Maud Williamson State Recreation Site is a state park

State park

State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...

 in Yamhill County, Oregon

Yamhill County, Oregon

-National protected areas:*Siuslaw National Forest *Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 84,992 people, 28,732 households, and 21,376 families residing in the county. The population density was 119 people per square mile . There were 30,270...

, United States, administered by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department

Oregon Parks and Recreation Department

The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department , officially known as the State Parks and Recreation Department, is the government agency of the U.S. state of Oregon which operates its system of state parks...

. The park is located at the intersection of Oregon Route 221 and Oregon Route 153

Oregon Route 153

Oregon Route 153 is an Oregon state highway running from OR 18 in Bellevue to OR 221 near Hopewell. OR 153 is known as the Bellevue-Hopewell Highway No. 153...

 near Wheatland

Wheatland, Oregon

Wheatland is an unincorporated community in Yamhill County, Oregon, United States. It is near the Willamette River where the Wheatland Ferry takes traffic across the river into Marion County. Its elevation is ; it is in the Pacific Time Zone.-External links:...

. The park entrance is across from Wheatland Road, which leads to the Wheatland Ferry

Wheatland Ferry

The Wheatland Ferry is a cable ferry that connects Marion County and Yamhill County across the Willamette River in the U.S. state of Oregon. The ferry travels approximately 580 feet across the river, depending on the height of the river, and is powered by two electric motors connected to an...

.

The site includes of a stand of second-growth Douglas-fir

Douglas-fir

Douglas-fir is one of the English common names for evergreen coniferous trees of the genus Pseudotsuga in the family Pinaceae. Other common names include Douglas tree, and Oregon pine. There are five species, two in western North America, one in Mexico, and two in eastern Asia...

 and a historic farmhouse. In the early spring trillium

Trillium

Trillium is a genus of about 40–50 species of spring ephemeral perennials, native to temperate regions of North America and Asia....

s are abundant.

The 24 acres (9.7 ha) park formerly offered overnight camping, but now is day-use only. Amenities include picnic tables, restrooms, a covered picnic shelter, volleyball courts and horseshoe pits

Horseshoes

Horseshoes is an outdoor game played between two people using four horseshoes and two throwing targets set in a sandbox area. The game is played by the players alternating turns tossing horseshoes at stakes in the ground, which are traditionally placed 40 feet apart...

. Admission is free, but there is a fee to reserve the picnic shelter.

History

Maud Williamson was a teacher at the school in Wheatland for many years. In about 1930, a new Wheatland School was built across the Dayton

Dayton, Oregon

Dayton is a city in Yamhill County, Oregon, United States. The population was 2,119 at the 2000 census. As of July 2007 its estimated population was 2,495.-History:...

-Salem

Salem, Oregon

Salem is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood...

 highway from the park, which then was a farm owned by Williamson.

Maud Williamson died in about 1933, and willed her timberland and house to the State of Oregon in memory of her mother, Ruby T. Williamson. Part of the park is situated on the original Donation Land Claim

Donation Land Claim Act

The Donation Land Claim Act of 1850 was a statute enacted by the United States Congress intended to promote homestead settlement in the Oregon Territory in the Pacific Northwest...

 of Adam Matheny, one of the sons of Daniel Matheny, who established the ferry in Wheatland.

The adjoining Charles S. Williamson House is a Queen Anne

Queen Anne Style architecture

The Queen Anne Style in Britain means either the English Baroque architectural style roughly of the reign of Queen Anne , or a revived form that was popular in the last quarter of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century...

-style house built in 1890 by Maud Williamson's father, who was postmaster of Wheatland for 12 years. Maud Williamson once lived there with her brother. The house is not open to the public.

A bronze plaque commemorating the donation of the site was placed in the park in 1934.