| Valley Falls State Park | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Location of Valley Falls State Park in West Virginia | |
| Location | West Virginia, United States |
| Coordinates | 39°23′38″N 80°04′56″W / 39.39389°N 80.08222°W |
| Area | 1,145 acres (4.63 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,558 ft (475 m) |
| Established | 1964[2] |
| Named for | Valley Falls on the Tygart River |
| Governing body | West Virginia Division of Natural Resources |
| Website | wvstateparks |
Valley Falls State Park is a 1,145 acre (4.63 km²) day use facility sited along both banks of the Tygart Valley River. The park is located about 7 miles (11 km) south of exit 137 of I-79, near Fairmont, West Virginia.
The park's main feature is a half-mile long set of cascades — the "Valley Falls" — that separate Marion and Taylor County, West Virginia. The park and river provide a popular and risky kayaking run.[3]
Although the falls are an inviting spot, swimming is not allowed. [4]
Local tradition had it that early settler Jonathan Nixon, Sr (1753–1799) was the first white man to look upon the falls.[5] In the 19th century a small community thrived along the river at the current state park's location. The ruins of a sawmill and a gristmill are still visible along the river.[4]
- ^ "Valley Falls State Park". Protected Planet. IUCN. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
- ^ Where People and Nature Meet: A History of the West Virginia State Parks. Charleston, West Virginia: Pictorial Histories Publishing Company. April 1988. ISBN 0-933126-91-3.
- ^ In Life and Death, a Reminder of Whitewater's Power, Washington Post, July 31, 2005, Page E03, accessed September 6, 2005.
- ^ a b "Recreation Page". Valley Falls State Park web site. West Virginia State Parks. Retrieved December 25, 2008.
- ^ Brinkman, Charles (1939–42), The History of Taylor County, Chapt. 102; published in installments in the Grafton Sentinel; 2 May issue. (These newspaper columns, published from 18 Apr 1939 to 29 Jun 1942 by the Grafton Sentinel, are compiled by the Taylor County Historical and Genealogical Society in three volumes [Vol. 1, 1989; Vol. 2, 1992; Vol. 3, 1992]. The columns are produced as 890 "chapters" in the reprinted work.)