USC Subchapter XX

in effect

16 U.S.C. § 161 Establishment; boundaries; trespassers; claims and rights under land laws not affected; reclamation projects; indemnity selections of lands

The tract of land in the State of Montana particularly described by metes and bounds as follows, to wit: Commencing at a point on the international boundary between the United States and the Dominion of Canada at the middle of the Flathead River; thence following southerly along and with the middle of the Flathead River to its confluence with the Middle Fork of the Flathead River; thence following the north bank of said Middle Fork of the Flathead River to where it is crossed by the north boundary of the right-of-way of the Great Northern Railroad; thence following the said right-of-way to where it intersects the west boundary of the Blackfeet Indian Reservation; thence northerly along said west boundary to its intersection with the international boundary; thence along said international boundary to the place of beginning, is reserved and withdrawn from settlement, occupancy, or disposal under the laws of the United States, and dedicated and set apart as a public park or pleasure ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people of the United States under the name of “The Glacier National Park.” All persons who shall locate or settle upon or occupy the same, or any part thereof, except as hereinafter provided, shall be considered trespassers and removed therefrom. Nothing herein contained shall affect any valid claim, location, or entry existing under the land laws of the United States before May 11, 1910, or the rights of any such claimant, locator, or entryman to the full use and enjoyment of his land. The United States Reclamation Service may enter upon and utilize for flowage or other purposes any area within said park which may be necessary for the development and maintenance of a Government reclamation project. No lands within the limits of Glacier National Park belonging to or claimed by any railroad or other corporation having or claiming before May 11, 1910, the right of indemnity selection by virtue of any law or contract whatsoever shall be used as a basis for indemnity selection in any State or Territory whatsoever for any loss sustained by reason of the creation of Glacier National Park.

16 U.S.C. § 161a Part of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park

For the purpose of permanently commemorating the long-existing relationship of peace and good will existing between the people and Governments of Canada and the United States and upon the enactment by the proper authority of the Canadian Government of a similar provision respecting the Waterton Lakes National Park in the Province of Alberta, and upon the proclamation of the President of the United States, who is authorized to issue such a proclamation, the Glacier National Park in the State of Montana shall become a part of an international park to be known as the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park.

16 U.S.C. § 161b Designation for purposes of administration, promotion, development, and support

For purposes of administration, promotion, development, and support by appropriations that part of the said Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park within the territory of the United States shall be designated as the Glacier National Park.

16 U.S.C. § 161c Addition of land; establishment of fish hatchery

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to administer as a part of the Glacier National Park, in the State of Montana, subject to all laws and regulations applicable thereto, the lands, or interests in lands, within the State of Montana, in township 28 north, range 20 west, Montana meridian, which may be acquired by the United States for the establishment by the National Park Service of a fish hatchery for restocking the waters of the said park.

16 U.S.C. § 161d Elimination of fish hatchery; transfer of administration of hatchery to Fish and Wildlife Service

The property at Creston, Montana, acquired by the United States for the establishment of a fish hatchery for restocking the waters of Glacier National Park and administered as a part of the park pursuant to section 161c of this title, together with the improvements and equipment utilized in connection with the hatchery property, is eliminated from the park. The functions of the National Park Service with regard to the administration of the aforesaid properties for the benefit of the park are transferred to and shall be exercised by the Fish and Wildlife Service for the same purposes: Provided, however, That such fish propagated at the hatchery as may be in excess of the number necessary to restock and maintain an optimum fish population in the waters of the park at all times may be utilized for the restocking of other waters.

16 U.S.C. § 161e Additional lands, buildings, or other real and personal property

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to acquire, and the State of Montana is authorized to convey to the United States, without regard to the requirements contained in section 11 of the Act approved February 22, 1889 (25 Stat. 676), any lands, interests in lands, buildings, or other property, real and personal, owned by the State of Montana within the boundaries of Glacier National Park. The aforesaid properties may be acquired from the State of Montana by the Secretary of the Interior for such consideration as he may deem advisable, when the acquisition of such property would, in his judgment, be in the best interests of the United States.

16 U.S.C. § 162 Control; regulations; leases; sale and removal of timber

Glacier National Park shall be under the exclusive control of the Secretary of the Interior, whose duties it shall be, as soon as practicable, to make and publish such rules and regulations not inconsistent with the laws of the United States as he may deem necessary or proper for the care, protection, management, and improvement of the same, which regulations shall provide for the preservation of the park in a state of nature so far as is consistent with the purposes of this section and section 161 of this title, and for the care and protection of the fish and game within the boundaries thereof. Said Secretary may, in his discretion, execute leases to parcels of ground not exceeding ten acres in extent at any one place to any one person or company, for not to exceed twenty years, when such ground is necessary for the erection of buildings for the accommodation of visitors, and to parcels of ground not exceeding one acre in extent and for not to exceed twenty years to persons who have heretofore erected or whom he may hereafter authorize to erect summer homes or cottages; he may also sell and permit the removal of such matured,11 So in original. or dead or down timber as he may deem necessary or advisable for the protection or improvement of the park.

16 U.S.C. § 162a Summer homes and cottages

After January 26, 1931, no permit, license, lease, or other authorization for the use of land within the Glacier National Park, Montana, for the erection and maintenance of summer homes or cottages shall be granted or made: Provided, however, That the Secretary of the Interior may, in his discretion, renew any permit, license, lease, or other authorization for such purpose granted or made prior to January 26, 1931.

16 U.S.C. § 163 Jurisdiction by the United States; fugitives from justice

Sole and exclusive jurisdiction is assumed by the United States over the territory embraced within the Glacier National Park, saving, however, to the State of Montana the right to serve civil or criminal process within the limits of the aforesaid park in suits or prosecution for or on account of rights acquired, obligations incurred, or crimes committed in said State but outside of said park, and saving, further, to the said State the right to tax persons and corporations, their franchises and property, on the lands included in said park. All the laws applicable to places under the sole and exclusive jurisdiction of the United States shall have force and effect in said park. All fugitives from justice taking refuge in said park shall be subject to the same laws as refugees from justice found in the State of Montana.

16 U.S.C. § 164 Eliminating private holdings of lands; timber or public lands of equal value in exchange

The Secretary of the Interior, for the purpose of eliminating private holdings within the Glacier National Park and the preservation intact of the natural forest along the roads in the scenic portions of the park, both on patented and park lands, is empowered, in his discretion: (1) To obtain for the United States the complete title to any or all of the lands held in private or State ownership within the boundaries of said park within townships 32 and 33 north, ranges 18 and 19 west of Montana principal meridian, by the exchange of dead, decadent, or matured timber of approximately equal values that can be removed from any part of the park without injuriously affecting the scenic beauty thereof; or, upon the approval of the Secretary of Agriculture, the timber to be selected or exchanged may be taken from the Government lands within the metes and bounds of the national forests within the State of Montana, or, (2) to obtain for the United States the complete title to any or all of the lands held in private ownership within the boundaries of said park by accepting from the owners of such privately owned lands complete relinquishment thereof and by granting and patenting to such owners, in exchange therefor, in each instance, like public land of equal value situate in the State of Montana, after due notice of the proposed exchange has been given by publication for not less than thirty days in the counties where the lands proposed to be exchanged or taken in exchange are located.

16 U.S.C. § 165 Value of lands sought to be exchanged

For purposes of subdivision (2) of section 164 of this title the value of all patented lands within said park, including the timber thereon, offered for exchange, and the value of other lands of the United States elsewhere situate, to be given in exchange therefor, shall be ascertained in such manner as the Secretary of the Interior may direct; and the owners of such privately owned lands within said park shall, before any exchange is effective, furnish the Secretary of the Interior evidence satisfactory to him of title to the patented lands offered in exchange; and lands conveyed to the Government under this section and subdivision (2) of section 164 of this title shall be and remain a part of the Glacier National Park.

16 U.S.C. § 166 Exchange of timber for private holdings; valuations

For purposes of subdivision (1) of section 164 of this title the value of all patented lands within said park, including the timber thereon, offered for exchange, and the value of the timber on park lands, or on Government lands within the metes and bounds of the national forests within the State of Montana, proposed to be given in exchange for such patented lands, shall be ascertained in such manner as the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture may jointly in their discretion direct, and all expenses incident to ascertaining such values shall be paid by the owners of said patented lands. Such owners shall, before any exchange is effective, furnish the Secretary of the Interior evidence satisfactory to him of title to the patented lands offered in exchange; and if the value of timber on park lands or on the Government lands in the national forests within the State of Montana exceeds the value of the patented lands deeded to the Government in exchange, such excess shall be paid to the Secretary of the Interior by the owners of the patented lands before any timber is removed, and shall be deposited and covered into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts. The lands conveyed to the Government under this section and subdivision (1) of section 164 of this title shall become a part of the Glacier National Park.

16 U.S.C. § 167 Removal of timber

All timber on Government lands in the park must be cut and removed under regulations to be prescribed by the Secretary of the Interior, and any damage which may result to the roads or any part of the park or the national forests in consequence of the cutting and removal of the timber therefrom shall be borne by the owners of the patented lands, and bonds satisfactory to the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture, jointly, must be given for the payment of such damages, if any, as shall be determined by the Secretary of the Interior so far as the same relates to lands within a national park and by the Secretary of Agriculture where the same relates to lands in the national forests. The Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior shall jointly report to Congress in detail the factors upon which valuations were made.

16 U.S.C. § 167a Exchange of lands and other property

(a) The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to accept title to any non-Federal lands, interests in lands, buildings, or other property, real or personal, within the authorized boundaries of the Glacier National Park, as now or after August 8, 1946, established, when the acquisition by exchange of such property would, in his judgment, be in the best interests of the United States. In exchange for the non-Federal property so to be acquired, the Secretary of the Interior is authorized to convey to the grantors of such property, or to their nominees, any federally owned lands, interests in lands, buildings, or other property, real or personal, within the authorized boundaries of the Glacier National Park, located in the State of Montana and administered by the National Park Service, which are of approximately equal value, as determined by the Secretary, to the property being acquired. In order to facilitate the making of such exchanges, the Secretary of the Interior may enter into agreements for the reservation in conveyances to the United States, or for the grant in conveyances from the United States, of such estates for years, life estates, or other interests as may be consistent, in his judgment, with the accomplishment of the purposes of this section, but all such limitations shall be considered in determining the equality of the interests to be exchanged. (b) Any property acquired pursuant to this section shall, upon acceptance of title thereto, become a part of the Glacier National Park, and shall be subject to all laws applicable to such area. The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to issue such regulations as he deems necessary for carrying out the purposes of this section.

16 U.S.C. § 170 Hunting and fishing; regulations; punishment

All hunting or the killing, wounding, or capturing at any time of any bird or wild animal, except dangerous animals when it is necessary to prevent them from destroying human lives or inflicting personal injury, is prohibited within the limits of said park; nor shall any fish be taken out of the waters of the park in any other way than by hook and line, and then only at such seasons and in such times and manner as may be directed by the Secretary of the Interior. The Secretary of the Interior shall make and publish such rules and regulations as he may deem necessary and proper for the management and care of the park and for the protection of the property therein, especially for the preservation from injury or spoliation of all timber, mineral deposits other than those legally located prior to May 11, 1910, natural curiosities, or wonderful objects within said park, and for the protection of the animals and birds in the park from capture or destruction, and to prevent their being frightened or driven from the park. He shall make rules and regulations governing the taking of fish from the streams or lakes in the park. Possession within said park of the dead bodies, or any part thereof, of any wild bird or animal shall be prima facie evidence that the person or persons having the same are guilty of violating this Act. Any person or persons, or stage or express company, or railway company, who knows or has reason to believe that they were taken or killed contrary to the provisions of this Act and who receives for transportation any of said animals, birds, or fish so killed, caught, or taken, or who shall violate any of the other provisions of this Act, or any rule or regulation that may be promulgated by the Secretary of the Interior with reference to the management and care of the park or for the protection of the property therein, for the preservation from injury or spoliation of timber, mineral deposits, other than those legally located prior to May 11, 1910, natural curiosities, or wonderful objects within said park, or for the protection of the animals, birds, or fish in the park, or who shall within said park commit any damage, injury, or spoliation to or upon any building, fence, hedge, gate, guidepost, tree, wood, underwood, timber, garden, crops, vegetables, plants, land, springs, mineral deposits other than those legally located prior to May 11, 1910, natural curiosities, or other matter or thing growing or being thereon, or situated therein, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be subject to a fine of not more than $500, or imprisonment not exceeding six months, or both, and be adjudged to pay all costs of the proceedings.

16 U.S.C. § 171 Forfeitures and seizures of guns, traps, teams, etc.

All guns, traps, teams, horses, or means of transportation of every nature or description, used by any person or persons within said park limits when engaged in killing, trapping, ensnaring, or capturing such wild beasts, birds, or wild animals shall be forfeited to the United States and may be seized by the officers in said park and held pending the prosecution of any person or persons arrested under charge of violating the provisions of this Act, and upon conviction under this Act of such person or persons using said guns, traps, teams, horses, or other means of transportation, such forfeiture shall be adjudicated as a penalty in addition to the other punishment provided under this Act. Such forfeited property shall be disposed of and accounted for by and under the authority of the Secretary of the Interior.

16 U.S.C. § 178 Hotel regulations

Any hotel erected on the land sold and conveyed to the Glacier Park Hotel Company under authority of the Act of March 2, 1917, chapter 147, Thirty-ninth Statutes, page 994, shall be operated by the said Glacier Park Hotel Company, its successors and assigns under such rules and regulations as the Secretary of the Interior may prescribe for the conduct and operation of hotels within the Glacier National Park.

16 U.S.C. § 179 Donations of buildings and other property

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized, in his discretion, to accept buildings, moneys, or other property which may be useful in the betterment of the administration and affairs of the Glacier National Park under his supervision, and which may be donated for park purposes. He may accept patented lands or rights-of-way over patented lands in the Glacier National Park that may be donated for park purposes.