Algonquin Provincial Park facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Algonquin Provincial Park
Two moose in Algonquin Park
Location	Whitney, Ontario, Canada
Area	1,908,000 acres
Established	May 23, 1893

Algonquin Provincial Park is a huge and amazing provincial park in Canada. It's the oldest provincial park in Ontario, first opened way back in 1893!

This park is super big, covering 7,653 square kilometres (that's about 2,955 square miles!). It's the third largest provincial park in Ontario. You'll find tons of streams, lakes, and rivers here. Its forests have a mix of trees that lose their leaves (like maples) and trees that stay green all year (like pines).

Because of all the different places to live, many kinds of plants and animals call Algonquin home. It's also an important place for scientists to study wildlife. Many people love to visit Algonquin Park, especially campers, because it's so big and not too far from big cities like Toronto and Ottawa.

In 1992, Algonquin Park became a National Historic Site of Canada. This means it's a special place recognized for its important history.

The Park's Story

Algonquin Park started out as a place where people would cut down trees. But some of these loggers, and other people, saw how beautiful the area was. They wanted to protect the animals and nature there.

In 1892, a group of five government members asked for the land to become a park. The very next year, in 1893, the park was officially created! It was the first provincial park in Ontario. When it first opened, it was called a "national park," but its name was changed to a "provincial park" in 1913.

In 1896, a railway was built through the park. A few years later, in 1898, small cottages, lodges, and camps started being sold to visitors. By 1908, the first hotel in the park was built. This hotel became very popular, and soon more hotels opened up.

Fun Things to Do

Algonquin Park is a very popular place for outdoor activities all year round!

• Camping: Many people love to camp in the park's campgrounds.
• Water Fun: Fishing and canoeing are super popular activities on the lakes and rivers.
• Exploring: You can also go hiking on many trails or even horse riding.
• Winter Sports: In winter, people love to skate on the frozen lakes. The park even has its own skating rink!

There's also a special place called the Algonquin Logging Museum. This museum teaches visitors about the park's history and how logging was done in the past. It has a book store, exhibits with lots of information, and even a recreated logging camp from the late 1800s.

Images for kids

• 

  1893 Survey of Park Lands

• 

  Autumn scene in Algonquin Park

• 

  Map of CN Railways lines in the park from 1922

• 

  A hand-coloured photograph of canoeists in Algonquin Park in the 1920s

• 

  Tom Thomson, In Algonquin Park, Winter 1914–1915. McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg

• 

  Entrance to Alqonquin Park

• 

  The Algonquin Visitor Centre at km 43 of the Highway 60 corridor

• 

  Docked canoe on Pog Lake, Algonquin Park.

• 

  Lookout trail

• 

  Female moose on the Amable du Fond River in Algonquin

• 

  Camp Arowhon's main lodge

• 

  Canadian bunchberry (Cornus canadensis)

• 

  Mushroom in Algonquin Park

• 

  Fungi in Algonquin Park

• 

  American painted lady butterfly

• 

  Blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata)

See also

In Spanish: Parque provincial Algonquin para niños