America may be a relatively young nation but it has a diverse and complex history – one which is retold through monuments across the country. From tributes to Indigenous peoples to incredible feats of engineering, here are 51 of the most important landmarks across the USA.
Click through the gallery to discover the thought-provoking places that pay homage to American history...
After her own escape at 27, Harriet Tubman helped dozens of enslaved people break free from the clutches of slavery in the 19th century. Her efforts were conducted via the Underground Railroad, a covert network of passages and safehouses designed to assist enslaved people in routing north. Her humble red-brick home in Auburn – a centre for abolitionists – is preserved today.
This moving tribute to the victims of the 9/11 terror attacks is built where the World Trade Center's twin towers once stood. Waterfalls cascade into vast pools, the walls of which are inscribed with the names of those who died in 2001. More than 400 swamp white oaks trees, selected for their resilience, surround the pools, creating a serene place of reflection among the high-rises of New York City.
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Faneuil Hall has been a meeting hall and marketplace since 1742 and has served as a platform for some of America’s most important historical figures. Founding father Samuel Adams gave a particularly famous and stirring speech about independence here – a statue of him still stands before the building. The hall is also a key site along the Freedom Trail, a route connecting some of Boston’s most important historical sites, including Boston Common, the oldest public park in the USA.
The stark expanse of Alcatraz Island was originally used as a military jail and later became a high-security prison. Inmates at The Rock, as the prison was known, were subjected to brute force and complete isolation on a daily basis. Al Capone, a Brooklyn mobster convicted of tax evasion, was one of the prison’s most high-profile detainees, serving time between 1934–39. You'll travel over to the island by ferry and explore with an audio tour and fascinating historic exhibits.
An elegant red-brick building in the City of Brotherly Love, Independence Hall holds great historical significance. The Declaration of Independence – the document that freed the States from British rule – was debated and signed here in 1776, and the hall later became the birthplace of the US Constitution. Guided tours explore the site and include the Assembly Room, where both poignant documents were signed.
Pearl Harbor, a US naval base on the Hawaiian isle of Oahu, was the site of a surprise attack by the Japanese in 1941, during the Second World War, and museums and monuments here memorialise the tragic event. A key sight is the USS Arizona Memorial, a tribute to one of the ships that was sunk during the strike. The head-turning white structure is built above the vessel's wreckage.
In 1861, the first shots of the bloody American Civil War were fired from Fort Sumter, a garrison with a strategic position at the mouth of Charleston Harbor. It played a key role throughout the conflict and the immaculately preserved fort ruins remain today. Guided tours of the historic site, which is accessible only by boat, are available.
Throughout the 1960s, Birmingham was one of the most racially segregated cities in the States and the 16th Street Baptist Church served as a meeting place for Civil Rights activists, including Martin Luther King Jr. But in 1963, white supremacists bombed the church, killing four young girls. Today, it remains a working place of worship and is open for guided tours from Tuesday to Saturday.
The Alamo mission and fortress was a key site during the Texas revolution. It was the location of the fabled Battle of the Alamo in 1836, which saw Texans battle Mexicans in their fight for independence. The Alamo church, or 'the shrine' as it's commonly known, is the striking heart of the complex, with the names of soldiers who defended the mission inscribed inside.
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Another site along Boston’s Freedom Trail, the Bunker Hill Monument memorialises the Battle of Bunker Hill, a pivotal clash early on in the American Revolutionary War. The 1775 battle saw New England soldiers fight against the British Army, with the colonies inflicting significant damage on British forces. Work on this stark granite obelisk began 50 years later, with construction ending in the 1840s. The finished monument stands proud at 221 feet (67m) in the city’s Charlestown neighbourhood.
A place of sombre beauty, Manassas National Battlefield Park was the site of the first major conflict during the Civil War (the First Battle of Bull Run), and also the pivotal Second Battle of Bull Run. In each bloody clash, the Confederates won. Trails studded with interpretive markers route through the battlefield park.
This impressive Puebloan ruin is one of the best-preserved in the States. A five-storey castle built by the ancient Sinagua people, it's formed of 20 rooms and hewn from rugged limestone. A few miles away is the Montezuma Well, a large limestone sinkhole, and yet more Puebloan ruins. Surrounded by trails and shaded by forestland, the well would have served the native people that called Montezuma home until around the 1400s.
Gettysburg was the site of a significant three-day battle during the Civil War in 1863, when Union soldiers claimed victory against the Confederates, halting their invasion of the North. It was to be one of the war’s most pivotal and devastating battles, with thousands of fatalities, and many visitors pay tribute to the dead at the Gettysburg National Cemetery. Park rangers also offer fascinating interpretations of the site.
An important glimpse into the States’ maritime history, the Mystic Seaport Museum is one of the world's finest nautical museums. It includes a fascinating recreation of an entire 19th-century New England seafaring village and there's a fantastically preserved fleet of antique ships here too. The star is the Charles W. Morgan: an ancient whaling ship and the world’s oldest surviving trading vessel.
Mesa Verde, a sprawling national park in the southwest, is characterised by the 600-plus cliff dwellings carved into its rocks. They were once home to ancestral Puebloan people, who are thought to have left their land by the 1300s, after more than 700 years here. Most impressive of all the dwellings is the Cliff Palace: this intricate structure has more than 150 rooms and could have been home to around 100 people.
This was the site of several important battles between Confederate and Union soldiers during the Civil War. In 1863, Union troops attempted to (and succeeded in) seizing Chattanooga, a city in eastern Tennessee surrounded by mountains. Today, the battlefields that make up the park have miles of hiking trails and lookout points with expansive views across Chattanooga and the Tennessee River below.
This New Mexico pueblo has been inhabited by Indigenous people for more than a thousand years and is still home to around 150 villagers. The stacked, adobe structures are overlooked by the beautiful Sangre de Cristo Mountain range, their terracotta facades broken up with splashes of blue. Guided tours of the settlement operate year-round.
Under construction for over 70 years, this giant mountain sculpture is set to be the world’s largest upon completion (though there's no telling when that might be). The effigy in the Black Hills of South Dakota depicts Crazy Horse, the Sioux warrior who fought against white settlers threatening the traditions and territory of his people. The monument is set to be a gargantuan 563 feet (172m) high once finished.
Fort McHenry played a pivotal role in the War of 1812, when the British attacked the fort during the Battle of Baltimore but were repelled by American troops. The fort also served as a muse for Francis Scott Key, who witnessed the clash. Inspired by the American flag soaring over the bastion, Key penned a poem that would go on to become The Star-Spangled Banner, the national anthem of the United States.
This imposing monument honours the Mayflower Pilgrims who set foot in Provincetown in 1620. They were the first European settlers here and they spent more than a month exploring this portion of Cape Cod, before leaving for Plymouth. The tallest all-granite structure in the US, the landmark boasts views of Cape Cod and you can tackle the 166 steps to the top for sweeping panoramas.
A sprawling military cemetery, this site is most famous as the resting place of John F. Kennedy: an eternal flame has burnt at the gravesite of the assassinated 35th president since 1963. More than 300,000 American service people are also buried here, honoured with simple white gravestones. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier has become an especially moving symbol of the thousands of war dead who have never been identified or recovered.
Manzanar was a military-controlled camp where thousands of innocent Japanese Americans were imprisoned during the Second World War, following tensions after the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941. Today, it’s a National Historic Site used to tell the stories of those who were incarcerated here – ranger-led programmes typically delve into the past and indoor and outdoor exhibits retell sobering tales.
Hoover Dam was (and remains) an incredible feat of engineering, built around 30 miles (48km) east of the bright lights of Las Vegas. Completed in 1935, it saved the surrounding farmlands from frequent flooding by the Colorado River, but saw a death toll of at least 96 during its construction. Today, the dam attracts thousands of tourists who marvel at its sheer scale and discover the part it played in the development of Sin City and the field of engineering.
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The Baranof Castle Hill State Historic Site is the spot where the American flag was first raised in Alaska, when it became the 49th state in the union in 1959. It was also the spot where Russia officially relinquished their hold of the state in 1867, meaning Alaska became the first soil America controlled beyond the mainland. It's thought that the native Tlingit peoples could have settled in the region as early as 11,000 years ago.
This site commemorates Custer’s Last Stand, an 1876 battle between US troops and the Lakota Sioux, Arapaho and Northern Cheyenne tribes. As part of an ongoing campaign, the United States attempted to seize land belonging to these peoples. The Americans were defeated this time, representing a single victory for the Indigenous people. Today, a granite memorial and acres of gravestones honour the thousands who died here. The Spirit Warrior Sculpture specifically marks the sacrifices made by the Indigenous peoples.
Named for the miles of graceful, arching oaks that lead to its mansion, this former sugar plantation is dedicated to educating visitors about its 200-year-plus history. The Slavery at Oak Alley exhibit chronicles the lives of the many people enslaved here, while the Sugarcane Theatre reveals how this crop was grown and processed.
Once the home of George Washington, America's first president, this sprawling mansion is perched on the banks of the Potomac River, and its 21 rooms are immaculately preserved and fronted by extensive gardens. But this was also the site of Washington's plantation, where he enslaved men, women and children: their story is told through a special exhibition, Lives Bound Together.
An unfinished hexagonal fortress in the waters of the Dry Tortugas National Park, Fort Jefferson was intended to protect a deep-water anchorage in the Florida Strait when construction began in 1846. Later, the fort became a military prison but was eventually abandoned. Visitors can take a low-altitude flight or ferry out to the bastion and explore the marine life-filled waters and beaches surrounding it.
Once housed in Philadelphia's Independence Hall, the great Liberty Bell has become a symbol of American freedom – it was thought to have rung during the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. The bell no longer sounds due to a large crack in its body, but visitors can take in the landmark and related exhibits at the Liberty Bell Center.
Dodge City is a living memory of America’s frontier past. It was once a key stop along trader highway the Santa Fe Trail and was home to Wyatt Earp, one of the Wild West’s most famous lawmen. The legendary era is best preserved along Boot Hill Museum’s Front Street, a recreated strip of saloons and houses honouring the city’s 1870s heyday.
A hulking obelisk piercing the skies of America’s capital, the Washington Monument was built as a tribute to George Washington, America’s first president. Fifty flags, representative of the 50 states in the union, form a ring around the monument, which soars to a whopping 555 feet (169m). Earlier plans for a more decorative design were ditched in favour of this simple but striking landmark, finished in 1884.
The mighty Gateway Arch rises above the city of St Louis in eastern Missouri, and remains the tallest monument in the United States and the tallest arch on the planet. The landmark has become an emblem of St Louis but was intended as a monument to westward expansion – the westward movement of American settlers through the 1800s – and to Thomas Jefferson, the president who pioneered this concept. It rises to 630 feet (192m) and, incredibly, is as wide as it is tall.
One of America’s most elegant presidential homes, Monticello belonged to the third president of the United States, Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson had a keen interest in architecture and his home was fittingly unique. Although the president was a vocal abolitionist, Monticello was also a plantation and hundreds of enslaved people lived and worked here. Their stories are told through exhibits and on-site tours.
A powerful symbol of American politics and a working government building, the United States Capitol stands at the eastern end of DC’s National Mall and has its roots in the 1800s, when it was first finished. Today, it sprawls over 1.5 million square feet (around 139,000sqm) and is most recognisable for its titanic dome, which took shape in the 1860s. Guided tours of the Capitol Building can be booked from Monday to Saturday.
Tipped as the 'Fathers of Modern Aviation', the Wright Brothers – Wilbur and Orville Wright – were successful in developing and flying what's considered the world’s first plane in the early 1900s. They’re memorialised with a bold granite tower on Kill Devil Hill, on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, where the innovative brothers conducted their many gliding experiments.
One of the most famous political buildings in the world, The White House has remained a symbol of the American government since its first occupation by President John Adams in 1800. Tours are tricky to arrange (US citizens must book through a member of Congress; embassies are not currently supporting tours for international visitors), but the White House Visitor Center offers a comprehensive overview of the history and significance of this landmark site.
The 60-foot-tall (18m) faces of four American presidents (George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln) stare out from the granite rock faces of the Black Hills in Keystone. More than two million visitors come to gaze upon the presidents every year but the site is not without controversy. The Black Hills is considered sacred ground for Indigenous people and this area was taken from them by the government after a series of bloody battles.
A landmark in civil engineering and one of the USA’s most recognisable monuments, Golden Gate was the longest and tallest bridge of its kind when first completed in 1937. It’s become no less impressive with age, either: its mammoth orange span (4,200 feet/1,280m) still soars over the Golden Gate Strait, peeking out from fog or clashing with blue California skies.
Brooding on the banks of the Matanzas River, Castillo de San Marcos is one of the most important historic forts in the USA, not least because of its age. It dates to the 17th century, making it the country’s oldest masonry fortress. It was built by the Spanish, when Florida was under Spanish rule, and suffered two major sieges over the centuries – one in 1702 and one in 1740, both led by English forces. You can explore on a self-guided walking tour today.
This national historic site is dedicated to the African American peoples of Boston’s Beacon Hill neighbourhood, who were leaders in the struggle against slavery in the 19th century. The Black Heritage Trail winds through the area, taking in the Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Regiment Memorial (pictured), a key landmark dedicated to an early all-Black regiment that served in the Civil War.
A poignant site in Lower Manhattan, the African Burial Ground National Monument protects an excavated African burial ground thought to date from the 1630s to 1795. The burial ground was discovered in the late 20th century during survey work prior to construction of an office tower here – the remains of some 15,000 Africans (both free and enslaved) who lived in New York were found. Today, their lives are honoured with a memorial and their history is chronicled in an interpretive centre and research library.
A stone’s throw from the famed Lincoln Memorial, on DC’s National Mall, is the Korean War Veterans Memorial, a tribute to the millions of Americans who served in the 1950s conflict. Some 5.8 million Americans fought in the three-year war between North and South Korea, and more than 36,000 of them lost their lives. The moving memorial comprises 19 stainless steel statues depicting soldiers, a mural wall and a pool of remembrance.
Taking the form of an elegant French chateau, this sprawling estate in the Blue Ridge Mountains is tipped as America’s largest home. A fine example of a Gilded Age mansion, Biltmore has 250 lavish rooms, crammed full of ornate fireplaces, antique furniture and priceless art, and acres of blooming grounds to boot. Various tours route through the sumptuous house, trails wiggle through the gardens and there's even a winery too.
Conceived by the Equal Justice Initiative, an organisation committed to fighting racial injustice, this poignant monument was designed to commemorate the thousands of African American people who have been victims of lynching. The memorial is a striking sight, spread over six acres and comprising 800 steel columns inscribed with victims' names, one for each US county where a lynching took place. The site also includes the Legacy Museum.
This striking bronze memorial commemorates the more than 200,000 African American troops who served in the Civil War. It features statues of uniformed soldiers and sailors standing 10-foot-tall (3m), and the names of the African American people who risked their lives in the conflict are inscribed on the surrounding Wall of Honor. The nearby African American Civil War Museum serves to educate the public on their sacrifice and also to shed light on the life of African Americans here pre- and post-Civil War.
Watching over Jackson Square in New Orleans’ enchanting French Quarter, St Louis Cathedral is significant as the oldest Catholic cathedral in continual use in the United States. It was built in 1727 and its imposing triple steeple has become a symbol of the Big Easy. The interior is filled with stained glass, Rococo detailing and sacred art – peek inside with a guided or self-guided tour.
Built up by the Chacoan people from around the 9th century, this sprawling site became a place of great cultural and economic importance. The most impressive structures built by this ancient population were the 'Great Houses': enormous multi-storey buildings filled with rooms, thought to have been used as both residences and ceremonial spaces. Ranger tours of these huge structures are dependent on weather and staff availability, but you can always hit the park's hiking trails and even camp out under the stars.
Gifted from France in 1886, the Statue of Liberty is perhaps America’s most famous landmark, an enduring symbol of freedom and enlightenment. The monument, which towers at more than 300 feet (93m), depicts Libertas, the Roman goddess of liberty. Visitors can take the ferry from Battery Park to Liberty Island and climb the 354 steps to the statue’s summit. Another highlight is the view of the Manhattan skyline from her crown.
Dedicated in 2011, this tribute to the late Civil Rights leader was imagined from a specific line in his famous I Have A Dream speech. “Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope," said King, and the statue sees the great speaker emerge from a hunk of granite rock. The monument is situated close to the National Mall’s Tidal Basin, not far from where King gave his legendary talk on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.
Rising above the Reflecting Pool like a Greek temple, this elegant landmark was finished in 1922 and was built as a tribute to Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States. Inside, a large central chamber contains an imposing statue of the late president himself, while murals are intended to depict principles such as liberty and unity. The monument stands proud at the western end of Washington DC's National Mall.
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