Prince William Forest Park is protected forest in the U.S. state of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

within

Prince William County Prince William County is located on the Potomac River in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population sits at 482,204, making it Virginia's second-most populous county. Its county seat is the independent city of Manassas ...

(and very partially Stafford County), located adjacent to the

Marine Corps Base Quantico Marine Corps Base Quantico (commonly abbreviated MCB Quantico) is a United States Marine Corps installation located near Triangle, Virginia, covering nearly of southern Prince William County, Virginia, northern Stafford County, and southeas ...

near the town of Dumfries. Established as Chopawamsic Recreational Demonstration Area in 1936, the park is the largest protected natural area in the

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

metropolitan region at over .National Park Service - Chopawamsic Recreational Demonstration Area
/ref> The park serves as the largest example of Eastern

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

forest in the

National Park System The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

. The park also protects the

Quantico Creek Quantico Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed August 15, 2011 partially tidal tributary of the Potomac River in eastern Prince William County, Virginia. Quantico C ...

watershed. It is a sanctuary for numerous native plant and animal species. The park was developed by

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...

workers after the Great Depression. Landscaping and structures were designed by

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...

architects. Four camp areas are listed individually 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 ...

: * Goodwill Historic District, Chopawamsic RDA Camp 1 * Mawavi Historic District, Chopawamsic RDA Camp 2 * Orenda/SP-26 Historic District, Chopawamsic RDA Camp 3 * Pleasant Historic District, Chopawamsic RDA Camp 4 The park also includes the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. The park itself was designed as the Prince William Forest Park Historic District in 2012.

History

The land on which Prince William Forest Park now resides was once used by Native Americans of the Archaic period. The Native Americans would use the area for hunting, gathering, and camping. Many artifacts from the archaic people have been found throughout the park. The park was erected where once the town of Batestown stood. It was an enclave for freed slaves named for Mary Bates, the matriarch of the community."Hickory Ridge and Batestown: Local Life Before the Park"
''Official NPS Website'', retrieved April 7, 2006 Between 1933 and 1937, the Federal Government began implementing a Resettlement Administration program to form Chopawamsic Recreational Demonstration Area, where rural farmers were supposed to relocate for more fertile land. The RA bought 79 pieces of property in both Hickory Ridge and Batestown and condemned another 48, to form a new recreation area. However, the RA often made no effort to actually resettle the displaced residents. The area residents resisted the relocation efforts, sometimes retreating into the park boundaries to escape detection. This continued until the beginning of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, where the park was taken over by the Office of Strategic Services as a spy training ground. The park was surrounded by barbed wire and fences, and patrolled by dogs and armed guards. All remaining forty-four holdouts were evicted, some literally carried away screaming. At the end of the war, the displaced residents hoped their land would be restored, but to date these families have received no compensation. Instead, the property was turned over to the

and renamed Prince William Forest Park.

Recreational opportunities

A variety of recreational opportunities are available, which include: * Wildlife viewing * of hiking trails. Most of these trails either go to a historical/cultural destination such as Pyrite Mine or follow Quantico Creek with views of its small waterfalls. * of bicycle accessible roads and trails. * Several tent camping options, including family, group and backcountry camping are available as well as rustic cabin camping, and a full-service, concessionaire-operated RV campground, are available.

Cultural resources

The park’s cultural resources are also varied. They include: * The remnants of Joplin, Hickory Ridge, and Batestown, three small communities evicted for the park’s establishment * The reclaimed remnants of the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine along Quantico Creek * The reclaimed remnants of the Greenwood gold mineJeff Wynn, "A Ground Electromagnetic Survey Used to Map Sulfides and Acid Sulfate Ground Waters at the Abandoned Cabin Branch Mine, Prince William Forest Park, Northern Virginia Gold-Pyrite Belt,

''U.S. Geological Survey'', Reston, VA 20192, retrieved April 7, 2006 * Products of 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 ...

(CCC), which built the facilities, roads and lakes from 1936 to 1942. * The

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

’s Office of Strategic Services (OSS) which used the land exclusively for training spies and radio operators between 1942 and 1945

Wildlife

Prince William Forest Park is most notably home to mammalian species such as

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 ...

Black bear Black bear or Blackbear may refer to: Animals * American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species * Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species Music * Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...

, Beaver, Red fox, and Coyote. Deer in particular can be seen almost anywhere in the park. A variety of bird species, such as the Hooded warbler, the Wood thrush, and the

Red-shouldered hawk The red-shouldered hawk (''Buteo lineatus'') is a medium-sized buteo. Its breeding range spans eastern North America and along the coast of California and northern to northeastern-central Mexico. It is a permanent resident throughout most of its ...

, can also be found. Lizards such as Eastern black rat snakes have been seen in and around logs and brush areas, and Eastern box turtles can often be found, especially after a light rain. There are a number of amphibians that inhabit the park, such as the

American toad The American toad (''Anaxyrus americanus'') is a common species of toad found throughout Canada and the eastern United States. It is divided into three subspecies: the eastern American toad (''A. a. americanus''), the dwarf American toad (''A. a ...

, Green Frog, and

Cope's gray tree frog Cope's gray treefrog (''Dryophytes chrysoscelis'') is a species of treefrog found in the United States. It is almost indistinguishable from the gray treefrog ('' Dryophytes versicolor''), and shares much of its geographic range. Both species are ...

can be spotted in the park, as can salamanders such as the Marbled salamander and the Eastern red-backed salamander. Various skinks can be seen around sunny areas of the trails as well.

References

External links