Archive - Natural Stories

The tiny island dock that may (not) have transformed the National Park Service

Large organizations, culture wars, and Trump’s surprising “Bebe Rebozo problem”

1 hr ago •

When natural landscapes become cultural landscapes

How the process of painting wild Yellowstone transformed the wilderness, the nation, and the act of enshrining cultural values

Jun 17 •

Bob Marshall, Edward Abbey, and the art of life as work

Two wilderness icons and the odd way I followed them

Jun 10 •

Good agreements make good neighbors

A mine, a conflict, and small-town trust

Jun 3 •

May 2025

In defense of nontraditional national parks

The Lowell National Historical Park is one of the nation’s least typical or natural parks. Does it deserve its place in the Park Service?

May 27 •

A surprising history of failed national parks

When Mar-a-Lago belonged to the Park Service, and when Steve Mather belonged to the nation

May 20 •

‘National Parks,’ in the traditionally understood sense

Proposed cuts to the Park Service's budget suggest a misunderstanding of the agency’s evolving mission

May 13 •

Where should we pay tribute to wilderness?

Commemorating artifacts, ideas, and wilderness-as-place

May 6 •

April 2025

Oh the (natural) humanities!

How the humanities transformed Montana's literary landscape, and me

Apr 29 •

The “Yellowstone” TV show violates geographic scale

Compressing Montana’s vast landscapes betrays the show’s premise

Apr 22 •

Theodore Roosevelt, the most overrated celebrity in Yellowstone history

Roosevelt shaped the elite hunter-conservationist tradition. But is that what Yellowstone National Park is really about?

Apr 15 •

Should national parks and city parks differ?

The “Yogi Bear” movie, Olmsted’s legacy, and the surprising history of park perceptions

Apr 8 •

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