Preserving the Pennsylvania Wilds: the Rebirth of Elk Country — Author Mario Chiappelli in Conversation with Environmental Educator Ian Kindle

A Legacy of Conservation

Every year thousands flock to the Pennsylvania Wilds to be among nature and its famous elk herd. In the past, dangerous levels of hunting and industrial development forever altered Pennsylvania’s natural landscape and drove its native elk to near extinction. In response, concerned sportsmen and conservationists pushed the state legislature to create a game commission in the late 1800s to enforce game laws and protect the herd. The Pennsylvania Game Commission then sought to reintroduce the once mighty elk herd in the early twentieth century, shipping fifty elk via train from Jackson Hole and Yellowstone. Conservation movements continued to enhance the state’s environmental landscape that faced new threats from logging and mining industries and by the 1980s, the Wilds was on a path to full restoration. Author Mario Chiappelli reveals the history of how the Pennsylvania Wilds and its elk herd remain as vibrant as ever today.

Mario Chiappelli is a native of Weedville, Pennsylvania, right in the heart of Elk Country. His family has lived in the Bennett’s Valley area since his great-great-grandparents immigrated there from Italy in the early twentieth century. Mario has always been involved with Pennsylvania’s elk, and his family has run an elk hunting guiding service for many years. A graduate of Bucknell University with degrees in computer engineering and history, Mario currently lives in State College, Pennsylvania, where he works as a software engineer, but he still visits the Pennsylvania Wilds, his home, whenever he can.

Interviewer Ian Kindle coordinates environmental education for the eastern region of PA State Parks. He grew up in the PA Wilds.