The Conservation Movement
Between 1850 and 1920, concern for the natural world emerged as a complex and broadly popular political and cultural movement in the United States. Newly urbanized Americans were becomingly increasingly aware of the importance of nature as an economic, aesthetic, and spiritual resource, especially as they became convinced that nature's resources were imperiled by industrialization. This movement led to unprecedented public and private initiatives to ensure the conservation of natural resources and the preservation of wildlife and of land. By the turn of the twentieth century, Wisconsin had become a center of conservation thinking and activity in the United States.... more...
Original Documents and Other Primary Sources
![Link to article: The CCC tackles forest fires in Northern Wisconsin, 1934](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/article.gif) | The CCC tackles forest fires in Northern Wisconsin, 1934 |
![Link to article: Increase Lapham surveys Wisconsin's trees, 1858](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/article.gif) | Increase Lapham surveys Wisconsin's trees, 1858 |
![Link to article: Madison boasts the nation's first fish hatchery](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/article.gif) | Madison boasts the nation's first fish hatchery |
![Link to article: Recollections of John Muir in Prairie du Chien, 1860-61.](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/article.gif) | Recollections of John Muir in Prairie du Chien, 1860-61. |
![Link to book: A conservation education camp opens in Eagle River](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/book.gif) | A conservation education camp opens in Eagle River |
![Link to book: The Forestry Commission urges the creation of a state forest system, 1898](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/book.gif) | The Forestry Commission urges the creation of a state forest system, 1898
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![Link to book: Wisconsin's earliest forest conservation plea, 1867](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/book.gif) | Wisconsin's earliest forest conservation plea, 1867 |
![Link to book: A Lake Geneva home becomes a refuge for native plants and birds](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/book.gif) | A Lake Geneva home becomes a refuge for native plants and birds |
![Link to book: Constitution of the Wisconsin Game Protective Association, 1900](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/book.gif) | Constitution of the Wisconsin Game Protective Association, 1900 |
![Link to book: John Nolen drafts a plan for a state park system in 1909](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/book.gif) | John Nolen drafts a plan for a state park system in 1909 |
![Link to book: A Guide to CCC Camps in Wisconsin, 1937](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/book.gif) | A Guide to CCC Camps in Wisconsin, 1937 |
![Link to book: Progressive-era conservation efforts, 1917-1922](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/book.gif) | Progressive-era conservation efforts, 1917-1922 |
![Link to collections: The Killing of Chief Joe White (Gishkitawag), 1894](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/collections.gif) | The Killing of Chief Joe White (Gishkitawag), 1894 |
![Link to images: Pictures of the cutover lands in northern Wisconsin](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/images.gif) | Pictures of the cutover lands in northern Wisconsin |
![Link to images: Increase Lapham examining a meteorite, ca. 1868](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/images.gif) | Increase Lapham examining a meteorite, ca. 1868 |
![Link to images: Pictures of John Muir](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/images.gif) | Pictures of John Muir |
![Link to images: Birdseye view of the first Wisconsin Fish Hatchery](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/images.gif) | Birdseye view of the first Wisconsin Fish Hatchery |
![Link to images: A CCC recruitment poster, 1939](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/images.gif) | A CCC recruitment poster, 1939 |
![Link to images: Smokey Bear visits Milwaukee in 1954](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/images.gif) | Smokey Bear visits Milwaukee in 1954 |
![Link to manuscript: 30 original manuscript letters of John Muir, 1861-1914](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/manuscript.gif) | 30 original manuscript letters of John Muir, 1861-1914 |
![Link to manuscript: A visit to John Muir in his dorm room, ca. 1862.](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/manuscript.gif) | A visit to John Muir in his dorm room, ca. 1862. |
![Link to manuscript: John Muir's younger brother recalls their boyhood.](https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/images/manuscript.gif) | John Muir's younger brother recalls their boyhood. |