Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor is a linear state park in southwestern

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

, in the United States. It is long and thickly forested along steep and rugged coastline with a few small sand beaches. It is named in honor of Samuel H. Boardman, the first Oregon Parks superintendent. It is located from north of

Brookings Brookings may refer to: Organizations * Brookings Institution, a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy organization based in Washington, D.C. Places * Brookings, Oregon, USA * Brookings, South Dakota, USA * Brookings County, South Dakota, USA ...

, between the Pacific Ocean and

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a major north–south highway that traverses the states of California, Oregon, and Washington on the West Coast of the United States. It is part of the United States Numbered Highway Syst ...

. The north end abuts the

Pistol River State Scenic Viewpoint Pistol River State Scenic Viewpoint is a state park in the U.S. state of Oregon, administered by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. See also * List of Oregon state parks References External links

* State parks of Oregon Par ...

. More than 14 named creeks cross the corridor. The

Oregon Coast Trail The Oregon Coast Trail (OCT) is a long-distance hiking route along the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of Oregon in the United States. It follows the coast of Oregon from the mouth of the Columbia River to the California border south of Brookin ...

meanders for about through the park, among 300-year-old

Sitka spruce ''Picea sitchensis'', the Sitka spruce, is a large, coniferous, evergreen tree growing to just over tall, with a trunk diameter at breast height that can exceed 5 m (16 ft). It is by far the largest species of spruce and the fifth- ...

trees and several natural arches and bridges. There is beach access and some

sand dunes A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

. The

Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge is a U.S. National Wildlife Refuge off the southwestern Oregon Coast. It is one of six National Wildlife Refuges comprising the Oregon Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex. The Oregon Islands provides ...

and Oregon Islands Wilderness protect wildlife and habitat on all of the approximately 130 rocks and islands along the corridor's shore.

History

The area was used by Native Americans. Later, it was used by several (now abandoned) mining operations, whose ruins are still visible. At the Indian Sands site within the park, archaeological finds have provided evidence of human activity in this area 10,000 to 12,000 years ago, which is likely the result of migration along the Pacific coast from the area of the

Bering Land Bridge Beringia is defined today as the land and maritime area bounded on the west by the Lena River in Russia; on the east by the Mackenzie River in Canada; on the north by 72° north latitude in the Chukchi Sea; and on the south by the tip of the ...

national park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

on the southern Oregon Coast was proposed in the late 1930s; it was to encompass from Gold Beach to Brookings. A Congressional bill to formally create the national park was introduced in 1940, but it was never realized. The first acquisition for a state park along the coast was purchased in May 1949. There were at least 12 additional purchases made by May 1957. The Oregon Parks Commission received its first alien gift of made in 1950 by Borax Consolidated, Ltd of London, which retains the right to mine underground minerals such as

borax The BORAX Experiments were a series of safety experiments on boiling water nuclear reactors conducted by Argonne National Laboratory in the 1950s and 1960s at the National Reactor Testing Station in eastern Idaho.

. The company acquired the land c. 1880 for mining purposes. The park was named in 1950 for Oregon parks superintendent Samuel H. Boardman. There have never been overnight facilities.

References

External links

* {{authority control Parks in Curry County, Oregon State parks of Oregon 1949 establishments in Oregon Protected areas established in 1949