All The National Parks Checklist

It may be your bucket list ambition to visit all the national parks in the United States, or maybe you are just curious to see a checklist of national parks in the country. Well, read on.

Here is an American national parks list in alphabetical order and another organized by state, as well as a list of all national parks in America by the date they were created, and a checklist of US national parks that you can download.

No time to get your ‘All The National Parks’ Checklist right now? Pin It and save it for later:

Free Downloadable US National Parks Checklist

Discover all the National Parks in USA_Downloadable Checklist

Table of Contents

How many national parks are there in the United States?

The short answer is 63. The long answer? Well, it’s actually a little more complicated.

The US National Park Service, which was created back in 1916 by President Woodrow Wilson, actually manages 432 properties or units. To make things confusing, these units are often called “parks”, so some people say there are 432 national parks (lower case), but 63 National Parks (capitalized). I generally say there are 432 units managed by the National Park Service, but 63 national parks, but we are talking technicalities here.

There are 19 main different types of properties or units (one of which are technically National Parks = the 63), plus a random additional 11 properties. These are:

National Parks (63)

2. National Monuments (86)

3. National Parkways (4)

Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina and Virginia
George Washington Memorial Parkway, District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia
John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway, Wyoming
Natchez Trace Parkway, Mississippi

4. National Preserves (19)

5. National Reserves (2)

City of Rocks National Reserve, Idaho
Ebey’s Landing National Historical Reserve, Washington

6. National Recreational Areas (18)

7. National Rivers (4)

Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, Kentucky and Tennessee
Buffalo National River, Arkansas
Mississippi National River and Recreation Areas, Minnesota
Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Missouri

8. National Wild and Scenic Rivers and Riverways (10)

Alagnak Wild River, Alaska
Bluestone National Scenic River, West Virginia
Delaware National Scenic River, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania
Great Egg Harbor National Scenic and Recreational River, New Jersey
Missouri National Recreational River, Nebraska and South Dakota
Niobrara National Scenic River, Nebraska
Obed Wild and Scenic River, Tennessee
Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River, Texas
Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway, Minnesota and Wisconsin
Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River, New York and Pennsylvania

9. National Scenic Trails (6)

Appalachian National Scenic Trail, Maine to Georgia (14 states)
Ice Age National Scenic Trail, Wisconsin
Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail, Alabama, Mississippi, and, Tennessee
New England National Scenic Trail, Massachusetts to Connecticut
North Country National Scenic Trail, Vermont to North Dakota (8 states)
Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail, District of Columbia, Pennsylvania, and Virginia

10. National Seashores (10)

Assateague Island National Seashore, Maryland and Virginia
Canaveral National Seashore, Florida
Cape Cod National Seashore, Massachusetts
Cape Hatteras National Seashore, North Carolina
Cape Lookout National Seashore, North Carolina
Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia
Fire Island National Seashore, New York
Gulf Islands National Seashore, Florida and Mississippi
Padre Island National Seashore, Texas
Point Reyes National Seashore, California

11. National Lakeshores (3)

Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, Wisconsin
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Michigan
Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Michigan

12. National Historical Parks (63)

13. National Historic Sites (76)

14. International Historic Sites (1)

Saint Croix Island International Historic Site, Maine

15. National Battlefields (11)

Antietam National Battlefield, Maryland
Big Hole National Battlefield, Montana
Cowpens National Battlefield, South Carolina
Fort Donelson National Battlefield, Kentucky and Tennessee
Fort Necessity National Battlefield, Pennsylvania
Monocacy National Battlefield, Maryland
Moores Creek National Battlefield, North Carolina
Petersburg National Battlefield, Virginia
Stones River National Battlefield, Tennessee
Tupelo National Battlefield, Mississippi
Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, Missouri

16. National Battlefield Parks (4)

Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, Georgia
Manassas National Battlefield Park, Virginia
Richmond National Battlefield Park, Virginia
River Raisin National Battlefield Park, Michigan

17. National Battlefield Sites (1)

Brices Cross Roads National Battlefield Site, Mississippi

18. National Military Parks (9)

19. National Memorials (31)

20. Other Designations (11)

Catoctin Mountain Park, Maryland
Constitution Gardens, District of Columbia
Fort Washington Park, Maryland
Greenbelt Park, Maryland
National Capital Parks – East, District of Columbia
National Mall and Memorial Parks, District of Columbia
Piscataway Park, Maryland
Prince William Forest Park, Virginia
Rock Creek Park, District of Columbia
White House, District of Columbia
Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, Virginia

The most recent National Park is New River Gorge National Park and Preserve in West Virginia. It was upgraded from a National River in December, 2020.

US National Parks Checklist

Whether you want a quick downloadable; or you just want to see a list of the parks, where they are and when they were established; or you are looking for a more permanent souvenir, here are all the national parks in the USA:

Printable National Park Checklist

Get a printable list of national parks in the US right here.

Alphabetical List of National Parks

National Park Name	State	Year Est.	Order Est.
Acadia	Maine	1919	13th
American Samoa	American Samoa	1988	50th
Arches	Utah	1971	35th
Badlands	South Dakota	1978	38th
Big Bend	Texas	1944	27th
Biscayne	Florida	1980	41st
Black Canyon of the Gunnison	Colorado	1999	55th
Bryce Canyon	Utah	1928	17th
Canyonlands	Utah	1964	31st
Capitol Reef	Utah	1971	36th
Carlsbad Caverns	New Mexico	1930	19th
Channel Islands	California	1980	40th
Congaree	South Carolina	2003	57th
Crater Lake	Oregon	1902	5th
Cuyahoga Valley	Ohia	2000	56th
Death Valley	California	1994	53rd
Denali	Alaska	1917	12th
Dry Tortugas	Florida	1992	51st
Everglades	Florida	1934	20th
Gates of the Arctic	Alaska	1980	42nd
Gateway Arch	Missouri	2018	60th
Glacier	Montana	1910	8th
Glacier Bay	Alaska	1980	43rd
Grand Canyon	Arizona	1919	14th
Grand Teton	Wyoming	1929	18th
Great Basin	Nevada	1986	49th
Great Sand Dunes	Colorado	2004	58th
Great Smoky Mountains	Tennessee	1934	21st
Guadalupe Mountains	Texas	1966	32nd
Haleakala	Hawaii	1961	29th
Hawaii Volcanoes	Hawaii	1916	10th
Hot Springs	Arkansas	1921	16th
Indiana Dunes	Indiana	2019	61st
Isle Royale	Michigan	1940	25th
Joshua Tree	California	1994	54th
Katmai	Alaska	1980	44th
Kenai Fjords	Alaska	1980	45th
Kings Canyon	California	1940	24th
Kobuk Valley	Alaska	1980	46th
Lake Clark	Alaska	1980	47th
Lassen Volcanic	California	1916	11th
Mammoth Cave	Kentucky	1941	26th
Mesa Verde	Colorado	1906	7th
Mount Rainier	Washington	1899	4th
New River Gorge	West Virginia	2020	63rd
North Cascades	Washington	1968	33rd
Olympic	Washington	1938	23rd
Petrified Forest	Arizona	1962	30th
Pinnacles	California	2013	59th
Redwood	California	1968	34th
Rocky Mountain	Colorado	1915	9th
Saguaro	Arizona	1994	52nd
Sequoia	California	1890	2nd
Shenandoah	Virginia	1935	22nd
Theodore Roosevelt	North Dakota	1978	39th
Virgin Islands	US Virgin Islands	1956	28th
Voyageurs	Minnesota	1975	37th
White Sands	New Mexico	2019	62nd
Wind Cave	South Dakota	1903	6th
Wrangell – St. Elias	Alaska	1980	48th
Yellowstone	Wyoming, Montana, Idaho	1872	1st
Yosemite	California	1890	3rd
Zion	Utah	1919	15th

All National Parks in the US in the Order They Were Established

Order Est.	Year Est.	National Park Name	State
1st	March 1, 1872	Yellowstone	Wyoming, Montana, Idaho
2nd	September 25, 1890	Sequoia	California
3rd	October 1, 1890	Yosemite	California
4th	March 2, 1899	Mount Rainier	Washington
5th	May 22, 1902	Crater Lake	Oregon
6th	January 9, 1903	Wind Cave	South Dakota
7th	June 29, 1906	Mesa Verde	Colorado
8th	May 11, 1910	Glacier	Montana
9th	January 26, 1915	Rocky Mountain	Colorado
10th	August 1, 1916	Hawaii Volcanoes	Hawaii
11th	August 9, 1916	Lassen Volcanic	California
12th	February 26, 1917	Denali	Alaska
13th	February 26, 1919	Acadia	Maine
14th	February 26, 1919	Grand Canyon	Arizona
15th	November 19, 1919	Zion	Utah
16th	March 4, 1921	Hot Springs	Arkansas
17th	February 25, 1928	Bryce Canyon	Utah
18th	February 26, 1929	Grand Teton	Wyoming
19th	May 14, 1930	Carlsbad Caverns	New Mexico
20th	May 30, 1934	Everglades	Florida
21st	June 15, 1934	Great Smoky Mountains	Tennessee
22nd	December 26, 1935	Shenandoah	Virginia
23rd	June 29, 1938	Olympic	Washington
24th	March 4, 1940	Kings Canyon	California
25th	April 3, 1940	Isle Royale	Michigan
26th	July 1, 1941	Mammoth Cave	Kentucky
27th	June 12, 1944	Big Bend	Texas
28th	August 2, 1956	Virgin Islands	US Virgin Islands
29th	July 1, 1961	Haleakala	Hawaii
30th	December 9 , 1962	Petrified Forest	Arizona
31st	September 12, 1964	Canyonlands	Utah
32nd	October 15, 1966	Guadalupe Mountains	Texas
33rd	October 2, 1968	Redwood	California
34th	October 2, 1968	North Cascades	Washington
35th	November 12, 1971	Arches	Utah
36th	December 18, 1971	Capitol Reef	Utah
37th	April 8, 1975	Voyageurs	Minnesota
38th	November 10, 1978	Theodore Roosevelt	North Dakota
39th	November 10, 1978	Badlands	South Dakota
40th	March 5, 1980	Channel Islands	California
41st	June 28, 1980	Biscayne	Florida
42nd	December 2, 1980	Gates of the Arctic	Alaska
43rd	December 2, 1980	Glacier Bay	Alaska
44th	December 2, 1980	Katmai	Alaska
45th	December 2, 1980	Kenai Fjords	Alaska
46th	December 2, 1980	Kobuk Valley	Alaska
47th	December 2, 1980	Lake Clark	Alaska
48th	December 2, 1980	Wrangell – St. Elias	Alaska
49th	October 27, 1986	Great Basin	Nevada
50th	October 31, 1988	American Samoa	American Samoa
51st	October 26, 1992	Dry Tortugas	Florida
52nd	October 14, 1994	Saguaro	Arizona
53rd	October 31, 1994	Death Valley	California
54th	October 31, 1994	Joshua Tree	California
55th	October 21, 1999	Black Canyon of the Gunnison	Colorado
56th	October 11, 2000	Cuyahoga Valley	Ohia
57th	November 10, 2003	Congaree	South Carolina
58th	September 13, 2004	Great Sand Dunes	Colorado
59th	January 15, 2013	Pinnacles	California
60th	February 22, 2018	Gateway Arch	Missouri
61st	February 15, 2019	Indiana Dunes	Indiana
62nd	December 20, 2019	White Sands	New Mexico
63rd	December 27, 2020	New River Gorge	West Virginia

U.S. National Park List by State

State	National Park Name	Year Est.
Alaska	Denali	1917
	Gates of the Arctic	1980
	Glacier Bay	1980
	Katmai	1980
	Kenai Fjords	1980
	Kobuk Valley	1980
	Lake Clark	1980
	Wrangell – St. Elias	1980
American Samoa	American Samoa	1988
Arizona	Grand Canyon	1919
	Petrified Forest	1962
	Saguaro	1994
Arkansas	Hot Springs	1921
California	Channel Islands	1980
	Death Valley	1994
	Joshua Tree	1994
	Kings Canyon	1940
	Lassen Volcanic	1916
	Pinnacles	2013
	Redwood	1968
	Sequoia	1890
	Yosemite	1890
Colorado	Black Canyon of the Gunnison	1999
	Great Sand Dunes	2004
	Mesa Verde	1906
	Rocky Mountain	1915
Florida	Biscayne	1980
	Dry Tortugas	1992
	Everglades	1934
Hawaii	Haleakala	1961
	Hawaii Volcanoes	1916
Wyoming, Montana, Idaho	Yellowstone	1872
Indiana	Indiana Dunes	2019
Kentucky	Mammoth Cave	1941
Maine	Acadia	1919
Michigan	Isle Royale	1940
Minnesota	Voyageurs	1971
Missouri	Gateway Arch	2018
Montana	Glacier	1910
	Yellowstone	1872
Nevada	Great Basin	1986
New Mexico	Carlsbad Caverns	1930
	White Sands	2019
North Dakota	Theodore Roosevelt	1978
Ohia	Cuyahoga Valley	2000
Oregon	Crater Lake	1902
South Carolina	Congaree	2003
South Dakota	Badlands	1978
	Wind Cave	1903
Tennessee	Great Smoky Mountains	1934
Texas	Big Bend	1944
	Guadalupe Mountains	1966
US Virgin Islands	Virgin Islands	1956
Utah	Arches	1971
	Bryce Canyon	1928
	Canyonlands	1964
	Capitol Reef	1971
	Zion	1919
Virginia	Shenandoah	1935
Washington	Mount Rainier	1899
	North Cascades	1968
	Olympic	1938
West Virginia	New River Gorge	2020
Wyoming	Grand Teton	1929
	Yellowstone	1872

National Parks Checklist Poster

I have provided a free downloadable of all US national parks for you to use to track your national parks adventures. However, if you prefer a large national park checklist poster, then you can pick one up online.

The national parks of the USA checklist poster is 11 x 17 inches and is printed on cardstock. These make a great gift (for someone else or for yourself – no judgment!)

BUY IT ON AMAZON NOW

National Parks Checklist Map

A really fun way to keep track of your visits the national parks is a scratch off map. This 24 x 17-inch national parks map checklist comes on professional grade quality cardstock paper. There are golden trees placed for each park, and as you visit the park, you scratch off the tree, to reveal a colorful picture of the park. The trees are all numbered for easy reference. This national park map checklist also makes a great gift.

BUY IT ON AMAZON NOW

National Park Checklist Book

If you prefer something more portable, you can get a journal for your national parks check off list. This has the added advantage that you can record your favorite memories from each of your trips.

National Parks Checklist T Shirt

BUY IT NOW

For a national park check off list with a difference, check out this cool T-shirt.

It has an all national parks map, with a key code and a complete list of all the national parks in the US.

GET IT HERE

Enjoy the national parks!

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US National Parks Checklist

About the Author

James Ian is a national park, camping and hiking expert.

He has dedicated his life to travel, visiting more than 80 countries, all 7 continents and most of the national parks in the United States. With over 35 years experience in the travel industry, James has worked on cruise ships, at resorts and hotels, and as a travel planner who’s helped hundreds of people plan successful trips to US national parks.

Based on his experience visiting our national parks multiple times, in-depth research and expertise as a travel planner, James has published detailed itineraries for many of the major national parks in the US. These itineraries, as well as in-depth park guides, and other resources will help you have your own incredible trip to US national parks without stress and hassle.

As a national park expert, James has contributed to many publications, including USA Today, Newsweek, Time Business News, Savoteur, Best Trip, and Wired.

Read more…

I’m a member of the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

All the National Parks Checklist

How many national parks are there in the United States?