New National Park and Preserve

By Amanda Sorell
Published on March 12, 2021
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In December 2020, America’s 63rd National Park was designated in West Virginia, the state’s first. Named the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, it spans 70,000 acres of land along the New River between the towns of Hinton and Fayetteville. The park’s updated status was part of an omnibus spending bill signed into law in late 2020, and Senator Shelley Moore Capito has touted the park as a win for West Virginia.

The New River Gorge Bridge is the longest single-arch bridge in the Western Hemisphere.
Photo by Adobe Stock/George

 
Legally, the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve has been under the protection and management of the National Park Service (NPS) since 1978 as a National River. In her statements, Capito has emphasized economics as a key component of the decision to designate the area as a National Park instead, a classification that imparts new signage, additional parking, and increased media attention. Based on figures from other monument and park designations, Capito hopes for a 20 percent increase in annual visitors to the area.
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