California Forever: The Story of California State Parks

Gr 4 Up—The history of the California State Parks system is told through expert testimony and narration. Park docents, historians, and advocates speak about various locations in the 278 park system. Vintage black-and-white photos of California's natural wonders, such as Yosemite Valley, the rugged coastline, and the redwood forests, are interspersed with contemporary color video of the state's unique marvels. The program explains how landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted surveyed Yosemite Valley and recommended that it be preserved as a state park in the 1860s. Andrew P. Hill's advocacy to preserve the coastal redwoods for the public to enjoy was nearly too late after 93 percent of the redwood forest had been lost to logging. Frederick Olmsted, Jr. advanced his father's passion by recommending that 130 locations be preserved as California State Parks. Not all these areas are natural wonders. The park system includes ghost towns, railroad museums, and Hearst Castle. The second episode on the DVD explains threats such as climate change and decline of native plants that challenge the parks and covers the battle between nature lovers and off-roaders as well as the differences between those who want to use beaches and those who want to restrict access to protect endangered species. The video footage is spectacular. It is great public relations at a time when the California Parks system has had negative publicity from the discovery of $54 million secreted away by California Park administrators. This issue illustrates the conflicts between politics-as-usual and the genuine benefit that government agencies provide.—Ann Weber, Bellarmine College prep., San Jose, CA