Parvin State Park is a

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 ...

located in the southwestern part of

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 ...

. Situated around Parvin Lake on the edge of the

Pine Barrens Pine barrens, pine plains, sand plains, or pineland areas occur throughout the U.S. from Florida to Maine (see Atlantic coastal pine barrens) as well as the Midwest, West, and Canada and parts of Eurasia. Perhaps the most well known pine-barre ...

, the park includes pine forests, hardwood forests, and swamps. The park is located near Pittsgrove Township in

Salem County Salem County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its western boundary is formed by the Delaware River and its eastern terminus is the Delaware Memorial Bridge, which connects the county with New Castle, Delaware. Its cou ...

, and is operated and maintained by the

New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry In the state of New Jersey, the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry is an administrative division of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. In its most visible role, the Division is directly responsible for the management and ...

Geography

Muddy Run, Parvin State Park, 2021-06-19

Parvin State Park is in Pittsgrove Township,

Salem County, New Jersey Salem County is the westernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its western boundary is formed by the Delaware River and its eastern terminus is the Delaware Memorial Bridge, which connects the county with New C ...

, 5 miles west of

Vineland ''Vineland'' is a 1990 novel by Thomas Pynchon, a postmodern fiction set in California, United States in 1984, the year of Ronald Reagan's reelection.Knabb 2002 Through flashbacks by its characters, who have lived the sixties in their youth, th ...

, in an agricultural area. The largest lake in the park is Parvin Lake, which occupies much of the eastern corner of the park and into which flows a stream, the Muddy Run; there is a smaller lake, Thundergust Lake, to the south of Parvin Lake. About of the park are designated as the Parvin Natural Area.

Ecology

Parvin State Park is in an area of transition between the

and hardwood forest and includes a variety of terrain; its ecology is therefore unusually diverse, including areas of hardwood and

white cedar White cedar may refer to several different trees: * Bignoniaceae ** ''Tabebuia heterophylla'' - native to Caribbean islands and also cultivated as an ornamental tree * Cupressaceae: ** ''Chamaecyparis thyoides'' – Atlantic white cypress ** ''Cup ...

swamp, lowland pine forest, and upland pine and oak forest. The park's at least 50 species of trees include

pitch pine ''Pinus rigida'', the pitch pine, is a small-to-medium-sized pine. It is native to eastern North America, primarily from central Maine south to Georgia and as far west as Kentucky. It is found in environments which other species would find unsuit ...

red maple ''Acer rubrum'', the red maple, also known as swamp maple, water maple, or soft maple, is one of the most common and widespread deciduous trees of eastern and central North America. The U.S. Forest Service recognizes it as the most abundant nativ ...

, several species of oak,

black cherry ''Prunus serotina'', commonly called black cherry,World Economic Plants: A Standard Reference, Second Edition'. CRC Press; 19 April 2016. . p. 833–. wild black cherry, rum cherry, or mountain black cherry, is a deciduous tree or shrub of the g ...

, and winterberry holly. Common types of bushes in the park include greenbrier, wild

azalea Azaleas are flowering shrubs in the genus ''Rhododendron'', particularly the former sections ''Tsutsusi'' (evergreen) and '' Pentanthera'' (deciduous). Azaleas bloom in the spring (April and May in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, and Octob ...

s, mountain laurel, and

sweet pepperbush ''Clethra'' is a genus of flowering shrubs or small trees described as a genus by Linnaeus in 1753. The endangered

swamp pink ''Helonias bullata'' (swamp pink) is a rare perennial rhizomatous herb native to the eastern United States, the only known species in the genus ''Helonias''. The root system is extensive in comparison to the apparent size of the plant on the surf ...

grows in the park. The park has at least 180 species of birds. The wild

turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

barred owl The barred owl (''Strix varia''), also known as the northern barred owl, striped owl or, more informally, hoot owl, is a North American large species of owl. A member of the true owl family, Strigidae, they belong to the genus '' Strix'', whic ...

yellow-billed cuckoo The yellow-billed cuckoo (''Coccyzus americanus'') is a cuckoo. Common folk-names for this bird in the southern United States are rain crow and storm crow. These likely refer to the bird's habit of calling on hot days, often presaging rain or th ...

, and many species of

warbler Various Passeriformes (perching birds) are commonly referred to as warblers. They are not necessarily closely related to one another, but share some characteristics, such as being fairly small, vocal, and insectivorous. Sylvioid warblers Th ...

s live in the park's forests. The lakes and Muddy Run are habitats of the

prothonotary warbler The prothonotary warbler (''Protonotaria citrea'') is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. It is named for its plumage which resembles the yellow robes once worn by papal clerks (named prothonotaries) in the Roman Catholic church. ...

, the great blue and

green heron The green heron (''Butorides virescens'') is a small heron of North and Central America. ''Butorides'' is from Middle English ''butor'' "bittern" and Ancient Greek ''-oides'', "resembling", and ''virescens'' is Latin for "greenish". It was long c ...

, the

great egret The great egret (''Ardea alba''), also known as the common egret, large egret, or (in the Old World) great white egret or great white heron is a large, widely distributed egret. The four subspecies are found in Asia, Africa, the Americas, and ...

, and more than a dozen species of ducks; black-crowned night herons,

pied-billed grebe The pied-billed grebe (''Podilymbus podiceps'') is a species of the grebe family of water birds. Because the Atitlán grebe (''Podilymbus gigas'') has become extinct, the Pied-Billed Grebe is now the sole extant member of the genus ''Podilymbus'' ...

s, and

osprey The osprey (''Pandion haliaetus''), , also called sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk, is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor reaching more than in length and across the wings. It is brown o ...

s are also seen on the lakes occasionally.

History

There are remains of

Lenape The Lenape (, , or Lenape , del, Lënapeyok) also called the Leni Lenape, Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. Their historical territory includ ...

encampments near the park. The first recorded European settlement in the area was in 1742. In 1796, Lemuel Parvin settled in what is now the park and dammed the Muddy Run stream to power a sawmill, thus creating Parvin Lake. In 1930, the state of New Jersey bought 918 acres of land in what is now the park, and from 1933 to 1941 the

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...

developed the park. The park was used in 1943 as a summer camp for the children of interned Japanese Americans, in 1944 as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

camp for

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

soldiers from the

Afrika Korps The Afrika Korps or German Africa Corps (, }; DAK) was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African Campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its African colonies, the ...

, and in 1952 as temporary housing for

Kalmyk Americans Kalmyk Americans are Americans of Kalmyk Mongolian ancestry. American Kalmyks initially established communities in the United States following a mass immigration after World War II. The largest groups of Kalmyks originally settled primarily i ...

who fled their homelands in the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

Camping

*Campsites: 56 tent and trailer sites with fire rings, picnic tables, lantern hooks and a playground available. Six people and two vehicles per site. Flush toilets, showers, and laundry facilities are within walking distance. Facilities available for people with disabilities. Trailer sanitary station. Located on the south shore of Parvin Lake. Open year-round. $20 per night for NJ residents and $25 per night for out of state residents. *Group campsites: Four group sites; 25 people per site; total capacity: 100. Flush toilets, water, fire rings, picnic tables, one shelter. Located on south shore of Parvin Lake. Open April 1 through October 31. $50 per night for NJ residents and $100 per night for out of state residents *Cabins: 16 cabins each with furnished living room with fireplace or wood burning stove; two rooms with either two or three bunks in each; kitchen with running water, electric stove, refrigerator; bathroom with sink, toilet, and shower; electricity; brick patio with table and grill. Each accommodates 4 people. Two additional 6-bunk cabin are accessible for people with disabilities. Playground available. Cabins are on the north shore of Thundergust Lake. Open April 1 through October 31. Four-bunk cabins: $55 per night for NJ residents and $65 per night for out of state residents. Six-bunk cabins: $75 per night for NJ residents and $85 per night for out of state residents.

Swimming

A lifeguard staffed swimming beach is provided at Parvin Grove, which is located on Parvin Lake. Swimming is available from

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who have fought and died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monda ...

Labor Day Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United St ...

Picnicking

There are several picnic areas with grills and tables. For large groups, a reservation fee is applied.

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Civilian Conservation Corps in New Jersey Kalmyk diaspora Parks in Salem County, New Jersey Protected areas of the Pine Barrens (New Jersey) State parks of New Jersey