Texas National Parks, National Monuments and More in Texas

National Park Service

Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument
Alibates Flint, distinctive for its varied coloration, occurs in dolomite outcrops atop Permain Aged Redbeds in the Canadian River breaks near Amarillo and Fritch, Texas. Early inhabitants left shallow pits as evidence and quarry activity

Amistad National Recreation Area
This area once was home to over 300 generations of hunters and gatherers. They left a record of their existence through colorful rock art panels, bits of tools and fibers preserved for thousands of years by the arid desert climate.

Big Bend National Park
Big Bend merges natural environments from desert to mountains. It is a place where south meets north and east meets west, creating a great diversity of plants and animals.

Big Thicket National Preserve
The Preserve consists of nine land units and six water corridors encompassing more than 97,000 acres. Big Thicket was the first Preserve in the National Park System established October 11, 1974, and protects an area of rich biological diversity.

Chamizal National Memorial
The Chamizal Convention was a milestone in diplomatic relations between Mexico and the United States in 1963.

Fort Davis National Historic Site
Fort Davis is one of America's best surviving examples of an Indian Wars' frontier military post in the Southwest.

Guadalupe Mountains National Park
This mountain mass contains portions of the world's most extensive and significant Permian limestone fossil reef. Also featured are a tremendous earth fault, lofty peaks, unusual flora and fauna, and a colorful record of the past. Guadalupe Peak, highest point in Texas at 8,749 feet; El Capitan, a massive limestone formation; McKittrick Canyon, with its unique flora and fauna; and the "Bowl", located in a high country conifer forest, are significant park features.

Lake Meredith National Recreation Area
Lake Meredith was created on the Canadian River and now fills many breaks whose walls are crowned with white limestone caprock, scenic buttes, pinnacles, and red-brown, wind-eroded coves. Above lies the mesquite, prickly pear, yucca, and grasses of arid plains. And up the sheltered creek beds stand cottonwoods, soapberry, and sandbar willows.

Lyndon B Johnson National Historical Park
The park affords a special opportunity to visit a working cattle ranch, preserved in the late 1960s. On the LBJ Ranch it is possible to experience the serenity and beauty from which the former president drew his strength and comfort. It is here that his final resting place is located.

Padre Island National Seashore
Padre Island National Seashore, encompassing 130,454 acres, is the longest remaining undeveloped stretch of barrier island in the US.

Palo Alto Battlefield National Historic Site
Palo Alto Battlefield National Historic Site preserves the 3,400-acre scene of the clash between nations and informs visitors about its national and international importance. It is the only unit of the National Park Service with a primary focus on the U.S.-Mexican War,

Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River
The Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River provides protection and maintenance of the pristine character of the Rio Grande from the Mexican and Texas border. Approximately 69 miles of The Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River lies within Big Bend National Park, and an additional 118 miles borders the Park.

San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
Four Spanish frontier missions, part of a colonization system that stretched across the Spanish Southwest in the 17th, 18th, 19th centuries, are preserved here.