Capitol Reef is the newest National Park, created during President Clinton's administration . The area was formed about 150 million years ago by a large fold in the earth's crust that is over 100 miles long. The "Capital" name comes from the many large dome-shaped areas that reminded people of the domes of state capital buildings. The "Reef" name comes from the early traders and explorers, many of whom had been sailors, and to whom the term reef meant an impassible barrier.