Bendigo State Park

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Bendigo State Park
Pennsylvania State Park
Natural Monument (IUCN III)
Location of Bendigo State Park in Pennsylvania
Named for: William Thompson Bendigo
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Elk
Township	Jones
Location	[1]
- coordinates	41°31′53″N 78°37′41″W / 41.53139, -78.62806Coordinates: 41°31′53″N 78°37′41″W / 41.53139, -78.62806
- elevation	1,493 ft (455.1 m) [1]
Area	100 acres (40.5 ha)
Founded	1959
Managed by	Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
Nearest city	Johnsonburg, Pennsylvania
Website : Bendigo State Park

Bendigo State Park is a 100-acre (0.40 km²) Pennsylvania State Park in Jones Township, Elk County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is in a valley on the East Branch Clarion River. Only 20 acres (0.08 km²) of the park is developed. The other 80 acres (0.32 km²) is undeveloped woodlands of beech, birch, cherry and maple.

Contents 1 History 2 Recreation 3 Nearby state parks 4 References 5 External links

[edit] History

Bendigo State Park is named for an Irish tavern keeper, who lived in England, named William Thompson. Thompson was also a prizefighter of some renown. Boxing for money was illegal at the time in England and Thompson was arrested 28 times for breaking the law. Thompson fled to America, to avoid prosecution, when an opponent died in the ring due to injuries sustained in the fight. He adopted the name Bendigo, a corruption of the Old Testament name Abed-nego and moved to the frontier of northwestern Pennsylvania. The newly named, Bendigo, began serving as a Methodist evangelist while also working on the railroads. He was a very tall and strong man and soon became a favorite of his Italian co-workers. The lumber industry was beginning to boom in northwestern Pennsylvania as Bendigo was making his rounds as an evangelist and a mill town in Elk County was named Bendigo in his honor. The lumber era was not to last forever. The forests were largely chopped down by the early 1900s and many of the mill towns, like Bendigo, were abandoned.^[2]

The borough of Johnsonburg acquired the land that is currently Bendigo State Park in the 1920s and established a community park. The Works Progress Administration of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt made many improvements to the park during the Great Depression. Flooding on the East Branch of the Clarion River destroyed most of the works of the WPA in the 1940s, but a stone wall and dam on the river are still standing. Ownership of the park was transferred to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1949 and over the course of ten years improvements were made. Bendigo State Park was formally opened to the public on August 15, 1959.^[2]

[edit] Recreation

Bendigo State Park attracts families interested in using the swimming and picnicking facilities. The pool is opened daily from 11:00 am until 7:00 pm beginning Memorial Day weekend and ending Labor Day weekend. There are over 150 picnic tables in several picnic areas. The picnic areas have charcoal grills, drinking water, horseshoe pits and restrooms.^[2]

[edit] Nearby state parks

The following state parks are within 30 miles (48 km) of Bendigo State Park:^[3][4][5]

• Bucktail State Park Natural Area (Cameron and Clinton Counties)
• Clear Creek State Park (Jefferson County)
• Elk State Park (Elk County)
• Kinzua Bridge State Park (McKean County)
• Parker Dam State Park (Clearfield County)
• S. B. Elliott State Park (Clearfield County)
• Sinnemahoning State Park (Cameron and Potter Counties)
• Sizerville State Park (Cameron and Potter Counties)

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Bendigo State Park official mapPDF (355 KB)

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