Luther to show another of Ken Burns' documentary series on national parks

Another episodes of Ken Burns' documentary "The National Parks: America's Best Idea," will be shown at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday in room 362 of Luther's Valders Hall of Science. 

The free screening is sponsored by the Luther College Center for Sustainable Communities, Winneshiek Energy District and Green Iowa AmeriCorps.  The episode lasts approximately two hours.

"The Empire of Grandeur" focuses on 1915-19. Although during this time there were more than 10 recognized national parks, there is no federal governing agency regulating them. A group of conservationists pushed Congress to establish one government agency, with the National Park Service being created in 1916.

Stephen Mather, the first NPS director, zealously worked to increase the tourist industry to the parks as well as expand the number of recognized areas. One of his biggest priorities focused on recognizing the Grand Canyon as a national park.