Shenandoah National Park: Not "Discovered," But Established

Shenandoah National Park wasn't "discovered" in the colonial sense. Native American tribes inhabited the Blue Ridge Mountains for millennia. Spanish explorers likely entered in the 1500s; European settlement followed in the 1600s–1700s. The park was formally established by the U.S. Congress in 1935, preserving 200,000+ acres of Appalachian wilderness.