Happy Trails to You

It's a short walk from Upper South Falls to Lower South Falls in Silver Falls State Park in Oregon. If you get a chance to visit, you won't regret... more

by Jon Burch Photography

Title

Happy Trails to You

Artist

Jon Burch Photography

Medium

Photograph - Digital Capture

Description

It's a short walk from Upper South Falls to Lower South Falls in Silver Falls State Park in Oregon. If you get a chance to visit, you won't regret it.

Silver Falls City formed in 1888 and was primarily a logging community with a few homesteaders, and the trees in the area were extensively cut. The small lumber town of Silver Falls City sat atop the South Falls, and as the land was cleared, a local entrepreneur sold admission to the Falls area, with attractions such as pushing cars over the falls and even hosting a stunt with a daredevil riding over in a canoe.

By 1900 a Silverton photographer, June D. Drake, for whom Drake Falls was later named, began to campaign for park status, using his photographs of the falls to gain support. In 1926, however, an inspector for the National Park Service rejected the area for park status because of a proliferation of unattractive stumps after years of logging.

In 1935 President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced that the Silver Falls area would be turned into a Recreational Demonstration Area. Private land that had been logged was purchased, and workers in the Civilian Conservation Corps were employed to develop park facilities, including the historic South Falls Lodge, completed in the late 1930's. It was used as a restaurant from 1946 until the late 1950's and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Silver Falls State Park Concession Building Area in 1983.

Volunteers inspired by the beauty and history of Silver Falls have been active there since establishment of the park in 1933. In 1986, the citizens and the park staff envisioned a mission and established the Friends of Silver Falls State Park, Inc. Their mission is to "further the educational and interpretive opportunities available to park visitors; to promote the preservation, protection and enhancement of the historical, natural, and recreational resources within the park; and to assist in the implementing park improvements and educational programs compatible with the nature of Silver Falls State Park."

Image copyright Jon Burch Photography

Uploaded

November 4th, 2015