Ever wondered why there are so many different types of parks in the National Parks system? National Park, National Monument, National Historic Park–what’s the difference? National Park. The term “National Park” was the original name used for the first several tracts of land set aside by Congress to protect primarily scenic wonders from encroaching development. […]
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Category: National Park Facts
National Park Birthdays
Ever wonder which parks are the oldest and which are the newest? This list captures the date each park was established by law as a national park. Keep in mind some have been in the National Park System for longer because they were national monuments before they were national parks. What’s the difference between a national […]
National Park Sizes
The National Parks exist in many shapes and sizes from tiny Gateway Arch NP, Missouri to giant Wrangell-St. Elias NP in Alaska. While most parks are in the 10s to 100s of thousands of acres range (with a few in the millions), Congress has been more willing lately to ignore size when it comes to […]
National Park Service Centennial – a mil
This week marks the centennial of the National Park Service, the 100th anniversary of when President Woodrow Wilson signed the act creating the service within the Department of the Interior. Though August 25th, 1916 was the beginning of the NPS, it was far from the beginning of our National Parks. The first National Park was Yellowstone, […]