DEATH VALLEY, Calif. – Tumpisha–what a wonderful sounding name for a national park–or at least it would have been. The Timbisha Shoshone Indians have lived in Death Valley for tens of thousands of years. To them the land is full of life and began at Ubehebe Crater.

However, it was a group of gold seeking '49ers who stumbled into Death Valley in the winter of 1849-50 who would give this place its infamous name. As the last of the remaining survivors climbed from the depths of the lowest place in North America one proclaimed, “Goodbye, Death Valley!” Read more

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About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 398 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov.