Rubbing shoulders with politicial entities

On August 25^th The National Park Service will celebrate its 100^th birthday.  G and I watched a PBS series on National Parks for six evenings last week.   From the founding of the first National Park, Yellowstone in 1872, the number of Parks has grown to 59.  Incidentally, about the same time, 1870, the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad was founded to build a narrow gauge railroad from Denver to El Paso, Texas and on to Mexico City - this is another story.

National Parks are created by an act of Congress and are administered through the Department of the Interior.   Within the Department of the Interior direct responsibility for National Park administration and operation is assigned to the National Park Service. 

In addition to National Parks the Park Service also administers many, but not all, of the 121 National Monuments which are similar in nature to a National Park.  National Monuments are created by Presidential authority as authorized by the Antiquities Act.    

There is yet another layer in this cake, National Historic places.  In 1935 Congress passed the Historic Sites Act, administered by the National Park Service, which designated places of historic interest within our country, now over 85,000.  The highest designation is that of Historic Landmark consisting of 2,500 places of particular significance.  This designation is lengthy and detailed and is by administrative action of the Secretary of the Interior.  The first such Historic Landmark was the Jefferson Expansion Historic Landmark in St. Louis, Missouri.   Within this category an even finer designation is made which is a National Historic Site, a structure. Thus, The Jefferson Expansion Landmark is a place of historic significance but it does not have any structures that rise to the level of a National Historic Site.

A good example of this is the single place in Illinois administered by the National Park Service, The Lincoln National Historic Site in Springfield.  This is an example of a historic district with abundant original structures restored and preserved for posterity.  In this instance the importance is so great that the Park Service directly administers and interprets the specific site but also many structures within Springfield that are off the Lincoln household’s neighborhood.  

In places such as National Parks and on occasion very important Monuments and Sites interpretation is handled by Park Service personnel, Rangers.  In all cases retention of historic status requires compliance with the standards established by the Department of the Interior as administered through the National Park Service and this is where the Denver and Rio Grande San Juan Extension National Historic Landmark, “San Juan Extension”, or “Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad”, rubs shoulders with three different political entities.  

The first is the National Park Service.  Their responsibilities include ensuring compliance with Department of the Interior guidelines within historic Landmarks and sites.  By virtue of the 2012 declaration by the Secretary of the Interior the Denver and Rio Grande San Juan Extension falls under the administrative umbrella of the Parks Service. 

The Second and third political entities are the States of Colorado and New Mexico. 

I read a review in an Internet travel page in which the reviewer stated, “…the RV Park is a short distance from the railroad yard.  It requires walking along the track which is not advisable because you may be trespassing.”  Unlike walking on the private roadbed of the Durango and Silverton Railroad, also a historic landmark and a profit driven corporation, which would be trespassing, walking on the roadbed of the Cumbres and Toltec is not trespass because it is public property.   The Cumbres and Toltec is jointly owned by the States of Colorado and New Mexico and is governed by the Colorado/New Mexico Railroad Commission (“Commission”).  It is operated by a non-profit corporation the Cumbres and Toltec Operating Company LLC (“Operating Company”) which is responsible for the day to day operation of the trains.  The historic preservation and interpretation is the sole responsibility of a volunteer organization, The Friends of the Cumbres and Toltec.  In particular the responsibilities of the “Friends” are subject to National Park Service oversight to ensure the properties of the States of Colorado and New Mexico conform to both State and Department of Interior Historic Preservation Standard.

The history of the Friends is long and at times almost non-existent.  Their responsibilities evolved over the years and by 2012 the Friends as we now know them were active and heavily involved in the life of the Railroad.  Thus, in 2012 two events occurred which ensured the future of the Railroad but that is another story.

From my experiences over the last year and watching the PBS program on the National Parks I am humbled by the dedication of those who represent and interpret the National Parks. I am also encouraged that I may be fortunate enough to contribute my effort to the hundreds of volunteers dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of the Denver and Rio Grande San Juan Extension National Historic Landmark.  And, that is a story still to be told.