Watkins Lake State Park and County Preserve is a combination public recreation area and nature preserve located five miles west of

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

Jackson Jackson may refer to: People and fictional characters * Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Qu ...

and Washtenaw counties,

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. The area occupies a total of , with the

Michigan Department of Natural Resources The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is the agency of the state of Michigan charged with maintaining natural resources such as state parks, state forests, and recreation areas. It is governed by a director appointed by the Governor a ...

owning in Norvell Township, Jackson County, and Washtenaw County owning in Manchester Township. Dedicated in 2017, it is under the joint management of the Michigan DNR and the Washtenaw County Parks & Recreation Commission. A five-mile former rail corridor runs through the park and into grasslands in the eastern portion of the preserve.

History

The park bears the name of Royal and Sally Carpenter Watkins, the first settlers to farm the area, who are known to have participated in the

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. T ...

in the years leading up to the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. In 2016, the state acquired a portion of their former lands in Norvell Township using $2.9 million from the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund. The Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission purchased 405 acres from property owner Gary Trolz in 2015; Trolz subsequently sold an adjoining 717 acres to the MDNR in 2016, which opened the way to the creation the park and preserve.

References

External links

Watkins Lake State Park and County Preserve
Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Watkins Lake State Park and County Preserve
Washtenaw County Parks & Recreation Commission {{authority control State parks of Michigan Protected areas of Jackson County, Michigan Protected areas of Washtenaw County, Michigan Protected areas established in 2016 2016 establishments in Michigan