Park Ranger Speaker Series

The Department of the Interior Library is proud to introduce a series of programs focusing on the background and history of sites of interest in the National Mall area of Washington, D.C. The 45-minute programs, presented by National Park Service Rangers, are held monthly in the training room of the DOI Library.

Additional programs will be posted as they are scheduled. Please check this page regularly for changes or updates.

Prince William Forest Park
Tuesday, May 20, 2008, 1:00 pm – 1:45 pm

Prince William Forest Park is an oasis of natural beauty and human history located only 35 miles south of Washington, DC. Over 37 miles of hiking trails and 21 miles of bicycle-accessible roads and trails traverse this 15,000 acre preserve, the largest example of eastern Piedmont forest in the National Park System. Prince William Forest Park also preserves the largest inventory of Civilian Conservation Corps structures (153) in the National Park System.

Please join Park Ranger Laura Cohen for a look at the history of Prince William Forest Park, starting in the days of the FDR’s New Deal and continuing through to the development of the ecological preserve we know today.

The Lincoln Cottage at the Soldier’s Home
Tuesday, June 17, 2008, 1:00 pm – 1:45 pm

President Lincoln’s Cottage served as Lincoln’s family residence for a quarter of his presidency and is perhaps the most significant historic site directly associated with Lincoln’s presidency aside from the White House. The Cottage is located on the grounds of the Soldier’s Home in northwest Washington, DC and has recently been restored by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. It is now open to the public for the first time, giving Americans an intimate, never-before-seen view of Abraham Lincoln’s presidency and family life.

Please join Lincoln Cottage Curator Erin Carlson Mast for a journey back in time to the days of the Lincoln presidency and the cottage that he and his family called home during the trying times of the Civil War.