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Oklahoma National Parks
Oklahoma has a rich Native American heritage along with beautiful landscapes and some hidden gems. Come #FindYourPark in Oklahoma.
National parks guide · Updated October 2026
Every NPS site in Oklahoma
4
National Park Service sites in Oklahoma
There are four National Park Service sites in Oklahoma: two national historic sites, a national recreation area, and a national memorial. Tap any of them to jump to its details.
At a glance
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Affiliated sites · 3
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No national parks in Oklahoma yet
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National Park Service sites 4
NPS-affiliated sites 3
Chickasaw National Recreation Area
Chickasaw National Recreation Area is one of the few parks that used to carry a National Park designation but no longer does. The park began as Sulphur Springs Reservation in 1902 and was re-designated to Platt National Park in 1906. In the 1960s, the new Lake of the Arbuckles became a separate unit called Arbuckle Recreation Area. In 1976, Platt National Park and Arbuckle Recreation Area were combined to form Chickasaw National Recreation Area.
Water is the primary attraction in the park, and Little Niagara Falls is its most famous attraction. Other activities in the park include hiking and wildlife viewing, while boating, water skiing, and canoeing are popular at Lake of the Arbuckles, which is also part of the park. With the Arbuckle Mountains as a backdrop, Chickasaw National Recreation Area is a beautiful park to explore any time of year.
Fort Smith National Historic Site
Fort Smith was established on Christmas Day in 1817. The Army left in 1871, and the fort became home to a Federal Courthouse. The court’s jurisdiction over Indian Territory ended in 1896. In its early years, the Fort served as a home and barracks for the U.S. Army. In its later years, Fort Smith had Federal jurisdiction over Indian Territory and modern-day Oklahoma.
Today, visitors to Fort Smith National Historic Site can explore Belle Point (site of the first Fort Smith), the Trail of Tears Overlook and River Walk, and stand on the Trail of Tears National Historic Trail, the Commissary and Second Fort Smith Grounds, and the Historic Barracks/Courthouse/Jail Buildings where the Visitor Center is also located.
Oklahoma City National Memorial
The Oklahoma City Memorial stands on the site where the Alfred P. Murrah Building once stood before it was tragically bombed and so many lost their lives on April 19, 1995. The Memorial includes the Outdoor Symbolic Memorial and the Memorial Museum. The Symbolic Memorial is a place of reflection. Walk around and enjoy the beauty and quiet of the reflecting pool and read the story of the Survivor Tree as you look out onto the grounds.
The Memorial Museum takes guests through the anxious highs and tragic lows of what Oklahomans and the nation were feeling during that time, and shines a light on the unselfish heroes who rose up and inspired us with their selfless acts. Although it may be emotionally difficult to visit, it’s worth your time and is very well done.
Click here for more pictures and information on the Oklahoma City National Memorial.
Washita Battlefield National Historic Site
Washita (pronounced WAH-shih-taw) Battlefield National Historic Site commemorates and interprets the attack by the U.S. 7th Cavalry led by Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer on the Cheyenne encampment of Peace Chief Black Kettle in 1868. It tells the story of the increasingly tense relations between whites and Native Americans during this time, and illustrates the heightened reluctance of tribes to give up their native lands and be forced into life on the reservation.
Guests can tour the Visitor Center, visit the park overlook, and walk the trails around the site to the nearby Washita River and the encampment. The overlook and trail are open daily from dawn to dusk. A walking trail down to the site of Chief Black Kettle’s village begins at the overlook. The Park Service has also partnered with the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes to create a native garden that showcases plants significant for their spiritual and practical uses.
Partners of the Park Service
NPS-affiliated sites in Oklahoma
These sites aren’t run by the National Park Service, but they’re part of the NPS family through national trails and heritage areas.
Butterfield Overland National Historic Trail
The Butterfield Overland National Historic Trail follows the route of the Butterfield Overland Mail, which carried passengers and mail by stagecoach between St. Louis, Memphis, and San Francisco from 1858 to 1861. The route swung across the southern United States through Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. Congress added it to the National Trails System in 2023, so it is one of the newest sites in the NPS family and visitor facilities are still being developed. In Oklahoma the stagecoaches crossed the Choctaw Nation in the southeast corner of the state, between Fort Smith and the Red River.
Santa Fe National Historic Trail
The Santa Fe National Historic Trail runs from Western Missouri to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and passes through the states of Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Colorado, and New Mexico. Since 1821 the trail was a major thoroughfare for goods, but by 1880, the trail had become obsolete due to the Santa Fe Railroad line built between Kansas City and Santa Fe. With thirty sites along the trail to get a passport stamp, there are plenty of stops to learn the stories and history of this famous old-west ‘highway’.
Trail of Tears National Historic Trail
The Trail of Tears National Historic Trail commemorates the forceful removal of the Cherokees from their homes in Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama to Indian Territory in Oklahoma. States participating in the Trail are Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. More than 16,000 Cherokee were relocated between 1838 and 1839, and the trail documents their stories of suffering, illness, and death, but also preserves their routes and important sites along the Trail.
Good to know
Oklahoma national parks questions
No. Oklahoma doesn’t have a national park, but it does have four National Park Service sites, including Chickasaw National Recreation Area, Fort Smith National Historic Site, and Oklahoma City National Memorial.
There are four NPS sites in Oklahoma: two national historic sites, a national recreation area, and a national memorial. Three more NPS-affiliated sites, like Santa Fe National Historic Trail, round out the list.
So far we’ve visited Oklahoma City National Memorial and Santa Fe National Historic Trail.
Keep exploring
National parks in nearby states
There’s more to explore in these nearby states.
