List of Arkansas state parks facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Arkansas is home to 52 amazing state parks! These parks are managed by the Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage, and Tourism. They offer fun and educational experiences for everyone.

The very first state park in Arkansas was Petit Jean State Park, which opened in 1923. It was almost a national park, but it was too small. So, Arkansas decided to make it a state park instead!

Arkansas state parks come in all sizes. Some are tiny, like 1 acre (0.4 hectares), while others are huge, like 11,744 acres (4,752 hectares). They protect beautiful natural areas and important historical sites.

Discover Arkansas State Parks
Images for kids
See also

Discover Arkansas State Parks

Arkansas's state parks offer a wide range of activities. You can explore nature, learn about history, or just relax outdoors. Here's a look at some of the cool parks you can visit.

Parks for Outdoor Adventures

Many state parks are perfect for hiking, camping, and water sports.

Bull Shoals-White River State Park

Located in northern Arkansas, this park is famous for trout fishing. It sits near Bull Shoals Lake and the White River. You can find over 100 campsites here.

Cossatot River State Park

If you love adventure, check out Cossatot River. It has exciting whitewater rafting with Class III, IV, and V rapids. The river is even part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System!

Devil's Den State Park

This park in the Ozarks was built in the 1930s. It has a lake, caves, a swimming pool, and many trails. You can also find over 100 campsites and cabins here.

Lake Catherine State Park

Created around Lake Catherine, this park has a beautiful natural shoreline. It offers cabins, campsites, nature programs, a marina, and hiking trails. There's even a sandy beach for swimming!

Lake Dardanelle State Park

This park has two locations, one in Russellville and one in Dardanelle. It's a popular spot for bass fishing and hosts many big tournaments. You can also enjoy boating and visit the aquarium.

Lake Ouachita State Park

Surrounding a large lake, this park has a marina, trails, and even eagle tours. You can learn about three historic springs in the area.

Mount Magazine State Park

This park is home to Mount Magazine, the highest point in Arkansas! It has a lodge, cabins, trails, and a special area for hang gliding. Imagine soaring over the mountains!

Mount Nebo State Park

Another mountain park, Mount Nebo offers amazing views. It has historic cabins, 14 miles (23 km) of hiking trails, and popular spots for hang gliding.

Queen Wilhelmina State Park

Perched atop Rich Mountain, this park has a lodge with guest rooms. It's surrounded by forests, creeks, and offers stunning mountain views. It's located along the Talimena Scenic Drive.

Village Creek State Park

This large park in eastern Arkansas is located on Crowley's Ridge. It features lakes, a golf course, camping, and hiking. One trail follows an old road from the 1820s.

Parks for History Buffs

Arkansas has many parks that preserve important moments in history.

Arkansas Post Museum

This museum tells the story of Arkansas Post, which was Arkansas's first capital until 1821. It's located near the Arkansas Post National Memorial.

Conway Cemetery State Park

This historical park has no recreational services. It's located on the former cotton plantation of James Sevier Conway, who was Arkansas's first governor.

Davidsonville Historic State Park

This park protects the remains of Davidsonville, an old frontier river town. You can take tours and read signs that explain the town's history. It was bypassed by a major trail in the 1820s.

Hampson Archeological Museum State Park

At this museum, you can see ancient artifacts from the Nodena site. This was a village of the Nodena people that existed between 1400 and 1650 CE. You can also see bones from an ancient mastodon!

Historic Washington State Park

This park has 53 buildings that show what a 19th-century town was like. It helps us understand the architecture, culture, and politics of that time.

Jacksonport State Park

This park features the 1872 Jacksonport courthouse. It helps preserve the history of a former steamboat river town.

Jenkins' Ferry Battleground State Park

This park is one of three battleground sites from the Civil War's Camden Expedition. You can also enjoy water activities on the Saline River here.

Louisiana Purchase State Park

Walk along a boardwalk through a swamp to reach a special monument. This monument marks the starting point for all surveys of the Louisiana Purchase. This purchase helped the United States grow westward!

Lower White River Museum State Park

This museum is all about the culture, trade, and history along the White River in Arkansas.

Marks' Mills Battleground State Park

This park remembers a Civil War battle. It has exhibits and is also a Red River Campaign National Historic Landmark.

Museum of Natural Resources

This museum teaches you about the history of oil and bromine mining in Arkansas.

Parkin Archeological State Park

This park protects an important archaeological site. It helps us learn about ancient cultures that lived in Arkansas.

Plantation Agriculture Museum

This museum used to be a general store for cotton farmers. It has over 10,000 artifacts and old farm machinery used on cotton plantations.

Plum Bayou Mounds Archeological State Park

This park protects ancient burial mounds. It helps us understand the early people who lived in this area.

Poison Springs Battleground State Park

This park remembers the Battle of Poison Spring from the American Civil War. It was part of the 1864 Camden Expedition.

Powhatan Historic State Park

This park preserves a small 19th-century river port town on the Black River.

Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park

This park remembers the Battle of Prairie Grove from the American Civil War. It has a museum, gift shop, and historic buildings you can explore on a walking trail.

Unique and Special Parks

Some parks offer truly one-of-a-kind experiences.

Crater of Diamonds State Park

This is the only diamond-bearing site in the world where the public can dig for diamonds! You might just find one!

Crowley's Ridge State Park

Built on the land of Benjamin Crowley, this park celebrates the culture and history of the Crowley's Ridge region. It has many structures built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps.

Herman Davis State Park

This park has a grave and memorial for Herman Davis, a U.S. sniper from World War I.

Mammoth Spring State Park

This park surrounds a huge natural spring. You can go fishing, boating, and hiking here. There's also a welcome center and a museum.

Ozark Folk Center

Near Mountain View, Arkansas, this center keeps the music, culture, and traditions of the Ozark Mountains alive. They host special concerts and regular folk music performances.

Pinnacle Mountain State Park

Here, the rocky Pinnacle Mountain rises where the flat Arkansas Delta meets the Ouachita Mountains. It's a great place to see different landscapes.

South Arkansas Arboretum

This arboretum and botanical garden has plants native to the Western Gulf Coastal Plain region. It's a great place to learn about local plants.

White Oak Lake State Park

This park has a lake in the woods, where two types of forests meet. It's home to diverse wildlife. You can enjoy camping, boating, fishing, and hiking. There are also signs about the Red River Campaign from the American Civil War.

Images for kids

Historic house sits beside a road at Arkansas Post State Park.
A wide river with fishermen in a canoe at Bull Shoals-White River State Park.
An orange sunset reflects in a calm Cane Creek Lake.
A small fenced cemetery with large trees.
Sharp rocks jut out from a river in a lush forest at Cossatot River State Park.
A large tilled field where visitors dig for diamonds.
Lake Ponder viewed through a grove of lush green trees.
A quiet lake surrounded by tall, leafy green trees at Davidsonville Historic State Park.
A shining blue lake with trees in the foreground at DeGray Lake Resort State Park.
Fall foliage surrounds a small bridge spanning a rocky Lee Creek at Devil's Den State Park.
A vessel resembling a human head on display at Hampson Archeological Museum State Park.
A granite statue of a young soldier in military uniform at Herman Davis State Park.
The original wood courthouse at Historic Washington State Park.
A stone bridge with circular openings at Hobbs Conservation Area.
A large, ornate red brick courthouse at Jacksonport State Park.
The Battle of Jenkins' Ferry Memorial.
The blue waters of Lake Catherine with a tall pine tree-covered point.
A bright blue lake with a line of cypress trees along the horizon.
A bright blue lake with a line of trees along the horizon.
Shining blue water with the Ozark Mountains in the background at Lake Fort Smith State Park.
A quiet lake with a short wooded point at Lake Frierson State Park.
An aerial view of a calm, shiny blue lake.
A calm lake surrounded by lush greenery at Lake Poinsett State Park.
A small lake surrounded by old growth forest in winter at Logoly State Park.
A monument in flooded swamp water surrounded by large cypress trees.
A tan metal building with green trim at Lower White River Museum State Park.
Mammoth Spring at average flow.
Mark's Mill Battlefield.
A view from Mount Magazine State Park.
A flat, green, agricultural field with Mount Nebo in the background.
A historic market with a red roof and "Ozark Folk Center" sign.
The primary mound at Parkin Archeological State Park.
A view into a river valley from a rock outcropping at Petit Jean State Park.
Pinnacle Mountain rises from a flat floodplain.
Two old buildings at Plantation Agriculture Museum.
Two burial mounds rise above flat, green grass.
A historic marker at Poison Springs Battleground State Park.
An old, two-story brick courthouse under a starry night sky at Powhatan Historic State Park.
A tall field stone column memorial flanked by flags at Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park.
A wooden two-story lodge facing a mountain vista at Queen Wilhelmina State Park.
A skinny wooden trail through a forest at White Oak Lake State Park.
A dirt trail, a remnant of the Memphis to Little Rock Road, at Village Creek State Park.