Trough Creek State Park - James Creek, Pennsylvania - State/Provincial Parks on Waymarking.com

Trough Creek State Park - James Creek, Pennsylvania


Information excerpted from Trough Creek State Park website as well as the Trough Creek State Parkrelated Wikipedia Page

Background
The American Indians knew Great Trough Creek Gorge as a place to live and hunt, but were displaced by settlers who came to harness the natural power of the moving water. In 1780, the first settler, Nicholas Crum, built a wooden tub (turbine) gristmill. A bloomery followed in 1790 and made about 100 pounds of iron a day.

In 1827, Rueben Trexler constructed Paradise Furnace, which produced 12 tons of cast iron a day. In 1832, Savage Forge was built to turn the cast iron into wrought iron. Changing economics caused the community to crumble in 1856. Paradise Furnace briefly reopened during the American Civil War.

The area has attracted many famous visitors. It is reputed that Edgar Allen Poe visited and later wrote the poem “The Raven” after seeing the ravens that nested on the cliffs.

In 1910, the partnership of Caprio and Grieco established a standard logging railroad from Marklesburg, Pa., to Paradise Furnace, a distance of eight miles. At Paradise Furnace, a sawmill produced mine props, timber, and railroad ties from the second-growth timber of the valley.

In 1913, the railroad incorporated as the Juniata and Southern Railroad and extended the rail line seven miles to reach the Broad Top Coal and Mineral Company’s mine at Jacobs, Pa. In 1917, the mine closed and the timber was all harvested. The railroad was dismantled and scrapped. Due to the need for metal for World War I, the scrap sold for more than the original cost to build the railroad. Due to the loss of trees, the land was prone to floods and forest fires.

In 1933, to relieve the rampant unemployment of the Great Depression, President Roosevelt created the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). The young men in the CCC received food, clothes and a small paycheck in return for building roads, trails and recreational facilities, fighting forest fires, planting trees and doing many other conservation activities.

In June of 1933, Company 1331 arrived and lived in tents while they built Camp S-57, named Camp Paradise Furnace. The young men planted trees, constructed roads and trails, and created Trough Creek State Park, which opened in 1936. World War II ended the CCC and Camp S-57 closed in 1941.

Recreation
Trough Creek State Park is open to year round recretion including camping, picnicking, hunting and fishing.
Lodging and picnicking

Trough Creek State Park has 32 modern camp-sites, all equipped with a hook-up to electricity. RV's of any size can use the facilities at Trough Creek. Each campsite also has a picnic table, tent pad and campfire ring. There is a public restroom, but there are no showers.
Trough Creek Lodge is available to be rented at any time of the year. The lodge was built in the mid-19th century and is constructed of stone that has been covered with stucco that has been altered to look like bricks. The lodge has a modern kitchen, four bedrooms, two bathrooms and central heating.

There are five picnic sites in Trough Creek Lodge. Picnic tables and pavilions are available at all the picnic areas. There are restrooms, play areas, and hand pump wells available at some of the picnic areas.

Hunting and fishing

Only 100 acres of the park are open to hunting. But Trough Creek State Park adjoins state forest land and land owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This land is open for hunting. The most common game species are Ruffed Grouse, squirrels, turkey and White-tailed deer. Hunters are expected to follow all rules and regulations of the Pennsylvania Game Commission.
Fishing is quite popular at Trough Creek State Park. Stream fishing is available in Great Trough Creek. Lake fishing is available in a cove of Raystown Lake that is within the park boundaries. Great Trough Creek holds a variety of fish including, trout, panfish, rock bass, sucker and smallmouth bass. Shad can be caught during their run at the mouths of the streams that feed into Raystown Lake.