Morgan–Monroe State Forest is a

state forest A state forest or national forest is a forest that is administered or protected by some agency of a sovereign or federated state, or territory. Background The precise application of the terms vary by jurisdiction. For example: * In Australia, a ...

in Morgan County and Monroe County of

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, and is the second largest state forest in Indiana. The comprising this

deciduous forest In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, ...

was abandoned farmland, as the previous residents realized that the land's rocky soil was very poor for agricultural purposes. In 1929 the state of Indiana purchased the land to prevent further erosion and to create the state forest.DNR - Division of Forestry: Morgan-Monroe State Forest
/ref> Indiana's first

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 ...

camp was in Morgan–Monroe State Forest in May 1933. The fire tower for the forest is no longer usable, but in 1999 was placed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

.Conn pg.74 An AmeriFLUX/ FLUXNET tower, for the purpose of measuring

water Water (chemical formula ) is an Inorganic compound, inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living ...

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide ( chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is trans ...

, and heat levels in a mixed hardwood ecosystem, is located within the forest. This tower is maintained by

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...

's Department of Geography. Recreation activities include four hiking trails. Hunting in the state forest is for

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

, fox,

ruffed grouse The ruffed grouse (''Bonasa umbellus'') is a medium-sized grouse occurring in forests from the Appalachian Mountains across Canada to Alaska. It is the most widely distributed game bird in North America. It is non-migratory. It is the only specie ...

raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...

, squirrel, and

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

. Another highlight is the Draper Cabin, which is one hundred years old and may be rented overnight.Morgan-Monroe State Forest
/ref> Cherry Lake is noted for its fishing. There are three lakes in the forest. One of the lakes, Beanblossum, is dry due to a dam failure in November 1993. Morgan–Monroe State Forest, along with nearby

Yellowwood State Forest Yellowwood State Forest, originally Beanblossom Land Utilization Project, is a state forest located in Brown County, Indiana, near the more famous Brown County State Park. The forest features seventeen different areas within Brown County, compris ...

, are among the very few places in Indiana where one can pan for

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile me ...

, although a free permit is required first before doing any prospecting.Morgan Monroe State Forest

's Morgan-Monroe Observatory is located in the Morgan–Monroe State Forest.

Notes

References

*Kobrowski, Nicole ''Encyclopedia of Haunted Indiana'' 1st Ed.
Indiana DNR page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan-Monroe State Forest Indiana state forests Protected areas of Monroe County, Indiana Protected areas of Morgan County, Indiana Civilian Conservation Corps in Indiana Protected areas established in 1929