Untied States Monuments

In the United States, there are 100 protected national monuments areas. In the United States, a national monument can be establish by the President giving an executive order.

The first is the Indian ruins and collectively antiques. This was to protect all historic sites. In 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt established the Devils Tower in Wyoming. President Roosevelt established 18 monuments but there are only nine remains. There has been 15 presidents that have established national monuments. Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush were the only ones that did not. There were 19 established by Bill Clinton, which is the most for a single president to establish. Jimmy Carter created 15 monuments in Alaska and some were later promoted into parks. George W. Bush created the most recent monument that covers 195,274 square miles in the Pacific Ocean on January 6, 2009.

There are 27 states with national monuments. The District of Columbia, The Virgin Islands, American Samoa and a few others have the largest at 18; New Mexico has 12 and California has 10. There are 55 monuments sites that consist of Marine sites, volcano sites and geological sites.

Some national monuments throughout the world have been upgraded to national parks. Most of these monuments are managed and protected by federal agencies. The national parks are great places to take family for weekend vacations. Some groups even have family reunions at the great parks.