Valley Falls State Park is a 1,145 acre (4.63 km²) day use facility sited along both banks of the

Tygart Valley River The Tygart Valley River — also known as the Tygart River — is a principal tributary of the Monongahela River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed Aug ...

. The park is located about 7 miles (11 km) south of exit 137 of

I-79 Interstate 79 (I-79) is an Interstate Highway in the eastern United States, designated from I-77 in Charleston, West Virginia, north to Pennsylvania Route 5 (PA 5) and PA 290 in Erie, Pennsylvania. It is a primary thoroughfare ...

, near Fairmont, West Virginia. The park's main feature is a half-mile long set of cascades — the "Valley Falls" — that separate

Marion Marion may refer to: People *Marion (given name) *Marion (surname) *Marion Silva Fernandes, Brazilian footballer known simply as "Marion" *Marion (singer), Filipino singer-songwriter and pianist Marion Aunor (born 1992) Places Antarctica * Mario ...

and

Taylor County, West Virginia Taylor County is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 16,705. Its county seat is Grafton. The county was formed in 1844 and named for Senator John Taylor of Caroline. Taylor County is part of ...

. The park and river provide a popular and risky kayaking run. Although the falls are an inviting spot, swimming is not allowed. Local tradition had it that early settler Jonathan Nixon, Sr (1753-1799) was the first white man to look upon the falls.Brinkman, Charles (1939-42), ''The History of Taylor County'', Chapt. 102; published in installments in the Grafton ''Sentinel''; 2 May issue. (These newspaper columns, published from 18 Apr 1939 to 29 Jun 1942 by the Grafton ''Sentinel'', are compiled by the Taylor County Historical and Genealogical Society in three volumes ol. 1, 1989; Vol. 2, 1992; Vol. 3, 1992 The columns are produced as 890 "chapters" in the reprinted work.) In the 19th century a small community thrived along the river at the current state park's location. The ruins of a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

and a

gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separat ...

are still visible along the river.

Features

* Mountain Biking * Hiking trails * Playground * Picnic area * Volleyball court * Fishing * Kayaking

References

External links

* {{authority control Protected areas of Marion County, West Virginia Protected areas of Taylor County, West Virginia State parks of West Virginia Waterfalls of West Virginia Protected areas established in 1964 Landforms of Marion County, West Virginia Landforms of Taylor County, West Virginia 1964 establishments in West Virginia IUCN Category III

Features

See also

References

External links