Medoc Mountain State Park facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Medoc Mountain State Park |
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IUCN Category III (Natural Monument)
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Medoc Mountain State Park in autumn
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 Medoc Mountain State Park
Location in North Carolina
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| Location | Halifax, North Carolina, United States |
| Area | 3,893 acres (15.75 km2) |
| Elevation | 221 ft (67 m) |
| Established | 1972 |
| Named for | Medoc Mountain |
| Governing body | North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation |
Medoc Mountain State Park is a cool place to visit in North Carolina, USA. It's a state park that covers about 3,893-acre (15.75 km2) of land. You can find it in Halifax County, near a town called Hollister, North Carolina. The park is named after Medoc Mountain, which is actually more like a big hill, standing about 325 feet (99 meters) tall.
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Discovering Medoc Mountain's Past
Medoc Mountain might be called a "mountain," but it's not like the huge, pointy mountains you might imagine. Its highest point is only about 325 feet (99 meters) above sea level. This "mountain" is actually what's left of a much older, bigger mountain range.
How Medoc Mountain Formed
Millions of years ago, around 350 million years ago, volcanoes were active here. These volcanoes created hard rocks. Over a very long time, wind and water slowly wore away the softer rocks around them. What's left today is the tough core of those ancient mountains. This core, made of a rock called biotite granite, was strong enough to resist erosion. It even made streams flow around it! The park is located where hard rocks from the foothills meet the softer ground of the coastal plain. Some parts of Medoc Mountain are quite steep, dropping 160 feet in a short distance.
Farming and Grapes at Medoc
For a long time, the land around Medoc Mountain was used for farming. In the 1800s, a farmer and teacher named Sidney Weller owned this area. He was famous for growing grapes and making a special wine called Weller's Halifax. People even say he helped create the American way of growing grapes and making wine. Mr. Weller named the mountain "Medoc" after a famous wine region in France. He also started a school for local kids and helped with North Carolina's first state fair in 1853.
After Mr. Weller passed away in 1854, his land was sold. The vineyards kept producing wine for a while, but eventually, the land was divided up and used for other crops. Today, there are hardly any signs of the old vineyards. Only the high ridge and the slopes near Little Fishing and Bear Swamp creeks haven't been farmed a lot. There was even a mill here that ground grain until the late 1800s.
Later Uses and Becoming a Park
In the 1920s, a Boy Scout camp was built on top of the mountain. A few years later, people cut down trees for timber. In the early 1930s, a special metal called molybdenum was found near the top. People explored the site, but no big mining ever happened. For many years, local people enjoyed the area for hunting, riding horses, and hiking.
In 1970, people in the community suggested making the area a state park. In 1972, the North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation looked at different places and decided Medoc Mountain was perfect. They worked to buy 2,300 acres (about 9.3 square kilometers) of land to create the park.
Fun Events at the Park
Medoc Mountain State Park hosts an exciting event every year called the Medoc Trail Marathon. This event includes two races: a 10-mile race and a full marathon, both run on the park's trails. The very first race happened on October 4, 2008.
