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Kentucky

Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park

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Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park

Kentucky

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1916 National Park, 1939 National Historical Park, 1959 National Historic Site, 2009 National Historical Park

345 acres

Website: nps.gov/abli

Overview

In December 1808, Thomas and Nancy Lincoln moved with their infant daughter to a 300-acre farm near Sinking Spring, where soon their son Abraham would be born on February 12.  Two years later they moved to a more fertile farm ten miles northeast on Knob Creek.  The family left for Indiana five years after that, where today you can find Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial.  The original birthplace cabin was dismantled before 1865, but a cabin built nearby using some of the Lincoln logs was purchased three decades later for the purpose of exhibiting a traveling replica.  When that replica cabin was placed inside the Memorial Building in 1911, it was too large for tourists to walk around it, so it was decreased in scale from 16-by-18 feet to 12-by-17 feet.  In 2001, the National Park Service acquired the privately-owned boyhood home reconstruction at Knob Creek Farm, leading to the redesignation back to a National Historical Park.

Highlights

Memorial Building, film, Knob Creek Farm, Overlook Trail

Must-Do Activity

The future U.S. President came from humble beginnings, and here in Kentucky is where his education began.  Even if you are familiar with his life story, it is a good idea to watch the film at the visitor center before climbing the stairs to the scale model of the birth cabin inside the Memorial Building.  A ten-mile drive takes you to the reconstructed Lincoln house at Knob Creek Farm, where you can hike the Overlook Trail if you have time.

Best Trail

Boundary Oak Trail is 0.3 miles and starts near the Memorial Building, while 0.7-mile Big Sink Trail starts from the picnic area on the other side of Highway 31E.  At Knob Creek Farm, Overlook Trail is 3.1 miles out-and-back with 348 feet of cumulative elevation gain. 

Photographic Opportunity

Exactly a century after Abraham’s birthday, President Theodore Roosevelt was on hand for the laying of the cornerstone for a Memorial Building where the Lincoln family cabin once stood. 

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

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

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Outside Hodgenville, all roads are paved to the Birthplace Unit of the park and the Boyhood Home Unit at Knob Creek, which is ten miles northeast on U.S. Highway 31E.

Camping

Located 25 miles northeast on Highway 31E, My Old Kentucky Home State Park has a 39-site campground with RV hookups, plus an 18-hole golf course.

Related Sites

Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial (Indiana)

Lincoln Home National Historic Site (Illinois)

Lincoln Memorial (District of Columbia)

Nearest National Park

Mammoth Cave

Chestnut tree
Knob Creek Farm
Hodgenville, KY
Hodgenville, KY

Explore More – Why are their exactly 16 steps in each of the four sets of stairs that lead up to Lincoln’s birth cabin Memorial Building?

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?

New York

Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site

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Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site

New York

Managed by National Park Service

Established 1940

211 acres

Website: nps.gov/vama

Overview

The Gilded Age is the term referring to the period from the Civil War to the end of the century, a time of growth in industry and immigration.  Gilding is the process of putting a thin layer of gold on an object to improve its appearance and was used as a slight to the nouveau riche families that built lavish mansions and threw extravagant parties.  Shipping and railroad tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt’s grandson Frederick purchased this 600-acre Hyde Park estate in 1895.  He and his wife Louise had the mansion there torn down and it took nearly four years to complete their 54-room mansion ornamented in beaux arts style.  It was the first in the area to have electricity, which was supplied by its own hydroelectric plant.  It was inhabited by the family only in the spring and fall with as many as 60 staff needed to run the place.  When Louise’s niece could not sell the property during the Great Depression, her neighbor President Franklin D. Roosevelt suggested she donate it to the National Park Service. 

Highlights

Mansion, Pavilion, Formal Gardens, Hyde Park Trail

Must-Do Activity

The only way inside the mansion is on a one-hour guided tour that does not take reservations.  They can be purchased at the visitor center inside The Pavilion, a guest house built in 66 days in 1895.  The grounds are free to explore, where you can walk on the carriage roads, picnic at the overlook, and peruse the Italian gardens.  The mansion was designed by the leading architectural firm McKim, Mead & White, known for their emphasis on high classicism.  It features a large living room, grand staircase, and semicircular portico overlooking the Hudson River and Catskill Mountains.  The house cost $660,000 at the time, while the interior furnishings pushed the total cost to $2.3-million (equivalent to about $90-million today) since many of the decorations were purchased in Europe.

Best Trail

Vanderbilt Service Road Trail loops through this 211-acre site and Bard Rock Road Trail splits off to a point on the Hudson River.  Hyde Park Trail follows the river south to connect with the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site and Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site. 

Photographic Opportunity

The landscape design (and a ginkgo tree) on the property dates back to the 1700s, while its current look was restored to its 1930s appearance.

Peak Season

Summer

Hours

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

Fees

$15 per person for the mansion tour or use the annual America the Beautiful pass

Road Conditions

Parking and access roads are paved from the Albany Post Road (Highway 9). 

Camping

Mills-Norrie State Park is located 3.5 miles north on Highway 9 and has a campground offering running water and hot showers. 

Related Sites

Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site (New York)

Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site (New York)

Martin Van Buren National Historic Site (New York)

Nearest National Park

Shenandoah

The Pavilion
Bald eagle

Explore More – Who were the authors who coined the term “Gilded Age” in their 1873 book?

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?