Posted: | May 8, 2018 10:22 AM |
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From: | Senator Lisa Baker and Sen. Judith L. Schwank |
To: | All Senate members |
Subject: | Recognizing and celebrating the 125th Anniversary of the State Forest system and the 125th Anniversary of the first State Park |
Please join us in cosponsoring a resolution celebrating two important days in the history of land preservation and conservation in the Commonwealth. In May of 1893, Governor Robert Pattison signed into law legislation paving the way for Pennsylvania to become a national leader in these fields. On May 23, 1893, Gov. Pattison signed Act 68 which established the Pennsylvania Forestry Commission, whose duties included determining the suitability of lands for a State Forest Reserve. Visionaries Dr. Joseph Rothrock and Mira Lloyd Dock, as well as countless others, worked to create a State Forest system that now includes 2.2 million acres of forest land located in 49 of our 67 counties. Then, on May 30 of the same year, Gov. Pattison signed Act 130, which enabled the Commonwealth to purchase and create the first State Park at Valley Forge. Eventually the Bureau of State Parks was formed in 1929, and, today, we are blessed with 121 State Parks & Conservation Areas containing over 300,000 acres of land. 125 years later, these two significant laws have forever changed our state and society. This land has been enjoyed by tens of millions of residents and visitors alike, and is forever preserved for all future generations. Please join in this celebration by cosponsoring this resolution. Thank you. |
Introduced as SR366