Lumber River State Park is a North Carolina state park along the

Lumber River The Lumber River, sometimes referred to as the Lumbee River, is a river in south-central North Carolina in the flat Coastal Plain. European settlers first called the river Drowning Creek, which is the name of its headwater. The waterway known as ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

, Hoke, Robeson and

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

counties. It covers along a 115-mile (185-km) stretch of the

. Lumber River State Park is located in North Carolina's

Coastal Plain A coastal plain is flat, low-lying land adjacent to a sea coast. A fall line commonly marks the border between a coastal plain and a piedmont area. Some of the largest coastal plains are in Alaska and the southeastern United States. The Gulf Co ...

. It was established in 1989 as both a state park and designated as a "Natural and Scenic River" by the North Carolina General Assembly. In addition, it is the only

blackwater river A blackwater river is a type of river with a slow-moving channel flowing through forested swamps or wetlands. As vegetation decays, tannins leach into the water, making a transparent, acidic water that is darkly stained, resembling black tea ...

in North Carolina to be designated as a

National Wild and Scenic River The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System was created by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-542), enacted by the U.S. Congress to preserve certain rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free- ...

by the Department of the Interior. Lumber River State Park encompasses parts of four counties along the Lumber River. The headwaters of the river are in Scotland County. The Lumber River bisects Robeson County. The recreational facilities are at the Princess Ann Landing in southeastern Robeson County near the towns of Orrum and Fair Bluff. The river ends in

South Carolina )'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, where it joins the Little Pee Dee River about south of the state line.

History

The Lumber River is the only

in North Carolina to be designated as a

by the United States (US) Department of the Interior. The river is long from its

headwaters The headwaters of a river or stream is the farthest place in that river or stream from its estuary or downstream confluence with another river, as measured along the course of the river. It is also known as a river's source. Definition The ...

at the confluence of Drowning Creek and Buffalo Creek near

Wagram Deutsch-Wagram (literally "German Wagram", ), often shortened to Wagram, is a village in the Gänserndorf District, in the state of Lower Austria, Austria. It is in the Marchfeld Basin, close to the Vienna city limits, about 15 km (9 mi) northeas ...

in Scotland County. The river flows freely along its entire course, making it one of the longest unobstructed rivers in North Carolina. The upper section of the river was designated as a State Recreational Water Trail in 1978. The river was established as a National Canoe Trail in 1981. The lower Lumber River was designated as a State Canoe Trail in 1984. The General Assembly established the Lumber River as a Natural and Scenic River and also as a state park in 1989. The first European settlements were made by Scots-Irish who migrated to the area in the late 18th century. They chartered Princess Ann in 1796. The town was the second to be established in Robeson County, and the first settled by people ascending the river from South Carolina. Princess Ann has since been abandoned. The name survives in local

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

and as the name of the road that leads to the park. The recreational facilities for Lumber River State Park are in a section of Robeson County known as Princess Ann.

Recreation

The Lumber River has 24 boat launches that serve as access points to Lumber River State Park. The entire length of the river is open to

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

. The common game fish are black crappie,

largemouth bass The largemouth bass (''Micropterus salmoides'') is a carnivorous freshwater gamefish in the Centrarchidae ( sunfish) family, a species of black bass native to the eastern and central United States, southeastern Canada and northern Mexico, bu ...

catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the three largest species alive ...

and

redbreast sunfish The redbreast sunfish (''Lepomis auritus'') is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (family Centrarchidae) of order Perciformes. The type species of its genus, it is native to the river systems of eastern Canada and the United Stat ...

. All anglers must have a valid fishing license and follow the regulations of the

North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission is a state government agency created by the North Carolina General Assembly, General Assembly in 1947 to Wildlife management, conserve and sustain North Carolina's fish and wildlife resources through ...

. Nine primitive camping sites are located at the Princess Ann section of the park. These campsites are meant to be used by no more than six people at a time. Each camp site features a picnic table and grill, lantern holder, trash can, and fire ring. Princess Ann has several hiking trails and picnic areas, and many municipal and county parks are located on the Lumber River as well.

Plants and wildlife

Lumber River State Park provides a habitat for a wide variety of plants and animals. Wildflowers that can be seen at the park include

wisteria ''Wisteria'' is a genus of flowering plants in the legume family, Fabaceae (Leguminosae), that includes ten species of woody twining vines that are native to China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Southern Canada, the Eastern United States, and north ...

, sarvis holly, Carolina bogmint, mountain laurel, wild azalea,

spider lily Spider lily is the common name for a number of different plant species within the family Amaryllidaceae which belong to the following genera: * ''Crinum ''Crinum'' is a genus of about 180 species of perennial plants that have large showy fl ...

and swamp mallow. Trees found in the swamps along the river include

bald cypress ''Taxodium distichum'' (bald cypress, swamp cypress; french: cyprès chauve; ''cipre'' in Louisiana) is a deciduous conifer in the family Cupressaceae. It is native to the southeastern United States. Hardy and tough, this tree adapts to a wide ...

, water elm,

river birch ''Betula nigra'', the black birch, river birch or water birch, is a species of birch native to the Eastern United States from New Hampshire west to southern Minnesota, and south to northern Florida and west to Texas. It is one of the few heat-tol ...

and

tulip poplar ''Liriodendron tulipifera''—known as the tulip tree, American tulip tree, tulipwood, tuliptree, tulip poplar, whitewood, fiddletree, and yellow-poplar—is the North American representative of the two-species genus '' Liriodendron'' (the othe ...

. Animals and birds in the area include the

American alligator The American alligator (''Alligator mississippiensis''), sometimes referred to colloquially as a gator or common alligator, is a large crocodilian reptile native to the Southeastern United States. It is one of the two extant species in the gen ...

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...

, American black bear, beavers, and

northern river otter The North American river otter (''Lontra canadensis''), also known as the northern river otter and river otter, is a semiaquatic mammal that only lives on the North American continent, along its waterways and coasts. An adult North American ri ...

s; and barred owls, great blue heron, wild turkey, sandpipers and prothonotary warblers.

Nearby state parks

The following state parks are within of Lumber River State Park: *Jones Lake State Park (Bladen County, North Carolina, Bladen County) *Lake Waccamaw State Park (Columbus County, North Carolina, Columbus County) *Little Pee Dee State Park (

)

References

External links

* {{authority control State parks of North Carolina Protected areas of Columbus County, North Carolina Protected areas of Moore County, North Carolina Protected areas of Montgomery County, North Carolina Protected areas of Robeson County, North Carolina Protected areas of Scotland County, North Carolina Protected areas established in 1989