Tag Archives: film

Ohio

William Howard Taft National Historic Site

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William Howard Taft National Historic Site

Ohio

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1969

3 acres

Website: nps.gov/wiho

Overview

William Howard Taft was the nation’s 27th President and 10th Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, the only person to hold both positions in U.S. history.  Taft was born on September 15, 1857, in this house in Cincinnati, the city where he attended law school after graduating from Yale (where he later served as a professor).  Taft was promised a Supreme Court nomination by President William McKinley when he sailed for the Philippines in April 1900 where he would stay as Civil Governor until December 1903.  After McKinley’s assassination, he would have to wait for his Supreme Court seat until 1921.  His mother sold the Cincinnati house in 1899 and it was structurally altered and turned into apartments, so the National Park Service completed extensive restorations.  Taft’s son Robert Alphonso Taft served as a U.S. Senator representing Ohio, and his father had been Secretary of War and U.S. Attorney General. 

Highlights

Guided tour of restored mansion, museum, film

Must-Do Activity

Visitors can park at the Taft Education Center next to the house where there are museum exhibits, a bookstore, and a film screening room.  Guided tours that last 30 minutes are the only way inside the house, a Greek Revival design that is decorated with Victorian-era furnishings. 

Best Trail

None

Photographic Opportunity

The museum has an audio-animatronic figure of Taft’s son Charles Phelps Taft II wearing fishing gear and telling stories about members of the Taft family. 

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/wiho/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Free paved parking is available at this site that is easily accessible from Interstate 71.

Camping

North of Cincinnati, Hueston Woods State Park offers 490 campsites, 59 cabins, and a lodge.  The scenic Hocking Hills State Park has 172 campsites (reservations recommended) and is one of the most popular places to camp in Ohio. 

Related Sites

James A. Garfield National Historic Site (Ohio)

Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument (Ohio)

Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park (Ohio)

Hopewell Culture National Historical Park (Ohio)

Nearest National Park

Mammoth Cave

Scott and Tiff with Taft
U.S. Senator Robert Alphonso Taft

Explore More – What was William Howard Taft’s position in Theodore Roosevelt’s Presidential Cabinet?

Missouri

Ste. Genevieve National Historical Park

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Ste. Genevieve National Historical Park

Missouri

Managed by National Park Service

Established 2020

13 acres

Website: nps.gov/stge

Overview

This park was established to protect the French colonial-era houses of Missouri’s first permanent settlement where residents still go all out to celebrate Bastille Day.  Originally colonized by Canadians in the 1750s, the original site of Ste. Genevieve was abandoned and moved three miles away after Mississippi River flooding in 1785.  The oldest standing structure today is the Green Tree Tavern that dates back to 1790 based on dendrochronology.  The Bolduc House (built in 1792) was restored in 1957 and is managed by the National Society of The Colonial Dames of America, while the Old Brick House from 1804 is now a restaurant. 

Highlights

Jean Baptiste Vallé House and Gardens, film, Bauvais-Amoureux House, Green Tree Tavern, Levee Trail

Must-Do Activity

Start at the Ste. Genevieve Welcome Center at 66 South Main Street to watch the film and pick up a Junior Ranger booklet.  Across the street, the Jean Baptiste Vallé House (built in 1794) can be entered for ranger-led programs, while what is believed to be the first rose garden west of the Mississippi River is open dawn to dusk.  The Bauvais-Amoureux House (built in 1792) is one of only five surviving poteaux-en-terre (“post in ground”) style houses in North America.  It is open daily for self-guided visits, as is the Green Tree Tavern. 

Best Trail

The 3.5-mile-long Levee Trail follows the Mississippi River from a gravel parking lot about a mile from the Ste. Genevieve Welcome Center.

Photographic Opportunity

Dating back to 1790, Green Tree Tavern served as a home, inn, tobacco shop, and Masonic Lodge, and it is one of the few buildings where the vertical logs used in construction are clearly visible.

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Hours

https://www.nps.gov/stge/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

From Interstate 55, Missouri Highway 32 heads east for about four miles.  From southern Illinois, the Ste. Genevieve-Modoc Ferry takes cars across the Mississippi River.  While most roads in town are paved, there are narrow gravel drives for parking at Green Tree Tavern and Bauvais-Amoureux House that may not be suitable for RVs.

Camping

Mark Twain National Forest and Ozark National Scenic Riverways both offer numerous campgrounds, and Johnson’s Shut-Ins State Park is renowned for the RV campsites in its campground.

Related Sites

Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site (Missouri)

George Washington Carver National Monument (Missouri)

Mark Twain National Forest (Missouri)

Ozark National Scenic Riverways (Missouri)

Nearest National Park

Gateway Arch

Jean Baptiste Vallé House
Jean Baptiste Vallé House
Jean Baptiste Vallé House
Catholic church in town

Explore More – Who was Ste. Genevieve and what famous French city is she the patron saint of?

California

Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial

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Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial

California

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1992

5 acres

Website: nps.gov/poch

Overview

On July 17, 1944 at 10:18 p.m., a massive explosion at a U.S. Navy facility rocked the San Francisco Bay area.  The blast started at a pier where munitions were being loaded onto two ships and killed 320 men.  The majority of the dead were African American sailors who were segregated at the time and not allowed to serve in combat roles or as officers.  After refusing to return to unsafe working conditions, 206 sailors were convicted after a summary courts-martial, and the “Port Chicago 50” were sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for mutiny.  After receiving negative publicity, the Navy actually became the first of the military branches to integrate during World War II, well before President Truman required it in 1948.  On January 6, 1946, the Navy released 47 of the 50 men being held and in 2024, the Navy posthumously exonerated all 256 men and vacated any remaining dishonorable discharges. 

Highlights

Memorial, film, revetment

Must-Do Activity

The memorial is located on an active military base called Military Ocean Terminal Concord on Suisun Bay.  Therefore, all visitors are required to be U.S. Citizens and must make a reservation at least two weeks before their visit by calling or emailing the National Park Service (NPS) to receive a background check.  Tours are given only on Thursdays, Fridays, or Saturdays and meet at John Muir National Historic Site (where you can watch a short film) in Martinez where the group boards government vehicles to drive to the site.  After a thorough search of the vehicle and each visitor getting checked off a list, it is a short drive to the memorial where the NPS ranger explains the history of the site at two locations with time to walk around and take photos (but only of the memorial area).

Best Trail

None

Photographic Opportunity

Shrapnel from the 1944 blast is located at the first stop on the guided tour where historic train cars are parked in a revetment. 

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

Tours are available only on Thursdays, Fridays, or Saturdays when the base is not closed to civilians.

https://www.nps.gov/poch/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

All roads are paved to John Muir National Historic Site where there is a free parking lot.

Camping

There are campgrounds at Mount Diablo State Park and backcountry campsites (permit required) at Point Reyes National Seashore.

Related Sites

Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park (California)

Muir Woods National Monument (California)

Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site (Alabama)

Nearest National Park

Pinnacles

Revetment
Egret flying
Blast radius

Explore More – What future Supreme Court Justice observed the courts-martial and has a regional park named in his honor near Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial?

Texas

Chamizal National Memorial

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Chamizal National Memorial

Texas

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1974

55 acres

Website: nps.gov/cham

Overview

The Rio Grande forms the international border between the U.S. and Mexico for 1,248 miles, but in El Paso the river changed course suddenly in 1864 creating Cordova Island and leading to a 630-acre land dispute that lasted a century.  An 1884 treaty agreed in principle that if the river changed course slowly by erosion, then the boundary moved with the deepest channel, but a commission investigating it a decade later found that Americans were settling land owned by Mexico.  The issue remained contentious, with a 1909 meeting between Presidents Taft and Diaz almost resulted in the assassination of them both.  Finally, a 1963 settlement involved displacing 5,600 Americans, as well as moving a railroad, school, bridge, and the river channel itself.  Chamizal National Memorial was authorized by Congress three years later to celebrate the goodwill inherent to this treaty with a history museum, as well as three art galleries and a 500-seat indoor theater. 

Highlights

Museum, film, Franklin G. Smith Gallery, Benito Juarez sculpture, Nuestra Herencia mural

Must-Do Activity

There is a film shown in the visitor center, in addition to the museum about the treaty and exhibits in the art galleries that change every few months.  Summer concerts take place in the outdoor amphitheater and the Chamizal Festival is held the first weekend in October featuring music, crafts, dance, and visual arts. The park annually holds a Siglo de Oro Drama Festival in the spring, when acting troupes performed plays from the golden age of Spanish theater, including those by Lope de Vega.  In September 2025, the first Chihuahuan Desert Festival was held throughout the city of El Paso.  Check the National Park Service website or Facebook page for events throughout the year. 

Best Trail

There are walking trails around the 55-acre property that pass some of the historic boundary markers along East Paisano Drive. 

Photographic Opportunity

Nuestra Herencia is a very colorful mural painted on the outside of the visitor center.

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Hours

https://nps.gov/cham/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Access roads are paved, but be careful how you get there because it is very close to a border crossing station and you do not want to accidentally wind up in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.

Camping

There are private campgrounds in El Paso, or visit Franklin Mountains State Park for camping, hiking, mountain biking, and rock climbing opportunities.  Encompassing 24,248 acres, this is one of the largest urban parks in the country lying completely within city limits.

Related Sites

Amistad National Recreation Area (Texas)

Big Bend National Park (Texas)

Fort Davis National Historic Site (Texas)

Guadalupe Mountains National Park (Texas)

Nearest National Park

White Sands

Raven about the park

Explore More – What does “chamizal” mean in Spanish?

Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee

Natchez Trace Parkway

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Natchez Trace Parkway

Mississippi-Alabama-Tennessee

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1938

52,302 acres

Website: nps.gov/natr

Overview

The National Park Service (NPS) administers the Natchez Trace Parkway, a two-lane All-American Road that extends 444 miles from Natchez, Mississippi to Nashville, Tennessee.  The trace started as a game trail that was utilized as an American Indian footpath.  Some of the mound builder sites protected here were inhabited when Hernando de Soto led the first Europeans into this area in 1540.  The Natchez Trace was heavily used in the 1800s by “Kaintuck” flatboatmen returning from New Orleans who left the Mississippi River from Natchez, Mississippi and continued on foot north to Kentucky and beyond.  Today you can still follow portions of the sunken trail worn down by travelers for centuries.  The parkway began as a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) project during the Great Depression and the final two segments were completed in 2005.

Highlights

Rocky Springs, Owens Creek Waterfall, Emerald Mound, Mount Locust, Chickasaw Village, Meriwether Lewis Monument and Gravesite, Cypress Swamp Walk, Witch Dance Horse Trail, Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail

Must-Do Activity

Near Tupelo, the Parkway Visitor Center at Milepost 266 is a must-do stop to learn the history of the trace, and it also serves as the NPS contact station for tiny Brices Cross Roads National Battlefield Site and Tupelo National Battlefield.  There are numerous roadside informational pullouts and trailheads along the route, so use the NPS app or pick up an official “unigrid” map.  You can easily spend days exploring, but at a minimum we recommend you check out Emerald Mound, Mount Locust, Cypress Swamp, and Meriwether Lewis Monument and Grave Site.

Best Trail

Our favorite trail is the Cypress Swamp Walk at Milepost 122, where a boardwalk crosses a scenic tupelo-baldcypress swamp.  The Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail (click here for our blog post) does not follow the entire 444-mile parkway, but exists in five segments totaling 67 miles in length.  There are also 15 miles of equestrian trails at Witch Dance (Milepost 233.2) in Tombigbee National Forest.

Photographic Opportunity

Not far from Natchez National Historical Park, Emerald Mound (a short detour at Milepost 10.3) is the second-largest American Indian ceremonial mound in the U.S.  It stands 35 feet tall and 770 by 435 feet at its base. 

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Hours

https://nps.gov/natr/planyourvisit/hours.htm

Fees

None

Road Conditions

The entire 444-mile Natchez Trace Parkway is paved from Natchez, Mississippi to Nashville, Tennessee with commercial traffic prohibited and a maximum speed limit of 50 miles per hour.  There is a detour from Milepost 181 to 204 due to ongoing construction.  Watch for bicycles and white-tailed deer on the road.

Camping

There are three free NPS campgrounds (at Milepost 54, 193.1, and 385.9) along the route, as well as those in sites like Mississippi’s Tishomingo State Park.  The three NPS campgrounds have water and bathrooms (but no RV hookups), plus there are also five bike-only campsites along the route.  Jeff Busby Campground closed in June 2025 for repairs.

Related Sites

Natchez National Historical Park (Mississippi)

Tupelo National Battlefield (Mississippi)

Brices Cross Roads National Battlefield Site (Mississippi)

Vicksburg National Military Park (Mississippi)

Nearest National Park

Hot Springs

Mount Locust
Rocky Springs Church
Grindstone Ford
Meriwether Lewis Monument
Cypress Swamp

Explore More – When were Ackia Battleground National Monument and Meriwether Lewis National Monument disbanded and added to the Natchez Trace Parkway?