Charlestown State Park
Encyclopedia
Charlestown State Park is an Indiana state park on 5100 acres (20.64 km²) in Clark County
, Indiana
, in the United States
. The park is on the banks of the Ohio River
, 1 miles (2 km) east of Charlestown
. It was once part of the Indiana Army Ammunition Plant
(INAAP), and was donated in separate parcels to the Indiana state government. In 1993, the state of Indiana was given 859 acres (3.48 km²) , and in 1994 was given an additional 1125 acres (4.55 km²) . When the park opened in 1996, it encompassed 2400 acres (9.7 km²). With an additional 2600 acres (10.5 km²) given by the INAAP in 2004, the park has 5100 acres (20.6 km²), making it the third largest state park in Indiana. The park attracts 131,000 people a year.
, noted for being one of the oldest unglaciated stream valleys in the state. On the peninsula the creek forms where it meets the Ohio River stands an isolated bedrock ridge called the Devil's Backbone
. According to legend, the Devil's Backbone forms part of the remains of an ancient stone fortress built by Welsh adventurers who traveled to the Ohio Valley in the 12th century, though the story is unsubstantiated. The park does not provide any access to this peninsula from its trails. At one time there was a footbridge across the creek used for accessing the Rose Island amusement park
, but only concrete pilings remain on each side of the creek.
Devonian
fossils and karst
sinkhole
s can be found in the park, in addition to 72 species of birds, including bluebird
s, black vulture
s and bald eagle
s.
The park is scheduled for $3 million in improvements, which were delayed in January 2006 when workers building a new boat ramp found a Native American
cooking area dating back to 2,000 B.C. The remains of firepits and stone slabs that would be used to crack nuts were found, as well as Laurel chert, from which stone tools were made. only once the archaeological surveys were done could work on the improvements, including a five-lane boat ramp, and a riverfront walking trail, continue. In September, 2006 construction of the new boat ramps restarted. The boat ramps opened in June 2007.
In September 2011, the historic Portersville Bridge was relocated and reconstructed to cross the creek and connect Rose Island for the first time.
Clark County, Indiana
Clark County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana, located directly across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky. At the 2010 Census, the population was 110,232. The county seat is Jeffersonville. Clarksville is also a major city in the county...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The park is on the banks of the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
, 1 miles (2 km) east of Charlestown
Charlestown, Indiana
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 5,993 people, 2,341 households, and 1,615 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,570.0 people per square mile . There were 2,489 housing units at an average density of 1,067.4 per square mile...
. It was once part of the Indiana Army Ammunition Plant
Indiana Army Ammunition Plant
The Indiana Army Ammunition Plant was an Army manufacturing plant built in 1941 between Charlestown and Jeffersonville, Indiana. It consisted of three areas within two separate but attached manufacturing plants:...
(INAAP), and was donated in separate parcels to the Indiana state government. In 1993, the state of Indiana was given 859 acres (3.48 km²) , and in 1994 was given an additional 1125 acres (4.55 km²) . When the park opened in 1996, it encompassed 2400 acres (9.7 km²). With an additional 2600 acres (10.5 km²) given by the INAAP in 2004, the park has 5100 acres (20.6 km²), making it the third largest state park in Indiana. The park attracts 131,000 people a year.
Features
The main feature of the park is various scenic trails overlooking Fourteen Mile CreekFourteen Mile Creek
Fourteen Mile Creek, shown as Fourteenmile Creek on federal maps, is a creek in Clark County, Indiana, close to Charlestown. It is so named because its mouth on the Ohio River is upstream from the Falls of the Ohio; similar to how Eighteen Mile Island, Twelve Mile Island, and Six Mile Island got...
, noted for being one of the oldest unglaciated stream valleys in the state. On the peninsula the creek forms where it meets the Ohio River stands an isolated bedrock ridge called the Devil's Backbone
Devil's Backbone (rock formation)
Devil's Backbone is a rock formation and peninsula formed by the flow of Fourteen Mile Creek into the Ohio River, and is currently situated in Charlestown State Park near Charlestown, Indiana...
. According to legend, the Devil's Backbone forms part of the remains of an ancient stone fortress built by Welsh adventurers who traveled to the Ohio Valley in the 12th century, though the story is unsubstantiated. The park does not provide any access to this peninsula from its trails. At one time there was a footbridge across the creek used for accessing the Rose Island amusement park
Rose Island (amusement park)
Rose Island was a popular amusement park near Charlestown, Indiana, situated on a peninsula created by Fourteen Mile Creek emptying into the Ohio River. It was a recreational area known as Fern Grove in the 1880s, mostly used as a church camp. It was so named due to the many ferns that grew there...
, but only concrete pilings remain on each side of the creek.
Devonian
Devonian
The Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic Era spanning from the end of the Silurian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya , to the beginning of the Carboniferous Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya...
fossils and karst
KARST
Kilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
sinkhole
Sinkhole
A sinkhole, also known as a sink, shake hole, swallow hole, swallet, doline or cenote, is a natural depression or hole in the Earth's surface caused by karst processes — the chemical dissolution of carbonate rocks or suffosion processes for example in sandstone...
s can be found in the park, in addition to 72 species of birds, including bluebird
Bluebird
The bluebirds are a group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the genus Sialia of the thrush family . Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas. They have blue, or blue and red, plumage...
s, black vulture
Vulture
Vulture is the name given to two groups of convergently evolved scavenging birds, the New World Vultures including the well-known Californian and Andean Condors, and the Old World Vultures including the birds which are seen scavenging on carcasses of dead animals on African plains...
s and bald eagle
Bald Eagle
The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. It is the national bird and symbol of the United States of America. This sea eagle has two known sub-species and forms a species pair with the White-tailed Eagle...
s.
The park is scheduled for $3 million in improvements, which were delayed in January 2006 when workers building a new boat ramp found a Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
cooking area dating back to 2,000 B.C. The remains of firepits and stone slabs that would be used to crack nuts were found, as well as Laurel chert, from which stone tools were made. only once the archaeological surveys were done could work on the improvements, including a five-lane boat ramp, and a riverfront walking trail, continue. In September, 2006 construction of the new boat ramps restarted. The boat ramps opened in June 2007.
In September 2011, the historic Portersville Bridge was relocated and reconstructed to cross the creek and connect Rose Island for the first time.