Natchez Trace State Park

For the Mississippi state park, see Trace State Park.

Natchez Trace State Park

Natchez Trace State Park location within Tennessee
Location	Western Tennessee
Nearest city	Wildersville
Coordinates	35°47′11″N 88°15′49″W / 35.7863°N 88.2636°W / 35.7863; -88.2636Coordinates: 35°47′11″N 88°15′49″W / 35.7863°N 88.2636°W / 35.7863; -88.2636
Area	10,154 acres (4,109 ha)
http://www.state.tn.us/environment/parks/NatchezTrace/

Natchez Trace State Park is a state park located in western Tennessee. It was named for the Natchez Trace woodland path that was an important wilderness road during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The 10,000-plus acre park features several wilderness trails, camping, sporting, horse-back riding, and water front activities.

History

Background

Natchez Trace State Park gets its name from the Natchez Trace, a Natchez, Mississippi to Nashville, Tennessee woodland highway that was an important wilderness road for the American frontiersmen during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It had been in use as a trade path by the American Indians, however, for hundreds of years before that.^[1] A western spur of the trace ran through part of the modern-day park.^[2]

The park

The 10,154-acre (4,109 ha) park was built during the New Deal on land bought from residents who could no longer farm the land due to erosion.^[2] Along with many acres of woodlands, the land included four lakes. A swimming beach and a 47-room resort inn and restaurant complex were built. Today, the park includes cabins, a group lodge, camping areas, picnicking sites, playgrounds, a ball-field, a regulation pistol firing range, hiking trails, a wrangler camp, 250 miles (400 km) of horse riding trails, a park store, and an archery range.

Park activities

Cub Lake, October 2015.

Cub Lake (58 acres (230,000 m²)) offers swimming, jon-boats and paddle boats. Boats are rented between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Cub Lake offers a free public swim beach.

The large recreational lake, Pin Oak Lake at 690 acres (2.8 km²), features two boat ramps. Water skiing in the park is allowed on this lake only. Other activities are fishing, picnicking, swimming, R.V. camping and more. Over-night guests are not required to have a permit. The Pin Oak Lodge offers a swimming pool for inn and cabin guests.

Browns Lake, 167 acres (0.68 km²), and Maples Lake, 90 acres (360,000 m²), each have a single boat ramp. Jon-boats, life jackets and paddles are made available on a first-come, first-served basis, and permits are available at both sites.

Natchez Trace Park has 250 miles (400 km) of riding trails in the south end of the park.

Location

Natchez Trace is located in Carroll, Henderson, and Benton counties, near the unincorporated community of Wildersville. Interstate 40 bisects the park, which is roughly equidistant from Memphis and Nashville, Tennessee.

References

↑ The Natchez Trace; Tennessee Yesterday website; accessed April 2014.
1 2 The Natchez Trace; Tennessee State Official Website; "Environment – Parks;" accessed April 2014.

External links

Natchez Trace State Park from the official web site of the state of Tennessee

Protected areas of Tennessee

Federal

National Parks	Great Smoky Mountains National Park

National Historical Parks & Sites	Andrew Johnson National Historic Site Cumberland Gap National Historical Park Manhattan Project National Historical Park

National Military Parks	Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park Fort Donelson National Battlefield Fort Donelson National Cemetery Shiloh National Cemetery Shiloh National Military Park Stones River National Battlefield Stones River National Cemetery

National Recreation Areas	Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area

National Trails System	Appalachian National Scenic Trail Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail Trail of Tears National Historic Trail

National Forests	Cherokee National Forest

National Wildlife Refuges	Chickasaw Cross Creeks Hatchie Lake Isom Lower Hatchie Reelfoot Tennessee

Wilderness Areas	Bald River Gorge Big Frog Big Laurel Branch Citico Creek Cohutta Gee Creek Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Little Frog Mountain Pond Mountain Sampson Mountain Unaka Mountain

Other Protected Areas	Foothills Parkway Gatlinburg Bypass Natchez Trace Parkway Obed Wild and Scenic River

State

East Tennessee State Parks	Big Ridge Booker T. Washington Cove Lake Cumberland Mountain Davy Crockett Birthplace Fall Creek Falls Fort Loudoun Frozen Head Harrison Bay Hiwassee/Ocoee Indian Mountain Justin P. Wilson Cumberland Trail Norris Dam Panther Creek Red Clay Roan Mountain Rocky Fork Seven Islands Sycamore Shoals Warriors' Path

Middle Tennessee State Parks	Bicentennial Capitol Mall Bledsoe Creek Burgess Falls Cedars Of Lebanon Cordell Hull Birthplace Cummins Falls David Crockett Dunbar Cave Edgar Evins Fall Creek Falls Harpeth River Henry Horton Johnsonville Long Hunter Montgomery Bell Mousetail Landing Old Stone Fort Pickett Port Royal Radnor Lake Rock Island Sgt. Alvin C. York South Cumberland Standing Stone Tims Ford

West Tennessee State Parks	Big Cypress Tree Big Hill Pond Chickasaw Fort Pillow Meeman-Shelby Forest Nathan Bedford Forrest Natchez Trace Paris Landing Pickwick Landing Pinson Mounds Reelfoot Lake T.O. Fuller

State Forests	Bledsoe Cedars of Lebanon Chickasaw Chuck Swan Franklin Lewis Lone Mountain Martha Sundquist Natchez Trace Pickett Prentice Cooper Scott Standing Stone Stewart

State Natural Areas	Bays Mountain Big Bone Cave Colditz Cove Honey Creek House Mountain Piney Falls Laurel-Snow North Chickamauga Creek Gorge Ozone Falls Stillhouse Hollow Falls Stinging Fork Falls Virgin Falls

Other

Other	Catoosa Wildlife Management Area

Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (web) - Tennessee Department of Agriculture (web)

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