On August 25, 2016, The National Park Service will celebrate 100 years of preservation. The actual centennial birthday of NPS is at the end of August, but the celebration has been going on all year.
The NPS has been offering discounts and hosting special events all year to promote this special milestone. Because of this celebration attendance has been at an all time high.
Attendance of National Park Service Sites | Graphiq
The National Park Service urges you to get out and explore our nations parks all over the country. They've even thrown in some incentive.
On August 25-28, The National Park Service birthday weekend, NPS will offer free admission to their 400 plus National Parks around the United States.
Attendance for National Park Service Sites in 2015 | Graphiq
The National Park Service was created on August 25, 1916. The first park to be recognized in Texas by the NPS was Big Bend National Park in 1944. Today Texas has 14 National Parks units maintained by the National Park Service.
Most recently recognized by the NPS was Waco Mammoth National Monument which was officially deemed a NPS monument on July 10, 2015. These unique parks draw people to Texas from around the country.
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National parks play a pivotal role in stimulating local economies and promoting tourism in Texas. In 2015, there were 4,100 jobs in Texas alone relating to national parks. These jobs ranged from retail to park ranger.
With more people attending the parks than ever before the visitor spending is also on an upward trend. In 2014, NPS parks in Texas raked in 238.9 million. In 2015, the spending hiked up to north of 260 million dollars.