Last updated: December 3, 2025
Article
Guide to the Robert G. Stanton Papers
This finding aid describes the Robert G. Stanton Papers, part of the NPS History Collection. To search this guide for names, places, key words, or phrases enter Ctrl F on your keyboard (command key + F key on a Mac). Request an in-person research appointment or get more information by contacting the archivist.
Collection Overview
Collection Number: HFCA 1645 (Series I.A.15)
Creator: Stanton, Robert G. (1940-)
Title: Robert G. Stanton Papers
Dates: 1997-2001
Extent: 1.75 LF
Language of Materials: English
Digitized Copies: This collection has not been digitized.
Conditions Governing Access: This collection is open to research use.
Conditions Governing Use and Reproduction: Some of the reports and other reference materials in this collection were not produced by the NPS. See https://rightsstatements.org/page/CNE/1.0/?language=en. See also the NPS general copyright & restrictions information.
Provenance: This collection was received from the NPS Washington Office prior to 2015.
Processing Note: This material was processed by Emily L. Richardson in 2017. Some materials had been previously processed by History Associates, Incorporated. The finding aid was updated for the internet by Eleanore Kohorn in November 2025.
Rights Statements for Archival Description: This guide is in the public domain.
Preferred Citation: Robert G. Stanton Papers, NPS History Collection (HFCA 1645)
Location of Repository: NPS History Collection, Harpers Ferry Center, PO Box 50, Harpers Ferry, WV 25425
Related Materials:
- Assembled Historic Records of the National Park Service (HFCA 1645), NPS History Collection
- National Park Service Oral History Collection (HFCA 1817), NPS History Collection
- Records of NPS Directors, National Archives and Records Administration (RG 79.3.2)
- Robert Stanton Papers, Clemson University Archives
- Robert G. Stanton’s uniform and uniform accessories are in the NPS History Collection.
Biographical Note
Robert G. Stanton was born in Fort Worth, Texas, in 1940. He grew up in Mosier Valley, a close-knit, African American community established by freed slaves after the Civil War. His father was a hay contractor; his mother was a short-order cook. He was the youngest of four children. He attended elementary school in Mosier Valley, where the furniture, books, and other equipment were hand-me-downs from the white school. In 1950 Stanton’s parents were part of a successful federal lawsuit to improve school conditions for their children, resulting in construction of a new segregated grade school for the community. For high school, however, Stanton was bused 30 miles to the segregated I.M. Terrell High School in Fort Worth. He graduated from there in 1959. He went on to earn a BS in physical science from Huston-Tillotson College (now a university) in 1963.
Stanton was recruited for a job with the NPS through a program started by Secretary of Interior Stewart Udall. As Stanton recalled, Udall “only saw Black faces in the mailrooms or doing janitorial or maintenance work or maybe in clerical jobs.” Dissatisfied with the lack of diversity in the Department of Interior’s workforce, Udall sent Interior recruiters to historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) for the first time. During his junior year at Huston-Tillotson, Stanton was recommended to the recruiter by the college president.
Stanton accepted a seasonal park ranger position at Grand Teton National Park for the 1962 summer season. Four other students from Huston-Tillotson got ranger jobs that year. M.B. Micheaux joined Stanton at Grand Teton, W. Preston Shaw went to Yellowstone National Park, and Curtis Robinson and William James went to Rocky Mountain National Park. From this group only Stanton continued to work for the NPS after 1962. The three Black rangers at Grand Teton in 1962 were Stanton, Micheaux, and William Kinard, from Livingstone College in North Carolina.
After graduation, Stanton returned to Grand Teton for a second season as a temporary ranger. His NPS career was delayed, however, when he joined the Huston-Tillotson staff as director of public relations and alumni affairs. The position came with a grant for graduate work at Boston University. In 1966 he returned to the NPS with a permanent GS-9 position in personnel management in the Washington Office. This position made him was one of a handful of African Americans working in professional jobs in the NPS. He later recalled, “I think I was the highest-ranking African American in the entire headquarters of the National Park Service.”
Robert Stanton married Janet Milijoice Moffatte, of Chester, South Carolina, on July 27, 1968, in Washington, DC. They have two children: Braniff Lamont and Rhonda Lynn.
In 1969 Stanton moved to National Capital Parks-Central (now National Mall and Memorial Parks) as the management assistant. The next year NPS Director George B. Hartzog Jr. promoted him to superintendent of National Capital Parks-East, making him the first NPS African American superintendent. (Captain Charles Young served as acting superintendent of Sequoia and General Grant national parks in 1903 under a US Army appointment). He was also selected by Hartzog to attend the Federal Executive Institute. In 1971 Stanton became superintendent of Virgin Islands National Park. Director Hartzog assigned him to the position to develop better relationships with the governor and legislature and to address land-acquisition needs. He also worked out a memorandum of agreement for NPS management of Christiansted National Historic Site.
In 1974 he became deputy regional director for the Southeast Region in Atlanta, Georgia. He returned to the Washington Office in 1976 as assistant director of park operations. He was appointed deputy director of the National Capital Region in 1978. He held that position for eight years before returning to the Washington Office as associate director for operations, his first Senior Executive Service (SES) position. Stanton returned to the National Capital Region as regional director in 1988.
His retirement was short lived, however, because President Bill Clinton nominated him for NPS director. In 1996 the NPS director position became subject to Senate confirmation rather than a unilateral presidential appointment. Stanton was the first NPS director to go through that process. He was unanimously confirmed by the Senate. He began his tenure as the 15th director of the NPS—and the first African American director—on August 4, 1997.
Under Director Stanton’s leadership, the NPS commissioned its first public survey to understand the barriers that keep people of color from visiting national parks and to create solutions that addressed the resulting environmental justice issues around national parks. Among his many signature programs was the Natural Resources Challenge, a strategy to include greater use of science in NPS decision making and which expanded air- and water-quality monitoring programs, conducted baseline natural resources inventories, protected native species and their habitats, provided leadership for a healthy environment, connected parks to people, and provided a career ladder for staff working in natural resource management positions. The Save American's Treasures program, “Experience Your America” campaign, and the national parks pass also began during his tenure. Ten new parks were established, four were redesignated, more than 20 areas were authorized for study, and Congress adjusted the boundaries for about 30 more.
His term as NPS director ended in January 2001, but that did not stop his advocacy for national parks and issues of diversity and inclusion. In 2001 he was invited to teach at the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies at Yale University. His course “National Parks: Lessons in Diversity, Environmental Quality, and Justice,” covered NPS history and the preservation of biological and cultural diversity. In 2002 Director Stanton was appointed ambassador by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and attended its World Park Congress (2001-2003).In 2009 he returned to Federal service, serving in the Office of the Interior Secretary for five years. In 2014 he was appointed by President Obama as a member of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, serving until 2020. He has also served as a visiting professor at Howard and Texas A&M universities. He went on to consult and serve on many boards of directors. He has been actively involved in organizations like the Student Conservation Association, Inc., Grand Teton National Park Foundation, and African American Experience Fund of the National Park Foundation. He continues to travel and speak on issues of national parks, historic preservation, diversity, and inclusion. He also serves as Scholar-in-Residence at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
Stanton represented the NPS and the US Department of the Interior on the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Board of Trustees, Wolf Trap Performing Arts Board of Directors, the US Holocaust Memorial Council, the Committee for the Preservation of the White House, and the National Park Foundation. Other organizations with which he was involved include: Chairman of the Advisory Commission, Salt River Bay National Historic Park and Ecological Preserve (St. Croix, US Virgin Islands); Roundtable Associates, Inc.; Board of Directors member, National Audubon Society and the Institute for the Advancement of Multicultural and Minority Medicine; Fellow, American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration; Council Principal of The Council for Excellence in Government; Co-founder and Chairman Emeritus, African American Experience Fund of the National Park Foundation; and Life Member of the Employee and Alumni Association of the National Park Service.
Director Stanton received five honorary doctorate degrees and numerous awards throughout his career, including the Department of the Interior’s Meritorious Service Award (1982) and Distinguished Service Award (1987). Examples of other awards he received include President's Rank of Distinguished Senior Executive Award, Office of the President of the United States (1993); Walter Cox Environmental Leadership Award, Clemson University (1997); Presidential Award, Frederick Douglass Memorial and Historical Association, Inc. (1997); and Cornelius Amory Pugsley National Medal Award, American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society (2003).
Sources:
American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration: “Bob Stanton”, http://aapra.org/pugsley-bios/bob-stanton
Clemson University: “Register of the Robert Stanton Papers (1962-2006), http://media.clemson.edu/library/special_collections/findingaids/manuscripts/mss295Stanton/StantonRegister.pdf
The History Makers: “Robert G. Stanton”, http://www.thehistorymakers.com/biography/robert-stanton-38
National Park Foundation: “Q&A w/ Former National Park Service Director Robert Stanton, http://www.nationalparks.org/connect/blog/former-national-park-service-director-robert-g-stanton
National Park Service. https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/50-nifty-finds-16-uniformity-and-diversity.htm
Scope and Content Note
Correspondence files containing general greetings, invitations, letters declining invitations, and thank-you notes. Examples of key correspondents include state and local officials, First Lady Hillary Clinton, members of Congress, Theodore Roosevelt IV, and various NPS staff. A small number of files on such topics as Equal Employment Opportunity and park planning are also included.
Speeches and visits files include invitations and correspondence discussing the logistics and itineraries for Stanton’s visits, and drafts and transcripts of speeches. Stanton delivered the speeches at national parks, universities, scholarly and professional conferences, staff recognition events, training courses, and workshops. Many of the speeches were given at dedication ceremonies for new parks and anniversary commemorations of important historical events. In his speeches, Stanton addressed NPS and general park planning policy issues, environmental concerns, youth programs, environmental concerns, historic preservation initiatives, American Indian Tribal governance, and public administration.
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically by subject or topic, and thereunder chronologically.
Container List
BOX 01Folder 01: Articles and News Clippings, 1998
Folder 02: Biography, 2000
Folder 03: Correspondence, 1997
Folder 04: Correspondence, 1998
Folder 05: Correspondence, 1999
Folder 06: Correspondence, 2000
Folder 07: Correspondence: Clinton, Hillary Rodham (First Lady), 1997-1999
Folder 08: Correspondence: Congressional, 1997-1999
Folder 09: Correspondence: Employees, 1997
Folder 10: Correspondence: Employees, 1998
Folder 11: Correspondence: Employees, 1999
Folder 12: Correspondence: Employees, 2000
Folder 13: Correspondence: First Lady’s Save America’s Treasures Tour and Visit to Longfellow National Historic Site and African Meeting House, January 1999
Folder 14: Correspondence: Invitations Accepted, 1997-1999
Folder 15: Correspondence: Invitations Declined, 1997-2000
Folder 16: Correspondence: Lane, L.W. Junior (Ambassador), 1999
Folder 17: Correspondence: National Parks and Conservation Association, 1997-1999
Folder 18: Correspondence: Policy, 1998-1999
Folder 19: Correspondence: Roosevelt, Theodore (IV), 2000
Folder 20: Correspondence: Smith, Virginia Whatley (University of Alabama), 1999
Folder 21: Correspondence: State and Local Officials, 1998-1999
BOX 02
Folder 01: Equal Employment Opportunity, 1997-1999
Folder 02: Honorary Park Ranger Award: Hillary Rodham Clinton, May 21, 1999
Folder 03: Intake Newsletter, March 1998
Folder 04: Internal Business: Non-Policy, 1997-2000
Folder 05: Parks for Tomorrow, 1997
Folder 06: Plans and Schedules, 1998
Folder 07: Plans and Schedules, 1999
Folder 08: Policy Retreat, 1998
Folder 09: Seasonal Employment Program, 1998-1999
Folder 10: Speeches: 150th Anniversary Celebration of the Women’s Rights Convention, July 16, 1998
Folder 11: Speeches: Acadia Trails Forever Donor Event, July 29, 1999
Folder 12: Speeches: African American Civil War Memorial, July 1998
Folder 13: Speeches: American Association for State and Local History, October 1, 1999
Folder 14: Speeches: Andrus Center for Public Policy, “The Future of Our Public Lands II: A Work in Progress,” March 24, 1999
Folder 15: Speeches: Appalachian Trail Conference Biennial Meeting, July 10, 1999
Folder 16: Speeches: The Catoctin Center for Regional Studies, March 2, 1998
Folder 17: Speeches: Center of the American West Conference, “Racial Equity and Environmental Well-Being,” September 11, 1998
Folder 18: Speeches: Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network, Piscataway Park, June 26, 2000
Folder 19: Speeches: Clemson University, October 1997
Folder 20: Speeches: Committee of 100, “Parks and the City: Expanding the Partnership,” April 15, 1999
Folder 21: Speeches: “Connecting People to Parks,” September 8, 1998
Folder 22: Speeches: Construction Training for Superintendents, 1998
Folder 23: Speeches: “Crafting the Partnership,” 1998
Folder 24: Speeches: Dexter Avenue Baptist Church Tribute, March 7, 1999
Folder 25: Speeches: Discovery 2000 – National Park Service General Conference, September 10, 2000
Folder 26: Speeches: Earth Day, Shenandoah National Park, April 22, 1999
Folder 27: Speeches: Environmental Grantmaker’s Association, October 26, 1999
Folder 28: Speeches: Everglades Coalition Conference, January 16, 1998
Folder 29: Speeches: Excellence in Interpretation Awards Ceremony, 1999
Folder 30: Speeches: Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial Triumph Over Disability Statue, 1999
Folder 31: Speeches: First Ladies National Historic Site Dedication, January 16, 2001
Folder 32: Speeches: Floridian Friends of Senator Bob Graham, September 24, 1999
Folder 33: Speeches: Golden Gate Club, “Presidio Stories,” April 14, 2000
BOX 03
Folder 01: Speeches: Harriet Tubman Millennium Celebration, May 26, 2000
Folder 02: Speeches: Haskell Indian Nations University Satellite Broadcast, “Diversity in the National Park Service,” April 8, 1999
Folder 03: Speeches: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, August 2, 1998
Folder 04: Speeches: Hudson River Valley Event, April 10, 2000
Folder 05: Speeches: Interagency Youth Conference, “Restoring Our Legacy – Youth Programs on Our Federal Land and Aligning Youth Programs with Human Resources,” November 15, 2000
Folder 06: Speeches: International Transportation Symposium Panel on Heritage and Cultural Tourism, October 11, 2000
Folder 07: Speeches: Junior Statesman Summer School (58th Session), July 28, 1998
Folder 08: Speeches: Manzanar Pilgrimage, April 2000
Folder 09: Speeches: Marsh-Billings National Historical Park Opening Ceremony, June 5, 1998
Folder 10: Speeches: Millennium Crossroads Conference, September 29, 2000
Folder 11: Speeches: Mount Rainier National Park Centennial, “Re-birth of a Park,” August 12, 1999
Folder 12: Speeches: Mount Rushmore Donor Recognition Event, June 14, 1998
Folder 13: Speeches: NPS Accessibility Awards, July 1, 1999
Folder 14: Speeches: NPS/OSHA Signing Ceremony at the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, October 6, 1998
Folder 15: Speeches: National Association of Black Journalists Panel Discussion, October 16, 2000
Folder 16: Speeches: National Association of State Park Directors, 1999
Folder 17: Speeches: National Association of State Park Directors, “Parks as Partners,” September 6, 2000
Folder 18: Speeches: National Council on the Humanities, July 14, 2000
Folder 19: Speeches: National Hispanic Sustainable Energy and Environment Conference Gala Awards Banquet, April 26, 1999
Folder 20: Speeches: National Park Hospitality Association Mid-Year Meeting, October 1998
Folder 21: Speeches: “National Parks – Reflecting Our Nation’s Many Faces,” 1998-1999
Folder 22: Speeches: National Park Week Awards Program, April 21, 1999
Folder 23: Speeches: National Preservation Conference (52nd), “The Art and Economics of Preservation,” October 24, 1998
Folder 24: Speeches: National Trails Symposium (14th), “Trails and the American Spirit,” November 16, 1998
Folder 25: Speeches: National Trust for Historic Preservation Conference, October 23, 1999
Folder 26: Speeches: Network to Freedom Day, October 12, 2000
Folder 27: Speeches: Northwest Wilderness and Parks Conference, April 2, 2000
Folder 28: Speeches: Oklahoma City National Memorial Dedication, April 19, 2000
Folder 29: Speeches: Pacific West Interpreters Workshop, “Interpretation at the Millennium Table,” February 24, 1998
Folder 30: Speeches: Potomac River Day, July 30, 1999
Folder 31: Speeches: Potomac River Day, July 29, 2000
Folder 32: Speeches: Presidential Sites and Libraries Conference, April 19, 1999
Folder 33: Speeches: Radford University Commencement Address, May 8, 1999
Folder 34: Speeches: Ranger Rendezvous, March 14, 2000
Folder 35: Speeches: Richmond Civil War Visitor Center Dedication, June 17, 2000
Folder 36: Speeches: Seneca Falls, August 17, 1999
Folder 37: Speeches: Smithsonian Institution, “The National Park Service and its Contributions to Historic Preservation,” September 20, 2000
Folder 38: Speeches: Southern University Commencement Address, December 1998
Folder 39: Speeches: Texas Conference of Black Mayors, “Partners for Parks,” August 24, 2000
Folder 40: Speeches: Texas Recreation and Park Society Institute, “What We Do. Why We Do It,” March 5, 1999
Folder 41: Speeches: Theodore Roosevelt Institute, “The Future of Our Public Lands,” September 19, 2000
Folder 42: Speeches: Trail of Tears Symposium, April 28, 1998
Folder 43: Speeches: Tribal Self-Governance Conference, April 14, 1998
Folder 44: Speeches: Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, January 15, 1999
Folder 45: Speeches: Underground Railroad Conference, January 30, 1999
Folder 46: Speeches: United States Army Museum Training Course, “The National Park Service at the Millennium,” March 27, 2000
Folder 47: Speeches: United States Conference of Mayors (68th), “A National Conversation on Local Parks,” June 11, 2000
Folder 48: Speeches: Washington National Parks Wilderness Act 10th Anniversary, November 14, 1998
Folder 49: Speeches: West by Northwest Conference, March 17, 2000
BOX 04
Folder 01: Speeches: Western State Land Commissioners Association, “Opportunities for State and Federal Coordination Regarding Information and Technology Development,” January 12, 2000
Folder 02: Speeches: White House 200th Anniversary, November 1, 2000
Folder 03: Speeches: Wildland Fire Policy Teleconference, April 8, 1998
Folder 04: Speeches: World Protected Areas Leadership Forum, February 27, 2000
Folder 05: Speeches: Youth Conservation Corps’ 30th Anniversary, July 26, 2000
Folder 06: Speeches: Youth Programs Workshop, October 17, 2000
Folder 07: Visits: Alaska, 1998
Folder 08: Visits: Blackstone River Heritage Corridor, September 1998
Folder 09: Visits: Ebey’s Landing National Historical Reserve, August 11, 1999
Folder 10: Visits: Fair Saint Louis, July 1998
Folder 11: Visits: Grand Canyon National Park, May 1998
Folder 12: Visits: Intermountain Region Superintendents Conference and Workshop, May 1998
Folder 13: Visits: Leafy Spurge Symposium, July 1, 1999
Folder 14: Visits: Natchez Visitors Center Dedication, July 1998
Folder 15: Visits: National Association of State Park Directors Conference, September 1998
Folder 16: Visits: Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, April 1998
Folder 17: Visits: Pea Ridge National Military Park, July 1998
Folder 18: Visits: Robert Russa Moton Museum, August 1998
Folder 19: Visits: South Africa, Ghana, Zimbabwe, May-June 1999
Folder 20: William Penn Mott, Junior, 1998
Folder 21: Workforce Diversity Agreement, 1999
Folder 22: Workforce Progress Reports, 1998