Yosemite Village Plazza
Yosemite Village is located in Yosemite National Park at an elevation of 3996 feet (1218 m) and was primarily developed to house federal offices and commercial business that wanted to be located in Yosemite Valley. Situated along the north side of the valley floor, its permanent population includes National Park Service staff and some concession employee.
The Village is the site of some useful facilities, such as a fire station, a post office, a medical clinic, a convenience store, restaurants, gift shops, a school (kindergarten through eighth grade), and the park's headquarters facilities, and main visitor center.
The Yosemite Lodge is located on the west end of the village near Yosemite Falls. The Ahwahnee Hotel is a few blocks to the north. Like Camp Curry, Yosemite Village is characterized by shed style architecture making heavy use of native wood.
A post office opened in 1869, originally named Yo Semite, with its name changed its name to Yosemite in 1908 and to Yosemite National Park in 1922. In 1906, Major H.C. Benson started Fort Yosemite at the site of what became the Yosemite Lodge. Federal troops were stationed at Fort Yosemite until 1916, with the creation of the National Park Service.
Yosemite Village was designed by National Park Service landscape architect Charles Punchard, Jr., among others.