Cunningham Falls State Park
Encyclopedia
Cunningham Falls State Park is a Maryland State Park
located west of Thurmont, Maryland
, USA, in the Catoctin Mountain
s. It features a 43 acres (174,015 m²) man-made lake and its namesake waterfall, Cunningham Falls. Cunningham Falls is a 78 feet (23.8 m) cascading waterfall. It is the largest (cascading) waterfall in Maryland. Catoctin Mountain Park
borders the state park to the north. Common recreational activities include hiking, hunting, swimming, boating, fishing, and camping. Big Hunting Creek flows through the park. It is one of Marylands' premier trout streams.
Catoctin Furnace
, the remains of a historic iron furnace, can be toured in the park.
. The charcoal flats can still be seen as you hike through the park. The "charcoal flats" are approximately 25 feet (7.6 m) by 25 feet (7.6 m) square areas cut flat into the hillsides and linked by mule trails. They were used to build charcoal kilns. Too many years of clear cutting and abuse of the forest led to the destruction of the land.
In the 1930s, after years of making charcoal
to fuel nearby iron furnaces, mountain farming, and harvesting of trees for timber, land was purchased by the Federal Government to be transformed into a productive recreation area; helping to put people back to work during the Great Depression
. Beginning in 1935, the Catoctin Recreational Demonstration Area
was under construction by both the Works Progress Administration
and the Civilian Conservation Corps
. The northern portion of the park was transferred to the National Park Service on November 14, 1936, and renamed and reorganized on July 12, 1954 with the southern 5000 acres (20.2 km²) transferred to Maryland as Cunningham Falls State Park.
West of the Falls on Big Hunting Creek lies "Dunkards Trough". It is a natural rock formation in the stream that forms a deep trough. It was used by an early religious group (the Dunkards)for baptisms.
Cunningham Falls was apparently named after a photographer from Pen Mar Park who photographed people at the Falls. The area was originally settled by the McAfee family. An old homestead can be seen above the Falls.
There is an abandoned gold or possibly copper mine located in the 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...
located west of Thurmont, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, USA, in the Catoctin Mountain
Catoctin Mountain
Catoctin Mountain, along with the geologically associated Bull Run Mountains, comprises the easternmost mountain ridge of the Blue Ridge Mountains, which are in turn a part of the Appalachian Mountains range...
s. It features a 43 acres (174,015 m²) man-made lake and its namesake waterfall, Cunningham Falls. Cunningham Falls is a 78 feet (23.8 m) cascading waterfall. It is the largest (cascading) waterfall in Maryland. Catoctin Mountain Park
Catoctin Mountain Park
Catoctin Mountain Park, located in north-central Maryland, is part of the forested Catoctin Mountain ridge that forms the eastern rampart of the Appalachian Mountains...
borders the state park to the north. Common recreational activities include hiking, hunting, swimming, boating, fishing, and camping. Big Hunting Creek flows through the park. It is one of Marylands' premier trout streams.
Catoctin Furnace
Catoctin Furnace
Catoctin Furnace was constructed in 1774 by four brothers Thomas, Baker, Roger and James Johnson to produce pig iron from locally mined hematite.In blast by 1776,...
, the remains of a historic iron furnace, can be toured in the park.
History
The area around Cunningham Falls is rich in local history. Before the arrival of Europeans many Native Americans farmed, hunted and fished the area. The area was also quarried by Native Americans for metarhyolite to make projectile points. Around the 1800s, settlers began to cut down the forests around the area to make charcoal to power the Catoctin Iron FurnaceCatoctin Furnace
Catoctin Furnace was constructed in 1774 by four brothers Thomas, Baker, Roger and James Johnson to produce pig iron from locally mined hematite.In blast by 1776,...
. The charcoal flats can still be seen as you hike through the park. The "charcoal flats" are approximately 25 feet (7.6 m) by 25 feet (7.6 m) square areas cut flat into the hillsides and linked by mule trails. They were used to build charcoal kilns. Too many years of clear cutting and abuse of the forest led to the destruction of the land.
In the 1930s, after years of making charcoal
Charcoal
Charcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of carbon, and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen...
to fuel nearby iron furnaces, mountain farming, and harvesting of trees for timber, land was purchased by the Federal Government to be transformed into a productive recreation area; helping to put people back to work during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. Beginning in 1935, the Catoctin Recreational Demonstration Area
Recreational Demonstration Area
The Recreational Demonstration Area program was a National Park Service program during the 1930s and early 1940s that built forty-six public parks in twenty-four states on , chiefly near urban areas in the United States...
was under construction by both the Works Progress Administration
Works Progress Administration
The Works Progress Administration was the largest and most ambitious New Deal agency, employing millions of unskilled workers to carry out public works projects, including the construction of public buildings and roads, and operated large arts, drama, media, and literacy projects...
and the Civilian Conservation Corps
Civilian Conservation Corps
The Civilian Conservation Corps was a public work relief program that operated from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men from relief families, ages 18–25. A part of the New Deal of President Franklin D...
. The northern portion of the park was transferred to the National Park Service on November 14, 1936, and renamed and reorganized on July 12, 1954 with the southern 5000 acres (20.2 km²) transferred to Maryland as Cunningham Falls State Park.
West of the Falls on Big Hunting Creek lies "Dunkards Trough". It is a natural rock formation in the stream that forms a deep trough. It was used by an early religious group (the Dunkards)for baptisms.
Cunningham Falls was apparently named after a photographer from Pen Mar Park who photographed people at the Falls. The area was originally settled by the McAfee family. An old homestead can be seen above the Falls.
There is an abandoned gold or possibly copper mine located in the Park.