Woodrow Wilson, America’s 28th president, established the National Park Service in 1916 to protect the wild and wonderful landscapes in the United States. But it is an earlier leader who is considered the father of the America’s national parks. In 1906, Theodore Roosevelt, America’s 26th president, signed the American Antiquities Act. The law permitted him and future presidents - to take immediate action to protect important cultural or natural resources. The Antiquities Act led to the creation of many of the 413 sites within the National Park Service today. No president has played a bigger role in protecting the country’s natural and cultural resources than Theodore Roosevelt. During his time in office, he established five new national parks and 18 national monuments. In all, he protected over 93 million hectares of public land. He became known as “the conservationist president.”