William K. Medlin’s book published in 1997 is an interesting tome about Lassen Volcanic National Park. It is a combination of the park’s history and his philosophical belief. In his Preface, Medlin writes, “The reader is invited to trace this thread, and weighing the evidence scattered across its pages, to decide whether the story is telling the truth.”  However, when writing about the events leading to the creation of the park, Medlin writes: “Armed with this advantage, Raker finally gained top political support in Washington for his national park proposal. On August 9, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the bill creating Lassen Volcanic National Park. Raker, who died that same year, had garnered strong support both in Washington and in Northern California for final effort.” It should be duly noted for the record that Congressman Raker died a decade later in 1926, and not 1916

When it comes to Lynne Walker Collins, Lassen’s first ranger and later its first park superintendent, Medlin writes disparaging about him. However, in Acknowledgements Medlin heaps praise on Collins hard work. There is no doubt that Collins was very dedicated and worked tirelessly for the park. Collins also had the difficult task dealing with the private land owners in park—Sifford, Snell, Supan. In 1935, in a srange turn of events, Collins was abruptly terminated, thus ending his career.

Tim