NPS Mission - National Park Service

National Park Service FY 2013 Budget Justifications
qualities that make a landscape eligible for the National Register, and analyzes the landscape's
development and evolution, modifications, materials, construction techniques, geographical context, and
use in all periods. Planning outlines the issues and alternatives for long-term preservation. Stewardship
involves such activities as condition assessment, maintenance, and training.
At a Glance…
The Cultural Landscape of Manzanar National Historic Site
Manzanar National Historic Site is the best-preserved War Relocation Center operated by the federal
government between 1942 and 1945 to detain Japanese Americans.
After Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II, President
Roosevelt’s declaration of Executive Order 9066 led to the internment
of more than 100,000 Japanese Americans in War Relocation
Centers. In an effort to protect national security, ten War Relocation
Centers were created in seven states. Internees endured harsh living
conditions in the hastily-erected camps of tarpaper barracks, and
many lost all of their property through their forcible relocation. As each
camp was required to be self-sufficient, Manzanar internees were
engaged in raising
chickens, hogs,
vegetables and fruit
for food. Internees
tried to make the
desert environment
of the camp in
California’s Owens
Historic photo of Manzanar internees
pruning fruit trees
Valley more livable
by creating
Japanese gardens
from salvaged rocks and native plants. Out of more
than 10,000 internees, 146 died at Manzanar. Five
graves remain there. Today, the cultural landscape of
Manzanar remains evident through the surviving
orchards, rock gardens, the cemetery and barrack
blocks.
Ethnographic Resources
The National Park Service’s Tribal Relations and American
Cultures Program aims to identify, document, evaluate, and
interpret the relationships between the American public,
including Native Americans and other traditionally associated
peoples, as well as ethnographically significant natural and
cultural resources in parks. The program designs, develops,
and conducts ethnographic overviews and assessments,
basic surveys, and field studies in parks and associated
communities, as well as consultation with stakeholders and
invested parties. Such research supports the mission of the
National Park Service by identifying and documenting the
relationships between peoples and resources necessary to
the effective protection of park resources and provision of
culturally sensitive interpretation by park management.
ONPS-29
Contemporary photo of surviving orchards
Cultural Resources Threats
• Archeological site looting and vandalism
• Lack of adequate storage and care of park
museum collections
• Weather and related threats including erosion
from sea-level rise, river flooding, and wind.
• Air pollution
• Inadequate attention to stabilization,
maintenance, and repair of structures,
landscapes, and museum collections
• Failure to monitor changes in the resource
• Failure to correct improper uses
• Lack of documentation and determination of
appropriate treatment strategies
Ethnographic studies also provide baseline data about natural and cultural resources and the groups
traditionally associated with park resources. This information also supports legislatively required