Global InformationYosemite National Park information
| Yosemite National Park | |
|---|---|
IUCN category II (national park)[1] | |
 Yosemite Valley from Tunnel View | |
  Yosemite National Park Location in California  Yosemite National Park Location in the United States | |
| Location | Tuolumne, Mariposa, Mono and Madera Counties, California, United States |
| Nearest city | Mariposa, California |
| Coordinates | 37°44′33″N 119°32′15″W / 37.74250°N 119.53750°W[2] |
| Area | 759,620 acres (3,074.1 km2)[3] |
| Established | October 1, 1890 |
| Visitors | 3,897,070 (in 2023)[4] |
| Governing body | National Park Service |
| Website | nps |
UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
| Criteria | Natural: vii, viii |
| Reference | 308 |
| Inscription | 1984 (8th Session) |
Yosemite National Park (/joʊˈsɛmɪti/ yoh-SEM-ih-tee[5]) is a national park in California.[6][7] It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The park is managed by the National Park Service and covers 759,620 acres (1,187 sq mi; 3,074 km2)[3] in four counties – centered in Tuolumne and Mariposa, extending north and east to Mono and south to Madera. Designated a World Heritage Site in 1984, Yosemite is internationally recognized for its granite cliffs, waterfalls, clear streams, giant sequoia groves, lakes, mountains, meadows, glaciers, and biological diversity.[8] Almost 95 percent of the park is designated wilderness.[9] Yosemite is one of the largest and least fragmented habitat blocks in the Sierra Nevada.
Its geology is characterized by granite and remnants of older rock. About 10 million years ago, the Sierra Nevada was uplifted and tilted to form its unique slopes, which increased the steepness of stream and river beds, forming deep, narrow canyons. About one million years ago glaciers formed at higher elevations. They moved downslope, cutting and sculpting the U-shaped Yosemite Valley.[8]
European American settlers first entered the valley in 1851. Other travelers entered earlier, but James D. Savage is credited with discovering the area that became Yosemite National Park.[10] Native Americans had inhabited the region for nearly 4,000 years, although humans may have first visited as long as 8,000 to 10,000 years ago.[11][12]
Yosemite was critical to the development of the concept of national parks. Galen Clark and others lobbied to protect Yosemite Valley from development, ultimately leading to President Abraham Lincoln's signing of the Yosemite Grant of 1864 that declared Yosemite as federally preserved land.[13] In 1890, John Muir led a successful movement to motivate Congress to establish Yosemite Valley and its surrounding areas as a National Park. This helped pave the way for the National Park System.[13] Yosemite draws about four million visitors annually.[14] Most visitors spend the majority of their time in the valley's seven square miles (18 km2).[8] The park set a visitation record in 2016, surpassing five million visitors for the first time.[15] in 2023, the park saw nearly 4 million visitors.[16]
- ^ "Yosemite National Park". protectedplanet.net. Protected Planet. Archived from the original on May 30, 2022. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
- ^ "Yosemite National Park". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ a b "Park Statistics". Yosemite National Park (U.S. National Park Service). Archived from the original on March 8, 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2018.
- ^ "Annual Park Ranking Report for Recreation Visits in: 2023". nps.gov. National Park Service. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Yosemite Falls". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary.
- ^ Harris 1998, p. 324
- ^ "Discover the High Sierra". California Office of Tourism. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2015.
- ^ a b c "Nature & History". United States National Park Service: Yosemite National Park. October 13, 2006. Archived from the original on January 25, 2007. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
- ^ "Yosemite Wilderness". United States National Park Service: Yosemite National Park. Archived from the original on December 19, 2015. Retrieved March 15, 2008.
- ^ "Yosemite NP: Early History of Yosemite Valley". www.nps.gov. Archived from the original on February 18, 2022. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
- ^ Yosemite: Official National Park Service Handbook. no. 138. Washington, DC: National Park Service. 1989. p. 102.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:1was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ a b Cite error: The named reference
historyculturewas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Annual Park Recreation Visitation (1904 – Last Calendar Year)". U.S. National Park Service. Archived from the original on June 11, 2019. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
- ^ "New visitation record in 2016 as over 5 million people visited Yosemite National Park". GoldRushCam.com. Sierra Sun Times. January 13, 2017. Archived from the original on May 25, 2017. Retrieved February 8, 2017.
- ^ "Top 10 most visited national parks". Travel. March 27, 2024. Retrieved March 27, 2024.