The Rise of the American Conservation Movement

<div>In this sweeping social history Dorceta E. Taylor examines the emergence and rise of the multifaceted U.S. conservation movement from the mid-nineteenth to the early twentieth century. She shows how race class and gender influenced every aspect of the movement including the establishment of parks; campaigns to protect wild game birds and fish; forest conservation; outdoor recreation; and the movement's links to nineteenth-century ideologies. Initially led by white urban elites-whose early efforts discriminated against the lower class and were often tied up with slavery and the appropriation of Native lands-the movement benefited from contributions to policy making knowledge about the environment and activism by the poor and working class people of color women and Native Americans. Far-ranging and nuanced <i>The Rise of the American Conservation Movement</i> comprehensively documents the movement's competing motivations conflicts problematic practices and achievements in new ways.</div>