“Dedicated and set apart as a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people.” Roosevelt Arch is a hearty welcome on the North entrance side of Yellowstone National Park. Standing at 52 feet, this monument is a symbol of the cultural and natural significance of the Park. Erected in 1903, the arch spanned what was at the time the park’s only entrance. Visitors passed under the arch from Gardiner, Montana, taking stagecoaches into Yellowstone. Army Co Engineer, Hiram M. Chittenden, the idea man, said, “...the natural features of the country at this portion of the boundary are about the least interesting of any part of the Park, and the first impression of visitors upon entering the Park was very unfavorable.” Accordingly, he proposed the arch as a beautiful park entry. Construction began on February 19, 1903 and a dedication ceremony was planned for April 24, 1903 to coincide with Roosevelt's planned visit to the park.
Yellowstone Park officials asked Roosevelt to participate in the event. This was a perfect opportunity for his conservation efforts and love for the park. With great fanfare, Roosevelt shared, “The geysers, the extraordinary hot springs, the lakes, the mountains, the canyons, and cataracts unite to make this region something not wholly to be paralleled elsewhere on the globe.” His love for the land was shared with the visitors there. They added a time capsule in the arch containing local newspapers, a bible, Masonic documents, a picture of President Roosevelt, and U.S. coins, among other items.
Roosevelt Arch still stands as a ceremonial welcoming committee to Yellowstone. Although not as popular as it was in the 20th century because of changing traffic patterns, automobiles couldn’t take the route like stagecoaches had, it is still a valuable spot to visit when exploring the park. Multiple entrances being added make this an out-of-the-way stop for those accessing the park from the more popular southern and western entrances. Yellowstone is visited by approximately 4 million people annually, and the arch continues to be a popular destination, especially for those visiting the Mammoth area or arriving from points north. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2002 and is a potent symbol and reminder that National parks are “For the benefit and enjoyment of the people” as Theodore Roosevelt referenced the Act Congress passed in 1872 making Yellowstone a public park in his speech, and is not engraved on a place at the top of the arch itself.
","sponsor":null,"accessinfo":"","lede":"Yellowstone receives an upgraded welcome with the Roosevelt Arch and gets a surprise visitor, Theodore Roosevelt, to dedicate it.","website":"","related_resources":["Act creating Yellowstone National Park, March 1, 1872; Enrolled Acts and Resolutions of Congress, 1789-1996; General Records of the United States Government; Record Group 11; National Archives. https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/act-establishing-yellowstone-national-park#transcript","Biel, Alice Wondrak. Yellowstone Science. 3rd ed. Vol. 11 of Quarterly Publication Devoted to the Natural and Cultural Resources. Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming: Yellowstone Center for Resources, 2003.","Chittenden, Hiram Martin. Annual reports upon the construction, repair, and maintenance of roads and bridges in the Yellowstone national park ...: And construction of Military Road from Fort Washakie to mouth of Buffalo Fork of Snake River, Wyoming. Government Printing Office, 1902.","“Enchanted Enclosure: The Army Engineers and Yellowstone National Park (Chapter 7).” National Parks Service. Accessed March 27, 2025. https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/baldwin/chap7.htm.","Roosevelt, Theodore. \"Remarks at the Laying of the Cornerstone of the Gateway to Yellowstone National Park in Gardiner.\" Montana Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/343416"],"factoids":[],"files":{"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/fullsize/f5ae52940338461ed18d1b83497abbb0.jpg":{"id":4029,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"President Roosevelt addresses a crowd at the dedication of Roosevelt Arch","description":"Underwood & Underwood, Publisher. A \"veritable wonderland\" – President Roosevelt speaking of Yellowstone Park, Gardiner, Montana. Yellowstone National Park Washington D.C. Gardiner Montana, ca. 1903. New York: Underwood & Underwood, publishers, June 12. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/00650355/ ","thumbnail":"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/square_thumbnails/f5ae52940338461ed18d1b83497abbb0.jpg"},"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/fullsize/6b9c638ef1a000af6d5508b25734686f.jpg":{"id":4030,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"Opening ceremony for Yellowstone’s 1923 season. Stagecoaches and citizens gather to enter the park.","description":"National Park Service. Roosevelt Arch at Park's North Entrance, 1923. Photograph. Taken September 22, 2003. NPGallery. Public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Roosevelt_Arch_at_Park%27s_North_Entrance,_1923_(3e143625-0bc7-476f-b8ff-59d46f6b9308).jpg","thumbnail":"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/square_thumbnails/6b9c638ef1a000af6d5508b25734686f.jpg"},"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/fullsize/54d69a4126cae7be7272731ca0370092.jpg":{"id":4031,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"Inscription on the Roosevelt Arch","description":"The quote Roosevelt referenced in his speech during the dedication of the arch. It welcomes visitors and sets the tone as it is the first thing to be seen entering the park | Yellowstone National Park. Inscription on the Roosevelt Arch, \"For the benefit and enjoyment of the people.\" Photograph by Jim Peaco, May 2003. Public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Inscription_on_the_Roosevelt_Arch,_%22FOR_THE_BENEFIT_AND_ENJOYMENT_OF_THE_PEOPLE%22_(12932144844).jpg","thumbnail":"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/square_thumbnails/54d69a4126cae7be7272731ca0370092.jpg"},"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/fullsize/ef0a05ec00737d8b6041d42709bffb84.jpg":{"id":4033,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"Roosevelt Arch at Sunrise","description":"Yellowstone National Park. Sunrise at Roosevelt Arch. Photograph by Jacob W. Frank, February 14, 2017. Public domain. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sunrise_at_Roosevelt_Arch_(33691940371).jpg.
","thumbnail":"https://www.intermountainhistories.org/files/square_thumbnails/ef0a05ec00737d8b6041d42709bffb84.jpg"}}}![https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Roosevelt_Arch_at_Park%27s_North_Entrance,_1923_(3e143625-0bc7-476f-b8ff-59d46f6b9308).jpg](\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Roosevelt_Arch_at_Park%27s_North_Entrance,_1923_(3e143625-0bc7-476f-b8ff-59d46f6b9308).jpg\"){kind=link}
![](\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Inscription_on_the_Roosevelt_Arch,_%22FOR_THE_BENEFIT_AND_ENJOYMENT_OF_THE_PEOPLE%22_(12932144844).jpg\"){kind=link}
![](\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sunrise_at_Roosevelt_Arch_(33691940371).jpg\"){kind=link}