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Showing posts with label Zion Canyon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Zion Canyon. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

"Z" is for Zion National Park

Zion National Park, established in 1919, was the first of Utah's five National Parks. According to the National Park Service site, the people there 12,000 years ago hunted mammoths, giant sloths, and camels. Then by about 8,000 years ago, over-hunting and climate change caused those animals to die out. The people then focused on hunting smaller animals and gathering food. The Zion elevations, 3,666 to 8,726 feet, proved ideal for growing certain crops. Mormon pioneer settlers arrived there in 1856 and endured the hardship of flash floods and drought.

ZION 14581
Howard Russell Butler
"Zion Canyon", 1903, by Frederick S. Dellenbaugh, 1903 Oil on canvas, Zion Museum Collection ZION 38105
Frederick Samuel Dellenbaugh
The dramatic scenery of the 15-mile long Zion Canyon cut along the north folk of the Virgin River has inspired numerous artists, including Howard Russell Butler and Frederick Samuel Dellenbaugh. How fortunate that artists visited this National Park and inspired us with their depictions of the unforgettable scenery. The museum at Zion National Park houses some of this work.

"Mountains of the Sun" by Howard Russell Butler, 1926
Zion Museum Collection ZION 14586  

Howard Russell Butler