Acadia National Park’s iconic trail system has been selected as the latest addition to the National Register of Historic Places.
The 109 trails across the system span 117 miles, including 18 memorial plaques and 12 scenic viewpoints, and were selected to the registry due to the ties to Mount Desert Island history, according to Katie Liming, a spokesperson for the National Park System.
Specifically, the registry determined that 1844 to 1942 was a significant period in the history of Acadia’s trail system.
Artist Thomas Cole first traveled to Acadia in the 1840s to complete landscape paintings capturing the scenic views, which inspired the future trail system, Liming said. The system was designed and developed through 1942, when the Civilian Conservation Corps completed work on the trails.
Acadia’s trail system is now the largest network of trails to be included on the national register.
There are also a number of other historic places in Acadia that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places; Schoodic Peninsula Historic District and the Blackwoods and Seawall campgrounds were added in 2007, Baker Island Light Station and the Bear Island Light Station were added in 1988 and the Carriage Paths, Bridges and Gatehouses were added in 1979.