[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 34 (Monday, February 27, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1453-S1454]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    RECOGNIZING FEBRUARY 26, 2017, AS THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE 
  ESTABLISHMENT OF DENALI NATIONAL PARK AND PRESERVE IN THE STATE OF 
                                 ALASKA

  On Friday, February 17 (legislative day of Thursday, February 16), 
2017, the Senate adopted S. Res. 55, with its preamble, as amended, as 
follows:

                               S. Res. 55

       Whereas Alaska Natives have lived on the land surrounding 
     the Denali area and used the resources of the land for food, 
     shelter, clothing, transportation, handicrafts, and trade for 
     thousands of years;
       Whereas Judge James Wickersham, of Fairbanks, Alaska, 
     discovered gold in the Kantishna Hills following his 
     attempted ascent of Denali in 1903, prompting a gold rush 
     with several thousand prospectors and the establishment of 
     successful placer and commercial mining operations that 
     lasted for decades;
       Whereas explorer Belmore Browne and hunter-naturalist 
     Charles Sheldon visited the Denali region, observed the 
     natural splendor of Denali, and, along with Alaska's 
     territorial delegate to Congress, Judge Wickersham, and 
     pioneering biological survey naturalist Edward Nelson, 
     tirelessly advocated for Denali's protection;
       Whereas early proponents of national parks, such as the 
     Boone and Crockett Club,

[[Page S1454]]

     the Campfire Club of America, and the American Game 
     Protective and Propagation Association, sponsored early 
     expeditions, including those of Sheldon and Brown, and 
     advocated for the creation of a national park at Denali;
       Whereas in 1910, miners from the Kantishna Hills discovered 
     an approach by which Denali might be climbed, relying on 
     years of observations while following quartz leads and 
     hunting sheep in the foothills of the Denali area;
       Whereas Athabascan Walter Harper joined Archdeacon Hudson 
     Stuck, Harry Karstens, and Robert Tatum to successfully 
     summit the highest peak of Denali in 1913, opening the door 
     for thousands of individuals to test their own endurance and 
     fortitude by attempting to climb the giant massif;
       Whereas President Woodrow Wilson signed into law the Act 
     entitled ``An Act to establish the Mount McKinley National 
     Park, in the Territory of Alaska'', approved February 26, 
     1917 (39 Stat. 938, chapter 121), for the benefit and 
     enjoyment of the people of the United States and the 
     preservation of the Denali area's scenic beauty, animals, 
     birds, and fish;
       Whereas Congress expanded the boundaries of Mount McKinley 
     National Park in 1922, 1932, and 1980 and renamed that 
     national park Denali National Park and Preserve after the 
     traditional Koyukon Athabascan name for the highest peak in 
     the park, Deenaalee, meaning the High One;
       Whereas Denali National Park and Preserve protects and 
     interprets Denali, which is the highest mountain in North 
     America, at 20,310 feet, and the tallest above-water 
     mountain, with a vertical relief of almost 18,000 feet 
     measured from its base;
       Whereas Denali National Park and Preserve preserves a wild 
     subarctic landscape with a rich and diverse tapestry of plant 
     life and intact ecosystems where bears, wolves, caribou, 
     moose, and Dall sheep roam as they have for thousands of 
     years;
       Whereas Denali National Park and Preserve protects a wide 
     array of fossils that point to an age 70,000,000 years ago, 
     when dinosaurs roamed that northern land;
       Whereas Denali National Park and Preserve contains 2 of the 
     oldest-known archaeology sites in North America, the oldest 
     of which dates to just over 13,000 years old;
       Whereas glaciers still blanket \1/6\ of Denali National 
     Park and Preserve and continue to shape the landscape by 
     carving mountains, feeding silt-laden rivers, and depositing 
     rock and silt across the valleys;
       Whereas Denali National Park and Preserve was designated as 
     an International Biosphere Reserve in 1976 and has become a 
     premier international tourist destination;
       Whereas in 2016, nearly 600,000 visitors set foot in Denali 
     National Park and Preserve, the greatest number of visitors 
     in the history of Denali National Park and Preserve and a 
     record number of visitors for the State of Alaska;
       Whereas Denali National Park and Preserve has provided a 
     wide array of visitor experiences to tourists, including 
     hiking, dog mushing, rafting, and cycling;
       Whereas Denali National Park and Preserve's historic Denali 
     Park Road provides visitors with unparalleled opportunities 
     to experience and explore millions of acres of an accessible 
     wildlife sanctuary that represents one of the crown jewels of 
     the United States;
       Whereas residents of the State of Alaska continue their 
     subsistence way of life by hunting and gathering in the 
     majority of Denali National Park and Preserve;
       Whereas Denali National Park and Preserve hosts the only 
     working sled dog kennel in a national park, and winter 
     patrols are conducted inside Denali National Park and 
     Preserve using the age-old tradition of dog mushing; and
       Whereas Denali National Park and Preserve, known for its 
     breathtaking scenery and iconic wildlife, protects more than 
     6,000,000 acres of towering mountains, expansive valleys, 
     glacial rivers of ice, braided streams, and wildland for the 
     benefit of all people of the United States: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) congratulates and celebrates Denali National Park and 
     Preserve on its centennial anniversary;
       (2) encourages all people of the State of Alaska and the 
     United States to visit and experience this national treasure; 
     and
       (3) designates February 26, 2017, as ``Denali National Park 
     and Preserve Day''.

                          ____________________