacles National Monument.
1931-04-13
President Coolidge issues an executive order withdrawing an area of California in order to determine whether it should be added to Pinnacles National Monument.
1929-02-02