Celebration Park is an archaeological park in the western United States, located in southwestern Idaho. It is the state's first

archeological Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscape ...

park and is adjacent to the

Snake River The Snake River is a major river of the greater Pacific Northwest region in the United States. At long, it is the largest tributary of the Columbia River, in turn, the largest North American river that empties into the Pacific Ocean. The Snake ...

near Melba and Walter's Ferry in Canyon County. It features camping, restrooms, drinking water, picnicking, guided tours, and interpretive programs as well as fishing and access to hiking trails and the Snake River with a small day use fee. The elevation of the river at the park is approximately above sea level.

History

This park features in-situ petroglyphs, rock carvings made by Native Americans, some of which date to more than 12,000 years ago. Celebration Park was once a seasonal home for several nomadic groups. During the winter, the Paiute lived in areas with lower elevations along the Snake River including this site. This region was also home to the

Shoshone The Shoshone or Shoshoni ( or ) are a Native American tribe with four large cultural/linguistic divisions: * Eastern Shoshone: Wyoming * Northern Shoshone: southern Idaho * Western Shoshone: Nevada, northern Utah * Goshute: western Utah, easter ...

and

Bannock people The Bannock tribe were originally Northern Paiute but are more culturally affiliated with the Northern Shoshone. They are in the Great Basin classification of Indigenous People. Their traditional lands include northern Nevada, southeastern Oreg ...

. The park's Guffey railroad bridge over the Snake River was built in 1897, to carry gold and silver ore from Silver City in the Owyhee mountains to

Nampa The Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA) is the national news agency of the Namibia, Republic of Namibia. It was founded in 1987 under the name Namibia Press Association as a SWAPO partisan press agency, and resuscitated after Namibian War of Independence ...

for smelting. It has been refurbished and is open for walking and horseback riding. It is the only Parker-Through-Truss railroad bridge in Idaho and is the state's largest historic artifact; it was entered into the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. The 450-ton steel structure is tall and spans over the river. The bridge was abandoned in 1947, saved from demolition in the 1970s, and purchased and restored by Canyon County government in 1989. Celebration Park Petroglyph- Historical

The park is within the Guffey Butte–Black Butte Archeological District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

References

External links

Canyon County Idaho- Celebration Park
including maps of hiking trails.
Every Trail- Halverson Lake Loop Trail
includes maps and pictures that you can add to. Tourist attractions in Canyon County, Idaho Protected areas of Canyon County, Idaho Archaeological sites in Idaho {{CanyonCountyID-geo-stub