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To laypeople, the distinction between lands designated as national parks and national monuments can appear finite. The primary difference lies in the reason for preserving the land: National parks are protected due to their scenic, inspirational, education, and recreational value. National monuments have objects of historical, cultural, and/or scientific interest, so their content is quite varied. For example, national monuments protect wilderness areas (such as ), fossil sites, military forts, ruins (such as the ), and buildings (such as , where President Lincoln was assassinated).

On the bureaucratic bent, the National Parks Service oversees all parks and some monuments. However, the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Department of Defense, and Bureau of Land Management may also supervise monuments, depending on the location of the lands and the reason for their protection. Some of these agencies are better than others at providing visitor information. Congress designates national parks; in general, presidential proclamations establish national monuments.

In this case, size matters. Although some national parks are quite small—the smallest is Pennsylvania’s  at 0.02 acres—the minimum size today is 1,000 hectares. By requiring that much space, nearly 2,500 acres, the NPS ensures national parks have sufficient area for recreation and natural diversity. The largest national park is the 13.2-million-acre  in Alaska. National monuments are generally smaller, and the designation requires only one item of interest (not a variety, as parks do).

The Most-Visited National Parks In 2018

1.  (Tennessee and North Carolina) 11,421,200 visits
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3.  (Colorado) 4,590,493 visits
4.  (Utah) 4,320,033 visits
5.  (Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho) 4,115,000 visits
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Popular National Monuments

Because various agencies administrate national monuments, nailing down a list of the most popular is challenging. Here are ten that are widely acknowledged visitor favorites:

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