What is here today
| Mapped listings | 2,503 total; 2,500 originate from the current USGS GNIS Falls extract. |
|---|---|
| Visitor guides | 83 original guides with official visitor-information sources. |
| Listings with verified photographs | 69. Other entries use a labelled geographic placeholder, never a different waterfall's photo. |
| Geographic notes | 452 source records have public-domain USGS descriptions or naming-history notes. |
| Coverage | 49 states and Washington, D.C. in the GNIS extract. All 50 states have browse pages. Alaska and Hawaiʻi are included. U.S. territories are retained in the source package for a separate future release. |
Location records and visitor guides are different
A location record establishes a feature's name and geographic position in a cited source. It does not confirm a legal route, current opening, land ownership, height, swimming suitability, or parking. A visitor guide adds an original write-up and practical information researched from land managers and other primary sources. Each guide displays its research date and source links.
We do not imply that our editors have personally visited every location. We do not invent reviews, visitor ratings, trail distances, photos, or access details to fill gaps.
Where the geographic index comes from
The base index uses the U.S. Geological Survey's Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), using its national domestic-names export last modified September 29, 2026 and retrieved October 12, 2026 UTC. Entries classified as Falls were selected. Historical features and records with unknown coordinates were excluded. Repeated feature IDs were checked; named individual tiers remain separate when GNIS gives them separate IDs.
The export is a gazetteer of names, not an exhaustive inventory of all waterfalls. Unnamed, locally known, newly documented, and differently classified features may be missing. Delaware has no Falls records in this source; that does not prove it has no waterfalls.
The separate 2020 USGS waterfall and rapid compilation describes a broader lower-48 inventory. It has not been imported into this release. We do not count records we have not obtained and checked.
Maps should help you arrive at the right place
GNIS coordinates locate a geographic feature. They can lie on a cliff, in a river, or on land without public access. Our Google Maps buttons open that point. They are not labelled driving directions. Use the official access-and-directions link on a visitor guide to find the appropriate entrance, parking area or trailhead.
Source GNIS coordinates are retained in NAD83. Decimal precision is preserved, but it should not be interpreted as survey accuracy. No elevation is presented as waterfall height.
Photography with a paper trail
Photographs identify the actual named place and have recorded reuse rights. Attribution, source, and licence links appear on the photo credits page and corresponding guide. Images may be resized and displayed with responsive crops. Creative Commons share-alike requirements apply to adaptations of those images; the website does not claim exclusive rights to them.
What remains to be researched
Comprehensive coverage still requires additional sources, duplicate review, visitor-access research, original write-ups, and correctly licensed photos for thousands of entries. A listing without a photo or visitor guide is explicitly labelled. No periodic updating is implied; check the land manager before each trip.
Independence
Waterfalls America is an independent directory. It is not affiliated with USGS, the National Park Service, Google Maps, Wikimedia, or any land manager. Respect tribal sovereignty, private land, seasonal closures, and local regulations.