Hillman_State_Park

Hillman State Park

Hillman State Park

State Park in Washington County, Pennsylvania

Hillman State Park is a 3,654-acre (1,479 ha) Pennsylvania state park in Hanover Township, Washington County in the United States.[4] It is about 25 miles (40 km) west of Pittsburgh. The park opened in the late 1960s and has been managed for hunting by the Pennsylvania Game Commission since the early 1980s.[3] The park also has hiking, cross-country skiing, horseback riding, a radio-controlled aircraft field, and mountain bike trails that are open to the public.[5][6] The largely undeveloped park is north of U.S. Route 22 and east of Pennsylvania Route 18 in northern Washington County near the village of Bavington and the borough of Burgettstown.[3] Part of the park has been designated as Pennsylvania State Game Lands 117.[7]

Quick Facts Location, Coordinates ...

Hillman State Park lies within the Appalachian mixed mesophytic forests ecoregion.[8] The park is a wild area that connects the Kings Creek and Raccoon Creek watersheds within the greater Raccoon Creek Valley Natural Area.[6]

History

In 1885, the discovery of oil led to the establishment of Five Points, an oil boomtown. Over 170 wells have been drilled in the park, though most are now abandoned.[4]

Coal mining began in the park in 1914, and starting in 1932, the Harmon Creek Coal Corporation purchased the land that is now the park. It would become the largest bituminous coal strip mine in Pennsylvania, closed in 1968. In 1969, James F. Hillman, president of the HCCC, donated the land to the state of Pennsylvania.[4]

The Lyle Covered Bridge, a historic bridge listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is located on the eastern side of the park.[4]

Nearby state parks

The following state parks are within 30 miles (48 km) of Hillman State Park:[9][10][11]

References

  1. [1]
    "Hillman State Park". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. August 30, 1990. Retrieved March 8, 2008.
  2. [2]
    "Summary" (PDF). Retrieved May 6, 2012.
  3. [3]
    "Hillman State Park". Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on February 2, 2012. Retrieved March 25, 2007.
  4. [4]
    "History of Hillman State Park". Pennsylvania Department of Conservation & Natural Resources. Retrieved March 16, 2024.
  5. [5]
    "Hillman State Park at Friends of Raccoon site". Friends of Raccoon Creek State Park. Archived from the original on March 10, 2007. Retrieved March 25, 2007.
  6. [6]
    "Where to go: Hillman State Park". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. October 31, 2010. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  7. [7]
    "HuntingPA.com Game Lands: Pennsylvania State Game Lands, their general location and acreage" (Searchable Database). Retrieved September 16, 2006.
  8. [8]
    Olson, D. M, E. Dinerstein; et al. (2001). "Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World: A New Map of Life on Earth". BioScience. 51 (11): 933–938. doi:10.1641/0006-3568(2001)051[0933:TEOTWA]2.0.CO;2.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  9. [9]
    2007 General Highway Map Washington County Pennsylvania (PDF) (Map). 1:65,000. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Bureau of Planning and Research, Geographic Information Division. Retrieved July 28, 2007.[permanent dead link] Note: shows part of Hillman State Park, labeled as State Game Lands 117
  10. [10]
    Michels, Chris (1997). "Latitude/Longitude Distance Calculation". Northern Arizona University. Retrieved April 20, 2008.
  11. [11]
    "Find a Park by Region (interactive map)". Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Archived from the original on September 24, 2011. Retrieved November 18, 2011.
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