Caledonia State Park

Caledonia State Park is a 1,130-acre (460 ha) Pennsylvania state park in Greene Township, Franklin County and Franklin Township, Adams County in Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is named for an iron furnace, Caledonia Furnace, that was owned by Thaddeus Stevens beginning in 1837. Today the park is known for its Totem Pole Playhouse, a summer stock theatre. Caledonia State Park is between Chambersburg and Gettysburg at the intersection of U.S. Route 30 and Pennsylvania Route 233 in a valley between Blue Mountain and South Mountain.

History

Caledonia State Park was once the site of an iron furnace owned by Thaddeus Stevens, a native of Caledonia County, Vermont. Stevens began operation on the furnace in 1837. He was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, a noted abolitionist, and is known as the father of the public school system in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The iron furnace was destroyed during the American Civil War in June 1863 by the Confederate cavalry under the command of General Jubal Early. Some historians believe that the furnace was destroyed not just to slow the industrial power of the Union but also because of Stevens' views opposing slavery. The pastures surrounding the furnace were used as field hospitals during the Battle of Gettysburg later in July 1863. The furnace was rebuilt following the war, but was closed by 1902 when the land was sold to the state. Caledonia State Park was opened in 1903.

State park

State parks or provincial parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" or "province" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational potential. There are state parks under the administration of the government of each U.S. state, and of some states of Mexico. The term is also used in Australia, though the distinction between state and national parks there is different. The Canadian equivalent term is provincial park. Similar systems of local government maintained parks exist in other countries, but the terminology varies.

State parks are thus similar to national parks, but under state rather than federal administration. Similarly, local government entities below state level may maintain parks, e.g., regional parks or county parks. In general, state parks are smaller than national parks, with a few exceptions such as the Adirondack Park in New York and Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in California.