President Ulysses S. Grant established Yellowstone as the first U.S. national park in 1872.
Congress passed the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act, and Grant signed it on March 1, 1872. The law set aside the region as a public park for the benefit and enjoyment of the people. Yellowstone became the first national park in the United States and is widely regarded as the world’s first national park.
The park occupies parts of Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho, although most of its area lies in Wyoming. It is famous for geothermal features including Old Faithful, colorful hot springs, mud pots, and the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. Native peoples had lived in and traveled through the region for thousands of years before the park was created.
The federal government initially placed Yellowstone under the Interior Department. The U.S. Army managed the park from 1886 until the National Park Service assumed responsibility in 1917. The park’s creation helped establish the modern idea of preserving large natural landscapes for public use.