Big Oak Tree State Park is a state-owned nature preserve with recreational features encompassing in

East Prairie, Missouri East Prairie is a city in Mississippi County, Missouri, United States. The population was 2,943 at the 2020 census. History A post office called East Prairie has been in operation since 1872. The community took its name from a prairie of the sa ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...

was established in a large expanse of drained cropland in 1938 to protect some of the largest trees in the state and in the nation. The park was declared a

National Natural Landmark The National Natural Landmarks (NNL) Program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only national natural areas program that identifies and recognizes the best ...

in May 1986, recognized as a rare, untouched wet-mesic

bottomland hardwood forest The bottomland hardwood forest is a type of deciduous and evergreen hardwood forest found in broad lowland floodplains along large rivers and lakes in the United States and elsewhere. They are occasionally flooded, which builds up the alluvial soi ...

in the

Mississippi Alluvial Plain The Mississippi River Alluvial Plain is an alluvial plain created by the Mississippi River on which lie parts of seven U.S. states, from southern Louisiana to southern Illinois (Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Lou ...

portion of the

Gulf Coastal Plain The Gulf Coastal Plain extends around the Gulf of Mexico in the Southern United States and eastern Mexico. This coastal plain reaches from the Florida Panhandle, southwest Georgia, the southern two-thirds of Alabama, over most of Mississippi, wes ...

List of champion trees

Big Oak Tree State Park is the home of many current and past state and national champion trees—trees that are, for their species, the largest in the state or in the nation.

Activities and amenities

The park has two trails for hiking through the forest, including an

accessible Accessibility is the design of products, devices, services, vehicles, or environments so as to be usable by people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design and practice of accessible development ensures both "direct access" (i.e ...

boardwalk trail, plus an interpretive center along the boardwalk and picnicking facilities.

References

External links

Big Oak Tree State Park
Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Big Oak Tree State Park Map
Missouri Department of Natural Resources {{authority control Protected areas of Mississippi County, Missouri National Natural Landmarks in Missouri State parks of Missouri IUCN Category III Protected areas established in 1937 Nature centers in Missouri