When did Fort Vancouver become a unit of the National Park System?
A. Fort Vancouver National Monument was established on June 19, 1948 “to preserve as a national monument the site of the original Hudson’s Bay stockade (of Fort Vancouver) and sufficient surrounding land to preserve the historical features of the area” for “the benefit of the people of the United States” (62 Stat.352 and the Senate Report on the legislation). The Department of the Interior report on the legislation further stated that the lands so dedicated should fulfill “two essential requirements–the preservation of the historic stockade. . . and the preservation of the historic parade ground of the later United States Army Post.” To improve the conditions for achieving the legislative requirements of the park, Congress passed an act June 30, 1961 (75 Stat.196), enlarging the boundaries of Fort Vancouver and redesignating the national monument as a national historic site. Congress also allowed for a revision of the boundaries of the monument to include an additional 130 acres of lan
