Wawona ranger office - Yosemite National Park CA
Description
The New Deal made possible the construction of a ranger station in the Wawona area, which was added to Yosemite National Park in 1932. The present complex includes a ranger station and an interpretation office, as well as two ranger residences, that date back to the New Deal.
The ranger station and interpretation office have different origins, however. The latter building was the original ranger station at Wawona, built in 1934 or 1935 (Greene), which has been modified over time and repurposed. The former was moved here from the former Chinquapin ranger station site, built in 1934, which was eliminated decades ago (the site has been cleared).
Both are simple, rustic wood structures; the ranger station is shingled, the interpretation office is board-and-batten. They were probably paid for by the Public Works Administration (PWA) and built by the National Park Service (NPS), not the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).
The current use of the ranger station is as the coordinating hub, a sort of control tower, for Wawona camping. It was clear from personal conversations with the staff that they love the building and are proud that, as they enthusiastically avowed, nothing can be done to alter it.
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Wawona Interpretation Office - Yosemite National Park CA
Source notes
Linda Wedel Greene, Yosemite: The Park and Its Resources; A History of the Discovery, Management, and Physical Development of Yosemite National Park, California, vol. 2, Historical Narrative (1987; repr., Delhi, India: Facsimile Publisher, [2021]), p. 838.
Project originally submitted by John Broesamle on April 7, 2022.
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