Jackson Lake State Park (Ohio)
Encyclopedia
Jackson Lake State Park is a 349 acres (141.2 ha) Ohio state park in Jackson County
, Ohio
, in the United States. The park was established as a state park in 1979. It had previously been a "state reserve", similar to a park but with less development. The forests in and around Jackson Lake State Park were previously harvested to fire the furnaces of numerous iron works that were located in southern Ohio in the western foothills of the Appalachian Mountains
. Recreational activities available at the park include camping, boating, fishing, swimming and picnicking.
in eastern Ohio. This area was long occupied by various tribes of Native Americans
. Evidence this era in the Ohio Valley is found in and around the park. Large burial and ceremonial mounds and petroglyph
s are lasting remants. The Leo Petroglyph
s are located nearby the park.
Tribes that inhabited the area in the Colonial period included with Mingo
, Lenape
, and Shawnee
. Westward expansion by Anglo-American pioneers displaced the Indians who were killed in wars or relocated to the Great Plains
and placed on reservations following the passage of the Indian Removal Act
. The pioneer settlers cleared the land for farming and developed industries around which towns and cities grew.
Iron ore was discovered in southern Ohio in the mid-19th century. The combination of deposits of ore and vast stands of old-growth forests made the Hanging Rock Iron Region ideally suited for the iron
industry. The Jefferson Iron Furnace was constructed in 1854. It met the growing demand for iron in the developing United States of America. The importance of the furnaces in the Hanging Rock region grew tremendously during the American Civil War
. Iron produced in the Jackson Lake State Park area was sold to manufacturers under the trademark, "Anchor". This iron was used to build the USS Monitor
, an ironclad warship made famous by its contest against the CSS Virginia
, a Confederate ironclad sometimes known as the Merrimack, at the Battle of Hampton Roads
.
The era of iron production in the Jackson Lake State Park area began to wane in the years following the Civil War. Demand for iron outstripped the resources in the Hanging Rock Iron Region. Ore deposits had been cleared and what remained was minimal and difficult to extract. Also much of the forested land had been cleared to provide charcoal
to fire the furnaces. A combination of a lack of ore and charcoal helped bring about the end of the iron era. Remnants of the Jefferson Iron Furnaces are found in various parts of Jackson Lake State Park.
Other industries that were in the area included coal
mining and salt
mining. Over a million tons of coal were mined in 1888. Jackson County was the second leading coal producing county in the state during the coal mining era. Salt mines along Salt Creek were set aside "by Congress for the use of the state to secure the salt." Indian tribes also used the area and came from great distances to gather salt.
The departure of the iron, coal, and salt industries allowed the stripped forests to regenerate. Jackson Lake State Park is now home to a second growth forest
. This rebirth has led to the establishment of the state park. This occurred in several stages. First, a dam was built on Black Fork creating Jackson Lake in 1938. The area was known as Jackson Lake State Reserve. It was home to a small camping area with a beach on the lake. Jackson Lake State Park was established in 1979 after the facilities were expanded and improved.
region is home to diverse plant and animal populations. The region contains nearly 70% of the woodlands in Ohio. At one time this same region was a barren wasteland that had been stripped of its old growth forests to provide fuel for the iron furnaces. The forests have since regrown with a diversity of hardwood
s including hickory
, oak
, and maple
.
A variety of animals are found in Jackson Lake State Park. These animals are protected from hunting in the park. They include most common Eastern Woodland creatures such as the White-tailed deer
, Skunk
s, Wild Turkey
s, Opossums, Raccoon
s, Eastern Gray Squirrel
s, Great Horned Owl
s and numerous songbirds, reptiles and amphibians. Plant life at the park includes Dame's violet, Goldenrod
, spring beauties
and asters.
and beach volleyball
court. Jackson Lake is open to fishing
, boating
and swimming. Boats must be under 10 horsepower
. There are two launch ramps at the park with boat rental nearby. Common game fish at the park include carp
, bass
, bluegill
and muskellunge
. Valid Ohio fishing licenses are required. The lake is open to swimming at the sandy beach. Four picnic areas are on the shores of Jackson Lake with three pavilions that are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Jackson County, Ohio
Jackson County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. As of 2010, the population was 33,225. Its county seat is Jackson and is named for Andrew Jackson, a hero of the War of 1812 who was subsequently elected President of the United States....
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, in the United States. The park was established as a state park in 1979. It had previously been a "state reserve", similar to a park but with less development. The forests in and around Jackson Lake State Park were previously harvested to fire the furnaces of numerous iron works that were located in southern Ohio in the western foothills of the Appalachian Mountains
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...
. Recreational activities available at the park include camping, boating, fishing, swimming and picnicking.
History
Jackson Lake State Park is north of the Ohio RiverOhio 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...
in eastern Ohio. This area was long occupied by various tribes of Native Americans
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...
. Evidence this era in the Ohio Valley is found in and around the park. Large burial and ceremonial mounds and petroglyph
Petroglyph
Petroglyphs are pictogram and logogram images created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, and abrading. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions of the technique to refer to such images...
s are lasting remants. The Leo Petroglyph
Leo Petroglyph
The Leo Petroglyph is a sandstone petroglyph containing 37 images of humans and animals as well as footprints of each. The petroglyph is located near the small village of Leo, Ohio and is thought to have been created by the Fort Ancient peoples...
s are located nearby the park.
Tribes that inhabited the area in the Colonial period included with Mingo
Mingo
The Mingo are an Iroquoian group of Native Americans made up of peoples who migrated west to the Ohio Country in the mid-eighteenth century. Anglo-Americans called these migrants mingos, a corruption of mingwe, an Eastern Algonquian name for Iroquoian-language groups in general. Mingos have also...
, Lenape
Lenape
The Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...
, and Shawnee
Shawnee
The Shawnee, Shaawanwaki, Shaawanooki and Shaawanowi lenaweeki, are an Algonquian-speaking people native to North America. Historically they inhabited the areas of Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Western Maryland, Kentucky, Indiana, and Pennsylvania...
. Westward expansion by Anglo-American pioneers displaced the Indians who were killed in wars or relocated to the Great Plains
Great Plains
The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...
and placed on reservations following the passage of the Indian Removal Act
Indian Removal Act
The Indian Removal Act was signed into law by President Andrew Jackson on May 28, 1830.The Removal Act was strongly supported in the South, where states were eager to gain access to lands inhabited by the Five Civilized Tribes. In particular, Georgia, the largest state at that time, was involved in...
. The pioneer settlers cleared the land for farming and developed industries around which towns and cities grew.
Iron ore was discovered in southern Ohio in the mid-19th century. The combination of deposits of ore and vast stands of old-growth forests made the Hanging Rock Iron Region ideally suited for the iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
industry. The Jefferson Iron Furnace was constructed in 1854. It met the growing demand for iron in the developing United States of America. The importance of the furnaces in the Hanging Rock region grew tremendously during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. Iron produced in the Jackson Lake State Park area was sold to manufacturers under the trademark, "Anchor". This iron was used to build the USS Monitor
USS Monitor
USS Monitor was the first ironclad warship commissioned by the United States Navy during the American Civil War. She is most famous for her participation in the Battle of Hampton Roads on March 9, 1862, the first-ever battle fought between two ironclads...
, an ironclad warship made famous by its contest against the CSS Virginia
CSS Virginia
CSS Virginia was the first steam-powered ironclad warship of the Confederate States Navy, built during the first year of the American Civil War; she was constructed as a casemate ironclad using the raised and cut down original lower hull and steam engines of the scuttled . Virginia was one of the...
, a Confederate ironclad sometimes known as the Merrimack, at the Battle of Hampton Roads
Battle of Hampton Roads
The Battle of Hampton Roads, often referred to as either the Battle of the Monitor and Merrimack or the Battle of Ironclads, was the most noted and arguably most important naval battle of the American Civil War from the standpoint of the development of navies...
.
The era of iron production in the Jackson Lake State Park area began to wane in the years following the Civil War. Demand for iron outstripped the resources in the Hanging Rock Iron Region. Ore deposits had been cleared and what remained was minimal and difficult to extract. Also much of the forested land had been cleared to provide 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 fire the furnaces. A combination of a lack of ore and charcoal helped bring about the end of the iron era. Remnants of the Jefferson Iron Furnaces are found in various parts of Jackson Lake State Park.
Other industries that were in the area included coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
mining and salt
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
mining. Over a million tons of coal were mined in 1888. Jackson County was the second leading coal producing county in the state during the coal mining era. Salt mines along Salt Creek were set aside "by Congress for the use of the state to secure the salt." Indian tribes also used the area and came from great distances to gather salt.
The departure of the iron, coal, and salt industries allowed the stripped forests to regenerate. Jackson Lake State Park is now home to a second growth forest
Secondary forest
A secondary forest is a forest or woodland area which has re-grown after a major disturbance such as fire, insect infestation, timber harvest or windthrow, until a long enough period has passed so that the effects of the disturbance are no longer evident...
. This rebirth has led to the establishment of the state park. This occurred in several stages. First, a dam was built on Black Fork creating Jackson Lake in 1938. The area was known as Jackson Lake State Reserve. It was home to a small camping area with a beach on the lake. Jackson Lake State Park was established in 1979 after the facilities were expanded and improved.
Ecology
Jackson Lake State Park is in the Appalachian Highlands region of Ohio. The hilly sandstoneSandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
region is home to diverse plant and animal populations. The region contains nearly 70% of the woodlands in Ohio. At one time this same region was a barren wasteland that had been stripped of its old growth forests to provide fuel for the iron furnaces. The forests have since regrown with a diversity of hardwood
Hardwood
Hardwood is wood from angiosperm trees . It may also be used for those trees themselves: these are usually broad-leaved; in temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen.Hardwood contrasts with softwood...
s including hickory
Hickory
Trees in the genus Carya are commonly known as hickory, derived from the Powhatan language of Virginia. The genus includes 17–19 species of deciduous trees with pinnately compound leaves and big nuts...
, oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
, and maple
Maple
Acer is a genus of trees or shrubs commonly known as maple.Maples are variously classified in a family of their own, the Aceraceae, or together with the Hippocastanaceae included in the family Sapindaceae. Modern classifications, including the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group system, favour inclusion in...
.
A variety of animals are found in Jackson Lake State Park. These animals are protected from hunting in the park. They include most common Eastern Woodland creatures such as the White-tailed deer
White-tailed Deer
The white-tailed deer , also known as the Virginia deer or simply as the whitetail, is a medium-sized deer native to the United States , Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru...
, Skunk
Skunk
Skunks are mammals best known for their ability to secrete a liquid with a strong, foul odor. General appearance varies from species to species, from black-and-white to brown or cream colored. Skunks belong to the family Mephitidae and to the order Carnivora...
s, Wild Turkey
Wild Turkey
The Wild Turkey is native to North America and is the heaviest member of the Galliformes. It is the same species as the domestic turkey, which derives from the South Mexican subspecies of wild turkey .Adult wild turkeys have long reddish-yellow to grayish-green...
s, Opossums, Raccoon
Raccoon
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
s, Eastern Gray Squirrel
Eastern Gray Squirrel
The eastern gray squirrel is a tree squirrel in the genus Sciurus native to the eastern and midwestern United States, and to the southerly portions of the eastern provinces of Canada...
s, Great Horned Owl
Great Horned Owl
The Great Horned Owl, , also known as the Tiger Owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. It is an adaptable bird with a vast range and is the most widely distributed true owl in the Americas.-Description:...
s and numerous songbirds, reptiles and amphibians. Plant life at the park includes Dame's violet, Goldenrod
Goldenrod
Solidago, commonly called goldenrods, is a genus of about 100 species of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Most are herbaceous perennial species found in the meadows and pastures, along roads, ditches and waste areas in North America. There are also a few species native to Mexico, South...
, spring beauties
Claytonia
Claytonia is a genus of 26 species of flowering plants in the family Montiaceae, primarily native to North America, with a few species extending south to Guatemala in Central America, and northwest to northeastern Asia....
and asters.
Recreation
Jackson Lake State Park is open for year round recreation. A campground with 34 sites that have electrical connections is available to visitors. A playground is nearby the camping area as is a horseshoe pitHorseshoes
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...
and beach volleyball
Beach volleyball
Beach volleyball, or sand volleyball, is an Olympic team sport played by two teams of two players on a sand court divided by a net.Like volleyball, the object of the game is to send the ball over the net in order to ground it on the opponent’s court, and to prevent the same effort by the opponent....
court. Jackson Lake is open to fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
, boating
Boating
Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels , focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, such as fishing or water skiing...
and swimming. Boats must be under 10 horsepower
Horsepower
Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
. There are two launch ramps at the park with boat rental nearby. Common game fish at the park include carp
Carp
Carp are various species of oily freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. The cypriniformes are traditionally grouped with the Characiformes, Siluriformes and Gymnotiformes to create the superorder Ostariophysi, since these groups have certain...
, bass
Bass (fish)
Bass is a name shared by many different species of popular gamefish. The term encompasses both freshwater and marine species. All belong to the large order Perciformes, or perch-like fishes, and in fact the word bass comes from Middle English bars, meaning "perch."-Types of basses:*The temperate...
, bluegill
Bluegill
The Bluegill is a species of freshwater fish sometimes referred to as bream, brim, or copper nose. It is a member of the sunfish family Centrarchidae of the order Perciformes.-Range and distribution:...
and muskellunge
Muskellunge
A muskellunge , also known as a muskelunge, muscallonge, milliganong, or maskinonge , is a large, relatively uncommon freshwater fish of North America. Muskellunge are the largest member of the pike family, Esocidae...
. Valid Ohio fishing licenses are required. The lake is open to swimming at the sandy beach. Four picnic areas are on the shores of Jackson Lake with three pavilions that are available on a first-come, first-served basis.