Wissahickon Valley Park
Wissahickon Valley Park | |
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Location | Pennsylvania, United States |
Nearest city | Philadelphia |
Coordinates | 40°03′00″N 75°12′54″W / 40.050°N 75.215°WCoordinates: 40°03′00″N 75°12′54″W / 40.050°N 75.215°W |
Area | 2,042 acres (8.26 km2) |
Established | 18th Century |
Governing body | Philadelphia Parks & Recreation |
Designated | 1964 |
Wissahickon Valley Park contains 2,042 acres (8.26 km2) of parkland in Northwest Philadelphia, including the Wissahickon Creek from its confluence with the Schuylkill River to the northwestern boundary of the city with eastern Montgomery County. Visitors travel by foot, bicycle and horse along Forbidden Drive where motor vehicles are not allowed. Side trails off Forbidden Drive lead up into the wooded gorge above the creek along a total of 50 mi (80 km) of trails. Philadelphia Parks & Recreation manages the park as the second largest part of the city's parkland areas, after the slightly larger Fairmount Park. The Wissahickon Valley was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1964, including 1,250 acres (5.1 km2) of the parkland.
History
While logging and industrialization occurred in some parts of the valley in the late 18th and early 19th century, the gorge itself was known for its natural environment, inspiring religious mystics like Johannes Kelpius, writers like Edgar Allan Poe, John Greenleaf Whittier, George Lippard, and William Cobbett; and artists like Thomas Moran, James Peale, William Trost Richards, and Currier and Ives.
Forbidden Drive
Forbidden Drive, formerly known as the Wissahickon Turnpike, is a wide rocky trail running through the Wissahickon Valley from Ten Box to Cedars House at the upper end of the Park. It is called Forbidden Drive because of a successful protest against cars being allowed to drive in the park. In 1920, the Park Commission wanted to allow cars in the park, but 1,000 protesters on horseback and 12,000 spectators on foot fought against cars on the Wissahickon Turnpike. Every year, the Wissahickon Day Parade is held to celebrate the anniversary of this protest.
Landmarks
- Valley Green Inn, a tavern built in 1850
- Wissahickon Hall, the first of numerous inns in the valley
Houses
- Cedars House
- Hermitage Mansion
- Livezey House, a colonial era mill (aka Glen Fern)
- Monastery House
- RittenhouseTown
- Thomas Mansion
Bridges
- Fingerspan Bridge
- Kitchen's Lane Bridge
- Thomas Mill Covered Bridge
- Walnut Lane Bridge
- Wissahickon Memorial Bridge (aka the Henry Avenue Bridge)
Other
- Cresheim Creek
- Devil's Pool
- Statue of Henry H. Houston, developer of Wissahickon
- The Native American Teedyuscung and Toleration statues
- Mom Rinker's Rock
See also