American Must-Sees

Cemetery Hill is a key terrain feature in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, the northernmost extent of Cemetery Ridge. It played prominent roles in all three days of the Battle of Gettysburg, from July 1st to 3rd, 1863. Cemetery Hill is not only the location of the bloodiest battle in the civil war but also where Abraham Lincoln gave one of his most famous speeches.

 

Monticello is a National Historic Landmark just outside Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was the estate of Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence, third President of the United States, and founder of the University of Virginia. Jefferson's home is also filled with interesting artifacts from his lifetime!

 

The Gateway Arch, is an arch that is the centerpiece of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in St. Louis, Missouri. It was built as a monument to the westward expansion of the United States. At 630 feet (192 m), it is the tallest man-made monument in the United States, Missouri's tallest accessible building, and the largest architectural structure designed as a weighted or flattened catenary arch.

 

Acadia National Park is in Maine. It reserves much of Mount Desert Island, and associated smaller islands, off the Atlantic coast. The park includes mountains, an ocean shoreline, woodlands, and lakes. The park is home to red and gray squirrels, chipmunks, white-tailed deer, moose, beaver, porcupine, muskrats, foxes, coyote, bobcats, and black bears.

 

The Indian Peaks Wilderness is a wilderness area in north central Colorado. It borders the James Peak Wilderness to the south, and straddles the Continental Divide. The area can get really busy due to its proximity to the Denver metropolitan area. Most visitors hike along the many trails, visiting high passes, lakes and waterfalls en route.

The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona. Most of it is contained withing the Grand Canyon National Park, one of the oldest in America. Every year thousands of tourists flock to the Grand Canyon to camp, visit, hike and admire its beauty. The area was first inhabited by Native Americans who built many settlements and caves many of which can still be seen today.

-Tracy Smith