Our August issue, on newsstands now, celebrates the centennial of the National Park Service. But it's far from the first time we've marked the Park Service's birthday.
In July 1946, as the agency was set to turn 30 years old, Arizona Highways took readers on a tour of the (at the time) 16 national parks and monuments in the state. The issue included this George Avey map of Arizona's monument sites.
Some of these areas have grown, changed names or changed designations over the years — Sunset Crater, for example, added "Volcano" to its name in 1990 — and other parks and monuments have been added. Today, Arizona is home to 22 national parks, monuments and other sites managed by the Park Service and open to the public. The Bureau of Land Management handles a few other monuments in the state.
Pick up a copy of the August issue to learn more about national parks' history in Arizona, when to visit our parks and which sites could be the next to receive such designations. And if you're a fan of Mr. Avey's artwork, we've got a few coffee mugs you might be interested in.
