Abraham Lincoln dwarfed other presidents in tourism to federally run sites in 2009, thanks in part to celebrations tied to the bicentennial of his birth.

According to figures collected by the National Park Service , nearly 6.8 million people visited sites associated with Lincoln last year, including his memorial on the National Mall, Ford's Theatre and childhood homes in Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois.

By contrast, 2.7 million people visited two sites associated with Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Also high on the list were Founding Fathers Thomas Jefferson, George Washington and John Adams.

"Anytime you think of the presidents of the United States, those are the ones you think about," Gerry Gaumer, a National Parks Service spokesman, said. Four out of the five also happen to have memorials in D.C., which are popular with visitors to the nation's capital.

But many Americans would also think of John F. Kennedy, who falls at the bottom of the list. His Massachusetts home drew only 16,000 visitors last year, mostly nearby residents and students on field trips.

It's only open part of the year and few people know about it, Gaumer explained. Many Kennedy enthusiasts pay their respects at the Eternal Flame in Arlington National Cemetery, where he rests, or visit the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, his living memorial.

Those and several other popular spots like Washington's Mount Vernon and Jefferson's Monticello are not managed by the NPS or included on this list. We also left out tourist spots with broader appeal such as Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota or Mount Rushmore.

The list still packs a few surprises.

Who knew that 162,000 people visited Herbert Hoover's home in Iowa last year? That's just shy of the entire population of Des Moines, Iowa's largest city.

The popularity of the place may have less to do Hoover's presidency, which was darkened by the Great Depression, and more to do with modern-day marketing. Gaumer attributes the site's popularity to the special events and programming park staff use to lure tourists.

The similarly situated James A. Garfield home in Lawnfield, Ohio, drew far fewer people. Just 17,000 people visited the site recently acquired by the National Parks Service, placing it second to last on the list.

Though the Civil War general is a local celebrity in this Cleveland suburb, his national status was limited by the short length of his presidency. Garfield was assassinated six months after taking office.

"This will never be Monticello or Mount Vernon, but we have a lot to offer," Todd Arrington, the site's chief of interpretation and education, said.

He noted that visitation is up by 70 percent this year, thanks in part to special events aimed at Civil War buffs, presidential history fans, and Cleveland tourists.

Park staff plan to use the Civil War's bicentennial to promote the home even more next year.

"We're not just about the furniture in the house. We're really trying to paint a much more complete picture of Garfield," he said.

Special programs, especially those timed to historical events, can make or break a site's popularity. They even gave Lincoln a boost to the top.

Though Lincoln has always been a popular draw -- 900,000 people visited his memorial in 1936  -- tourists flocked to Lincoln sites last year to celebrate his bicentennial.

The Adams family home in Massachusetts also drew relatively large crowds. Some 250,000 people visited the home of John Adams, who was overshadowed in life and in death by other founding fathers.

The Massachusetts birthplaces of both the second president and his son John Quincy Adams, the sixth president, draws many New Englanders interested in the family's history. Its location just nine miles from Boston and close to beachside vacation homes doesn't hurt either.

A site's proximity to big cities can affect how many people visit it. The Parks Service expects to acquire the homes of Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan soon, but Gaumer said he isn't sure how many will make the trek to visit them.

"A lot of people may like Bill Clinton, but are they going to go to Arkansas," he asked.

Tourists are willing to go off the beaten path for one particular president, however. Seniors who lived through Roosevelt's presidency comprise most of the visitors to his home 90 miles north of New York City.

"For so many in the World War II generation, FDR was their only president," Gaumer said.

Ambreen Ali writes for Congress.org.

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