National Historic Trails: Historical Routes of National Significance

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Infographic Description

National Historic Trails

National Historic Trails comprise nineteen routes spanning 31,000 miles across 41 states. They are routes of exploration, trade, displacement, conflict, military action, and migration. They are designated by Congress for public enjoyment, showcase the diversity of American heritage, and generate citizen stewards. 

National Historic Trails Timeline

1968	National Trails System Act (NTSA) passed
1978	NTSA amended to include National Historic Trails
1978	Oregon NHT designated
1978	Mormon Pioneer NHT designated
1978	Iditarod NHT designated
1978	Lewis and Clark NHT designated
1980	Overmountain Victory NHT designated
1986	Nez Perce (Nee-Me-Poo) NHT designated
1987	Trail of Tears NHT designated
1987	Santa Fe NHT designated
1990	Juan Bautista de Anza NHT designated
1992	California NHT designated
1992	Pony Express NHT designated
1996	Selma to Montgomery NHT designated
2000	El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro NHT designated
2000	Ala Kahakai NHT designated
2002	Old Spanish NHT designated
2004	El Camino Real de los Tejas NHT designated
2006	Captain John Smith Chesapeake NHT designated
2008	Star-Spangled Banner NHT designated
2009	Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route NHT designated

Description of Maps

The maps show the routes of the 19 National Historic Trails (NHT). They stretch across the continental United States and Hawaii. The Ala Kahakai NHT stretches across the coast of Hawaii. The California NHT crosses from Missouri to California through Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming. The Captain John Smith Chesapeake NHT stretches across New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and Washington, DC. The El Camino Real de los Tejas NHT crosses Texas and Louisiana. The El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro NHT stretches across New Mexico and Texas. The Iditarod NHT crosses Alaska. The Juan Bautista de Anza NHT stretches along the coast of California and through southern Arizona. The Lewis and Clark NHT stretches from Pennsylvania to Washington through Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, and South Dakota, and West Virginia. The Mormon Pioneer NHT crosses from Illinois to Utah through Iowa, Nebraska, and Wyoming. The Nez Perce (Nee-Me-Poo) NHT stretches across Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, and Oregon. The Old Spanish NHT crosses from New Mexico to California through Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and Nevada. The Oregon NHT crosses from Missouri to Washington through Kansas, Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho, and Oregon. The Overmountain Victory NHT crosses South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. The Pony Express NHT stretches from Missouri to California through Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, Utah, Nevada, and Wyoming. The Santa Fe NHT crosses from Missouri to New Mexico through Kansa, Colorado, and Oklahoma. The Selma to Montgomery NHT crosses from Selma, Alabama to Montgomery, Alabama. The Star-Spangled Banner NHT crosses through Maryland, Washington, DC, and Virginia. The Trail of Tears NHT crosses Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Illinois, North Carolina, Missouri and Oklahoma. The Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route NHT crosses Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia.

More Information

Find out more at nps.gov/subjects/NationalTrailsSystem

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