RETRACING U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY GEOLOGIST STEPHEN R. CAPPS' 1916 AND 1919 EXPLORATIONS IN DENALI NATIONAL PARK AND PRESERVE, ALASKA (Invited Presentation)

In the early 20^th century, U.S. Geological Survey geologist Stephen Reid Capps conducted over 20 field expeditions to Alaska and made significant contributions to the understanding of Alaskan geology. In addition to his fieldwork assessing mineral resources and mapping Alaska geology, Capps made thousands of photographs and recorded observations about the wildlife, vegetation, and people he encountered. His photographs and writings about the McKinley region were instrumental in the 1917 establishment of Mount McKinley National Park, which later was renamed Denali National Park and Preserve. The authors gathered Capps’ unpublished field notes, photographs, maps, and personal letters and used the material to map the probable locations of his 1916 and 1919 camps and routes of travel in the Denali area. During the summers of 2011 and 2012, several weeks were spent in Denali National Park and Preserve retracing portions of Capps’ 1916 and 1919 routes. Repeat photography techniques were used to repeat selected Capps images to determine how the locations he visited have changed during the past century. This project contributes to the understanding of the history of scientific exploration in the Denali area and provides information about how park physical and cultural resources such as: glaciers, streams, vegetation, structures, and roads have changed over the past century.