Missouri National Parks

Missouri national parks trails commemorate America’s westward expansion and exploration. Its cultural resources teach us about significant historical figures and the Civil War. And its protected rivers offer recreation and relaxation. Come enjoy all that Missouri has to offer.

Visit these Missouri National Parks:

California National Historic Trail: The road to California carried over 250,000 gold-seekers & farmers to the gold fields & rich farmlands of California during the 1840's and 1850's - the greatest mass migration in American history. More than 1,000 miles of trail ruts and traces can still be seen in the vast undeveloped west – reminders of the sacrifices, struggles, and triumphs of early American travelers and settlers.

California Trail Ratings

George Washington Carver National Monument: The young boy known as the "Plant Doctor," tended his secret garden while observing the day to day operations of a successful 19th century farm. Nature and nurture ultimately influenced George on his journey to becoming a renowned scientist of agriculture.

George Washington Carver Weather

Harry S Truman National Historic Site: "I tried never to forget who I was and where I’d come from and where I was going back to…. After nearly eight years in the White House and ten years in the Senate, I found myself right back where I started in Independence, Missouri." Harry S. Truman.

Harry S Truman Weather

Jefferson National Expansion Memorial: The Gateway Arch reflects St. Louis' role in the Westward Expansion of the United States during the nineteenth century. The park is a memorial to Thomas Jefferson’s role in opening the West, to the pioneers who helped shape its history, and to Dred Scott who sued for his freedom in the Old Courthouse.

Jefferson Expansion The Arch Weather

Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail: Between May 1804 and September 1806, 32 men, one woman, and a baby traveled from the plains of the Midwest to the shores of the Pacific Ocean. They called themselves the Corps of Discovery. In their search for a water route to the Pacific Ocean, they opened a window onto the west for the young United States.

The Oregon Trail: A History: On to Oregon! It all began with a crude network of rutted traces across the and from the Missouri River to the Willamette River that was used by nearly 400,000 people. Today the 2,170-mile Oregon Trail still evokes an instant image, a ready recollection of the settlement of this continent, of the differences between American Indians and white settlers, and of new horizons.

The Oregon Trail: The Journey West: In book or pamphlet form, guidebooks were soon available for emigrants. Some provided good, solid, reliable information. Others contributed to the "Oregon Fever" that swept the country in the 1840s describing the land in almost Biblical terms.

Ozark National Scenic Riverways: More than a century ago a mature pine and hardwood forest grew here and the rivers ran quietly and smoothly along their courses. Timbermen joined the subsistence farmers in the area and began to cut the trees, sawing millions of board feet of lumber each year to build the cities of this expanding Nation. Fires took their toll, too.

Ozark Weather

Pony Express National Historic Trail: The legend of the "the Pony," as it was affectionately known, may overshadow its brief history, but the bold founders and brave riders of the Pony Express helped spread important news, shrink a continent, and bind a nation that was being torn apart by civil war.

Life of the Pony Express Riders: Hires ranged from teenagers to about age 40. Weight restrictions were strict.

History of Mail Delivery Before and After the Pony Express:  Officially the Pony Express ceased operations with the completion of the transcontinental telegraph on October 26, 1861. The Pony made its last run on November 20, 1861. It completed some 300 runs each way over 600,000 miles and carried more than 33,000 pieces of mail.

Pony Express Ratings

Santa Fe National Historic Trail: The Santa Fe Trail of the US National Parks stirs imaginations as few other historic trails can. For 60 years the Trail - weaving through New Mexico, Oklahoma, Colorado, Kansas and Missouri - was one thread through the tallgrass prairie in a web of international trade routes. It influenced economies as far away as New York and London. Spanning 900 miles of the Great Plains prairie between the United States (Missouri) and Mexico (Santa Fe), it brought together a cultural mosaic of individuals who cooperated – and at times clashed.

Trail of Tears National Historic Trail: Come on a journey to remember and commemorate the survival of the Cherokee people despite their forced removal from their homelands in the Southeastern United States in the 1840s.

Trail of Tears Ratings

Ulysses S Grant National Historic Site: Ulysses S. Grant is known as the victorious Civil War general who saved the Union and the 18th President of the United States. Few people know about his rise to fame or his personal life. He first met Julia Dent, his future wife, at her family home, named White Haven. Today, that home commemorates their lives and loving partnership against the turbulent backdrop of the nineteenth century.

Ulysses S Grant Weather

Wilson's Creek National Battlefield: Wilson's Creek was the first major Civil War battle fought west of the Mississippi River, and the scene of the death of Nathaniel Lyon, the first Union general killed in combat. Although a Southern victory, the Southerners failed to capitalize on their success. With the exception of the vegetation, the field has changed little and remains in near pristine condition.

Wilsons Creek Weather