Stony Brook State Park
Encyclopedia
- For the Massachusetts state park, see Stony Brook ReservationStony Brook ReservationStony Brook Reservation is a woodland park in Boston and Dedham, Massachusetts, a unit of the Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston, part of the state park system of Massachusetts. Located in the southwest of Boston, it extends from the West Roxbury neighborhood into the Hyde Park...
.
Stony Brook State Park 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...
located in Dansville
Dansville, Livingston County, New York
Dansville is a village in the town of North Dansville in the eastern part of Livingston County, New York, United States. As of the census, the village population was 4,832. The village is named after Daniel Faulkner, an early settler. Interstate 390 passes next to the west side of the village.-...
in Livingston County
Livingston County, New York
As of the census of 2000, there were 64,328 people, 22,150 households, and 15,349 families residing in the county. The population density was 102 people per square mile . There were 24,023 housing units at an average density of 38 per square mile...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. The park is south of Dansville
Dansville, New York
Dansville, New York may refer to:* Dansville, Livingston County, New York* Dansville, Steuben County, New York...
on New York State Route 36
New York State Route 36
New York State Route 36 is a north–south state highway in the western part of New York in the United States. The highway extends for from the Pennsylvania state line at Troupsburg, Steuben County northward to Ogden, Monroe County, where it ends at an intersection with NY 31...
. Route 36 also connects the park to Stony Brook State Park Beach a short distance away.
The signature attraction of the park is the eponymous brook, which is an example of small, post-glacial streams in the Finger Lakes
Finger Lakes
The Finger Lakes are a pattern of lakes in the west-central section of Upstate New York in the United States. They are a popular tourist destination. The lakes are long and thin , each oriented roughly on a north-south axis. The two longest, Cayuga Lake and Seneca Lake, are among the deepest in...
area. The small creeks and brooks in this area cut through the Great Lakes
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are a collection of freshwater lakes located in northeastern North America, on the Canada – United States border. Consisting of Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario, they form the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth by total surface, coming in second by volume...
-area escarpments following retreat of the ice age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
glaciers, creating deep, narrow gorges
Gorges
Gorges, the plural of the French word for "throat", usually refers to a canyon.Gorges is the name or part of the name of several communes in France:* Gorges, in the Loire-Atlantique département* Gorges, in the Manche département...
, with many waterfalls, which are uncommonly accessible.
As do some other parks in the region, such as Fillmore Glen State Park
Fillmore Glen State Park
Fillmore Glen State Park is located adjacent to the Village of Moravia in Cayuga County, New York.The primary attractions of the park are the hiking trails with views of a stream and several waterfalls, and the swimming pond, made by damming the stream...
, Robert H. Treman State Park
Robert H. Treman State Park
Robert H. Treman State Park is a state park located in Tompkins County, New York in the United States. The park is located along State Route 327, just west of State Routes 13, 34, and 96, situated in the Towns of Ithaca, Enfield and Newfield....
, and Buttermilk Falls State Park
Buttermilk Falls State Park
Buttermilk Falls State Park is located southwest of Ithaca, New York, USA. Like Robert H. Treman State Park, the initial grant of land for the park came from Robert and Laura Treman, in 1924....
, the park features a semi-natural swimming pool, created by a small dam constructed in the lower reaches of the stream.
Stony Brook became a summer tourist spot in the late nineteenth century, following the construction of a railroad in 1883. The resort fell into decline by the 1920s. New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
state resurrected the area by buying the land and establishing the 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 1928.
Stony Brook was enhanced in the 1930s by improvements constructed by 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...
and 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...
. The footprint of these government programs is evident throughout the park in the form of hiking paths, bridges, picnic areas, and buildings.
Initially 250 acres (1 km²), the park is now 577 acres (2.3 km²). It offers a beach, two stream-fed swimming pools, picnic tables and pavilions, a playground, a nature trail, hiking, fishing and bow-hunting (deer), a campground with tent and trailer sites, and cross-country skiing.