Chiricahua's Rock Spires Become America's 64th National Park
The Arizona site, a national monument since 1924, is the first new national park in six years.
Photo: NPS staff / Public domain via Wikimedia Commons
Chiricahua National Monument in southeastern Arizona has been redesignated as Chiricahua National Park, the nation's 64th, after President Donald Trump signed the Chiricahua National Park Act, AZFamily reported on 20 October 2026.
A landscape of standing stone
The park covers about 19 square miles of towering rock spires formed from an ancient volcanic eruption. Native Americans knew the area as the Land of Standing-Up Rocks, and early settlers called it the Wonderland of Rocks. The name Chiricahua comes from the surrounding mountains, and the land lies within the historical territory of the Chiricahua Apache Tribes.
How it got here
- 1924: President Calvin Coolidge protected the site as a national monument under the Antiquities Act
- 1938: President Franklin D. Roosevelt expanded it
- 2026: Congress passed the redesignation, sponsored by Arizona Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani and backed across party lines
Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat, said making Chiricahua a national park "has been a priority of mine since I first came to the Senate." Other reports describe it as the first new national park in six years, following New River Gorge in 2020.
What it means
The change is mainly one of status: the land was already protected, and the AZFamily report does not describe other operational changes. National park designation can raise a site's profile and visitor interest, which may help nearby communities in Cochise County.
Context
The new designation comes as the National Park Service is dealing with deep workforce cuts, and AZFamily notes that maintenance projects at many sites, Chiricahua included, have been ranked low priority. Supporters will be watching to see whether the new title brings the resources to match.