By state
National parks in South Carolina
Every National Park Service unit in South Carolina, scored and ranked by our Experience Score.
89ESSENTIAL
NPS
National Park · SC
Congaree National Park
Congaree is one of the most underrated free parks in the entire national park system.
87ESSENTIAL
NPS photo
National Historic Site · SC
Ninety Six National Historic Site
Ninety Six punches well above its weight for a free site.
80EXCELLENT
NPS
National Historic Trail · NC
Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail
This 330-mile, four-state trail retraces the 1780 Patriot militia march that ended at Kings Mountain, one of the Revolution's turning-point battles.
78EXCELLENT
NPS Photo
National Historic Site · SC
Charles Pinckney National Historic Site
Charles Pinckney NHS punches above its modest footprint by confronting the full complexity of its subject head-on.
78EXCELLENT
NPS Photo
National Historical Park · SC
Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park
Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie together tell one of the most consequential stories in American history, spanning from a palmetto-log Revolutionary War victory through the first shots of the Civil War.
57WORTH IT
NPS Photo
National Battlefield · SC
Cowpens National Battlefield
Cowpens punches well above its size for a free battlefield site.
45NICHE
NPS Photo
National Historical Park · SC
Reconstruction Era National Historical Park
Reconstruction Era National Historical Park in Beaufort County, SC fills a genuine gap in how Americans understand the post-Civil War period, centering the stories of freed Black Americans navigating new freedoms and fierce resistance.
44NICHE
NPS
National Military Park · SC
Kings Mountain National Military Park
Kings Mountain is a lean but legitimate Revolutionary War site where a single pivotal battle is told with real conviction.