Librarian in Training
Jessie Hughes
I have been hiking ever since I was a young girl, and the US National Parks have always captivated me. So far I have traveled and hiked 3 US National Parks: Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee, and Congaree National Park in South Carolina. Preparing for US National Park trips is something I improve on each time I travel, and many of the resources I frequent are included within this libguide.
Search Strategies
Keywords
The main relevant keywords are the 63 National Parks themselves to lead to specific resources that have information on each park. Other main keywords:
- History
- Hiking
- Camping
- Travel
- Flora
- Fauna
- Seasons
- Conditions
Try to avoid search terms using exact park names for this libguide! (i.e. "Great Smoky Mountain")
Welcome Travelers to the US National Parks Libguide!
"A national trail is a gateway into nature’s secret beauties, a portal to the past, a way into solitude and community. It is also an inroad to our national character. Our trails are both irresistible and indispensable."
—STEWART UDALL, US Secretary of the Interior (1961–69); 1920–2010
Are you looking to travel to a US National Park and need some information? Then this is the place for you! The United States is home to some of the most diverse and breathtaking state and national parks, with 63 parks given the title of “National Park” due to their landscape and wildlife. For anyone wishing to visit national parks but not knowing where to start, this libguide has got you covered. Here you can research national park hiking and camping tips, travel essentials, current weather conditions of parks, flora and fauna of the parks, and so much more. The US National Parks are some of the most frequently visited outdoor recreation areas in the country with millions of people visiting them each year, so not only is this libguide extremely relevant it is also important for those seeking up to date information on their next US National Park trip!
What are the US National Parks?
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The first declared US National Park was Yellowstone in the state territories of Montana and Wyoming in the year 1872. It was labeled as "a public park or pleasuring-ground for the benefit and enjoyment of the people" and placed it "under exclusive control of the Secretary of the Interior." After this, many countries and US states followed and there are now over 1,200 National Parks worldwide. In 1916 President Woodrow Wilson signed an act to protect over 35 National Parks in the US and create the National Park Service, a federal bureau in the Department of the Interior.
The National Park System of the United States now comprises more than 400 areas more than 84 million acres in 50 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Saipan, and the Virgin Islands! Today more than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 400+ national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities.