United StatesNational Monuments in the U.S.
The National Park System of the United States is run by the National Park Service, a bureau of the Department of the Interior. Yellowstone, which was opened in 1872, was the first national park in the world. The system includes not only the most extraordinary and spectacular scenic exhibits in the United States, but also a large number of sites distinguished either for their historic importance, prehistoric importance, or scientific interest, or for their superior recreational assets. The National Park System is made up of 376 areas covering more than 83 million acres in every state except Delaware. It also includes areas in the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. Here is a list of some of the National Park System's sites. See also the excellent Web site of the Park Service: www.nps.gov.| Name and location | Total acreage |
| Agate Fossil Beds (Neb.) | 3,055.22 |
| Alibates Flint Quarries (Tex.) | 1,370.97 |
| Aniakchak (Alaska) | 137,176.00 |
| Aztec Ruins (N.M.) | 319.73 |
| Bandelier (N.M.) | 32,737.20 |
| Black Canyon (Colo.) | 20,766.14 |
| Booker T. Washington (Va.) | 223.92 |
| Buck Island Reef (U.S. V.I.) | 880.00 |
| Cabrillo (Calif.) | 137.06 |
| Canyon de Chelly (Ariz.) | 83,840.00 |
| Cape Krusenstern (Alaska) | 659,807.00 |
| Capulin Volcano (N.M.) | 792.84 |
| Casa Grande (Ariz.) | 472.50 |
| Castillo de San Marcos (Fla.) | 20.51 |
| Castle Clinton (N.Y.) | 1.00 |
| Cedar Breaks (Utah) | 6,154.60 |
| Chiricahua (Ariz.) | 11,984.73 |
| Colorado (Colo.) | 20,453.93 |
| Congaree Swamp (S.C.) | 22,200.00 |
| Craters of the Moon (Idaho) | 53,440.05 |
| Devils Postpile (Calif.) | 798.46 |
| Devils Tower (Wyo.) | 1,346.91 |
| Dinosaur (Utah-Colo.) | 210,844.02 |
| Effigy Mounds (Iowa) | 1,481.39 |
| El Malpais (N.M.) | 114,275.95 |
| El Morro (N.M.) | 1,278.72 |
| Florissant Fossil Beds (Colo.) | 5,998.09 |
| Fort Frederica (Ga.) | 241.42 |
| Fort Matanzas (Fla.) | 227.76 |
| Fort McHenry (Md.) | 43.26 |
| Fort Pulaski (Ga.) | 5,623.10 |
| Fort Stanwix (N.Y.) | 15.52 |
| Fort Sumter (S.C.) | 194.60 |
| Fort Union (N.M.) | 720.60 |
| Fossil Butte (Wyo.) | 8,198.00 |
| George Washington Birthplace (Va.) | 553.23 |
| George Washington Carver (Mo.) | 210.00 |
| Gila Cliff Dwellings (N.M.) | 533.13 |
| Grand Portage (Minn.) | 709.97 |
| Great Sand Dunes (Colo.) | 38,662.18 |
| Hagerman Fossil Beds (Idaho) | 4,345.59 |
| Hohokam Pima (Ariz.) | 1,690.00 |
| Homestead (Neb.) | 195.11 |
| Hovenweep (Utah-Colo.) | 784.93 |
| Jewel Cave (S.D.) | 1,273.51 |
| John Day Fossil Beds (Ore.) | 14,014.58 |
| Lava Beds (Calif.) | 46,559.87 |
| Little Big Horn Battlefield (Mont.) | 765.34 |
| Montezuma Castle (Ariz.) | 857.69 |
| Muir Woods (Calif.) | 553.55 |
| Natural Bridges (Utah) | 7,636.49 |
| Navajo (Ariz.) | 360.00 |
| Ocmulgee (Ga.) | 701.54 |
| Oregon Caves (Ore.) | 487.98 |
| Organ Pipe Cactus (Ariz.) | 330,688.86 |
| Petroglyph (N.M.) | 7,240.33 |
| Pinnacles (Calif.) | 16,265.44 |
| Pipe Spring (Ariz.) | 40.00 |
| Pipestone (Minn.) | 281.78 |
| Poverty Point (La.) | 910.85 |
| Rainbow Bridge (Utah) | 160.00 |
| Russell Cave (Ala.) | 310.45 |
| Salinas (N.M.) | 1,071.42 |
| Scotts Bluff (Neb.) | 3,003.03 |
| Statue of Liberty (N.Y.-N.J.) | 58.38 |
| Sunset Crater (Ariz.) | 3,040.00 |
| Timpanogos Cave (Utah) | 250.00 |
| Tonto (Ariz.) | 1,120.00 |
| Tuzigoot (Ariz.) | 800.62 |
| Walnut Canyon (Ariz.) | 3,541.46 |
| White Sands (N.M.) | 143,732.92 |
| Wupatki (Ariz.) | 35,442.13 |
| Yucca House (Colo.) | 33.87 |
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