2009 National Park Historic Site Statistics

Historic Site and National Park Statistics

Top Ten Most Visited Historic Sites 2009

2009 Rank	National Park Site	Recreation Visits (2008)	2008 Rank
1	Great Smokey Mountains National Park	9,044,010	1
2	Lincoln Memorial	5,225,570	2
3	Vietnam Veterans Memorial	4,437,771	4
4	Grand Canyon National Park	4,348,068	3
5	San Francisco National Historic Park	4,152,497	6
6	World War II Memorial	4,118,528	5
7	Castle Clinton National Memorial	4,080,152	8
8	Independence National Historic Park	3,967,694	7
9	Statue of Liberty National Monument	3,829,483	10
10	Chesapeake & Ohio Canal NHP	3,751,861	13

Dropped Out of Top Ten: Korean War Veterans Memorial

Source: National Park Service. (National Historic Sites does not include National Parkways, Recreation Areas, or Shorelines)

Top Ten Most Visited National Parks, Parkways,
and Recreation Areas 2009

2009 Rank	National Park Site	Recreation Visits (2009)	2008 Rank
1	Blue Ridge Parkway	15,936,316	1
2	Golden Gate National Recreation Area	15,036,372	2
3	Great Smokey Mountains National Park	9,491,437	4
4	Gateway National Recreation Area	9,010,522	3
5	Lake Mead National Recreation Area	7,668,689	5
6	George Washington Memorial Parkway	6,938,309	6
7	Natchez Trace Parkway	5,934,363	7
8	Lincoln Memorial	5,225,570	9
9	Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area	5,213,030	8
10	Vietnam Veterans Memorial	4,437,771	12

Dropped Out of Top Ten: Cape Cod National Seashore

Source: National Park Service.

National Park Attendance Losers

Falling Back

Rank Park, % Decrease
351. Fort Washington Park, -29.9%
352. Gettysburg NMP, -30.4%
353. Russell Cave NM, -33.8%
354. Longfellow NHS, -34.7%
355. Biscayne NP, -36.2%
356. James A. Garfield NHS, -37.3%
357. Tuskegee Institute NHS, -39.7%
358. Rio Grande W&NSR, -41.0%
359. Kalaupapa NHP, -49.7%
360. Hamilton Grange NMEM, -78.3%

Note: % Decrease recreation visits 2009 vs. 2008.
Gettysburg NMP conducted a person per vehicle study and changed multipliers. Hamilton Grange was closed for restoration.

Largest Loser, Gross Recreation Visits

Korean War Veterans Memorial lost 537.930 recreation visits in 2008 over 2007, a 14.7% drop.

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National Park Attendance Winners



On the Rise
Rank Park, % Increase 1. Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural NHS, +1307.1% 2. Katmai National Park, +440.0% 3. Carl Sandberg Home NHS, +293.5% 4. Thomas Edison NHP,+237.1% 5. Gulf Islands NS, +101.2% 6. Ford's Theatre NHS, +96.0% 7. Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania NMP, +91.2% 8. Frederick Law Olmstead NHS, +68.6% 9. John F. Kennedy NHS, +61.9% 10. Hubbell Trading Post NHS, +61.2% Note: % Increase recreation visits 2009 vs. 2008. Roosevelt Inaugural NHS opened June after restoration. Carl Sandberg Home NHS changed counting procedures to include grounds-only visitors. Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania NMP added new counters and corrected reporting problems. Ford's Theatre opened in February after renovation.
Largest Gainer, Gross Recreation Visits
Gulf Islands National Seashore gained 2,078,073 recreation visits, an increase of 101.2% over 2008. Gulf Islands NS opened additional areas of park closed after Hurricane Katrina. Custom Search

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Historic Site Statistics

National Park Attendance Losers

Falling Back

Largest Loser, Gross Recreation Visits

National Park Attendance Winners

On the Rise

Largest Gainer, Gross Recreation Visits