Falls of the Ohio State Park
Falls of the Ohio State Park | |
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Map of the U.S. state of Indiana showing the location of Falls of the Ohio State Park | |
Location | Clark County, Indiana, US |
Nearest city | Clarksville, Indiana |
Coordinates | 38°16′32″N 85°45′49″W / 38.27556°N 85.76361°W |
Area | 165 acres (67 ha) |
Established | 1990 |
Visitors | 158,680 (in 2018–2019<)[1] |
Governing body | Indiana Department of Natural Resources |
Falls of the Ohio State Park is a state park in the U.S. state of Indiana. It is located on the banks of the Ohio River at Clarksville, Indiana, across from Louisville, Kentucky. The park is part of the Falls of the Ohio National Wildlife Conservation Area. The exposed fossil beds of the Jeffersonville Limestone dated from the Devonian period are the main feature of the park, attracting about 160,000 visitors annually.[1] The Falls was the site where Lewis and Clark met for the Lewis and Clark Expedition at George Rogers Clark's cabin.[2][3][4][5][6][7]
The park includes an interpretive center open to the public. In 1990, the Indiana state government hired Terry Chase, a well-established exhibit developer, to design the center's displays. Construction began in September 1992, costing $4.9 million with a total area of 16,000 sq ft (1,500 m2).[8] The center functions as a museum with exhibits that concentrate on the natural history related to findings in the nearby fossil beds as well as the human history of the Louisville area, covering pre-settlement, early settlement, and the history of Louisville and southern Indiana through the 20th century.
Unlike at other Indiana state parks, annual entrance permits do not allow unlimited free access (rather, only five people per pass per visit) to the interpretive center, as fees are still needed to reimburse the town of Clarksville for building the center.
The Woodland Loop Trail features ten stainless steel markers denoting the plant life of the trails, thanks to an Eagle Scout project.[9]
Gallery
[edit]-
Interpretive Center Lobby
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View from the shore looking towards Louisville.
See also
[edit]- The Filson Historical Society
- List of attractions and events in the Louisville metropolitan area
- List of fossil sites
- Old Clarksville Site
- Falls of the Ohio National Wildlife Conservation Area: More information about the geology of the Falls
References
[edit]- ^ a b "2018 / 2019 Estimated Fiscal Year Visits for Indiana State Parks ~ Alphabetical" (PDF). Indiana Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
- ^ "Indiana Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Commission". In.gov. Archived from the original on February 17, 2009. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ "Kentucky places : Louisville and the Falls of the Ohio". Lewis and Clark in Kentucky. Archived from the original on February 10, 2012. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ "At the Falls of the Ohio". Lewis-clark.org. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ "Old Clarksville Site-Lewis and Clark Expedition: A National Register of Historic Places Travel Itinerary". Nps.gov. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ "IHB: Lewis and Clark-Indiana connections - Focus". In.gov. June 16, 2009. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ "Part 4: Ohio River - Lewis and Clark - Corps of Discovery - U.S. Army Center of Military History". History.army.mil. Archived from the original on January 23, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2013.
- ^ Kramer, Carl. This Place We Call Home (Indiana University Press, 2007) p.495)
- ^ "Scout project enhances Woodland trail". News and Tribune.
- WikiMapia
- United States Geological Survey. "Falls of the Ohio State Park, USGS New Albany (IN, KY) Topo Map". TopoQuest. Retrieved June 29, 2008.
External links
[edit]- Falls of the Ohio Organization
- Falls of the Ohio State Park - Indiana Department of Natural Resources
- Silurian and Devonian Geology and Paleontology at the Falls of the Ohio, Kentucky/Indiana - 42nd Annual Meeting of the American Institute of Professional Geologists, fieldtrip guidebook, 2005
- IUCN Category III
- Protected areas established in 1990
- Clarksville, Indiana
- History of Louisville, Kentucky
- State parks of Indiana
- Ohio River
- Paleozoic paleontological sites of North America
- Natural history museums in Indiana
- Museums in Clark County, Indiana
- Protected areas of Clark County, Indiana
- Nature centers in Indiana
- Fossil parks in the United States
- Paleontology in Indiana
- 1990 establishments in Indiana
- Devonian paleontological sites