Eastern National (also known as EN) is a

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

Cooperating Association based in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, that partners with the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It was created by

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

in 1948 to "provide quality educational products and services to the visitors to America's national parks and other public trusts." As of June 16, 2009, Eastern National has donated over $100 million to their partners.

History

In 1947, some park service rangers formed the Eastern National Park & Monument Association at Gettysburg National Military Park. These rangers collected $147 and published one work: ''Abraham Lincoln in His Own Work and That of His Contemporaries''. This book was sold at Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site. The organization was officially chartered the following year.

Bookstores

Eastern National operates interpretive bookstores in over 150 National Park units. EN publishes approximately 100 new products for the National Park Service each year. They also operate the Jamestown Glasshouse in

Jamestown, Virginia The Jamestown settlement in the Colony of Virginia was the first permanent British colonization of the Americas, English settlement in the Americas. It was located on the northeast bank of the James River, about southwest of present-day Willia ...

, and partner with other agencies such as the Army Corps of Engineers and the

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency within the United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture. It administers the nation's 154 United States National Forest, national forests and 20 United States Natio ...

eParks.com
is the official online store of America's national parks, and is operated by Eastern National. Founded in 1947, EN provides critical funding and support for educational and interpretive programs in America's national parks and other public trusts.

Passport stamps

They began the national park passport stamp program in 1986, and as of February 1, 2006 have sold 1.3 million passport books. To commemorate the 20th anniversary of the program, they created the "Passport Explorer", a new version of the passport book with larger, sturdier pages, in early 2006. The passport program has developed a following, including the creation of the non-profit National Park Travelers Club.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Charities based in Pennsylvania 1947 establishments in Pennsylvania Organizations established in 1947