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Ahwahneechees
The Ahwahneechees were the first known tribe in Yosemite. They were lead by Cheif Tenaya. There were sever 'Mariposa Wars' between the Ahwahneechees and the miners during the time. The Ahwahneechees were eventually captured and their town was burned. They were sent to a reservation in Fresno, Ca. -
Europeans arrive
Around this time the Europeans arrived in Yosemite and there was a lot of disruption with the native people which caused them to move out of the area. The early white settlers discovered the magnificeint place and spread the fame with photos, letters and paintings of "The Incompareable Valley". Soon the entire world knew of the beautiful place. Although many people had heard of the place, it was very hard to get into because of the hard terrain. People had to travel by horseback. -
Mariposa Grove Discovered
In 1857 Galen Clark discovered the now called 'Mariposa Grove' which is a large area in Wawona filled with Giant Sequia trees. He built simple roads and lodging to the area. -
Yosemite Grant
On this day the Yosemite Grant was signed by President Lincoln. The Grant set aside the park land for preservation and public use only by action of the U.S. Federal government. -
Wawona Hotel Built
In 1879 the Wawona Hotel was built to serve the people touring the Mariposa Grove. The Wawona Hotel still serves tourists today. -
The Wawona Tree
The Wawona Tree was the main attraction in the Mariposa Grove because people could drive through the tree. It was 227 feet tall and 90 feet in circumfrence. The carraige ride tunnel was cut through it in 1881 and this is when it became very popular. The tree fell in 1969 due to heavy snow; it was thought to be 2,300 years old. -
Yosemite's First Concessions
The first concession was created by John Degnan and his wife. They ran a bakery store. -
John Muir Launched Campaign to Create National Park
In 1889 John Muir realized that there were devastating effects of sheep grazing in the high country so he wanted the area protected. He launched a campaign to persuade the Congressto set aside an area of the land as a National Park. -
Yosemite Officially a National Park
On this day the Congress officially set aside over 1,500 square miles of reserved forset land- soon to be called Yosemite National Park. -
The Curry Company
In 1899 David and Jenny Curry created the Curry Company in the park. They also founded a Camp Curry which is now called Curry Village. -
Railrod Tracks Built into Yosemite
In 1907 the railrod into Yosemite was completed. This made Yosmeite much easier to get in and out of and created more visitors to the area. The railrod mostly followed the Merced River; starting in Merced and ending in El Portal. The railroad ended at the parks boundaries and then visitors had to take a stage oach the rest of the way. -
Desmond Park Service Company
In 1916 the National Park Service granted a 20 year concession to Desmond Park Service Company. This company bought out and built store, hotels, camps and other things. In 1917 Desmond change its name to Yosemite National Park Company. -
Curry Comapny & Yosemite National Park Company Merge
In 1925 the National Park Service wanted to limit the amount of concessions in the park. This meant that Curry Comapny & Yosemite National Park Company had to become one comany. They named it "The Yosemite Park and Curry Company". -
Ahwahnee Hotel Built
In 1927 Yosemite Park and Curry Company built the Ahwahnee named after the Ahwahneechees. -
Badger Pass Built
In 1935 the downhill ski resort, "Badger Pass" was built. Badger Pass was dedicated on January 5th, 1936. -
Stops Train Service
In 1945 the train service to El Portal stopped its services. Since there were many roads built into Yosemite this did not have a huge impact on the park. -
Yosemite Flood!
A huge flood in Yosemite hit in 1955, causing over $700,000 of damage to park facilities. -
Mariposa Grove Closed to Private Vehicles
In 1970 the privelge for private vehicles to drive through the Mariposa Grove came to an end. The reason for this was to save pollution to the trees. -
1997 Flood
In 1997 another flood happened in Yosemite Valley. The flood caused evacuation for several days. -
Yosemite Today
As you probably know Yosemite is still an amazing National Park. Yosemite now gets over 3.5 million visitors a year. The area is still protected and there is not much built within the land; instead it is mostly nature.
