Shelton Johnson
Encyclopedia
Shelton Johnson is a ranger
with the National Park Service
, assigned to Yosemite National Park
as of 2010. As of that year, he had worked in Yosemite for 17 years of his 24 year career. He began his career in Yellowstone National Park
in 1987. He appeared in the Ken Burns
documentary film The National Parks: America's Best Idea
broadcast on PBS
starting September 17, 2009, and was called the "unexpected star" of the mini-series. Johnson attended a preview of the film at the White House
that day, where he discussed the documentary with President Barack Obama
.
and Native American
ancestry; he was born in Detroit
in 1958. While living in Germany where his father was stationed in the Army, Shelton, at five years of age, went on a family vacation to the Berchtesgaden
area in Germany
's Bavarian Alps, that later became the Berchtesgaden National Park. He describes this visit as influential to develop his awe for mountains and the sky. His family also went to the Black Forest
.
Johnson graduated from Cass Technical High School
in 1976. He then graduated from the University of Michigan
in 1981 with a B.A. degree in English literature
. He then served with the Peace Corps
as an English teacher in Liberia
. He then returned to the University of Michigan to do graduate study in poetry before going to work for the National Park Service
.
at the park and at locations around the country. In 2009 he received the National Freeman Tilden Award as the best interpreting ranger in the National Park Service for his work with Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan on their national park film.
In 2010 he invited Oprah Winfrey
as an icon for the African-American community to visit the parks, to spread "the word that the national parks really are America's best idea, and that this beauty belongs to every American, including African-Americans". In October 2010 she spent two days and a night camping in Yosemite National Park and dedicated two of her shows to the National Parks. In 2010, Johnson was the recipient of Clemson University's William C. Everhart Award "for sustained achievements in interpretation that have illuminated, created insights to, and fostered an appreciation of our cultural and historical heritage."
He is the author of the historical novel Gloryland, published by Sierra Club Books
in 2009. The book is a fictional memoir of a Black Indian from South Carolina who becomes a Buffalo Soldier
assigned to patrol Yosemite in 1903.
Park ranger
A park ranger or forest ranger is a person entrusted with protecting and preserving parklands – national, state, provincial, or local parks. Different countries use different names for the position. Ranger is the favored term in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Within the United...
with the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
, assigned to Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park is a United States National Park spanning eastern portions of Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties in east central California, United States. The park covers an area of and reaches across the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain chain...
as of 2010. As of that year, he had worked in Yosemite for 17 years of his 24 year career. He began his career in Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...
in 1987. He appeared in the Ken Burns
Ken Burns
Kenneth Lauren "Ken" Burns is an American director and producer of documentary films, known for his style of using archival footage and photographs...
documentary film The National Parks: America's Best Idea
The National Parks: America's Best Idea
The National Parks: America's Best Idea is a 2009 documentary film for television, DVD and companion book by director/producer Ken Burns and producer/writer Dayton Duncan which features the United States National Park system and traces the system's history...
broadcast on PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
starting September 17, 2009, and was called the "unexpected star" of the mini-series. Johnson attended a preview of the film at the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
that day, where he discussed the documentary with President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
.
Background
Johnson is of African AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
and Native American
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
ancestry; he was born in Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
in 1958. While living in Germany where his father was stationed in the Army, Shelton, at five years of age, went on a family vacation to the Berchtesgaden
Berchtesgaden
Berchtesgaden is a municipality in the German Bavarian Alps. It is located in the south district of Berchtesgadener Land in Bavaria, near the border with Austria, some 30 km south of Salzburg and 180 km southeast of Munich...
area in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
's Bavarian Alps, that later became the Berchtesgaden National Park. He describes this visit as influential to develop his awe for mountains and the sky. His family also went to the Black Forest
Black Forest
The Black Forest is a wooded mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, southwestern Germany. It is bordered by the Rhine valley to the west and south. The highest peak is the Feldberg with an elevation of 1,493 metres ....
.
Johnson graduated from Cass Technical High School
Cass Technical High School
The Cass Tech Technicians football team is a high school football program in Division 1 Public School League, representing the prestigious Cass Technical High School in Detroit, MI. Cass Tech High School has long been recognized nationwide for its extraordinary football program dating back to its...
in 1976. He then graduated from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in 1981 with a B.A. degree in English literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
. He then served with the Peace Corps
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an American volunteer program run by the United States Government, as well as a government agency of the same name. The mission of the Peace Corps includes three goals: providing technical assistance, helping people outside the United States to understand US culture, and helping...
as an English teacher in Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
. He then returned to the University of Michigan to do graduate study in poetry before going to work for the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
.
Work
Johnson is an advocate for bringing minorities, particularly African-Americans to the National Parks and connect them to the natural world. He claims that "one of the great losses to African culture from slavery was the loss of kinship with the earth". He dedicated his work to this issue when he found the history of Buffalo Soldiers, the African-American regiments of the segregated U.S. Army. Johnson is now known for his research and publications on the assignments of the 24th infantry and the 9th cavalry to the protection of the new National Parks in California's Sierra Nevada. He created a website called Shadow Soldiers around a fictive letter to the Buffalo Soldiers at the parks. and wrote and maintains the section on the Buffalo Soldiers on Yosemite National Park's official website He wrote and performs a living history performance called Yosemite Through the Eyes of a Buffalo Soldier, 1904, which is presented as an interpretive programHeritage interpretation
Heritage interpretation is the communication of information about, or the explanation of, the nature, origin, and purpose of historical, natural, or cultural resources, objects, sites and phenomena using personal or non-personal methods....
at the park and at locations around the country. In 2009 he received the National Freeman Tilden Award as the best interpreting ranger in the National Park Service for his work with Ken Burns and Dayton Duncan on their national park film.
In 2010 he invited Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
as an icon for the African-American community to visit the parks, to spread "the word that the national parks really are America's best idea, and that this beauty belongs to every American, including African-Americans". In October 2010 she spent two days and a night camping in Yosemite National Park and dedicated two of her shows to the National Parks. In 2010, Johnson was the recipient of Clemson University's William C. Everhart Award "for sustained achievements in interpretation that have illuminated, created insights to, and fostered an appreciation of our cultural and historical heritage."
He is the author of the historical novel Gloryland, published by Sierra Club Books
Sierra Club Books
Sierra Club Books is the publishing division of the Sierra Club, founded in 1960 by then Sierra Club President David Brower. Volumes intended for club members had been published prior to 1960. In addition, books under their name had been published before 1960, but done through already established...
in 2009. The book is a fictional memoir of a Black Indian from South Carolina who becomes a Buffalo Soldier
Buffalo Soldier
Buffalo Soldiers originally were members of the U.S. 10th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army, formed on September 21, 1866 at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas....
assigned to patrol Yosemite in 1903.
Literature
- Shelton Johnson: Gloryland. Sierra Club Books, San Francisco, 2009, ISBN 9781578051441