National monuments can be reminders of a country's accomplishments, markers of important historical events or significant natural landmarks. A melting pot of cultural and geographic diversity, the United States has many tributes to various explorations, wars, natural occurrences, as well as past societies and cultures.
Located in Moundsville in northern West Virginia, this national monument marks the largest burial ground of the Adena people. These Native Americans inhabited the area from around 1000 B.C. to 1 A.D. and were the first to use mound building as a method of burial. The mound itself, created around 250 to 150 B.C., is 69 feet tall, with a base diameter of 295 feet.
Built in Manhattan, New York, to serve as a fort during the War of 1812, the original intent of this monument was to protect the country from the invading British. Through the years, it served many purposes, including an opera house from 1840 to 1855, an entry point for immigrants from 1855 to 1890 and a city aquarium from 1896 to 1941. Currently, the monument serves as a museum and is the starting point for tours to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty.
A 20-room cliff dwelling and nearby well formed from a large limestone sinkhole make up this national monument in Camp Verde, Arizona. Constructed about 1,000 years ago by the Sinagua people, the cliff dwelling is the most well-preserved structure of its kind and was closed to the public in 1951 to ensure its continued endurance. Montezuma Well, located 11 miles from the cliff dwelling, is still used as an irrigation source by the local people and supports animal species only found at that location.
Fort Pulaski in Savannah, Georgia, represents the last fort in North America constructed of brick. During the Civil War, the Union use of the newly innovated rifle cannon at this site proved brick to be obsolete for fortification and forced the surrender of Confederate troops there. The Fort Pulaski National Monument also includes Cockspur Island Lighthouse, which has stood at the mouth of the Savannah River for more than 150 years.
This national monument commemorates the site where, in 1542, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo became the first European explorer to land on the west coast of what is currently the United States. Located on the Point Loma Peninsula in San Diego, California, the monument consists of a statue of Cabrillo overlooking the bay, the Old Point Loma Lighthouse, built in 1855, as well as several military defense areas, including a radio station and searchlight bunkers.
The largest natural bridge in the world, Rainbow Bridge in Utah is more than 290 feet tall and spans 275 feet across Bridge Creek, a feeder stream to the Colorado River. Designated a national monument by President Taft in 1910, the site has been a sacred area to Native Americans for centuries and an attraction for nearly 300,000 visitors each year.
