Park Ranger Shelton Johnson
Discusses Yosemite's Buffalo Soldiers and the new national parks documentary
Park Ranger Shelton Johnson shares stories of Yosemite's Buffalo Soldiers with Wildlink interns
Photo by JChakrin
THE NATIONAL PARKS: AMERICA'S BEST IDEA, Ken Burns' new documentary series recently aired on PBS. The documentary from Florentine Films' traces the birth of the national parks in the mid-1800s and follows their evolution for nearly 150 years. The centerpiece of Florentine Films' educational and community outreach for the film is the Untold Stories project. Individual documentaries highlighting the role of Native Americans, African Americans, Hispanic Americans and Asian Americans have been created to share the stories of these often overlooked groups in the creation and protection of America's parks.
Buffalo Soldiers played an essential role in the protection of parks in California and their tradition is kept alive through storytelling and interpretation at Yosemite National Park. Park Ranger Shelton Johnson can often be found in Yosemite Valley leading Park visitors through a day in the life of a Buffalo Soldier. His period portrayal of a Buffalo Soldier, along with historical photos and references, is represented in the documentary entitled Yosemite's Buffalo Soldiers.
Within The National Parks: America's Best Idea, Ranger Johnson eloquently conveys his experiences within our national parks and the nourishment they provide for our souls. We spent time talking with Shelton about his career in the National Park Service, the film and Yosemite's Buffalo Soldiers.
What led you to pursue a career with the National Park Service?
Shelton: A summer job working for Yellowstone in 1984. That experience changed my life and made me a life-long supporter of wilderness, national parks and, eventually, a National Park Service employee.
How many years have you been with the National Park Service?
Shelton: 23 years, including my first three years as a seasonal employee in Yellowstone. I've been at Yosemite National Park for the past sixteen years.
Please describe a memorable moment that has shaped your experience in Yosemite?
Shelton: Graduating from Yosemite's Mounted Horse Patrol School in 1996. The skills that were taught in that class led to a deeper understanding of Buffalo Soldier history, why Yosemite's legacy of U.S. Army stewardship is so important to national park history, and how our partnership with horses has shaped human destiny for thousands of years.
What do you like best about your job?
Shelton: Working with the public and helping to shepherd those moments of inspiration and illumination, whether through an interpretive program, serving at the Visitor Center desk, or roving on foot or horseback. And chasing bears out of campgrounds — I'm still very much intrigued that I can chase a bear here in Yosemite Valley and not have that considered a confirmation of mental instability.
What inspires you each day related to your job?
Shelton: Three things: Yosemite, Yosemite, and Yosemite. Did I mention Yosemite? I also greatly enjoy working with my fellow Park employees. Everyone here seems to have the Yosemite bug, and it shows.
Park Ranger Shelton Johnson in his Color Guard uniform
Photo by CRS - Ray Santos
What is one your favorite moments in Yosemite?
Shelton: One that really stays in my mind is seeing the Northern Lights right here in Yosemite Valley.
Recently you had the opportunity to participate in the upcoming Ken Burns film, "The National Parks: America's Best Idea." Why is this film important for the future of America's National Parks?
Shelton: Because national parks have been around for so long, Americans take them for granted as part of our birthright. So this film is a reminder to everyone — and not just here in the United States — that America's best idea was the first cultural signal of a sea-change in our nature, an awareness that is still evolving that the earth isn't here to be exploited but to be venerated. National parks are just an initial step in our journey to a new relationship with our planet, one founded on ecological and spiritual principles rather than economic. The national park idea is a sign that humanity is moving in the right direction, so this film charts a cultural shift to a better relationship with the earth, one closer to an indigenous sensibility that recognizes both the sacred in nature and that the nature of all is sacred.
What do you believe viewers will take away from watching this film?
Shelton: The national parks are a wonderful gift we have given to ourselves and to our children. Visiting a national park is more than just a vacation, it is a civic duty, an opportunity to explore and discover what it means to be an American. And if you're in a national park in another country, you can find out what it means to be of that nation in terms of culture and history. After all, the America that inspired and challenged the pioneers — and that was, and still is, venerated by America's indigenous cultures — can still be found in our national parks, and that America is the foundation that supports who we are today. No electronic device or virtual reality experience can compete with being in Yosemite, Yellowstone, or the Grand Canyon. No book about America can ever be more illuminating than a visit to any of our national parks, because national parks are America.
What is the main message in the documentary Yosemite's Buffalo Soldiers?
Shelton: We need to look beyond issues that divide us, such as race, and focus more on issues that bind us together, such as love of country. We pay far too much attention to differences that are superficial and, meanwhile, completely ignore similarities that are profound. Being a soldier is the greatest act of service that any citizen can provide, because providing that service can result in the ultimate sacrifice. This is why we have Memorial Day. But there are often contributions that are forgotten. The Buffalo Soldiers, among the first park rangers, contributed to the preservation of the national park idea before the National Park Service even existed but still they were forgotten. The Buffalo Soldier story was hiding in plain sight. It was neither buried nor hidden. It was right there in the historic record, but very few people talked about it for nearly 100 years. When the conversation finally began, it became a revelation. We now live in a world that recognizes the value of multiculturalism and, consequently, history is not what it used to be.
How can visitors to Yosemite learn more the role of Buffalo Soldiers in Yosemite?
By visiting the website, http://www.shadowsoldier.wilderness.net, or attending one of my Buffalo Soldier theater presentations, or just by picking up a Buffalo Soldier brochure at the Valley Visitor Center.
Thanks Shelton — this gives us all another reason to visit Yosemite, stop by the Valley Visitor Center and learn more about the history of our national parks.