national Park Service & Interior Dept. Officials Directors of the National Park Service http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/direct.htm History Home Begin Your Journey Links to the Past I Search E Contact The National Park Service National Park Service Photo For Philosophy Publications Maritima Majory education Birectory of Webering Stephen Tyng Mather and his staff in Washington, D.C., 1927 or 1928. From left to right, Arno B. Cammerer, Arthur E. Demaray, Stephen T. Mather, George A. Moskey and Horace M. Albright. Directors of the National Park Service Barry Mackintosh 1999 Stephen T. Mather, May 16, 1917-January 8, 1929 1 of 9 8/16/00 5:09 PM Directors of the National Park Service http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/direct.htm A wealthy, gregarious businessman, Stephen T. Mather came to Washington from Chicago in January 1915 as special assistant to Secretary of the Interior Franklin K. Lane for national park concerns. His vigorous efforts to build public and political support for the parks helped persuade Congress to create the National Park Service in 1916. Appointed the first NPS director in May 1917, he continued to promote park access, development, and use and contributed generously to the parks from his personal fortune. During his tenure the service's domain expanded eastward with the addition of Shenandoah, Great Smoky Mountains, and Mammoth Cave national parks. Periodically disabled by manic-depression, Mather left office in January 1929 after suffering a stroke and died a year later. Suggested reading: Robert Shankland, Steve Mather of the National Parks (3rd ed.; New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1976). Horace M. Albright, January 12, 1929-August 9, 1933 Horace M. Albright came to the Interior Department from California in 1913 at the age of 23. After Mather's arrival Albright assisted him in overseeing the department's national parks and monuments and working for passage of the National Park Service legislation. Appointed NPS assistant director in May 1917, he acted as director for nearly two years while Mather was disabled by depression and launched the bureau's operations. From 1919 to 1929 he superintended Yellowstone National Park but continued to play a leading role in servicewide affairs. As Mather's successor in January 1929, he engineered the further expansion of an essentially western, natural park system to a truly national park system encompassing historic sites and memorials. He left for a private business career in August 1933 after obtaining the Agriculture and War departments' national monuments and military parks and the national capital parks, but he retained close ties to the NPS until his death in 1987. Suggested readings: Horace M. Albright as told to Robert Cahn, The Birth of the National Park Service: The Founding Years, 1913-33 (Salt Lake City: Howe Brothers, 1985); Horace M. Albright and Marian Albright Schenck, Creating the National Park Service: 2 of 9 8/16/00 5:09 PM Directors of the National Park Service http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/direct.htm The Missing Years (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1999); Donald C. Swain, Wilderness Defender: Horace M. Albright and Conservation (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1970). Arno B. Cammerer, August 10, 1933-August 9, 1940 Arno B. Cammerer replaced Albright as assistant director in 1919, serving as Mather's right-hand man in Washington and acting for him in his frequent absences over the next decade. He advanced to the new rank of associate director in 1928, then succeeded Albright as director in August 1933. Under his leadership the NPS became involved with recreational area planning and management, supervised the Civilian Conservation Corps in both national and state parks, and began to survey and record historic sites and buildings outside the parks. Strained relations with Secretary of the Interior Harold L. Ickes impaired his effectiveness and health, and he stepped down after a heart attack in 1940 to become the service's eastern regional director. He died in that position the following year. Newton B. Drury, August 20, 1940-March 31, 1951 Newton B. Drury declined appointment as director in 1933 but accepted the job in 1940. He was the first director without prior national park responsibilities but came with strong conservationist credentials, having served as executive secretary of the Save-the-Redwoods League in California. During World War II he successfully resisted most demands for consumptive uses of park resources. Less eager than his predecessors to expand the park system, he opposed NPS involvement with areas he judged not to meet national park standards. Differences with Secretary of the Interior Oscar L. Chapman over Chapman's support for dams in Dinosaur National Monument contributed to Drury's resignation in 1951. He died in 1978. Arthur E. Demaray, April 1, 1951-December 8, 1951 3 of 9 8/16/00 5:09 PM Directors of the National Park Service http://www.cr.nps.gov/history/direct.htm Formerly a draftsman with the U.S. Geological Survey, Arthur E. Demaray moved to the NPS when its headquarters was first staffed in 1917. His brief tenure as NPS director in 1951 before his planned retirement was a reward for his long and distinguished service, after 1933 as associate director. In the second spot during the tumultuous New Deal and the difficult wartime years (when he remained in Washington while the headquarters office relocated to Chicago), he proved an extremely effective administrator. Perhaps his greatest accomplishment was to maintain good working relations with Harold Ickes during the irascible secretary's 13-year regime (1933-46). Demaray died in 1958. Conrad L. Wirth, December 9, 1951-January 7, 1964 Trained as a landscape architect and previously employed by the National Capital Park and Planning Commission, Conrad L. Wirth joined the NPS as an assistant director in 1931. With the coming of the New Deal he supervised the service's Civilian Conservation Corps program in the state parks. His administrative ability marked him to succeed Demaray, whom he served as associate director before advancing to the top job in December 1951. Wirth's crowning achievement was Mission 66, a 10-year, billion-dollar program to upgrade park facilities and services by the 50th anniversary of the NPS in 1966. After the 1961 change of administrations Wirth fell out of favor with Secretary of the Interior Stewart L. Udall and departed in early 1964. He died in 1993. Suggested reading: Conrad L. Wirth, Parks, Politics, and the People (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1980). George B. Hartzog, Jr., January 9, 1964-December 31, 1972 4 of 9 8/16/00 5:09 PM U.S. Department of the Interior - Past Secretaries Page 1 of 18 Thursday, July 24, 2008 www.doi.gov OF MARCH 3. 1849 U.S. Department of the Interior Search Podcasts RSS Feeds Secretary Kempthorne Index Interior News Contact Us DOI Home INITIATIVES Past Secretaries of Interior Water for America The Department of the Interior has been led by 49 Secretaries of Interior in its 157 years. Ocean and Coastal Frontiers Birds Forever 1. Thomas Ewing 1849-1850 25. Walter L. Fisher 1911-1913 2. Thomas M.T. McKennan 1850 26. Franklin K. Lane 1913-1920 Southwest Borderlands 3. Alexander H.H. Stuart 1850-1853 27. John B. Payne 1920 -1921 National Park Centennial 4. Robert McClelland 1853-1857 28. Albert B. Fall 1921-1923 Improving Indian Education 5. Jacob Thompson 1857-1861 29. Hubert Work 1923-1928 6. Caleb B. Smith 1861-1862 30. Roy O. West 1928-1929 Safe Indian Communities 7. John P. Usher 1863-1865 31. Ray L. Wilbur 1929-1933 Healthy Lands 8. James Harlan 1865-1866 32. Harold L. Ickes 1933-1946 Cooperative Conservation 9. Orville H. Browning 1866-1869 33. Julius A. Krug 1946-1949 10. Jacob D. Cox 1869-1870 34. Oscar L. Chapman 1949-1953 Ethics Responsibilities 11. Columbus Delano 1870-1875 35. Douglas McKay 1953-1956 ISSUES OF INTEREST 12. Zachariah Chandler 1875-1877 36. Fred A. Seaton 1956-1961 HOW DO I? 13. Carl Schurz 1877-1881 37. Stewart L. Udall 1961-1969 14. Samuel J. Kirkwood 1881-1882 38. Walter Hickel 1969-1970 Get a National Parks Pass? 15. Henry M. Teller 1882-1885 39. Rogers C. B. Morton 1971-1975 Trace Indian Ancestry? 16. Lucius Q.C. Lamar 1885-1888 40. Stanley K. Hathaway 1975 17. William F. Vilas 1888-1889 41. Thomas S. Kleppe 1975-1977 Comment on Proposed Regulations? 18. John W. Noble 1889-1893 42. Cecil B. Andrus 1977-1981 19. Michael H. Smith 1893-1896 43. James G. Watt 1981-1983 DOI QUICK FACTS 20. David R. Francis 1896-1897 44. William P. Clark 1983-1985 21. Cornelius N. Bliss 1897-1899 45. Donald P. Hodel 1985-1989 22. Ethan A. Hitchcock 1899-1907 46. Manuel Lujan, Jr. 1989-1993 23. James R. Garfield 1907-1909 47. Bruce Babbitt 1993-2001 24. Richard A. Ballinger 1909-1911 48. Gale A. Norton 2001-2006 49. Dirk Kempthorne Thomas Ewing Born: December 28, 1789, West Liberty, Ohio County, Virginia Appointed from: Ohio Nominated: Unknown DOI'S PERFORMANCE Confirmed: Unknown DOI EN ESPAÑOL Took Office: March 8, 1849 Served Under: Pres. Zachary Taylor; Pres. EMERGENCY Millard Fillmore MANAGEMENT Termination: July 22, 1850 Length of Service: 1 year, 4 months, 15 FOR DOI EMPLOYEES days Working for America Act Died: October 26, 1871 Select one Buried: St. Mary's Cemetery, Lancaster, Ohio PEOPLE, LAND & WATER Back to List DOI JOBS TEACHER RESOURCES Thomas McKean Thompson McKennan CHILDREN'S PAGES Born: December 31, 1794, New Castle, Delaware BUREAUS AND http://www.doi.gov/secretary/pastsecretaries/past_secretaries.html 7/24/2008 U.S. Department of the Interior - Past Secretaries Page 9 of 18 Termination: March 5, 1909 Length of Service: 2 years, 1 day Died: March 24, 1950 Buried: Unknown Back to List Richard Achilles Ballinger Born: July 9, 1858, Boonesboro, lowa Appointed from:Washington Nominated: March 5, 1909 Confirmed: March 5, 1909 Took Office: March 6, 1909 Served Under: Pres. William H. Taft Termination: March 12, 1911 Length of Service: 2 years, 7 days Died: June 6, 1922, Seattle Washington Buried: Unknown Back to List Walter Lowrie Fisher Born: July 4, 1862, Wheeling, Virginia (now West Virginia) Appointed from:Illinois Nominated: April 13, 1911 Confirmed: April 17, 1911 Took Office: March 13, 1911 Served Under: Pres. William H. Taft Termination: March 5, 1913 Length of Service: 1 year, 11 months, 23 days Died: November 9, 1935 Buried: Unknown Back to List Franklin Knight Lane Born: July 15, 1864, DeSable Prince Edward Island, Canada Appointed from:California Nominated: March 5, 1913 Confirmed: March 5, 1913 Took Office: March 6, 1913 http://www.doi.gov/secretary/pastsecretaries/past_secretaries.html, 7/24/2008 U.S. Department of the Interior - Past Secretaries Page 10 of 18 Served Under: Pres. Woodrow Wilson Termination: February 29, 1920 Length of Service: 6 years, 11 months, 24 days Died: May 18, 1921, Rochester, Minnesota Buried: Ashes scattered over Yosemite Back to List John Barton Payne Born: January 26, 1855 Pruntytown, Virginia (now West Virginía) Appointed from:Illinois Nominated: February 14, 1920 Confirmed: February 28, 1920 Took Office: March 15, 1920 Served Under: Pres. Woodrow Wilson Termination: March 4, 1921 Length of Service: 11 months, 20 days Died: January 24, 1935 Buried: Unknown Back to List Albert Bacon Fall Born: November 26. 1861, Frankfort, Kentucky Appointed from: New Mexico Nominated: March 4, 1921 Confirmed: March 4, 1921 Took Office: March 5, 1921 Served Under: Pres. Warren G. Harding Termination: March 4, 1923 Length of Service: 2 years Died: November 30, 1944 Buried: Evergreen Cemetery, Three Rivers, New Mexico Back to List Hubert Work Born: July 3, 1860, Marion Center, Indiana County, Pennsylvania Appointed from:Colorado Nominated: February 27, 1923 Confirmed: February 27, 1923 Took Office: March 5, 1923 Served Under: Pres. Warren G. Harding http://www.doi.gov/secretary/pastsecretaries/past_secretaries.htm) 7/24/2008 U.S. Department of the Interior - Past Secretaries Page 11 of 18 Pres. Calvin Coolidge Termination: July 24, 1928 Length of Service: 5 years, 4 months, 20 days Died: December 14, 1942 Buried: Unknown Back to List Roy Owen West Born: October 27, 1868, Georgetown, Illinois Appointed from:Illinois Nominated: December 6, 1928 Confirmed: July 20, 1928 Took Office: July 25, 1928 Served Under: Pres. Calvin Coolidge Termination: March 4, 1929 Length of Service: 7 months, 9 days Died: November 29, 1958 Buried: Rosehill Cemetery, Chicago, Illinois Back to List Ray Lyman Wilbur Born: April 13, 1875, Boonesboro, lowa Appointed from:California Nominated: March 5, 1929 Confirmed: March 5, 1929 Took Office: March 5, 1929 Served Under: Pres. Herbert C. Hoover Termination: March 4, 1933 Length of Service: 4 years Died: June 26, 1949 Buried: Unknown Back to List Harold LeClair Ickes Born: March 15, 1874, Frankstown Township, Blair County, Pennsylvania Appointed from:/llinois Nominated: March 4, 1933 Confirmed: March 4, 1933 Took Office: March 4, 1933 http://www.doi.gov/secretary/pastsecretaries/past_secretaries.htm 7/24/2008 U.S. Department of the Interior - Past Secretaries Page 12 of 18 Served Under: Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt Pres. Harry S. Truman Termination: February 15, 1946 Length of Service: 12 years, 11 months, 12 days Died: February 3, 1952 Buried: Sandy Springs, Maryland Back to List Julius Albert Krug Born: November 23, 1907, Madison, Wisconsin Appointed from:Wisconsin Nominated: February 26, 1946 Confirmed: March 5, 1946 Took Office: March 18, 1946 Served Under: Pres. Harry S. Truman Termination: December 1, 1949 Length of Service: 3 years, 8 months, 14 days Died: March 26, 1970 Buried: Arlington National Cemetery Back to List Oscar Littleton Chapman Born: October 22, 1896, Omega, Halifax County, Virginia Appointed from: Colorado Nominated: January 5, 1950 Confirmed: January 18, 1950 Took Office: December 1, 1949 Served Under: Pres. Harry S. Truman Termination: January 20, 1953 Length of Service: 3 years, 1 month, 20 days Died: February 8, 1978 Buried: Arlington National Cemetery Back to List Douglas McKay Born: June 24, 1893, Portland, Oregon Appointed from:Oregon Nominated: January 20, 1953 Confirmed: January 21, 1953 Took Office: January 21, 1953 Served Under: Pres. Dwight D. Eisenhower http://www.doi.gov/secretary/pastsecretaries/past_secretaries.htm 7/24/2008