Tune in to America's "best idea"

(Photo: Quan-Tuan Luong /
terragalleria.com / PBS)

The early United States borrowed concepts of democracy from ancient Greece and mixed that with Enlightenment ideals from French philosophers to create a new country in the 18th century. But we did have one pretty original idea that's been copied the world over: the national park. Not before the founding of Yellowstone National Park had a government preserved virgin land for the use of the all the people, in perpetuity.

Emmy-award winning director Ken Burns chronicles this once-radical notion in a six-part miniseries titled "National Parks: America's Best Idea" for PBS. Through this amazing documentary, we can not only learn the history of our parks but see, in glorious footage, all 53 parks across the country in all seasons. The series premieres on TV on September 27, plus it's available on DVD and Blu-Ray on October 6.

While millions of people visit Yellowstone every year, not everyone may know about the struggle to keep commercial interests from plastering patent-medicine ads around Old Faithful. The Sixth U.S. Calvary was stationed in the park for 30 years to protect the geysers and prevent animal poaching.

This documentary isn't just a travelogue or dry history. Through quotes and retellings by famous actors like Tom Hanks, the film reveals a deep spiritual element to many of the early proponents of natural preservation. Inspired by the 19th century philosophers Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, many felt that one became closer to God when in the wilderness.

First among these was the naturalist John Muir. His writings reflect a strong Christian background and a belief that the natural world is full of beauty and wonder created by a higher power. Muir passionately felt that people must take care of what God had given them, and his extensive travels (often by foot) through the South, California, and Alaska strengthened these attitudes.

"A man who neither believed in God nor glaciers must be very bad, indeed the worst of all unbelievers," said Muir while in Alaska. He published many works about Yosemite and the Northwest and was influential in getting Yosemite declared America's second national park.

This series will follow the history and development of America's park system from the initial two, Yellowstone and Yosemite, up to the present. You'll see more about familiar heroes like President Theodore Roosevelt and unknowns who made a lasting contribution, like photographer George Masa, a Japanese immigrant whose photos of the Smoky Mountains were influential in getting the land set aside.

Tune in, and you'll want to make plans for your next vacation. After all, these are your parks too.

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