National Monuments
The Antiquities Act of 1906 authorized the President to declare by public proclamation landmarks, structures, and other objects of historic or scientific interest situated on lands owned or controlled by the government to be National Monuments. At present, there are 74 national monuments in the National Park System.
President Clinton's Monumental Decision
Three new national monuments proclaimed in Arizona and California under the controversial Antiquities Act of 1906.African Burial Ground National Monument
From the 1690s to the 1790s, served as the final resting place of enslaved and free Africans in New York City, New York.Agate Fossil Beds National Monument
Originally part of a working cattle ranch owned by Capt James Cook, it features quarries with numerous, well preserved 20-million-year-old mammal fossils.Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument
For more than 10,000 years, pre-Columbian Indians dug agatized dolomite from quarries here to make projectile points, knives, scrapers, and other tools.Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve
Located in volcanically active Aleutian Mountains, the Aniakchak caldera features lava flows, cinder cones, and explosion pits, as well as Surprise Lake.Aztec Ruins National Monument
Designated a World Heritage Site, monument preserves structures and artifacts of a 12th century Pueblo Indian community.Bandelier National Monument
The ruins of many cliff houses of 13th-century Pueblo Indians can be seen on the slopes of the Pajarito Plateau.Booker T. Washington National Monument
Birthplace and early childhood home of the famous black leader and educator. Pages include extensive information on the Tuskegee Institute.Buck Island Reef National Monument
Features the finest coral reef gardens in the Caribbean, which include coral grottoes, sea fans, and tropical fishes.Cabrillo National Monument
Memorializes Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, Portuguese explorer who landed at San Diego Bay on September 28, 1542, and claimed this coast for Spain.Canyon de Chelly National Monument
The ruins of Indian villages built between A.D. 350 and 1300 are located at the base of sheer red cliffs and in canyon wall caves.Cape Krusenstern National Monument
Archeological sites along a succession of 114 lateral beach ridges record an estimated 6,000 years of prehistoric human use of this coastline.Capulin Volcano National Monument
This symmetrical cinder cone is an interesting example of a geologically recent inactive volcano.Casa Grande Ruins National Monument
Nation's first archeological preserve features Casa Grande, one of the largest and most mysterious prehistoric structures ever built in North America.Castillo de San Marcos National Monument
Oldest masonry fort in the U.S. was started in 1672 by the Spanish to protect St. Augustine, the first permanent settlement by Europeans in the continental U.S.Castle Clinton National Monument
Built 1808-1811, structure served as defense for NY harbor, entertainment center, and immigration depot for more than 8 million people from 1855-1890.Cedar Breaks National Monument
Millions of years of sedimentation, uplift and erosion have created a deep canyon of rock walls, fins, spires, and columns, that spans three miles, and is over 2,000 feet deep.Chiricahua National Monument
Lying at the intersection of two deserts and two mountain ranges, Chiricahua represents one of the premier areas for biological diversity in the northern hemisphere.Colorado National Monument
Features include monoliths, sheer-walled canyons, dinosaur fossils, remains of prehistoric Indian cultures, and a variety of wildlife.Craters of the Moon National Monument
Protects a stunning array of volcanic features and hosts a number of plants and animals adapted to live in the harsh volcanic and high desert environment.Devils Postpile National Monument
Features basalt columns 40 to 60 feet high resembling a giant pipe organ that were formed by the cooling and cracking of hot lava some 900,000 years ago.Devils Tower National Monument
The nation's first national monument features a rock column that rises more than 1,250 feet above the Belle Fourche River.Dinosaur National Monument
Include spectacular canyons cut by the Green and Yampa Rivers, a quarry containing fossil remains of dinosaurs, and diverse plant and animal communities.Effigy Mounds National Monument
Includes outstanding examples of the prehistoric American Indian moundbuilding culture and protects wildlife, scenic and other natural values of the area.El Malpais National Monument
Outstanding volcanic area, featuring spatter cones, a 17-mile-long lava tube system, and ice caves. Area also rich in Pueblo Indian history.El Morro National Monument
Features "Inscription Rock," a soft sandstone monolith that rises 200 feet above the valley floor and includes hundreds of carved inscriptions.Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument
A variety of fossil insects, seeds, and leaves, as well as a display of petrified sequoia stumps are preserved here.Fort Frederica National Monument
British town and fort built by Gen. James E. Oglethorpe in 1736-48 during Anglo-Spanish struggle for control of what is now the southeastern US.Fort Matanzas National Monument
Built in 1740-42, this Spanish fort was responsible for warning St. Augustine of British or other enemy approach from the south.Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine
The successful defense of this fort during the War of 1812, inspired 35-year-old Francis Scott Key to write "The Star-Spangled Banner."Fort Pulaski National Monument
Here in 1862, defense strategy changed worldwide when Union rifled cannon first overcame a masonry fortification after only 30 hours of bombardment.Fort Stanwix National Monument
Site of the American stand in August, 1777 against the British invasion from Canada and the treaty of Fort Stanwix with the Iroquois on November 5, 1768.Fort Sumter National Monument
The first engagement of the Civil War took place here on April 12-13, 1861. Park also includes Fort Moultrie, scene of the patriot victory of June 28, 1776.Fort Union National Monument
During it s forty-year history, three different forts were built on this site -- a key supply point on the Santa Fe Trail.Fossil Butte National Monument
The 50-million year old lake bed includes one of the most significant records of freshwater fossil fish ever found in the U.S.George Washington Birthplace National Monument
Includes a memorial mansion, gardens, and the tombs of several generations of Washingtons.George Washington Carver National Monument
Birthplace and childhood home of George Washington Carver, famous black agronomist, educator, and humanitarian.Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument
Features well-preserved Indian cliff dwellings that were inhabited from the 1280s through the early 1300s.Governor's Island National Monument
Located on Governor's Island, NY., between the confluence of the Hudson and East Rivers. It served as an outpost to protect New York City from sea attack. The monument is part of a larger 1985 National Historic Landmark District designation and contains two important historical objects: Castle William and Fort Jay. Between 1806 and 1811, these fortifications were constructed as part of the First and Second American Systems of Coastal Fortification. Both Castle William and Fort Jay represent two of the finest types of defensive structures in use from the Renaissance to the American Civil War. The monument also played important roles in the War of 1812, the American Civil War, and World Wars I and II. During the past 200 years, Governors Island was managed by the U.S. Army and the U.S. Coast Guard but is no longer needed for military purposes.Grand Portage National Monument
This 9-mile portage was a vital link on one of the main routes for Indians, explorers, missionaries, and fur traders heading for the Northwest.Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve
Large sand dunes in the U.S. were deposited over thousands of years by southwesterly winds blowing through the passes of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument
Protects world's richest known fossil deposits from the late Pliocene epoch, 3.5 million years ago, and includes large concentration of Hagerman Horse fossils.Hohokam Pina National Monument
The 1,690-acre site preserves the archeological remains of the Hohokam culture. Not open to the public.Homestead National Monument of America
Serving as a memorial to pioneers who settled the Great West, park includes the 160-acre claim filed by Daniel Freeman under The Homestead Act of 1862.Hovenweep National Monument
Pre-Columbian Indians built these six groups of towers, pueblos, and cliff dwellings, fine examples of ancient stone architecture.Jewel Cave National Monument
Recognized as the third longest cave in the world, it comprises chambers connected by narrow passages, decorated with calcite crystals and other speleothems.John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
John Day River valley features a well-preserved fossil record of plants and animals, spanning more than 40 of the 65 million years of the Age of Mammals.Lava Beds National Monument
Volcanic activity here created a rugged landscape -- a natural fortress used by the Indians in the Modoc Indian War, 1872-73.Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument
The famous Battle of the Little Bighorn was fought here on June 25-26,1876, as troops of the 7th U.S. Cavalry clashed with Sioux and Northern Cheyenne Indians.Minidoka Internment National Monument
The 73-acre site in south-central Idaho commemorates the relocation during World War II of Japanese-American citizens and resident aliens of Japanese ancestry who were ordered out of their homes as a security measure.Montezuma Castle National Monument
This 5-story, 20-room cliff dwelling is one of the best preserved and easily accessible cliff ruins in North America.Muir Woods National Monument
Includes a virgin stand of coastal redwoods, named for John Muir, writer and conservationist.Natural Bridges National Monument
Features the world's second and third largest natural bridges cut from Permian Age Cedar Mesa sandstone, as well as more than 200 archeological sites.Navajo National Monument
Features well preserved ruins of villages left behind by Ancestral Puebloan People around AD 1300.Ocmulgee National Monument
Includes evidence of 12,000 years of human habitation, including massive temple mounds of a Mississipian Indian ceremonial complex (AD 900-1100).Oregon Caves National Monument
Features an active marble cave with intricate flowstone formations and a remnant old-growth coniferous forest.Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument
Protects a collection of plants and animals of the Sonoran Desert, including the organ pipe cactus, a large cactus rarely found in the United States.Petroglyph National Monument
More than 15,000 prehistoric and historic Native American and Hispanic petroglyphs stretch 17 miles along Albuquerque's West Mesa escarpment.Pinnacles National Monument
Features spirelike rock formations 500 to 1,200 feet high, with caves and a variety of volcanic features. Closed until further notice due to storm damage.Pipe Spring National Monument
Historic fort and other structures, built here by Mormon pioneers, memorialize the exploration and settlement of the Southwest.Pipestone National Monument
From this quarry American Indians obtained materials (catlinite) for making pipes used in ceremonies.Poverty Point National Monument
Commemorates a culture that thrived during the first and second millennia, B.C. and features some of the largest prehistoric earth works in North America.Rainbow Bridge National Monument
Features the world's largest natural bridge, with a span rising 290 feet above the floor of Bridge Canyon. Public access is by boat across Lake Powell.Russell Cave National Monument
Displays an almost continuous archeological record of human habitation from at least 7,000 B.C. until about A.D. 1650.Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument
Preserves four of six surviving 17th-century mission churches in the US and three of the largest Pueblo Indian villages, which date back at least 7,000 years.Scotts Bluff National Monument
Rising 800 feet above the valley floor, this was a natural landmark along the Oregon Trail, associated with overland migration between 1843-1869 across the Great Plains.Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island
Park includes the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, which played an important role in the history of immigration in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.Sunset Crater National Monument
This volcanic cinder cone with summit crater was formed just before AD 1100; it's upper part is colored as if by sunset.Timpanogos Cave National Monument
Colorful limestone cavern on the side of Mount Timpanogos is noted for helictites -- water-created formations that grow in all directions and shapes.Tonto National Monument
Features well-preserved cliff dwellings occupied during the 13th, 14th, and early 15th centuries by the Salado culture, who farmed in the Salt River Valley.Tuzigoot National Monument
Features remnants of one of the largest Sinagua pueblos -- a two-storied, 110 room structure -- built between AD 1100 and 1450 AD.Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument
Located in the submerged lands off the island of St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands, the monument contains all the elements of a Caribbean tropical marine ecosystem and several threatened and endangered species.Walnut Canyon National Monument
Cliff dwellings were built in shallow caves under ledges of limestone by Pueblo Indians about 800 years ago.White Sands National Monument
Preserves a portion of the world's largest gypsum dunefield, along with the plants and animals that have adapted to this environment.Wupatki National Monument
Ruins of red sandstone pueblos built by American Indians about AD 1065 are preserved here.Yucca House National Monument
Ruins of these large prehistoric Indian pueblos are as yet unexcavated. Not open to the public.
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