Yosemite National Park is a United States national park lying in the western Sierra Nevada of Northern California. The park, which is managed by the U.S. National Park Service, covers an area of 747,956 acres Designated a World Heritage Site in 1984, Yosemite is internationally recognized for its granite cliffs, waterfalls, clear streams, giant sequoia groves, lakes, mountains, glaciers, and biological diversity. Almost 95% of the park is designated wilderness.On average, about 4 million people visit Yosemite each year, and most spend the majority of their time in the 5.9 square miles of Yosemite Valley. The park set a visitation record in 2016, surpassing 5 million visitors for the first time in its history.Yosemite was central to the development of the national park idea. First, Galen Clark and others lobbied to protect Yosemite Valley from development, ultimately leading to President Abraham Lincoln's signing the Yosemite Grant in 1864.