A young boy holding a plant in his hands.

Stories

A Half Century of Hits

As we look back at the past 50 years and forward to the next 50, many projects stand out for the unique ways in which local individuals and communities have protected and improved their quality of life by advocating for, designing, creating, using, and stewarding public open space. Herewith, a story—in pictures of and quotes about—50 notables, in no particular order.

By Deborah Williams
Published September 15, 2023

We combed through thousands of project pages on this website, reviewed archived feature stories here and in past issues of Land&People, and surveyed staff and board members to create this list of 50 TPL projects, programs, and resources without which America’s communities would look much different. Not to pat ourselves—and you, our donors—on the backs, but this is a rather impressive and inspiring list of accomplishments, don’t you think?

Imagine how much more we can do in the next 50 years with your continued support.

Panorama Park, Denver, CO, on August 8, 2022.

An aerial view of a tropical island with boats in the blue water.

A group of people walking under a bridge.

A woman is sitting on top of a mountain overlooking a valley.

Two people walking down a sidewalk in a grassy area.

Scenes and features of Story Mill Community Park, Sunday, July 25, 2021, in Bozeman, Mont., a 60-acre park opened in 2019 in collaboration with the City of Bozeman Parks and Recreation Department and The Trust for Public Land. Photo by Adrian Sanchez-Gonzalez

A group of children are planting vegetables in a garden.

Students working in the garden at Taggart Schoolyard in Philadelphia, PA.

A little girl is sitting on the ground and smiling.

A small stream surrounded by trees and plants.

A person standing on top of a rocky cliff.

Hiker near Tabernacle Dome on the Kolob Terrace in Zion National Park.

A man walking down a trail with a canoe on his head.

A canoe on the shore of Bald Mountain Pond at sunrise. Bald Mountain Township, Maine.

Two people walking on a grassy hill overlooking the ocean.

TPL staff enjoy the scenery at the Mansdorf Property in California, on February 18, 2022.

A girl is playing on wooden steps in a park.

Two people working with a shovel on a log in a garden.

In celebration of Juneteenth, Timberland partnered with Trust For Public Land and Blacks In Green for an Urban Greening project at the Mamie Till Forgiveness Garden in Chicago.

A person standing next to a cactus in the desert.

Woman looking at top of a saguaro cactus, Saguaro National Park, Arizona.

An aerial view of a colorful basketball court in cleveland.

A view of a city from the top of a hill.

Chris Elliot of the Kashia Band of Pomo Indians explores the Kashia Coastal Reserve just south of the Stewart's Point Rancheria on the California coast on Saturday, July 9, 2016.

A group of children riding scooters on a sidewalk.

"The 606, before we started, it was a barrier. It was a physical barrier between communities. Literally you couldn't get from one side to the other except if you went on the street. So there was literally a wall that separated you. I just never really thought about this, how when we opened it, it became a connector instead of a divider." —Steve Baird, TPL Board of Directors

A view of a rocky area with trees and bushes.

L Bar Ranch is near Mount Taylor, adjacent to the Marquez State Wildlife Area.

Melia Kaakua

Three men standing next to each other holding a knife.

Ribbon cutting ceremony at the South Oak Cliff Renaissance Park on November 13, 2021. This park is located at 405 E Overton Rd. Dallas, TX 75216.

Teenage boys hiking and riding bikes at Fishers Peak State Park near Trinidad Colorado in June 2023.

A person standing in the shallow water of a beach.

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A woman and child looking at a plaque in front of a house.

Martin Luther King National Historic Site in Atlanta, GA.

Stills from a video in Banning Ranch, California, on May 6, 2021.

A group of people working in a park with a wheelbarrow.

TPL tree-planting event at Midway Peace Park in St. Paul, MN on June 3, 2021.

A woman standing in a field with her arms outstretched.

Butte Falls, Oregon – July 2022

A view of a river and mountains with a lighthouse in the background.

Two little girls playing on a wooden playground.

A man standing in front of a lake with mountains in the background.

Peleke Flores, Director of Operations for Mālama Hule‘ia (808)498-8385; [email protected]

A man standing in a field with a frisbee in his hand.

Photos from Heartland: The Yurok Tribe reclaims its ancestral territory in Northern California, published Spring 2021.

Two people riding bikes on a trail in the woods.

A lake surrounded by mountains and trees.

A man standing in a rocky area near a cave.

The hollywood sign sits on top of a hill.

Two women standing in a park with a playground in the background.

A group of children playing soccer on a grassy field.

A person is pointing at a map with the words landnote database.

Two native americans riding horses in a grassy field.

A family is riding a red tricycle in a wooded area.

An artist's rendering of a park near the water.

Feeling Inspired?

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