Petrified Forest National Park is an excellent example of the conservation of culturally significant lands being protected in stages as more research is done, land is surveyed, and the public voice is heard. What started out as a small piece of land preserving a tiny portion of an ancient forest turned to stone soon grew to include more of the forest, protecting it from looters and those intent on making a buck off of something that everyone should have a right to enjoy. Public lands are everyone's to enjoy and should be protected as such. The boundaries of Petrified Forest National Park grew in leaps and bounds, soon preserving not only the piece of desert viewable by car, but farther on, accessible to those who seek the solitude of a trail. It is things like this that a park should protect for everyone to to enjoy, not redact to help line someone's pocketbook or to prove a petty point.
Leave me a comment and tell me about another park that has expanded its boundaries since it was first designated. I can think of a few just in my lifetime, including Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve!
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