The Gila National Forest is a United States National Forest in New Mexico . Established in 1905, it now covers approximately 2,710,659 acres (10,969.65 km), making it the sixth largest National Forest in the continental United States. The Forest administration also manage the part of the Apache National Forest in New Mexico which covers 614,202 acres for a total of 3.3 million acres managed by the Gila National Forest. Within the forest, the Gila Wilderness was established in 1924 as the US's first designated wilderness . The Aldo Leopold Wilderness and Blue Range Wilderness are also found within its borders. The Blue Range Primitive Area lies within Arizona in the neighboring Apache National Forest .
80-505: The forest lies in southern Catron , northern Grant , western Sierra , and extreme northeastern Hidalgo counties in southwestern New Mexico. Forest headquarters are located in Silver City, New Mexico . There are local ranger district offices in Glenwood , Mimbres , Quemado , Reserve , Silver City , and Truth or Consequences . The Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument is located with
160-577: A "primeval character", meaning that it had not suffered from human habitation or development, the Eastern Wilderness Act of 1975 extended the protection of the NWPS to areas in the eastern states that were not initially considered for inclusion in the Wilderness Act. This act allowed lands that did not meet the constraints of size, roadlessness, or human impact to be designated as wilderness areas under
240-476: A dangerous place and as a moral counter-world to the realm of culture and godly life. "While archaic nature religions oriented themselves towards nature, in medieval Christendom this orientation was replaced by one towards divine law. The divine was no longer to be found in nature; instead, uncultivated nature became a site of the sinister and the demonic. It was considered corrupted by the Fall ( natura lapsa ), becoming
320-510: A desire to protect wilderness. Nevertheless, in order to have animals to hunt they would have to protect wildlife from subsistence hunting and the land from villagers gathering firewood. Similar measures were introduced in other European countries. However, in European cultures, throughout the Middle Ages, wilderness generally was not regarded worth protecting but rather judged strongly negative as
400-480: A female householder with no husband present, and 34.30% were non-families. 30.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.75. In the county, the population was spread out, with 21.10% under the age of 18, 4.20% from 18 to 24, 19.50% from 25 to 44, 36.40% from 45 to 64, and 18.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age
480-552: A natural expression and development. These can be set up in preserves, conservation preserves, national forests, national parks and even in urban areas along rivers, gulches or otherwise undeveloped areas. Often these areas are considered important for the survival of certain species , biodiversity , ecological studies, conservation , solitude and recreation . They may also preserve historic genetic traits and provide habitat for wild flora and fauna that may be difficult to recreate in zoos , arboretums or laboratories . From
560-703: A pinnacle in the US with the passage of the Wilderness Act of 1964, which allowed for parts of U.S. National Forests to be designated as "wilderness preserves". Similar acts, such as the 1975 Eastern Wilderness Areas Act , followed. Nevertheless, initiatives for wilderness conservation continue to increase. There are a growing number of projects to protect tropical rainforests through conservation initiatives. There are also large-scale projects to conserve wilderness regions, such as Canada's Boreal Forest Conservation Framework . The Framework calls for conservation of 50 percent of
640-690: A slight rain. It is called Burning Mountain and appears to have been used by the Apache for healing purposes. The county is home to the Red Hill Volcanic Field as well as the Plains of San Agustin . As of the 2000 census of 2000, there were 3,543 people, 1,584 households, and 1,040 families living in the county. The population density was 0.51 people per square mile (0.20 people/km ). There were 2,548 housing units at an average density of 0.37 units per square mile (0.14/km ). The racial makeup of
720-645: A state until 1912, long after the Civil War and abolition of slavery. In 1880, Sergeant James C. Cooney was the first person to find silver and gold ore in the mountains of Catron County. He was reportedly killed by Chiricahua Apache led by Victorio that year, in what the European Americans called the " Alma Massacre ". His remains are buried at Cooney's Tomb . The foothills and canyons provided many hiding places for Apache warriors as they continued to resist American encroachment. During this time Cochise
800-667: A vale of tears in which humans were doomed to live out their existence. Thus, for example, mountains were interpreted [e.g, by Thomas Burnet ] as ruins of a once flat earth destroyed by the Flood , with the seas as the remains of that Flood." "If paradise was early man's greatest good, wilderness, as its antipode, was his greatest evil." Wilderness was viewed by colonists as being evil in its resistance to their control. The puritanical view of wilderness meant that in order for colonists to be able to live in North America, they had to destroy
880-550: A visual arts perspective, nature and wildness have been important subjects in various epochs of world history. An early tradition of landscape art occurred in the Tang Dynasty (618–907). The tradition of representing nature as it is became one of the aims of Chinese painting and was a significant influence in Asian art. Artists in the tradition of Shan shui (lit. mountain-water-picture ), learned to depict mountains and rivers "from
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#1732847843872960-1144: Is a threat to monarch butterfly habitat. ACP is a threat to ponderosa pines . The Gila River Forest Reserve was established on March 2, 1899, by the United States General Land Office , and was renamed the Gila Forest Reserve on July 21, 1905. The following year the forest was transferred to the U.S. Forest Service , and on March 4, 1907, it became a National Forest . Additions included Big Burros National Forest on June 18, 1908, Datil National Forest on December 24, 1931, and part of Crook National Forest on July 1, 1953. The Gila National Forest provides infinite opportunity for recreation . The forest includes 139 developed recreation sites, with 30 developed campgrounds, seven picnic areas, eight points of interest, and 94 trailheads. The forest provides limitless opportunities for dispersed camping along more than 3,300 miles of designated roads and 1,600 miles of designated non-motorized trails. The forest hosts three National Recreation Trails, including 248 miles of
1040-648: Is an important part of wilderness designation because it created the legal definition of wilderness and established the National Wilderness Preservation System. The Wilderness Act defines wilderness as "an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammelled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain." Wilderness designation helps preserve the natural state of the land and protects flora and fauna by prohibiting development and providing for non-mechanized recreation only. The first administratively protected wilderness area in
1120-428: Is being placed on marine wilderness . Recent maps of wilderness suggest it covers roughly one-quarter of Earth's terrestrial surface, but is being rapidly degraded by human activity. Even less wilderness remains in the ocean , with only 13.2% free from intense human activity. Some governments establish protection for wilderness areas by law to not only preserve what already exists , but also to promote and advance
1200-549: Is designated as wilderness. As of 2023 there are 806 designated wilderness areas in the United States ranging in size from Florida's Pelican Island at 5 acres (20,000 m ) to Alaska's Wrangell-Saint Elias at 9,078,675 acres (36,740.09 km ). In Western Australia, a wilderness area is an area that has a wilderness quality rating of 12 or greater and meets a minimum size threshold of 80 km in temperate areas or 200 km in arid and tropical areas. A wilderness area
1280-476: Is land and 5.5 square miles (14 km ) (0.08%) is water. Catron County is the largest county, by area, in New Mexico. At almost 7,000 square miles (18,000 km ), Catron County is larger than four states. With a population of only 3,400 people, the county is as sparsely populated as many an old West frontier area. The elk population at some 12,000 head, is much larger than the sparse human population. Within
1360-509: Is now understood that simply drawing lines around a piece of land and declaring it a wilderness does not necessarily make it a wilderness. All landscapes are intricately connected and what happens outside a wilderness certainly affects what happens inside it. For example, air pollution from Los Angeles and the California Central Valley affects Kern Canyon and Sequoia National Park . The national park has miles of "wilderness" but
1440-569: Is overwhelmingly Republican, last voting for a Democratic presidential candidate in 1964. School districts include: 33°55′N 108°25′W / 33.92°N 108.42°W / 33.92; -108.42 Wilderness Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural ) are Earth's natural environments that have not been significantly modified by human activity , or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally referred to terrestrial environments, though growing attention
1520-409: Is set up in a parking lot. Bordering Arizona, Catron County affords the shortest route between Albuquerque and Phoenix or Tucson. Reserve can also be reached by following U.S. Route 180 north from Silver City and New Mexico State Road 12 east for a total of 99 miles (159 km). In Catron County there is a volcanic area that until recently contained sufficient heat to cause steam to rise after
1600-429: Is typically at least 5,000 acres (about 8 mi or 20 km ) in size. Human activities in wilderness areas are restricted to scientific study and non-mechanized recreation; horses are permitted but mechanized vehicles and equipment, such as cars and bicycles, are not. The United States was one of the first countries to officially designate land as "wilderness" through the Wilderness Act of 1964. The Wilderness Act
1680-404: Is untrue due to the existence of Native Americans. The land was shaped by Native Americans through practices such as fires. Burning happened frequently and in a controlled manner. The landscapes seen in the US today are very different from the way things looked before colonists came. Fire could be used to maintain food, cords, and baskets. One of the main roles of frequent fires was to prevent
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#17328478438721760-563: The Gila (western chub) genus , and the Gila woodpecker . Other notable species include black bear , bald eagle , cougar , Coyote , spotted owl , elk , white-tailed deer , osprey , peregrine falcon , bobcat , collared peccary , Gray fox , white-nosed coati , racoon , mule deer , wild turkey , beaver , desert bighorn sheep , and the endangered Sonoran Pronghorn and Mexican gray wolf , Hundreds of unregulated cattle roam freely in parts of
1840-829: The Barbizon school , the French Waters and Forests Military Agency set an "artistic reserve" in Fontainebleau State Forest . With a total of 1,097 hectares, it is thought to be the first nature reserve in the world. Global conservation became an issue at the time of the dissolution of the British Empire in Africa in the late 1940s. The British established great wildlife preserves there. As before, this interest in conservation had an economic motive: in this case, big game hunting . Nevertheless, this led to growing recognition in
1920-619: The National Parks Act 1980 and the Conservation Act 1987 that fall well within the IUCN definition. Wilderness areas cannot have any human intervention and can only have indigenous species re-introduced into the area if it is compatible with conservation management strategies. In New Zealand wilderness areas are remote blocks of land that have high natural character. The Conservation Act 1987 prevents any access by vehicles and livestock,
2000-597: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848 after being defeated in the Mexican–American War . In 1849, President Zachary Taylor proposed that New Mexico, including this region, immediately be admitted as a state in order to sidestep political conflict over the expansion of slavery in the territories. That did not happen. European-American settlers from the southern and eastern states began to arrive here, including some with enslaved African Americans. The territory did not become
2080-576: The conservation movement in the United States , partly through the efforts of writers and activists such as John Burroughs , Aldo Leopold , and John Muir , and politicians such as U.S. President Teddy Roosevelt . The idea of protecting nature for nature's sake began to gain more recognition in the 1930s with American writers like Aldo Leopold , calling for a "land ethic" and urging wilderness protection. It had become increasingly clear that wild spaces were disappearing rapidly and that decisive action
2160-436: The poverty line , including 39.60% of those under age 18 and 14.90% of those age 65 or over. As of the 2010 census , there were 3,725 people, 1,787 households, and 1,080 families living in the county. The population density was 0.5 inhabitants per square mile (0.19 inhabitants/km ). There were 3,289 housing units at an average density of 0.5 units per square mile (0.19 units/km ). The racial makeup of
2240-507: The 16th century, Spanish explorers and colonists came to the region, declaring it in 1598 to be part of Santa Fé de Nuevo México , a province of New Spain in the Americas. The province remained in Spanish control until Mexico gained independence in 1821. Under the 1824 Constitution of Mexico , this became the federally administered Territory of New Mexico. Mexico ceded the region to the U.S. in
2320-533: The 1910 Glacier National Park act made void those rights. The act of 'preserving' the land was specifically linked to the exclusion of the Blackfeet people. The continued resistance of the Blackfeet people has provided documentation of the importance of the area to many different tribes. The world's second national park, the Royal National Park , located just 32 km to the south of Sydney , Australia ,
2400-491: The 1950s and the early 1960s of the need to protect large spaces for wildlife conservation worldwide. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF), founded in 1961, grew to be one of the largest conservation organizations in the world. Early conservationists advocated the creation of a legal mechanism by which boundaries could be set on human activities in order to preserve natural and unique lands for the enjoyment and use of future generations. This profound shift in wilderness thought reached
2480-669: The 6,000,000 square kilometres of boreal forest in Canada's north. In addition to the World Wildlife Fund, organizations such as the Wildlife Conservation Society , the WILD Foundation , The Nature Conservancy , Conservation International , The Wilderness Society (United States) and many others are active in such conservation efforts. The 21st century has seen another slight shift in wilderness thought and theory. It
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2560-606: The Americas. During the Clovis period, between 10999 BC and 8000 BC, and Folsom period, between 7999 BC and 5999 BC, the Ake Site was occupied near Datil . Bat Cave , near Horse Springs , was occupied around 3,500 BC. The Mimbres culture was expressed by the Mogollon people. They lived throughout the Catron County area from AD 1000 to 1130. Their art is renowned for its beauty. In
2640-692: The Babylonian Empire and Chinese Empire. Ashoka , the Great Mauryan King, defined the first laws in the world to protect flora and fauna in Edicts of Ashoka around the 3rd century B.C. In the Middle Ages , the Kings of England initiated one of the world's first conscious efforts to protect natural areas. They were motivated by a desire to be able to hunt wild animals in private hunting preserves rather than
2720-530: The Catron County section of the forest. The forest's terrain ranges from rugged mountains and deep canyons to mesas and semi-desert. Due to the extremely rugged terrain, the area is largely unspoiled. There are several hot springs in Gila National Forest, including Middle Fork Hot Springs, Jordan Hot Springs, and Turkey Creek Hot Springs. Gila is home to namesake wildlife that includes the Gila monster , Gila trout , Gila topminnow , several members of
2800-592: The Continental Divide National Scenic Trail. The 3.5 acre (1.4 ha) Cosmic Campground is ideal for star-gazing . In 2016, the campground has the claim of being the first International Dark Sky Sanctuary in North America. Gila National Forest is probably best known for Wilderness , containing 789,385 acres within three designated wilderness areas: the Gila Wilderness, Aldo Leopold Wilderness, and Blue Range Wilderness. The Gila Wilderness
2880-1452: The Forest Service, and preservationists the Park Service The World Conservation Union (IUCN) classifies wilderness at two levels, 1a ( strict nature reserves ) and 1b (Wilderness areas). There have been recent calls for the World Heritage Convention to better protect wilderness and to include the word wilderness in their selection criteria for Natural Heritage Sites Forty-eight countries have wilderness areas established via legislative designation as IUCN protected area management Category 1b sites that do not overlap with any other IUCN designation. They are: Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Bermuda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Canada, Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Finland, French Guiana, Greenland, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, Norway, Northern Mariana Islands, Portugal, Seychelles, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Tanzania, United States of America, and Zimbabwe. At publication, there are 2,992 marine and terrestrial wilderness areas registered with
2960-526: The German approach were applied in other parts of the world, but with varying degrees of success. Over the course of the 19th century wilderness became viewed not as a place to fear but a place to enjoy and protect; hence came the conservation movement in the latter half of the 19th century. Rivers were rafted and mountains were climbed solely for the sake of recreation, not to determine their geographical context. In 1861, following an intense lobbying by artists of
3040-437: The Gila National Forest, consuming vegetation by rivers and streams and trampling habitats. In 2022, the U.S. Forest Service used helicopters to gun down 47 of these "feral cattle". The Forest Service proposes to use aerial gunning to kill more of these cattle again in 2023. In 2020, the U.S. Forest Service proposed allowing 21 herbicides within the forest, including dicamba , picloram and aminocyclopyrachlor (ACP). Dicamba
3120-400: The Gila Wilderness. Catron County, New Mexico Catron County is a county in the U.S. state of New Mexico . As of the 2020 census , the population was 3,579, making it New Mexico's third-least populous county. Its county seat is Reserve . Catron County is New Mexico's largest county by area. Human settlement in the Catron County region dates to some of the earliest in
3200-522: The Grand Canyon, and Yosemite, the 'preservation' of these lands by the US government was what caused the Native Americans who lived in the areas to be systematically removed. Historian Mark David Spence has shown that the case of Glacier National Park and the Blackfeet people who live there is a perfect example of such erasure. The Blackfeet people had specifically designated rights to the area, but
3280-568: The IUCN as solely Category 1b sites. Twenty-two other countries have wilderness areas. These wilderness areas are established via administrative designation or wilderness zones within protected areas. Whereas the above listing contains countries with wilderness exclusively designated as Category 1b sites, some of the below-listed countries contain protected areas with multiple management categories including Category 1b. They are: Argentina, Bhutan, Brazil, Chile, Honduras, Germany, Italy, Kenya, Malaysia, Namibia, Nepal, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines,
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3360-700: The Russian Federation, South Africa, Switzerland, Uganda, Ukraine, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Venezuela, and Zambia. The German National Strategy on Biological Diversity aims to establish wilderness areas on 2% of its terrestrial territory by 2020 (7,140 km ). However, protected wilderness areas in Germany currently only cover 0.6% of the total terrestrial area. In absence of pristine landscapes, Germany counts national parks (IUCN Category II) as wilderness areas. The government counts
3440-545: The State Legislature attempted to abolish both Socorro and Catron in order to create a new Rio Grande County. A court suit voided this act, and the two counties retained their independence. The Lightning Field , an art installation on the open earth, brought national attention to Quemado in this county in the late 1970s. According to the U.S. Census Bureau , the county has a total area of 6,929 square miles (17,950 km ), of which 6,924 square miles (17,930 km )
3520-407: The United States (see below). The first National Park was Yellowstone , which was signed into law by U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant on 1 March 1872. The Act of Dedication declared Yellowstone a land "hereby reserved and withdrawn from settlement, occupancy, or sale under the laws of the United States, and dedicated and set apart as a public park or pleasuring ground for the benefit and enjoyment of
3600-519: The United States was the Gila National Forest. In 1922, Aldo Leopold , then a ranking member of the U.S. Forest Service, proposed a new management strategy for the Gila National Forest. His proposal was adopted in 1924, and 750,000 acres of the Gila National Forest became the Gila Wilderness . The Great Swamp in New Jersey was the first formally designated wilderness refuge in the United States. It
3680-717: The air is filled with pollution from the valley. This gives rise to the paradox of what a wilderness really is; a key issue in 21st century wilderness thought. The creation of national parks , beginning in the 19th century, preserved some especially attractive and notable areas, but the pursuits of commerce , lifestyle , and recreation combined with increases in human population have continued to result in human modification of relatively untouched areas. Such human activity often negatively impacts native flora and fauna. As such, to better protect critical habitats and preserve low-impact recreational opportunities, legal concepts of "wilderness" were established in many countries, beginning with
3760-477: The areas and further the traditional livelihood of the Sami people. This means e.g. that reindeer husbandry, hunting and taking wood for use in the household is permitted. As population is very sparse, this is generally no big threat to the nature. Large scale reindeer husbandry has influence on the ecosystem, but no change is introduced by the act on wilderness areas. The World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) classifies
3840-571: The areas as "VI Protected area with sustainable use of natural resources". Since 1861, the French Waters and Forests Military Agency (Administration des Eaux et Forêts) put a strong protection on what was called the « artistic reserve » in Fontainebleau State Forest. With a total of 1,097 hectares, it is known to be the first World nature reserve. Then in the 1950s, Integral Biological Reserves (Réserves Biologiques Intégrales, RBI) are dedicated to man free ecosystem evolution, on
3920-525: The belief that they could be returned to a "primeval" state through preservation. Approximately 107,500,000 acres (435,000 km ) are designated as wilderness in the United States. This accounts for 4.82% of the country's total land area; however, 54% of that amount is found in Alaska (recreation and development in Alaskan wilderness is often less restrictive), while only 2.58% of the lower continental United States
4000-814: The boundaries of Catron County lie parts of the Gila National Forest , the Apache National Forest and the Cibola National Forest . The establishment of these national forests, in the past called "forest reserves," led to the name Reserve being given to a village on the San Francisco River , which also serves as the County Seat. There are no stop lights in the whole county, so when license tests are given in Reserve, an artificial portable stop light
4080-518: The boundary, uses or designation. In the 1950s, the Forest Service improved Forest Road 150, the North Star Road, bisecting the Gila Wilderness and resulting in the Gila and Aldo Leopold Wilderness boundaries we have today. Hundreds of miles of trail traverse through, over, and across these wilderness areas. The 100-mile Centennial Loop Trail was identified in 2024 to commemorate the centennial anniversary of
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#17328478438724160-620: The commercialization of some of Canada's National Parks with the building of great hotels such as the Banff Springs Hotel and Chateau Lake Louise . Despite their similar name, national parks in England and Wales are quite different from national parks in many other countries. Unlike most other countries, in England and Wales, designation as a national park may include substantial settlements and human land uses which are often integral parts of
4240-465: The construction of tracks and buildings, and all indigenous natural resources are protected. They are generally over 400 km in size. Three Wilderness Areas are currently recognised, all on the West Coast : Adams Wilderness Area, Hooker/Landsborough Wilderness Area and Paparoa Wilderness Area. In the United States, a Wilderness Area is an area of federal land set aside by an act of Congress . It
4320-621: The contrary of Managed Biological reserves (Réserves Biologiques Dirigées, RBD) where a specific management is applied to conserve vulnerable species or threatened habitats. Integral Biological Reserves occurs in French State Forests or City Forests and are therefore managed by the National Forests Office . In such reserves, all harvests coupe are forbidden excepted exotic species elimination or track safety works to avoid fallen tree risk to visitors (already existing tracks in or on
4400-418: The county was 87.75% White , 0.28% Black or African American , 2.20% Native American , 0.68% Asian , 0.06% Pacific Islander , 5.42% from other races , and 3.61% from two or more races. 19.16% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 1,584 households, out of which 22.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.40% were married couples living together, 7.60% had
4480-551: The county was 89.8% white, 2.7% American Indian, 0.4% black or African American, 0.2% Asian, 3.8% from other races, and 3.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 19.0% of the population. The largest ancestry groups were: Of the 1,787 households, 16.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.2% were married couples living together, 4.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 39.6% were non-families, and 34.8% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size
4560-643: The edge of the reserve). At the end of 2014, there were 60 Integral Biological Reserves in French State Forests for a total area of 111,082 hectares and 10 in City Forests for a total of 2,835 hectares. In Greece there are some parks called "ethniki drimoi" (εθνικοί δρυμοί, national forests) that are under protection of the Greek government. Such parks include Olympus , Parnassos and Parnitha National Parks. There are seven Wilderness Areas in New Zealand as defined by
4640-526: The former was Gifford Pinchot , first Chief of the United States Forest Service, and they focused on the proper use of nature, whereas the preservationists sought the protection of nature from use. Put another way, conservation sought to regulate human use while preservation sought to eliminate human impact altogether. The management of US public lands during the years 1960s and 70s reflected these dual visions, with conservationists dominating
4720-455: The government supports bargains of land that will then be designated as wilderness by 10 Mio. Euro annually. The German minimum size for wilderness candidate sites is normally 10 km . In some cases (i.e. swamps) the minimum size is 5 km . There are twelve wilderness areas in the Sami native region in northern Finnish Lapland . They are intended both to preserve the wilderness character of
4800-407: The idea that before settlers came, the US was an uninhabited landscape. This erases the reality of Native Americans, and their relationship with the land and the role they had in shaping the landscape. Such erasure suggests there were areas of the US which were historically unoccupied, once again erasing the existence of Native Americans and their relationship to the land. In the case of Yellowstone,
4880-467: The land and other living organisms into submission. The belief colonists had of the land being only something to be used was based in Christian ideas. If the earth and animals and plants were created by a Christian God for human use, then the cultivation by colonists was their God-given goal. However, the idea that what European colonists saw upon arriving in North America was pristine and devoid of humans
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#17328478438724960-458: The landscape, and land within a national park remains largely in private ownership. Each park is operated by its own national park authority . The United States philosophy around wilderness preservation through National Parks has been attempted in other countries. However, people living in those countries have different ideas surrounding wilderness than people in the United States, thus, the US concept of wilderness can be damaging in other areas of
5040-436: The mid-1880s Butch Cassidy and his Wild Bunch gang holed up at a ranch near Alma . Notorious outlaw Tom Ketchum also lived in Catron County around this time. Socorro County included all of Catron County's territory from the creation of Santa Fé de Nuevo México until 1921. At that time, Catron County was organized and named for Thomas B. Catron , a leading figure in New Mexico statehood and its first US senator. In 1927,
5120-486: The out of control fires which are becoming more and more common. The idea of wilderness having intrinsic value emerged in the Western world in the 19th century. British artists John Constable and J. M. W. Turner turned their attention to capturing the beauty of the natural world in their paintings. Prior to that, paintings had been primarily of religious scenes or of human beings. William Wordsworth 's poetry described
5200-429: The people." When national parks were established in an area, the Native Americans that had been living there were forcibly removed so visitors to the park could see nature without humans present. National parks are seen as areas untouched by humans, when in reality, humans existed in these spaces, until settler colonists came in and forced them off their lands in order to create the national parks. The concept glorifies
5280-468: The perspective of nature as a whole and on the basis of their understanding of the laws of nature … as if seen through the eyes of a bird". In the 13th century, Shih Erh Chi recommended avoiding painting "scenes lacking any places made inaccessible by nature". For most of human history , the greater part of Earth's terrain was wilderness, and human attention was concentrated on settled areas. The first known laws to protect parts of nature date back to
5360-503: The planning of the areas. This situation places the ideal of wilderness above the already existing relationships between people and the land they live on. By placing an imperialistic ideal of nature onto a different country, the desire to reestablish wilderness is being put above the lives of those who live by working the land. By the late 19th century, it had become clear that in many countries wild areas had either disappeared or were in danger of disappearing. This realization gave rise to
5440-464: The railroads advertised travel to "the great wild spaces" of North America. When outdoorsman Teddy Roosevelt became president of the United States, he began to enlarge the U.S. National Parks system, and established the National Forest system. By the 1920s, travel across North America by train to experience the "wilderness" (often viewing it only through windows) had become very popular. This led to
5520-535: The whole area of the 16 national parks as wilderness. This means, also the managed parts are included in the "existing" 0,6%. There is no doubt, that Germany will miss its own time-dependent quantitative goals, but there are also some critics, that point a bad designation practice: Findings of disturbance ecology, according to which process-based nature conservation and the 2% target could be further qualified by more targeted area designation, pre-treatment and introduction of megaherbivores , are widely neglected. Since 2019
5600-422: The wilderness in order to make way for their ' civilized ' society. Wilderness was considered to be the root of the colonists' problems, so to make the problems go away, wilderness needed to be destroyed. One of the first steps in doing this, is to get rid of trees in order to clear the land. Military metaphors describing the wilderness as the "enemy" were used, and settler expansion was phrased as "[conquering]
5680-402: The wilderness". In relation to the wilderness, Native Americans were viewed as savages . The relationship between Native Americans and the land was something colonists did not understand and did not try to understand. This mutually beneficial relationship was different from how colonists viewed the land only in relation to how it could benefit themselves by waging a constant battle to beat
5760-401: The wonder of the natural world, which had formerly been viewed as a threatening place. Increasingly the valuing of nature became an aspect of Western culture. By the mid-19th century, in Germany, "Scientific Conservation", as it was called, advocated "the efficient utilization of natural resources through the application of science and technology ". Concepts of forest management based on
5840-540: The world. India is more densely populated and has been settled for a long time. There are complex relationships between agricultural communities and the wilderness. An example of this is the Project Tiger parks in India. By claiming areas as no longer used by humans, the land moves from the hands of poor people to rich people. Having designated tiger reserves is only possible by displacing poor people, who were not involved in
5920-476: Was 2.03 and the average family size was 2.57. The median age was 55.8 years. The median income for a household in the county was $ 31,914 and the median income for a family was $ 40,906. Males had a median income of $ 46,304 versus $ 23,325 for females. The per capita income for the county was $ 20,895. About 10.1% of families and 15.3% of the population were below the poverty line , including 31.5% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over. Catron County
6000-417: Was 48 years. For every 100 females there were 104.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.70 males. The median income for a household in the county was $ 23,892, and the median income for a family was $ 30,742. Males had a median income of $ 26,064 versus $ 18,315 for females. The per capita income for the county was $ 13,951. About 17.40% of families and 24.50% of the population were below
6080-571: Was another well-known Chiricahua leader. Noted war chief Goyaałé (Geronimo) had several hideouts in the county. Later in 1880, Buffalo Soldiers led by Sergeant George Jordan defeated Chiricahua Apache warriors led by Victorio in the Battle of Fort Tularosa . Four years later, self-appointed sheriff Elfego Baca was the hero of the so-called Frisco shootout in San Francisco Plaza . The country also attracted European-American outlaws. In
6160-543: Was declared a wildlife refuge on 3 November 1960. In 1966 it was declared a National Natural Landmark and, in 1968, it was given wilderness status. Properties in the swamp had been acquired by a small group of residents of the area, who donated the assembled properties to the federal government as a park for perpetual protection. Today the refuge amounts to 7,600 acres (31 km ) that are within thirty miles of Manhattan . While wilderness designations were originally granted by an Act of Congress for Federal land that retained
6240-486: Was established in 1879. The U.S. concept of national parks soon caught on in Canada , which created Banff National Park in 1885, at the same time as the transcontinental Canadian Pacific Railway was being built. The creation of this and other parks showed a growing appreciation of wild nature, but also an economic reality. The railways wanted to entice people to travel west. Parks such as Banff and Yellowstone gained favor as
6320-570: Was needed to save them. Wilderness preservation is central to deep ecology ; a philosophy that believes in an inherent worth of all living beings, regardless of their instrumental utility to human needs. Two different groups had emerged within the US environmental movement by the early 20th century: the conservationists and the preservationists. The initial consensus among conservationists was split into "utilitarian conservationists" later to be referred to as conservationists, and "aesthetic conservationists" or preservationists. The main representative for
6400-418: Was the first area to bear that designation in the country and the world. When it was designated on June 3, 1924, it included 755,000 at the core of the Gila National Forest. When the Gila Wilderness was designated in 1924, it was 40 years before the Wilderness Act established a national policy of wilderness preservation. As an administrative designation by the Forest Service, there was no law preventing changes to
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