The National Park Service welcomes you to the annual Festival of American Folklife. We are pleased to co-sponsor with the Smithsonian Institution this celebration of our nation's heritage. The Festival site is the National Mall, which is administered by the National Park Service. The Mall is one of the more than 330 areas administered by the National Park Service; it is particularly significant that the Festival is held on such lands, as National Parks are set aside to provide a full representation of the American story and to relate the achievements, customs and cultures of its people. The Festival serves this purpose, telling the American story through music, crafts and celebrations.

The National Mall was set aside in 1790 under the L'Enfant Plan for the city of Washington. Extending from the Capitol to the Washington Monument, the Mall comprises 146 acres and is bordered by dynamic monuments, memorials and magnificent museums and art galleries which pay tribute to America's place in the arts, sciences and history, and reflect the cumulative genius of its people.