For decades, trappers and prospectors had told stories about the wonders of the area that became Yellowstone National Park, but no credible person had written about the falls, canyons, and geysers there. That was until the late nineteenth century when an ambitious politician, Nathaniel P. Langford, decided to make his name by promoting an expedition and publicizing its activities in 1870. An army lieutenant named Gustavus Doane maneuvered to lead the expedition’s army escort for the same reason. Their written accounts of the big “discovery” of Wonderland were the basis for the park’s founding in 1872. This book brings together the words of these men and provides historical context for the exploration and for the founding of America’s first national park.