The National Park System of the United States is the collection of physical properties owned or administered by the National Park Service. This includes all areas designated National Parks and most National Monuments, as well as several other types of protected areas of the United States.

As of 2006, there are 390 "units" of the National Park System. However, this number is somewhat misleading. For example: Denali National Park and Preserve is counted as two units, whereas Fort Moultrie National Monument is not counted as a unit because it is considered a feature of Fort Sumter National Monument.
In addition to areas of the National Park System, the National Park Service also provides technical and financial assistance to several "affiliated areas" authorized by Congress. Affiliated areas are marked on the lists below.
The National Register of Historic Places is administered by the Park Service (with nearly 79,000 entries) and automatically includes all National Park System areas designated due to their historic significance. This includes all National Historical Parks/Historic Sites, National Battlefields/Military Parks, National Memorials, and some National Monuments.
National Parks
As of 2005, there are 58 officially-designated National Parks in the United States and its dependent areas.
Disbanded National Parks
- Abraham Lincoln National Park, 1916–1939, now Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site
- Fort McHenry National Park, 1925–1939, redesignated uniquely, Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine
- Hawaii National Park, 1916–1961, divided into Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and Haleakala National Park
- Mackinac National Park, 1875–1895, now Mackinac Island State Park
- Platt National Park, 1906–1976, now Chickasaw National Recreation Area
- Sullys Hill National Park, 1904–1931, now Sullys Hill National Game Preserve (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
National Monuments
Disbanded National Monuments
Name | Established | Disbanded | Result |
---|---|---|---|
Papago Saguaro National Monument | January 31, 1914 | April 7, 1930 | Transferred to Arizona |
Lewis and Clark Cavern National Monument | May 11, 1908 | August 24, 1937 | Transferred to Montana |
Father Millet Cross National Monument | August 10, 1933 | September 7, 1949 | Transferred to New York |
Wheeler National Monument | August 10, 1933 | August 3, 1950 | Returned to United States Forest Service |
Holy Cross National Monument | August 10, 1933 | August 3, 1950 | Returned to United States Forest Service |
Shoshone Cavern National Monument | September 21, 1909 | May 17, 1954 | Transferred to Cody, Wyoming. |
Old Kasaan National Monument | October 25, 1916 | July 26, 1955 | Transferred to United States Forest Service |
Castle Pinckney National Monument | August 10, 1933 | March 29, 1956 | Transferred to South Carolina |
Verendrye National Monument | June 29, 1917 | July 30, 1956 | Transferred to North Dakota |
Fossil Cycad National Monument | October 21, 1922 | August 1, 1956 | Transferred to Bureau of Land Management |
National Preserves
- Aniakchak National Monument and Preserve
- Bering Land Bridge National Preserve
- Big Cypress National Preserve
- Big Thicket National Preserve
- Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve
- Denali National Park and Preserve
- Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve
- Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve
- Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve
- Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve
- Katmai National Park and Preserve
- Lake Clark National Park and Preserve
- Little River Canyon National Preserve
- Mojave National Preserve
- Noatak National Preserve
- Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve
- Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve
- Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve
- Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve
- Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve
National Historical Parks
- Adams National Historical Park
- Appomattox Court House National Historical Park
- Boston National Historical Park
- Cane River Creole National Historical Park
- Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park
- Chaco Culture National Historical Park
- Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park
- Colonial National Historical Park
- Cape Henry Memorial
- Colonial Parkway
- Jamestown National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Yorktown Battlefield
- Yorktown National Cemetery
- Cumberland Gap National Historical Park
- Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park
- George Rogers Clark National Historical Park
- Harpers Ferry National Historical Park
- Hopewell Culture National Historical Park
- Independence National Historical Park
- Benjamin Franklin National Memorial (affiliated area)
- Deshler-Morris House
- Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Independence Hall
- National Constitution Center
- Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial
- Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve
- Kalaupapa National Historical Park
- Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park
- Keweenaw National Historical Park
- Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park
- Lewis and Clark National and State Historical Parks
- Lowell National Historical Park
- Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park
- Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park
- Minute Man National Historical Park
- Morristown National Historical Park
- Natchez National Historical Park
- New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park
- New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park
- Nez Perce National Historical Park
- Pecos National Historical Park
- Pu'uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park
- Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park
- Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve
- San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
- San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park
- San Juan Island National Historical Park
- Saratoga National Historical Park
- Sitka National Historical Park
- Tumacácori National Historical Park
- Valley Forge National Historical Park
- War in the Pacific National Historical Park
- Women's Rights National Historical Park
National Historic Sites
- Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Site
- Aleutian World War II National Historic Area (affiliated area)
- Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site
- Andersonville National Historic Site
- Andrew Johnson National Historic Site
- Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site
- Boston African American National Historic Site
- Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site
- Historic Camden Revolutionary War Site (affiliated area)
- Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site
- Carter G. Woodson Home National Historic Site
- Charles Pinckney National Historic Site
- Chicago Portage National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Chimney Rock National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Christiansted National Historic Site
- Clara Barton National Historic Site
- Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site
- Edison National Historic Site
- Eisenhower National Historic Site
- Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site
- Eugene O'Neill National Historic Site
- First Ladies National Historic Site
- Ford's Theatre National Historic Site
- Fort Bowie National Historic Site
- Fort Davis National Historic Site
- Fort Laramie National Historic Site
- Fort Larned National Historic Site
- Fort Point National Historic Site
- Fort Raleigh National Historic Site
- Fort Scott National Historic Site
- Fort Smith National Historic Site
- Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site
- Fort Vancouver National Historic Site
- Frederick Douglass National Historic Site
- Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site
- Friendship Hill National Historic Site
- Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Golden Spike National Historic Site
- Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site
- Hampton National Historic Site
- Harry S Truman National Historic Site
- Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
- Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site
- Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site
- Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site
- James A. Garfield National Historic Site
- Jamestown National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Jimmy Carter National Historic Site
- John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site
- John Muir National Historic Site
- Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site
- Lincoln Home National Historic Site
- Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site
- Longfellow National Historic Site
- Lower East Side Tenement National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- McLoughlin House National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site
- Manzanar National Historic Site
- Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site
- Martin Van Buren National Historic Site
- Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site
- Minuteman Missile National Historic Site
- Nicodemus National Historic Site
- Ninety Six National Historic Site
- Palo Alto Battlefield National Historic Site
- Pennsylvania Avenue National Historic Site
- Puukohola Heiau National Historic Site
- Sagamore Hill National Historic Site
- Saint Croix Island International Historic Site
- Saint Paul's Church National Historic Site
- Saint-Gaudens National Historic Site
- Salem Maritime National Historic Site
- San Juan National Historic Site
- Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site
- Sewall-Belmont House National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Springfield Armory National Historic Site
- Steamtown National Historic Site
- Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace National Historic Site
- Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site
- Thomas Cole National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Thomas Stone National Historic Site
- Touro Synagogue National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site
- Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site
- Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site
- Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site
- Washita Battlefield National Historic Site
- Weir Farm National Historic Site
- Whitman Mission National Historic Site
- William Howard Taft National Historic Site
Disbanded National Historic Sites
- Atlanta Campaign National Historic Site, October 13, 1944 – September 21, 1950, transferred to state of Georgia.
- Mar-A-Lago National Historic Site, October 21, 1972 – December 23, 1980, returned to Post Foundation.
- St. Thomas National Historic Site, December 24, 1960 – February 5, 1975, transferred to Virgin Islands.
Proposed National Historic Sites
- Ronald Reagan Boyhood Home National Historic Site (authorized by Public Law 107-137)
- Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site (authorized by Public Law 106-464)
- William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home National Historic Site (H.R. 4192)
National Battlefield Parks
National Military Parks
- Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park
- Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park
- Gettysburg National Military Park
- Guilford Courthouse National Military Park
- Horseshoe Bend National Military Park
- Kings Mountain National Military Park
- Pea Ridge National Military Park
- Shiloh National Military Park
- Vicksburg National Military Park
National Battlefields
- Antietam National Battlefield
- Big Hole National Battlefield
- Cowpens National Battlefield
- Fort Donelson National Battlefield
- Fort Necessity National Battlefield
- Monocacy National Battlefield
- Moores Creek National Battlefield
- Petersburg National Battlefield
- Stones River National Battlefield
- Tupelo National Battlefield
- Wilson's Creek National Battlefield
National Battlefield Site
National Memorials
- AIDS Memorial Grove National Memorial (affiliated area)
- African American Civil War Memorial
- American Memorial Park (affiliated area)
- Arkansas Post National Memorial
- Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial
- Benjamin Franklin National Memorial (affiliated area)
- Cape Henry Memorial
- Chamizal National Memorial
- Coronado National Memorial
- David Berger National Memorial
- De Soto National Memorial
- Father Marquette National Memorial (affiliated area)
- Federal Hall National Memorial
- Flight 93 National Memorial
- Fort Caroline National Memorial
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial
- General Grant National Memorial
- George Mason Memorial
- Hamilton Grange National Memorial
- Jefferson National Expansion Memorial
- John Ericsson National Memorial
- Johnstown Flood National Memorial
- Korean War Veterans Memorial
- Lincoln Memorial
- Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial
- Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac
- Mount Rushmore National Memorial
- National World War II Memorial
- Oklahoma City National Memorial (affiliated area)
- Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial
- Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial (affiliated area)
- Red Hill Patrick Henry National Memorial (affiliated area)
- Roger Williams National Memorial
- Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial
- Theodore Roosevelt Island National Memorial
- Thomas Jefferson Memorial
- United States Navy Memorial (affiliated area)
- USS Arizona Memorial
- Vietnam Veterans Memorial
- Washington Monument
- Wright Brothers National Memorial
Disbanded National Memorials
- New Echota Marker National Memorial, August 10, 1933 - September 21, 1950, transferred to state of Georgia.
Proposed National Memorials
- Adams Memorial (authorized by Public Law 107-62)
- Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial (authorized by Public Law 107-117)
- Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial (authorized by Public Law 104-333)
- Mount Soledad National Memorial (authorized by Public Law 108-447)
National Recreation Areas
- Amistad National Recreation Area
- Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area
- Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area
- Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area
- Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area
- Chickasaw National Recreation Area
- Curecanti National Recreation Area
- Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
- Gateway National Recreation Area
- Gauley River National Recreation Area
- Glen Canyon National Recreation Area
- Golden Gate National Recreation Area
- Lake Chelan National Recreation Area
- Lake Mead National Recreation Area
- Lake Meredith National Recreation Area
- Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area
- Mississippi National River and Recreation Area
- Ross Lake National Recreation Area
- Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
- Whiskeytown National Recreation Area
Disbanded National Recreation Areas
- Cuyahoga Valley National Rec. Area, December 27, 1974 – October 11, 2000, redesignated Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
- Shasta Lake Recreation Area, May 22, 1945 – July 1, 1948, transferred to Forest Service.
- Lake Texoma Recreation Area, April 18, 1946 – June 30, 1949, returned to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
- Millerton Lake Recreation Area, May 22, 1945 – November 1, 1957, transferred to state of California.
- Flaming Gorge Recreation Area, July 22, 1963 – October 1, 1968, transferred to Forest Service.
- Shadow Mountain Recreation Area, June 27, 1952 – March 1, 1979, transferred to Forest Service.
National Seashores
- Assateague Island National Seashore
- Canaveral National Seashore
- Cape Cod National Seashore
- Cape Hatteras National Seashore
- Cape Lookout National Seashore
- Cumberland Island National Seashore
- Fire Island National Seashore
- Gulf Islands National Seashore
- Padre Island National Seashore
- Point Reyes National Seashore
National Lakeshores
National Rivers
Below are the National Rivers (and similar designations) administered as distinct units of the National Park System. There are also some National Wild and Scenic Rivers managed as part of the parks through which they flow. Others are administered by the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and various state or local agencies.
- Alagnak Wild River
- Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area
- Bluestone National Scenic River
- Buffalo National River
- Great Egg Harbor Scenic and Recreational River
- Middle Delaware National Scenic River
- Mississippi National River and Recreation Area
- Missouri National Recreational River
- New River Gorge National River
- Niobrara National Scenic River
- Obed Wild and Scenic River
- Ozark National Scenic Riverways
- Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River
- Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway
- Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River
National Reserves
Parkways
National Historic and Scenic Trails
These National Park Service trails are part of the larger National Trails System.
- Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail
- Appalachian National Scenic Trail
- California National Historic Trail
- El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail
- Ice Age National Scenic Trail
- Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail
- Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail
- Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail
- Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail
- North Country National Scenic Trail
- Old Spanish National Historic Trail
- Oregon National Historic Trail
- Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail
- Pony Express National Historic Trail
- Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail
- Santa Fe National Historic Trail
- Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail
- Trail of Tears National Historic Trail
National Cemeteries
Most National Cemeteries are administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, although a few are managed by the National Park Service and the U.S. Army.
- Andersonville National Cemetery
- Andrew Johnson National Cemetery
- Antietam National Cemetery
- Battleground National Cemetery
- Chalmette National Cemetery
- Custer National Cemetery
- Fort Donelson National Cemetery
- Fredericksburg National Cemetery
- Gettysburg National Cemetery
- Poplar Grove National Cemetery
- Shiloh National Cemetery
- Stones River National Cemetery
- Vicksburg National Cemetery
- Yorktown National Cemetery
Transferred National Cemeteries
- Chattanooga National Cemetery, transferred to NPS from War Deptartment August 10, 1933, returned to War Department, December 7, 1944.
National Heritage Areas
The National Park Service provides limited assistance to National Heritage Areas, but does not administer them.
Other NPS Protected Areas and Administrative Groups
- Catoctin Mountain Park
- Ice Age National Scientific Reserve (affiliated area)
- International Peace Garden (affiliated area)
- Inupiat Heritage Center (affiliated area)
- Maine Acadian Culture (affiliated area)
- National Capital Parks-East
- Anacostia Park
- Baltimore-Washington Parkway
- Capitol Hill Parks
- Carter G. Woodson Home National Historic Site
- Fort Dupont Park
- Fort Foote Park
- Fort Washington Park
- Frederick Douglass National Historic Site
- Greenbelt Park
- Harmony Hall
- Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens
- Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site
- Oxon Cove Park and Oxon Hill Farm
- Oxon Run Parkway
- Piscataway Park
- Sewall-Belmont House National Historic Site (affiliated area)
- Suitland Parkway
- National Mall and Memorial Parks (National Capital Parks-Central)
- African American Civil War Memorial
- Constitution Gardens
- East Potomac Park
- Ford's Theatre National Historic Site
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial
- George Mason Memorial
- Thomas Jefferson Memorial
- John Ericsson National Memorial
- Korean War Veterans Memorial
- Lincoln Memorial
- National Mall
- Pennsylvania Avenue National Historic Site
- Old Post Office Tower
- United States Navy Memorial (affiliated area)
- Vietnam Veterans Memorial
- Washington Monument
- West Potomac Park
- New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail Route (affiliated area)
- President's Park
- Prince William Forest Park
- Rock Creek Park
- Battleground National Cemetery
- Meridian Hill Park
- The Old Stone House
- Peirce Mill
- Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway
- Roosevelt Campobello International Park (affiliated area)
- Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts
There are also various administrative groups of listed parks, such as Manhattan Sites, National Parks of New York Harbor, and Western Arctic National Parklands. The NPS also owns conservation easements (but not the land itself) for part of the area called the Green Springs National Historic Landmark District.
Disbanded Other Areas
- National Visitor Center, Washington, DC, March 12, 1968 - December 29, 1981, transferred to Department of Transportation.
- John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, June 16, 1972 - July 21, 1994, transferred to Kennedy Center Trustees.