(ESTES, Colo.) — The Rocky Mountain National Park was established on this day 108 years ago on Jan. 26 in 1915.
The National Park Service (NPS) is wishing the Rocky Mountains a Happy Birthday with a photo taken by then NPS Chief Photographer George A. Grant on September 2, 1938.
“A stunning photo for a stunning park!” said NPS in a post to social media.
According to NPS, it wasn’t until 11,000 years ago that humans began venturing into the Rocky Mountains. In the late 1700s, the Ute tribe dominated the area favoring the tundra meadows and crystal lakes.
With the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, the U.S. government acquired the land now known as Rocky Mountain National Park, stated NPS. By 1900, Theodore Roosevelt, Gifford Pinchot and John Muir led a growing national conservation and preservation movement.
“‘Those who pull flowers up by the roots will be condemned by all worthy people,’ they warned,” said NPS.
Courtesy of NPS Photo Archive – Group Photo from the park’s dedication ceremony in 1915. 
Courtesy of NPS Photo Archive/C.E. Humberger – Vehicles are lined up to enter the park at the Fall River Entrance, taken in 1940. 
Courtesy of NPS Photo Archive – A group of visitors are standing on rocks at the summit of Longs Peak, year unknown. 
Courtesy of NPS Photo Archive/F. Clatworthy – A line of vehicles driving up Old Fall River Road in 1920.
Enos Mills, a naturalist, nature guide, and lodge owner advocated for the creation of the nation’s tenth national park. On January 26, 1915, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Rocky Mountain National Park Act, per NPS.
For more information, visit NPS’ webpage.
