The Evolution of the Conservation Movement, 1850-1920

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Concern for the relationship between humans and the natural world has been a definitive element in nearly all cultures. In the United States, however, between about 1850 and 1920, a heightened conservation consciousness first emerged as a complex, broadly popular political and cultural movement, based largely on a growing appreciation among newly-urbanized Americans for the importance of nature as an economic, aesthetic, and spiritual resource, together with a newly urgent conviction that nature’s resources were increasingly imperilled. This movement led to unprecedented public and private initiatives intended to ensure the wise and scientific use of natural resources, and the preservation of wildlife and of landscapes of great natural beauty.

The Evolution of the Conservation Movement, 1850-1920 documents the historical formation and cultural foundations of the movement to conserve and protect America’s natural heritage. The collection consists of 60 books and pamphlets, 140 Federal statutes and Congressional resolutions, 34 additional legislative documents, excerpts from the Congressional Globe and the Congressional Record, 360 Presidential proclamations, 170 prints and photographs, 2 historic manuscripts, and a two-part motion picture.