Norristown Farm Park is a Pennsylvania state park in East Norriton and West Norriton Townships and the Borough of

Norristown Norristown may mean: * Norristown, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Norristown, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Norristown, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Norristown, Pennsylvania Norristown is a municipality with home ...

, Montgomery County,

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, in the United States. Located just off of

Interstate 276 The Pennsylvania Turnpike (Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike) is a toll highway operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. A controlled-access highway, it runs for across the state. The turnpike's we ...

on West Germantown Pike, it is operated in partnership with the Montgomery County Department of Parks. A working

farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

on the site of

Norristown State Hospital Norristown State Hospital, originally known as the ''State Lunatic Hospital at Norristown'', is an active state-funded psychiatric hospital located outside the city of Philadelphia in suburban Norristown, Pennsylvania, Norristown, Pennsylvania. It ...

, the park has multiple colonial-era farm buildings and homes on its grounds. Stony Creek flows through the park. Baseball, bicycling, cross-country skiing, hiking, fishing, and picnicking opportunities are available in the park, as are summer musical concerts.

History

Norristown Farm Park was originally part of a tract of land called "Williamstadt," which originally belonged to

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...

. The property was then transferred to Isaac Norris, the namesake of Norristown, by way of Penn's son, William Penn, Jr. Norris' heirs sold pieces of Williamstadt to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and

was opened in the 1870s as a

mental hospital Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral health hospitals, are hospitals or wards specializing in the treatment of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, dissociati ...

. The park is on state-owned land that surrounds the hospital.

Gallery

File:Norristown Farm Park Germantown Pike Entrance.jpg, Germantown Pike Entrance File:Norristown Farm Park Stanbridge Street Entrance.jpg, Stanbridge Street Entrance

Nearby state parks

The following state parks are within of Norristown Farm Park: ''Note: shows Norristown Farm Park'' *

Benjamin Rush State Park Benjamin Rush State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The park is undeveloped and is the site of community gardens, believed to be one of the largest in the world. The ...

(

Philadelphia County Philadelphia County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is the most populous county in Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, Philadelphia County had a population of 1,603,797. The county is the second smallest county in Pennsyl ...

) * Bull's Island Recreation Area (

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

) *

Evansburg State Park Evansburg State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Lower Providence, Lower Salford, Skippack, Towamencin, and Worcester Townships in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park has a variety of habitats including forests ...

(Montgomery County) *

Delaware Canal State Park Delaware Canal State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Bucks and Northampton Counties in Pennsylvania. The main attraction of the park is the Delaware Canal which runs parallel to the Delaware River between Easton and Bristol. The Delawar ...

( Bucks and Northampton Counties) *

Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park is a New Jersey state park along the Delaware and Raritan Canal. History In 1974, most of the canal system was declared a New Jersey state park. It remains one today, and is used for canoeing, kayaking, an ...

(New Jersey) *

French Creek State Park French Creek State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in North Coventry and Warwick Townships in Chester County and Robeson and Union Townships in Berks County, Pennsylvania. It straddles northern Chester County and southern Berks County along ...

( Berks and Chester Counties) *

Fort Washington State Park Fort Washington State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Springfield and Whitemarsh Townships, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. The park is noted for the springtime flowering of dogwood trees, and is popular with families for picnics and hi ...

(Montgomery County) *

Fox Point State Park Fox Point State Park is a Delaware state park on along the Delaware River in New Castle County, Delaware in the United States. The park, which opened in 1995, has been built atop a former hazardous waste site that has been rehabilitated under an ...

(

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

) *

Neshaminy State Park Neshaminy State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Bensalem Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania in the United States. Visitors to the park can catch a glimpse of the Philadelphia skyline from a hiking trail on Logan Point. The park is locate ...

(Bucks County) *

Nockamixon State Park Nockamixon State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on in Bedminster and Haycock Townships in northern Bucks County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The park is one of the most popular in southeastern Pennsylvania, with most tourists visiti ...

(Bucks County) *

Marsh Creek State Park Marsh Creek State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Upper Uwchlan and Wallace Townships, Chester County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is the location of the man-made Marsh Creek Lake. With an average depth of 40 feet (73 fe ...

(Chester County) *

Ralph Stover State Park Ralph Stover State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on in Plumstead and Tinicum Townships, Bucks County, Pennsylvania in the United States. It is a very popular destination for whitewater kayaking on Tohickon Creek and rock climbing on High ...

(Bucks County) * Rancocas State Park (New Jersey) *

Ridley Creek State Park Ridley Creek State Park is a Pennsylvania state park in Edgmont, Middletown, and Upper Providence Townships, Delaware County, Pennsylvania in the United States. The park, about north of the county seat of Media, offers many recreational act ...

( Delaware County) * Tyler State Park (Bucks County) *

Washington Crossing State Park Washington Crossing State Park is a New Jersey state park that is part of Washington's Crossing, a U.S. National Historic Landmark area. It is located in the Washington Crossing and Titusville sections of Hopewell Township in Mercer County, ...

(New Jersey)

References

External links

*
Norristown Farm Park
- official Montgomery County site
Farm Park Preservation Association
{{authority control State parks of Pennsylvania Farm Park Protected areas established in 1995 Parks in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Protected areas of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania 1995 establishments in Pennsylvania