Ohiopyle State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on in Dunbar, Henry Clay and Stewart Townships, Fayette County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The focal point of the park is the more than of the Youghiogheny River Gorge that passes through the park. The river provides some of the best whitewater boating in the Eastern United States. Ohiopyle State Park is bisected by Pennsylvania Route 381 south of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The park opened to the public in 1965 but was not officially dedicated until 1971.
Ohiopyle State Park was chosen by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and its Bureau of Parks as one of "25 Must-See Pennsylvania State Parks".
Natural history
The park lies within the Appalachian mixed mesophytic forests ecoregion.
Waterfalls
Ohiopyle State Park features several waterfalls.
Ohiopyle Falls is a waterfall that spans the Youghiogheny River and is surrounded by the Falls Day Use Area located at the center of the park. Cucumber Falls is a bridal veil waterfall on Cucumber Run, a small creek which flows into the Youghiogheny River. It can be reached from Meadow Run Trail. Cascades is a woodland waterfall that is near the park office and is very popular with anglers. Jonathan Run Falls is a series of rhododendron lined waterfalls on Jonathan Run that can be seen by hiking on Jonathan Run Trail. Sugar Run Falls is a waterfall on Sugar Run that is accessible from a walking trail that spurs off of the Great Allegheny Passage. Meadow Run Waterslides have unique geologic formations for exploration. There are ripples and potholes that have been carved into the stone by years and years of powerful currents and spinning rocks. Visitors to the park are permitted to ride these natural waterslides.
Ferncliff Peninsula National Natural Landmark
Ferncliff Peninsula is a peninsula in the Youghiogheny River inside the park. Due to the warmer microclimate inside the gorge, seeds carried by the river from the south survive. It was declared a National Natural Landmark in November 1973 and was named a State Park Natural Area in 1992.
History
The first known group of people to inhabit the Ohiopyle area were the Monongahela, a clan of the mound builders. These Native Americans disappeared from the scene just as European colonists began to arrive in North America. As the east coast was being settled, Native Americans who had lived closer to the Atlantic Ocean were exterminated or forced to flee to the west. Various tribes, including the Shawnee, Lenni Lenape, and Seneca people, inhabited the Ohiopyle area during the 18th century, but were ultimately removed after the French and Indian War. One of the few remnants of American Indian culture in the area is the name. "Ohiopyle" is derived from the Lenape phrase ahi opihəle which means 'it turns very white', referring to the frothy waterfalls.
The earliest European settlers to the Ohiopyle area were farmers, trappers and hunters. The population of the area expanded after the building of the National Road in 1811 that passed near Ohiopyle. This road made the area more accessible and connected it to the eastern markets. Lumbering became the dominant industry. Smaller industries in the area included cooperages, tanneries, salt mining and coal mining.
The construction of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and the Western Maryland Railroad greatly accelerated the progress of the lumbering operations in Ohiopyle. Both railroads had stations in the borough. Several narrow gauge railroads were built up into the surrounding mountains. These smaller railways were able to efficiently transport to lumber to the sawmills and rail stations of Ohiopyle.
The railroads also brought tourists to Ohiopyle. The round trip ride from Pittsburgh to Ohiopyle was one dollar. Tourists flocked to the area to see the waterfalls and stay at the resorts that quickly sprouted up along the Youghiogheny River. The resorts had boardwalks, dancing pavilions, bowling alleys, fountains, tennis courts, and hiking trails. The rise of the automobile caused the end of the resorts at Ohiopyle. The buildings were torn down and the forests were allowed to regrow. The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy purchased the land and then sold it to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It was the first and largest park acquired under the Project 70 Land Acquisition and Borrowing Act with the governor approving the acquisition on August 8, 1964. Ohiopyle State Park was opened to the public in 1965 and was formally dedicated on May 28, 1971.