Locust Lake State Park
Encyclopedia
Locust Lake State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on 1089 acres (440.7 ha) in Ryan Township, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania
in the United States. Locust Lake State Park is located approximately 7 miles (11.3 km) north of Pottsville
, 3 miles (5 km) south of Mahanoy City
, 8 miles (12.9 km) west of Tamaqua
and 6 miles (10 km) west of Tuscarora State Park
. The lake is 52 acres (21 ha). The park offers hiking, camping, boating, fishing, swimming, biking, and a wide array of other seasonal activities.
. Their land was conquered by the Susquehannock
s, then later controlled by New York Iroquios League of Five Nations
. In the mid-19th century, settlers discovered anthracite coal
in the area which lead to thousands of immigrants swiftly arriving to the area to mine coal. Although the area was not suitable for coal mining, it did not escape the Industrial Revolution
.
The forest was quickly turned into a shrubbery area prone to flooding and fires after loggers turned the trees into lumber, shingles, tool handles, and other wood products. Tanneries used the white pine and hemlock bark for tanning leather. The forests were gone by the early 20th century, with some farmers clearing and tilling the land.
After its purchase by the Marchalonis Brothers, Locust Lake became a fishing spot and picnicking area. While they were digging a lake, they found a dam with a water wheel under seven feet of debris and leaves. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania purchased the land from the Marshalonis Brothers in 1966. Locust Lake officially opened on June 10, 1972.
Locust Lake has 282 campsites divided into tent or trailer sites. The campsites encircle the lake.
Fishing
is permitted year round. The lake is stocked several times a year with brown
and brook trout
. pickerel
, bass (smallmouth
and largemouth
), and panfish
are also caught year round. Ice fishing
is permitted, but the ice is not monitored for safety.
Swimming is permitted from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Beginning in 2008 lifeguards will not be posted at the beach. Swimming areas are marked with buoys, and the deepest area is 5 in 6 in (1.68 m)5.5 feet (1.7 m).
, woodcock
, doves, Common Pheasant
s, Eastern Gray Squirrel
s, Wild Turkey
s, Eastern Cottontail
rabbit, and White-tailed deer
are common species and frequently spotted. Although there is ample room for hunting, it is restricted to designated areas of the park and surrounding state forest. A bow and arrow and flintlock muzzle loader only hunting area is located in the park. Hunting groundhog
s is prohibited. Dog training is permitted from the day after Labor day until March 31 in designated hunting areas.
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
in the United States. Locust Lake State Park is located approximately 7 miles (11.3 km) north of Pottsville
Pottsville, Pennsylvania
Pottsville is the only city in and the county seat of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 15,549 at the 2000 census. The city lies along the west bank of the Schuylkill River, north-west of Philadelphia...
, 3 miles (5 km) south of Mahanoy City
Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania
Mahanoy City is a borough located north by west of Reading and 13 miles southwest of Hazleton, in northern Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania or the southern Coal Region. The name "Mahanoy" is believed to be a variation of the Native American word 'Maghonioy', or "the salt deposits"...
, 8 miles (12.9 km) west of Tamaqua
Tamaqua, Pennsylvania
Tamaqua is a borough in eastern Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The borough, located in Northeastern Pennsylvania's Coal Region, had a population of 7,107 as of the 2010 U.S...
and 6 miles (10 km) west of Tuscarora State Park
Tuscarora State Park
Tuscarora State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on in Rush, Ryan, Schuylkill Townships, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The most prominent features of the park are Locust Mountain and Tuscarora Lake...
. The lake is 52 acres (21 ha). The park offers hiking, camping, boating, fishing, swimming, biking, and a wide array of other seasonal activities.
History
The Locust Valley area was originally claimed by the LenapeLenape
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...
. Their land was conquered by the Susquehannock
Susquehannock
The Susquehannock people were Iroquoian-speaking Native Americans who lived in areas adjacent to the Susquehanna River and its tributaries from the southern part of what is now New York, through Pennsylvania, to the mouth of the Susquehanna in Maryland at the north end of the Chesapeake Bay...
s, then later controlled by New York Iroquios League of Five Nations
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
. In the mid-19th century, settlers discovered anthracite coal
Anthracite coal
Anthracite is a hard, compact variety of mineral coal that has a high luster...
in the area which lead to thousands of immigrants swiftly arriving to the area to mine coal. Although the area was not suitable for coal mining, it did not escape the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
.
The forest was quickly turned into a shrubbery area prone to flooding and fires after loggers turned the trees into lumber, shingles, tool handles, and other wood products. Tanneries used the white pine and hemlock bark for tanning leather. The forests were gone by the early 20th century, with some farmers clearing and tilling the land.
After its purchase by the Marchalonis Brothers, Locust Lake became a fishing spot and picnicking area. While they were digging a lake, they found a dam with a water wheel under seven feet of debris and leaves. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania purchased the land from the Marshalonis Brothers in 1966. Locust Lake officially opened on June 10, 1972.
Locust Lake
Motor boats are allowed as long as you have a boat registration from any state. Non-powered boats may either have a boat registration from any state, or a launching or mooring permit from Pennsylvania State Parks. Boat rentals are available at a nominal fee.Locust Lake has 282 campsites divided into tent or trailer sites. The campsites encircle the lake.
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....
is permitted year round. The lake is stocked several times a year with brown
Brown trout
The brown trout and the sea trout are fish of the same species....
and brook trout
Brook trout
The brook trout, Salvelinus fontinalis, is a species of fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. In many parts of its range, it is known as the speckled trout or squaretail. A potamodromous population in Lake Superior are known as coaster trout or, simply, as coasters...
. pickerel
American pickerel
The American pickerels are two subspecies of Esox americanus, a species of freshwater fish in the pike family of order Esociformes: the redfin pickerel, E. americanus americanus Gmelin, 1789, and the grass pickerel, E. americanus vermiculatus Lesueur, 1846.Both subspecies are native to North America...
, bass (smallmouth
Smallmouth bass
The smallmouth bass is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family of the order Perciformes. It is the type species of its genus...
and largemouth
Largemouth bass
The largemouth bass is a species of black bass in the sunfish family native to North America . It is also known as widemouth bass, bigmouth, black bass, bucketmouth, Potter's fish, Florida bass, Florida largemouth, green bass, green trout, linesides, Oswego bass, southern largemouth...
), and panfish
Panfish
A panfish, also spelled pan-fish or pan fish, is an edible game fish that usually doesn't outgrow the size of a frying pan. The term is also commonly used by anglers to refer to any small catch that will fit in a pan, but is large enough to be legal. However its definition and usage varies with...
are also caught year round. Ice fishing
Ice fishing
Ice fishing is the practice of catching fish with lines and fish hooks or spears through an opening in the ice on a frozen body of water. Ice anglers may sit on the stool in the open on a frozen lake, or in a heated cabin on the ice, some with bunks and amenities.-Locations:It is a popular pastime...
is permitted, but the ice is not monitored for safety.
Swimming is permitted from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Beginning in 2008 lifeguards will not be posted at the beach. Swimming areas are marked with buoys, and the deepest area is 5 in 6 in (1.68 m)5.5 feet (1.7 m).
Hunting
Approximately 1045 acres (422.9 ha) are available for hunting. Ruffed GrouseRuffed Grouse
The Ruffed Grouse is a medium-sized grouse occurring in forests from the Appalachian Mountains across Canada to Alaska. It is non-migratory.The Ruffed Grouse is frequently referred to as a "partridge"...
, woodcock
Woodcock
The woodcocks are a group of seven or eight very similar living species of wading birds in the genus Scolopax. Only two woodcocks are widespread, the others being localized island endemics. Most are found in the Northern Hemisphere but a few range into Wallacea...
, doves, Common Pheasant
Common Pheasant
The Common Pheasant , is a bird in the pheasant family . It is native to Georgia and has been widely introduced elsewhere as a game bird. In parts of its range, namely in places where none of its relatives occur such as in Europe , it is simply known as the "pheasant"...
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, 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, Eastern Cottontail
Eastern Cottontail
The eastern cottontail is a New World cottontail rabbit, a member of the family Leporidae. It is one of the most common rabbit species in North America.-Distribution:...
rabbit, and 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...
are common species and frequently spotted. Although there is ample room for hunting, it is restricted to designated areas of the park and surrounding state forest. A bow and arrow and flintlock muzzle loader only hunting area is located in the park. Hunting groundhog
Groundhog
The groundhog , also known as a woodchuck, whistle-pig, or in some areas as a land-beaver, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. Other marmots, such as the yellow-bellied and hoary marmots, live in rocky and mountainous areas, but...
s is prohibited. Dog training is permitted from the day after Labor day until March 31 in designated hunting areas.
Nearby state parks
The following state parks are within 30 miles (48.3 km) of Locust Lake State Park:- Beltzville State ParkBeltzville State ParkBeltzville State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Franklin and Towamensing townships, Carbon County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park was developed around the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers flood control project, Beltzville Dam on Pohopoco Creek. Beltzville Lake is a with of...
(Carbon CountyCarbon County, PennsylvaniaAs of the census of 2000, there were 58,802 people, 23,701 households, and 16,424 families residing in the county. The population density was 154 people per square mile . There were 30,492 housing units at an average density of 80 per square mile...
) - Hickory Run State ParkHickory Run State ParkHickory Run State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Kidder and Penn Forest Townships in Carbon County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is spread across the Pocono Mountains...
(Carbon County) - Lehigh Gorge State ParkLehigh Gorge State ParkLehigh Gorge State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Luzerne and Carbon Counties, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park encompasses the Lehigh Gorge, which stretches along the Lehigh River from a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers flood control dam in Luzerne County to Jim Thorpe in Carbon County...
(Carbon and Luzerne CountiesLuzerne County, Pennsylvania- Demographics :As of the 2010 census, the county was 90.7% White, 3.4% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 3.3% were of some other race, and 1.5% were two or more races. 6.7% of the population was of Hispanic or Latino ancestry...
) - Nescopeck State ParkNescopeck State ParkNescopeck State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on in Butler and Dennison Townships, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is one of the newest state parks in Pennsylvania, with the Environmental Education Center there opening in April, 2005. The state began acquiring the...
(Luzerne County) - Swatara State ParkSwatara State ParkSwatara State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Bethel, Swatara and Union Townships, Lebanon and Pine Grove Township, Schuylkill Counties in Pennsylvania in the United States. of Swatara Creek lie within the park's boundaries, which are roughly formed by Pennsylvania Route 443 to the north and...
(LebanonLebanon County, PennsylvaniaAs of the census of 2000, there were 120,327 people and 32,771 families residing in the county. The population density was 332 people per square mile . There were 49,320 housing units at an average density of 136 per square mile...
and Schuylkill CountiesSchuylkill County, Pennsylvania-Notable people:*Boxing heavyweight great Muhammad Ali had his training camp in Deer Lake.*Charles Justin Bailey, commanding general of the 81st Division in World War I, was born in Tamaqua on June 21, 1859....
) - Tuscarora State ParkTuscarora State ParkTuscarora State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on in Rush, Ryan, Schuylkill Townships, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The most prominent features of the park are Locust Mountain and Tuscarora Lake...
(Schuylkill County)