DIAMOND, Mo. — These are called our nation’s greatest ideas. And this is a special week for the National Park System.
While these are great places to visit and explore, the national park system is also an economic engine, generating more than $50 billion in revenue last year.
Diamond Carver National Monument is one of more than 400 National Park System properties. And park guide Valerie Baldwin says you might be surprised at how far visitors come from on a typical weekend.
“We had people coming from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Texas, Florida and Georgia.”
There will be more visitors than usual this weekend as part of the annual Art in the Parks event during National Parks Week.
When Carver finally enrolled in college, it was as an art student. Every year during National Parks Week, we get to see more of his artistic side than usual.
Carver welcomed nearly 30,000 visitors last year and generated more than $700,000 in revenue for the Joplin area, according to the National Park System.
“Some people come for a few hours and then leave, some spend the whole day, and some come back with the intention of spending the whole day, but some don’t get much information and come back, preferably the next day.” Baldwin said.
Fort Scott Historic Site, another national park facility in the region, had nearly 27,000 visitors and generated $575,000 in revenue in southeast Kansas.
