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In 1861 – only 10 years after it had been ‘discovered’ – Carleton E Watkins wandered the Yosemite valley, with camera equipment that weighed close to a tonne strapped to his team of mules, and snapped the awesome images that inspired Abraham Lincoln to secure the world’s first national park. Mining and logging companies were interested in taking over Yosemite Valley, with its vistas such as Mirror Lake and Mount Watkins (pictured), but this series of images led to the signing of the Yosemite Grant, which kickstarted the conservation movement. Watkins photographed ravines, rivers, waterfalls and monumental trees to secure the grant that allowed this vast wilderness to be kept ‘for public use, resort, and recreation’ forever.