Admission to National Park facilities across the Virgin Islands will be free on Monday in honor of Martin Luther King’s Day.

Those facilities with admission fees include Trunk Bay at V.I. National Park on St. John and Fort Christiansvaern at Christiansted National Historic Site on St. Croix. The admission to Fort Christiansvaern also includes the Steeple Building.

“The intent of the fee-free declaration is to encourage people to enjoy and learn more about the stewardship of National Parks and other federal lands. Virgin Islands National Park/Coral Reef National Monument staff invites you to join us in celebrating our precious National Parks. This is a wonderful opportunity to enjoy our national treasures free of charge,” said acting V.I. National Park superintendent Mike Anderson.

While National Park Service Director Jonathon B. Jarvis focused much of his remarks on Martin Luther King and parks associated with him, he also urged people to visit parks that honor African American accomplishments.

That includes parks in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Anderson said.

“This park has a rich historical connection to African American communities,” he said.

That connection is demonstrated every year at the annual Folklife Festival, held at Annaberg Plantation, commemorating Black History Month. He said students will have an opportunity to learn about the history of St. John and in particular, Annaberg’s history.

“And where their distant relatives may have lived and worked as slaves,” Anderson said.

Anderson pointed out that a day of service is one component of Martin Luther King Day, and the park has a volunteer program to run in conjunction with it. He said if people want to volunteer, they can show up at the Visitor Center in Cruz Bay at 9 a.m.

Joel Tutein, superintendent of the National Park facilities on St. Croix, could not be reached for comment.

The National Park Service indicated in its press release that National Parks directly associated with King include the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site in Georgia, which contains his birthplace, home, church, and grave. The list also includes the 54-mile long Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail in Alabama, where he led the 1965 Voting Rights March, and the National Mall and Memorial Parks in Washington, D.C. that include the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial, where he spoke of his dream for America.

Among the dozens of other national parks that celebrate African American achievements are New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park in Louisiana, Sequoia National Park in California, George Washington Carver National Monument in Missouri, Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site in Alabama, and Nicodemus National Historical Site in Kansas.

The National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places also recognizes key locations associated with African American history. Their travel itineraries, We Shall Overcome: Historic Places of the Civil Rights Movement and Aboard the Underground Railroad, provide details on more than 100 significant sites.

In addition to Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the National Park Service will also waive admission fees on 10 other days in 2013 – the weekdays of National Park Week on April 22 through 26, the National Park Service’s 97th birthday on Aug. 25, National Public Lands Day on Sept. 28, and Veterans Day weekend on Nov. 9 through 11.