The Wilderness Act of 1964 preserves the wilderness character of public lands by restricting human influence and activities on lands designated as Wilderness. Conservationists Margaret (Mardy) and Olaus Murie strongly believed that wilderness lands should remain undeveloped. Over two decades, the Muries and Wilderness Society member Howard Zahniser met regularly at the Murie Ranch in what is now Grand Teton National Park to craft language that became the basis for the Wilderness Act. Howard Zahniser, the Act’s principal author, wrote, “We have a profound fundamental need for areas of the earth where we stand without our mechanisms that make us immediate masters over our environment.”