After he became president, Teddy Roosevelt established 150 national forests, 51 federal bird reserves, four national game preserves, five national parks, and eighteen national monuments. He preserved 230 million acres of public land for future generations.
But while Teddy gets most of the credit for protecting public lands, the movement pre-dated him. President Grant signed the Yellowstone Act in 1872. The Act set aside over one million acres that would be preserved “from injury or spoilation, of all timber, mineral deposits, natural curiosities, or wonders within.” Yellowstone was the first national park not only in the United States but anywhere in the world.
The efforts to protect public lands did not always run smoothly. Many ranchers, miners. farmers, hunters, and lumbering companies simply ignored the rules. They illegally cut down trees, opened mines, erected fences, and grazed public lands. In 1885, Congress addressed the problem, passing a law authorizing the removal of any illegal structure on public land. Those who wanted to use public lands for their own purposes would not be allowed to use “force, threats, intimidation…or any other unlawful means” to deny access to the public.
Although the law was passed in 1885, it was not rigorously enforced. At least, it wasn’t until Teddy Roosevelt moved into the White House. On this date in 1907, North Dakota newspapers alerted readers to a change in policy. The Washburn Leader warned that “small armies of men armed to the teeth with stump pullers, axes, and other instruments of destruction” would be venturing out to rectify the situation. These men were instructed to remove all fences on public land.
The article noted that fences had been prohibited on public land since the law was passed in 1885. But there was an acknowledgement that the law had been enforced only occasionally and in rare spots. But that was no longer the case. The work would continue until “every vestige of a fence” was been removed. It was estimated that ten thousand workers would be needed to remove thousands of miles of illegal fencing.
Teddy said he had been repeatedly approached by cattlemen who sought to leave their fences up for another six months or another year. He had finally lost patience, and the fences were coming down.
Dakota Datebook written by Carole Butcher
Sources:
Washburn Leader. “Illegal Fencing of Public Lands.” Washburn ND. 5 April 1907. Page 1.
U.S. Department of the Interior. “The Conservation Legacy of Theodore Roosevelt.” https://www.doi.gov/blog/conservation-legacy-theodore-roosevelt Accessed 3/5/19
History. “Yellowstone Park Established.” https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/yellowstone-park-established Accessed 3/5/19.
Library of Congress. “Forty-Eighth Congress, Session II, 1885.” https://www.loc.gov/law/help/statutes-at-large/48th-congress/Session%202/c48s2ch149.pdf accessed 3/5/2019.
