Wupatki to World War II: Integrating the Soil Story into American History and Earth Science Education.

Digging a little bit deeper into American History often reveals interesting links and facts about the role soils played in influencing historical outcomes and experiences. Most National Park Service (NPS) properties have soil maps that were completed as part of the National Cooperative Soil Survey (NCSS) of which the Natural Resource Conservation Service plays the lead role. The NPS is a major federal contributor to the NCSS and through its Soil Resource Inventory Program has acquired, through interagency agreements, soil mapping on NPS managed lands. Since park staffs are without trained soil scientists, assistance with interpretation of the soil survey end products is often needed. Historical interpretation often reveals soil stories linking soil science and history. Examples of historical interpretation of park soil survey end products will be discussed and include; the 1100 A.D. soil cinder mulching in Wupatki National Monument, George Washington’s major faux pas by selecting a hydric soil to locate a fort, and soil erosion issues for Japanese internees at Manzanar National Historic Site in the 1940s.