Talk:List of North Carolina state parks

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Is this list complete? If so We should add a line to the list to indicate it. As it is (without empty articles) I have the suspicion that it is incomplete. Rmhermen 15:15, Jul 25, 2004 (UTC)

The list of current state parks was not complete, but now it is. I added a reference to every unit of the state park system, as of January 2011, according to NCDPR documents. Given how different each of the six types of park units are from each other, I thought the most logical layout was to put each type in its own section, with an explanation of what that type is. I also put the lists in a sortable table, with relevant facts for each unit. This is similar to what has been done on other state park lists. I have more detailed comments about the Former Units and State Natural Areas sections below. (The revision) Sparkgap (talk) 06:02, 29 May 2011 (UTC)

Former Units

After looking at other state park lists and the US national park list, I thought it might be reasonable to included a section on former NC State Parks. My main rational for including them is that information about them has been published when they were state parks. Also, some individuals may remember (or read about) them being state parks but do not realize they are no longer such. This listing might prevent accidental inclusions of former parks among the current parks.
I do not believe the list of former parks is complete. I only included the two parks for which I had ready reference materiel on hand. There are more potential inclusions to the list, which I've heard about, but I do not have verifiable sources for:

• The North Carolina Zoological Park may have once been part of the park system in its early days.
• Many of the North Carolina State Historic Sites[1] where once units of the park system, before the Division of State Historic Sites and Properties was created. Which ones were once part of the system and which ones were not, I have not yet seen in print.
• Old USGS Topographic maps of the Greensboro area depict Greensboro Country Park as Greensboro State Park. I do not know if this was a mistake made by the USGS, or if the park really was a State Park at the time the maps were made. Example Map
• Rendezvous Mountain Educational State Forest might have in the park system at one point, but this is speculation based off an incomplete history of the land. The original 142 acres of the forest was donated to the state for a park in 1926, but it did not open as an Educational State Forest until 1984. What was it in between those years?
  

Sparkgap (talk) 06:02, 29 May 2011 (UTC)

I found a published book which mentioned 7 properties were transferred from the parks system to form the initial State Historic Site system, but "Frutchey State Park" is the only clearly mentioned former state park in the book. Frutchey State Park became Town Creek Indian Mound. I added this information to the list with cites. Another source indicates what the 7 properties were, but I think they each need more research before being included to the list:

• Tryon Palace
• Zebulon B. Vance Birthplace
• Charles B. Aycock Birthplace
• Town Creek Indian Mound
• Alamance Battleground
• James Iredell House
• Brunswick Town / Fort Anderson

–Sparkgap (talk) 01:25, 27 July 2011 (UTC)

State Natural Areas

I did not wiki-link most of the State Natural Areas because many did not have their own article nor an appropriate related article to link to. I'm unsure if a stub should be created for all the natural areas without an article at this time. For several of them, there's not much source material one can find on them, and I question whether these are notable enough for their own article. A few could become sections in the article of a nearby state park. For example Lower Haw River State Natural Area is closely, even physically, tied to Jordan Lake State Recreation Area, and a short write-up about it could fit in well there. A couple I think merit their own articles (I'll be working on one for Theodore Roosevelt State Natural Area soon), but I'm not sure what to do about the rest. Thoughts?? Sparkgap (talk) 06:02, 29 May 2011 (UTC)

I think it's best to handle them on a case by case basis. Indeed some of them are mearly special parts of a park and my not bear special notice. Stubs are good. Somebody might be inspired and write an article. For example, Upper Pine Bottom State Park in Pennsylvania is little more than a roadside picnic area. This doesn't mean that there is little to write about it. Dincher (talk) 13:04, 29 June 2011 (UTC)

Thank you. I think case by case by be best, and I wasn't sure if creating several stubs would be good. North Carolina, unlike some states, does not carve State Natural Areas out of other parks. Rather, each is really its own park, and only a couple are adjacent to another park. Those that happen to be adjacent to another park, were created independently from the other park. Most of them are completely undeveloped though, and the few that are developed are usually managed by the nearest state park. On another note, Upper Pine Bottom State Park is an interesting example of a small park. I've never heard of a state park that is so small, but it does have an notable history, something I doubt some of the NC State Natural Areas have. Sparkgap (talk) 06:08, 30 June 2011 (UTC)

Good points. We really had to dig for the history of the state parks in Pennsylvania, but once we found it, we found it to be very rich. The history of the lumber industry in Pennsylvania really helps out tremendously. Dincher (talk) 02:12, 1 July 2011 (UTC)