Fun Facts

Did You Know...

Here are some fun facts about Petrified Forest National Park!

• Petrified Forest National Park is the only National Park site that has a segment of the Historic Route 66 alignment.

• Theodore Roosevelt created Petrified Forest National monument on December 8, 1906.

• Petrified Forest was designated as a National Park on December 9, 1962.

• Over 13,000 years of human history can be found in the park, including over 800 archeological and historic sites.

• Exposed at Petrified Forest is one of the most continuous sections of Triassic-age rocks anywhere in the world.

• Every year about 600,000 people visit the park.

• The petrified trees are about 211 million years old.

• Petrified Forest National Park used to be a swampy delta.

• 225 million years ago Petrified Forest was a tropical landscape.

• There is a myth that Petrified Forest is cursed! In the 1930s, visitors to the Petrified Forest began to report that after taking a piece of petrified wood from the park, they were seemingly cursed with bad luck. This curse continues today and is now a part of the park's history.