In the late 1800s, mountain climbers, then campers made their way out to the slopes of Mount Rainier. Using the trail that James Longmire built from Ashford to Longmire and then up to Paradise, people found a rustic campground awaiting them as early 1895. John Reese started developing his Camp of the Clouds in 1898 with tents for guests and a dining tent on the shoulder of Alta Vista, just above where the Jackson Visitor Center stands today. Working with the U.S. Forest Service and then the National Park Service (NPS), Reese ran his camp in the summers, gradually expanding its size until 1916. The government constructed a rough road that reached Camp of the Clouds in 1910. Visitors were driving their cars up by 1912, creating a big increase in the number of people at Paradise.

By 1927, about 50,000 cars entered the park, bringing many visitors, guests, and campers to Paradise throughout the summer. More people required more facilities. Where the lower parking lot is today, a community building was constructed for campground ranger programs and activities. Camp of the Clouds closed in 1930, replaced by 275 cabins near the community building and then a new Paradise Lodge in 1931 in between the community building and cabins.

While the tent camps no longer exist, the meadows themselves are included within the historic district because they have been an inextricable part of the patterns of human activity in the area over the last 100 years.