History & Culture
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For Kids & Teachers
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Appalachian National Scenic Trail - Maine to Georgia, CT,GA,MA,MD,ME,NC,NH,NJ,NY,PA,TN,VA,VT,WV | |
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The Appalachian Trail (A.T.) is more than 2,175-mile long footpath stretching through 14 eastern states from Maine to Georgia. Conceived in 1921 and first completed in 1937, it traverses the wild, scenic, wooded, pastoral, and culturally significant lands of the Appalachian Mountains. The A.T. is proudly America's first national scenic trail! |
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Appomattox Court House National Historical Park - Appomattox, VA | |
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On Palm Sunday, 1865 Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House, Virginia signaled the end of the Southern States' attempt to create a separate nation. It set the stage for the emergence of an expanded and more powerful Federal government. In a sense the struggle in Philadelphia, over how much power the central government would hold, had finally been settled. |
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Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial - Arlington, VA | |
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Arlington House was the home of Robert E. Lee and his family for 30 years and is uniquely associated with the Washington and Custis families. George Washington Parke Custis built the house to be his home and a memorial to George Washington, his step-grandfather. It is now preserved as a memorial to General Lee, who gained the respect of Americans in both the North and the South. |
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Want to live on the edge? Visit a place recreated each day by ocean wind and waves. Life on Assateague Island has adapted to an existence on the move. Explore sandy beaches, salt marshes, maritime forests and coastal bays. Rest, relax, recreate and enjoy some time on the edge of the continent. |
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Blue Ridge Parkway - Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia and North Carolina, NC,VA | |
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A drive down the Blue Ridge Parkway is slow paced and relaxing. Almost any overlook or trail will reveal much of the natural and cultural history here. Explore the many communities along the route that make our region so special. Enjoy the view, but watch the road! The CLOSURES link to the left has details on a few areas of construction. |
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Booker T Washington National Monument - Hardy, VA | |
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On April 5, 1856, Booker T. Washington was born a slave on the 207-arce farm of James Burroughs. After the Civil War, Washington became founder and first principal of Tuskegee Normal and Industrial School. Later as an adviser, author and orator, his past would influence his philosophies as the most influential African American of his era. Come explore his birthplace. |
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Cape Henry Memorial - Fort Story, VA | |
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HERE AT CAPE HENRY FIRST LANDED IN AMERICA, UPON 26 APRIL 1607, THOSE ENGLISH COLONISTS WHO, UPON 13 MAY 1607, ESTABLISHED AT JAMESTOWN VIRGINIA, THE FIRST PERMANENT ENGLISH SETTLEMENT IN AMERICA. Upon this inscription rest a granite cross erected in 1935 by the National Society Daughters of the American Colonists, in memory of the wooden cross erected by the English colonists in 1607. |
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Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail - Various States, VA,MD,DE,DC | |
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Imagine a world of lush forests, proud people and water teeming with life. Such was the Chesapeake that Captain John Smith and his fellow Englishmen encountered as they explored this "very goodly bay" and its rivers more than 400 years ago. Follow in the wake of Smith's journeys on the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail, America's first national water trail. |
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Cedar Creek & Belle Grove National Historical Park - Middletown and Strasburg, VA | |
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Cedar Creek & Belle Grove National Historical Park preserves and interprets key historical sites and events related to the American Civil War and the rich cultural heritage of the Shenandoah Valley. This includes the Battle of Cedar Creek, a decisive October 19, 1864 Union victory and Belle Grove, the antebellum plantation manor house of Isaac Hite (brother-in-law of President James Madison). |
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Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network - Chesapeake Bay Watershed, DC,MD,NY,PA,VA,WV | |
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Experience the diversity of the Chesapeake Bay through the Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network - a system of over 160 parks, refuges, museums, historic communities and water trails in the Bay watershed. Each of these sites tells a piece of the vast Chesapeake story. For a comprehensive guide to the Gateways Network, visit the Gateways website. |
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Claude Moore Colonial Farm - McLean, VA | |
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Step back in time and experience life on a small farm in northern Virginia. Living history programs and demonstrations offer a glimpse of what life was like for a poor farm family, just before the Revolutionary War. |
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Colonial National Historical Park - Jamestown and Yorktown, VA | |
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It began on the swampy marshes of Jamestown in 1607. It ended on the battle scarred landscape of Yorktown in 1781. It was 174 years of hope, frustration, adventure and growth that saw a lonely settlement of 104 men and boys grow into a nation of 13 colonies of 3 million people, of many races and many beliefs. Jamestown and Yorktown mark the beginning and end of English Colonial America. |
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Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park - Fredericksburg, VA | |
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Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Wilderness, and Spotsylvania - more than 85,000 men wounded; 15,000 killed. No place more vividly reflects the Civil War's tragic cost, in all its forms. These places reveal the trials of a community and nation at war. |
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George Washington Memorial Parkway - DC, MD, VA | |
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This is the "Road to Adventure" - originally designed as a grand gateway and greenway to the Nation's Capital. Here, you can learn about the First President and the development of America. As an oasis amid urban development, the Parkway has a variety of park sites that provide opportunities for everything from quiet contemplation to nature exploration to active recreation. |
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George Washington Birthplace National Monument - Westmoreland County, VA | |
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George Washington, America's first and greatest hero, was crucial to the establishment of the United States as a nation founded on the principles of liberty. George Washington Birthplace preserves the heart of the Washington lands and a memorial plantation. Here, in the peace and beauty of this place untouched by time, the staunch character of our hero comes to the imagination. |
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Great Falls Park - McLean, VA | |
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At Great Falls, the Potomac River builds up speed and force as it falls over a series of steep, jagged rocks and flows through the narrow Mather Gorge. The Patowmack Canal offers a glimpse into the early history of this country. Great Falls Park has many opportunities to explore history and nature, all in a beautiful 800-acre park only 15 miles from the Nation's Capital. |
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Green Springs - Louisa County, VA | |
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Green Springs National Historic Landmark District encompasses over 14,000 acres in the piedmont of central Virginia. The homes and farms are a continuum of Virginia rural vernacular architecture, reflective and respectful of their location, preserved in their original context with little alteration. Here the landscape has been enhanced, rather than despoiled, by the presence of civilization. |
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Jamestown National Historic Site - James City County, VA | |
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Come, walk in the steps of Captain John Smith and Pocahontas as we explore America's beginnings. Here is where the successful English colonization of North America began. Here is where the first English representative government met and where the first arrival of Africans to English North American was recorded in 1619. Jamestown, the Beginning of America. |
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Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove on the Potomac - Arlington, VA | |
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Formerly known as Columbia Island, this park was renamed in honor of Lady Bird Johnson and her campaign to beautify Washington D.C. The Grove, a site chosen by Lady Bird herself, is the site that the Johnsons often stopped to admire the city. Today, the Grove is relaxing spot for people to watch the river, view Washington D.C., and to recreate. |
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Maggie L Walker National Historic Site - Richmond, VA | |
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Richmond, VA. is home to many famous Americans including one of the nation's great entrepreneurial spirits, Maggie Lena Walker. Come visit her home in the Jackson Ward community. Through exhibits and guided tours you will experience the life of this great African American woman, who was born during slavery and achieved success despite segregation and the limited opportunities offered to her race. |
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Manassas National Battlefield Park - Manassas, VA | |
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In the summer of 1861, enthusiastic volunteers in colorful uniforms gathered to fight the first major land battle of the war. Confident that their foes would turn and run, neither side anticipated the smoke, din and death of battle. Nearly one year later, both sides met again on the same battlefield with the Confederates winning a solid victory bringing them to the height of their power. |
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Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail - NC,SC,TN,VA | |
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The Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail travels through VA, TN, NC & SC, retracing the route of patriot militia as they tracked down the British. Eventually the two forces clashed, ending in patriot victory at the battle of Kings Mountain. The trail is still under development through partnerships, but the public has many places to visit and walk today. |
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Petersburg National Battlefield - Petersburg, VA | |
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"Dear Mother, we remained in the broiling sun in little pits the size of a common grave though not half so well furnished. There we lay and everytime a man Show his head Zip would come a minnie." This pressure was central to a soldier's experience in a 292 day siege. Here, Union forces slowly cut off Petersburg from the world and brought the fall of the Confederacy. |
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Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail - the corridor between the Chesapeake Bay and the Allegheny Highlands, DC,MD,PA,VA | |
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The Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail is a network of locally-managed trails between the mouth of the Potomac River and the Allegheny Highlands. Through five geographic regions, the varied Trail segments are a means to explore the origins and continuing evolution of the Nation. As of mid-2009, 830 miles of existing and planned trails have been recognized as segments of the Trail. |
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Prince William Forest Park - Triangle, VA | |
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Prince William Forest Park is an oasis of natural beauty and human history located only 35 miles south of Washington, DC. 37 miles of hiking trails and 21 miles of bicycle-accessible roads and trails traverse this 15,000 acre piedmont forest. Beneath its canopy lies evidence of human history reaching back to 8,000 B.C. |
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Richmond National Battlefield Park - Richmond, VA | |
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Richmond's story is not just the tale of one large Civil War battle, nor even one important campaign. Instead, the park's resources include a naval battle, a key industrial complex, the Confederacy's largest hospital, dozens of miles of elaborate original fortifications, and the evocative spots where determined soldiers stood paces apart and fought with rifles, reaping a staggering human cost. |
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Shenandoah National Park - the Blue Ridge Mountains near Luray, VA | |
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Gazing across the horizon from the peaks of Shenandoah National Park it's hard to believe you are just 75 miles from the bustle of our nation's capital. Take Skyline Drive along the crest of the mountains through the woods and past spectacular vistas. Hike in the shade of oak trees along the Appalachian Trail, discover the stories from Shenandoah's past, or just relax in the wonder of wilderness. |
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Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail - DC, MD, VA | |
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Come on a journey to remember and commemorate the dramatic chain of events, people and places that led to the birth of our National Anthem. The story of the Star-Spangled Banner was shaped by the events of the Chesapeake Campaign during the War of 1812. From February 1813 until February 1815, the Chesapeake Bay was the center of a fierce struggle between the British and Americans. |
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Theodore Roosevelt Island Park - Arlington, VA | |
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One of Theodore Roosevelt's greatest legacies was his dedication to conservation. Today, this island stands as a fitting memorial to the outdoorsman, naturalist, and visionary who was our 26th President. |
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Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts - Vienna, VA | |
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No matter what your age or taste in shows, you'll find something you like onstage at Wolf Trap. Multiple amphitheaters in the park present performances from May - September such as musicals, dance, opera, jazz, popular music, and country. A good time to explore the beauty and history of the park without the crowds is October - April. |
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Yorktown National Cemetery - Yorktown, VA | |
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On October 19, 1781, a British army under General Charles Lord Cornwallis was forced to surrender to General Washington's combined American and French army. Upon hearing of their defeat, British Prime Minister Frederick Lord North is reputed to have said, "Oh God, it's all over." And it was. The victory secured independence for the United States and significantly changed the course of world history. |