Millersylvania State Park

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Millersylvania State Park
Washington State Park
Millersylvania State Park (6129600412).jpg
Country United States
State Washington
County Thurston
Elevation 203 ft (62 m) [1]
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. [1]
Area 842 acres (341 ha)
Established 1921
Management Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission
Location in the state of Washington
Website: Millersylvania State Park

Millersylvania State Park is a publicly owned recreation area located 10 miles (16 km) south of Olympia, Washington. The state park's 842 acres (341 ha) include old-growth cedar and fir trees as well as 3,300 feet (1,000 m) of freshwater shoreline on Deep Lake. The park is managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission.[2]

History

The area was homesteaded by Squire Lathum in 1855 and then was sold to John Miller. The Miller family called the area Miller's Glade, before changing it Millersylvania and giving the property to the state in 1921 for perpetual use as a park. In 1935, the Civilian Conservation Corps was active in the park constructing buildings, mostly by hand. Remnants of a narrow-gauge railway, 19th-century skid roads, and other reminders of the logging industry can be found on park grounds, including tree stumps bearing the scars of springboards used by loggers.[2]

Activities and amenities

The park offers camping on 120 tent spaces and 48 utility spaces, 16 miles (26 km) of hiking and biking trails, boating, fishing and swimming.[2]

Deep Lake

According to the survey done by the State Department of Game in 1947, Deep Lake is 17 feet (5.2 m) deep at its deepest part. It covers an area of 66.2 acres (26.8 ha), and has a water volume of 771 acre feet (951,000 m3).[3] Deep Lake is located in Section 3, Township 16N, Range 2W, Willamette.[4]

The first known name of the lake by white settlers was Deep Lake as noted in a land survey in 1855.[5] However, the lake was referred to as CoKaine Lake in the late 19th century which could have been an early Native American name.[6] For a period of time, the lake went under the name Drake Lake. The name Drake Lake name originated from the Lyman Darrow Drake family that settled on the south side of the lake in 1872. The Drake Lake name was still commonly used up until the late 1920s as was evidenced by several US Geological Survey and Metsker Maps dated up to 1929. The Drake family sold their property in 1908.

Millersylvania was once reportedly home to a rare species of freshwater crab, as reported in the Miller family diaries, which became extinct due to overfishing by new settlers coming from the east.[citation needed]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Thurston County Place Names - A Heritage Guide, Thurston County Historical Commission, November 1992
  5. ↑ Field notes of land surveys in Washington, Volume 3, Page 53
  6. ↑ Warranty Deed from Travis to Heustis, July 13, 1873, Thurston County, WT, V.10,p.216. Washington State Archives, SW Regional Branch

External links

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