Celebrating African American Heritage In The Parks

American history is one of diversity; this nation was built on a foundation of diversity with valuable contributions from many cultures. As Americans, we are proud of our diverse cultural heritage and proud of the many Americans, celebrated and not, who played an important part in building our country. Many of the people and events associated with developing this nation are today commemorated in areas managed by the National Park Service.

“The National Park Service preserves and commemorates the struggles and achievements of African Americans throughout this nation,” said Dan Wenk, acting director of the National Park Service. “As we celebrate Black History Month, visiting a national park provides visitors with a great opportunity to learn about and honor the heritage of African Americans.”

The National Park Service has the privilege of preserving many areas that commemorate African American heritage.  That heritage is celebrated in areas as diverse as Booker T. Washington National Monument in Virginia, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park in West Virginia, Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site in the District of Columbia, and Nicodemus National Historical Site in Kansas.

The National Park Service has developed a web site to help plan visits to NPS areas that preserve African American Heritage.  Visit our Celebrate African American Heritage in America’s National Parks website ( http://www.nps.gov/pub_aff/african_am/celebrate.htm ) to learn more about African American Heritage, past, present, and future, this month and all year.