• Wind Cave National Park - Two Worlds

    Wind Cave

    National Park South Dakota

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  • Elk Mountain Campground Closed

    The Elk Mountain Campground is closed and will remain closed through the summer of 2013 due to across the board budget cuts.

Birth of a National Park

First Discovery - Fairgrounds
First Discovery [Fairgrounds] March 20, 1892, J.D. McDonald, E.L.McDonald, A.F. McDonald, John Stabler
NPS Photo
 

Wind Cave National Park was established in 1903. It is the first national park created to protect a cave. It is one of the oldest national parks in the United States.

Click on the links below to learn more about the birth of this national park.

For more information about the history of the park, visit these pages.


  • A Brief History A Brief History

    Learn about the people and events that helped shape Wind Cave National Park. Read More

  • Timeline Timeline

    An extensive history of Wind Cave National Park. Read More

  • Unique boxwork formation found in Wind Cave Unique boxwork formation found in Wind Cave

    Learn more about the geology and formations in Wind Cave, as well as the people who explore it. Read More

Did You Know?

Prairie Dog Barking

Lewis and Clark, while on their journey up the Missouri River in 1804, noted that this "wild dog of the prairie...appears here in infinite numbers." More...