{{short description|State park in Missouri, United States}} {{Use American English|date=July 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}} {{Infobox park | name = Castlewood State Park | image = Castlewoodscenic.JPG | image_caption = Bluff view in Castlewood State Park | image_alt = Valley view | image_size = 280 | map = USA Missouri#USA | map_size = 280 | map_caption = Location in Missouri | relief = 1 | location = [[St. Louis County, Missouri]], United States | coordinates = {{coord|38|32|50|N|90|32|38|W|display=inline,title}} | coords_ref = | area = {{convert|1818.77|acre}}<ref name=parkdata/> | elevation = {{convert|417|ft|m|abbr=on}} | established = 1974<ref name=acquisition/> | visitation_num = 735,979 | visitation_year = 2022 | visitation_ref = <ref>{{Cite web |date=February 3, 2023 |title=Missouri State Park Attendance For January - December, 2022 |url=https://mostateparks.com/sites/mostateparks/files/MSP-Cumulative-Attendance-2022.pdf |website=Missouri State Parks |access-date=December 6, 2023 |archive-date=November 11, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231111071717/https://www.mostateparks.com/sites/mostateparks/files/MSP-Cumulative-Attendance-2022.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> | administrator = [[Missouri Department of Natural Resources]] | website = {{Official website}} | module = }} '''Castlewood State Park''' is a public recreation area and [[Missouri state park]] occupying {{convert|1818|acre}} which straddles the [[Meramec River]] in [[St. Louis County, Missouri|St. Louis County]], [[Missouri]]. The most visited section of the [[state park]] lies on the north side of the Meramec; the park acreage on the south side of the river is accessed from [[Lone Elk County Park]] and includes the World Bird Sanctuary.<ref name=parks/>
==History==
===Lincoln Beach=== [[File:Crowd_at_Lincoln_Beach,_Missouri_c_1920s.jpg|thumb|left|Summer day at Lincoln Beach, early to mid-20th century]] In the early 20th century, the area of the park was a developed resort town, Lincoln Beach.
Lincoln Beach existed from about 1915 into the 1940s, with its highest popularity in the 1920s. The [[Missouri Pacific Railroad]] ran regular service from St. Louis to Lincoln Beach, and the resort hosted around 10,000 visitors on summer weekends.<ref name=AtlasObscura/>
Venues included the popular Lincoln Lodge and the Lone Wolf Club, a private [[speakeasy]] serving liquor illegally. ([[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]] was in effect from 1920 to 1933).<ref name=AtlasObscura/><ref name=StlPublicRadio/>
{{Cquote|quote=''There were a couple hundred buildings here, ranging from clubhouses to dance halls to general stores. A place to get a haircut, a place to get ice cream, and a place to get some whiskey.'' |author=Jeff Bonney <ref name=StlPublicRadio/>}}
After World War II, visitor numbers steadily declined, due to factors including the advent of air conditioning and the switch to automobile transport, which allowed people to choose spots alternative to the railroad-served Lincoln Beach.<ref name=parks/><ref name=AtlasObscura/>
By the 21st century, few traces remained of Lincoln Beach. All the buildings were destroyed over time, and the man-made beach itself was entirely washed away by regular flooding. A few foundations and ruins survive in the woods, and the concrete grand staircase which runs from the bottomlands up into the bluff remains in use by hikers, as does another, wooden, staircase.<ref name=AtlasObscura/>
===State park=== Castlewood State Park was established as a state park in 1974.<ref name="parkinfo"/>
The park has a history of fatalities due to the Meramac River. Since June 30, 2004, there has been a total of 16 deaths along the river within the park.<ref>http://www.stltoday.com/news/a-history-of-drownings-at-castlewood-state-park/collection_fd54df8c-3fa6-11e6-9732-77e9ad20b646.html</ref> Of the 12 drowning deaths, only one was the result of intoxication.<ref name="stltoday.com">http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/danger-meramec-river-can-be-deadly/article_ad8b3d86-54f9-5900-9c45-cda1e7e45335.html</ref> The most deadly incident occurred on July 9, 2006. Five children died in a mishap along the river during a church outing. Joseph Miller, 16, lost his footing on one of the river's unexpected dropoffs and was swept away by an [[Undertow (water waves)|undertow]]. Damon Johnson, 17, attempted to rescue Miller, but was also swept away. Damon's siblings, Dana Johnson (13), Ryan Mason (14) and Bryant Barnes (10), tried to rescue him. Deandre Sherman (16) also waded in to try to save their friends. All of the children, with the exception of Joseph Miller, drowned.<ref>http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/from-witnesses-rescuers-remain-haunted-by-tragedy-that-left-five/article_4f4f701e-b7bb-11e0-b6db-001a4bcf6878.html</ref>
A comprehensive list of fatalities as of 2021 includes: 19-year-old unnamed male (2004),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.stltoday.com/news/multimedia/june-30-2004-19-year-old-man-drowns-while-fishing/image_c764021e-3fc3-11e6-80a3-0f7593c29b63.html |title=19 year old man drowns while fishing |website=St. Louis Today |date=June 30, 2004 }}</ref> 13 year old Dana Johnson (2006), 10 year old Bryant James (2006), 16 year old Joseph Miller (2006), 14 year old Ryan Mason (2006), 16 year old Deandre Sherman (2006),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/july-9-2006-5-children-including-4-siblings-slip-under-the-water-and-drown/article_4f4f701e-b7bb-11e0-b6db-001a4bcf6878.html |title=5 children, including 4 siblings slip under the water and drown |website=St. Louis Today |date=July 9, 2006}}</ref> 15-year-old Isaiah Green (2007),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.stltoday.com/news/august-12-2007---youth-drowns-during-family-outing-at-castlewood-state-park/article_f14cd172-91a0-5797-8c52-106076ac77a2.html |title=Youth drowns during family outing at Castlewood State Park |website=St. Louis Today |date=August 12, 2007}}</ref> 18-year-old Luis Baez Gonzales (2011), 20-year-old Salvatore Jasso (2011),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/metro/june-26-2011---two-drown-in-treacherous-section-of-meramec-river/article_e4670384-3fa5-11e6-9bcd-cbd09dc67a73.html |title=Two drown in treacherous section of Meramec River |website=St. Louis Today |date=June 26, 2011}}</ref> 21-year-old Philip Schwalm (2012),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/april-12-2012---kirkwood-man-drowns-in-meramec-river/article_bf012f66-3fa5-11e6-b714-8791f91181d1.html |title=Kirkwood man drowns in Meramec River |website=St. Louis Today |date=April 12, 2012}}</ref> 18-yearold Henry Manu (2016), 17-year-old Samuel Neal (2016),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://fox2now.com/news/authorities-urge-swimmers-not-to-swim-at-castlewood-state-park/ |title=Authorities urge swimmers not to swim at Castlewood State Park |first=Katherine |last=Hessel |website=Fox 2 Now |publisher=Nexstar Media Group |date=26 June 2016}}</ref> 12-year-old Deniya Johnson (2018), 35-year-old Rose Shaw (2018),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://fox2now.com/news/first-responders-searching-for-missing-swimmers-at-castlewood-state-park/ |title=Bodies of missing swimmers pulled from Meramec River at Castlewood State Park |first1=Michelle |last1=Madaras |first2=Kelley |last2=Hoskins |website=Fox 2 Now |publisher=Nexstar Media Group |date=11 August 2018}}</ref> 16-year-old Kara Wrice (2021),<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/teenage-drowning-victim-at-castlewood-state-park-remembered-as-scholar-athlete-and-model/article_af284783-cb9b-5583-8e10-5eeed0480d5c.htm |title=Teenage drowning victim at Castlewood State Park remembered as scholar, athlete and model |website=St. Louis Today |date=July 6, 2021}}</ref> 19-year-old Juan Sajbin (2022)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.ksdk.com/article/news/local/water-rescue-castlewood-state-park-meramec-river/63-5e7ec125-84af-4c07-a418-e80d94b17a81 |title=Man pulled from Meramec River in Castlewood State Park identified |first1=Dori |last1=Olmos |first2=Travis |last2=Cummings |website=KSDK-TV |date=May 30, 2022 }}</ref>
A retired [[Hydrology|hydrologist]] for the Army Corps Of Engineers, Gary Dyhouse, remarked that the slope of the Meramac River is steeper than all other rivers in the area. According to Metro West Fire Chief Mike Krause, these sudden dropoffs, combined with the river's swift currents, are what cause swimmers to drown.<ref name="stltoday.com"/>
== Activities and amenities == The park offers fishing and boating on the Meramec River and more than 26 miles of trails for hiking, mountain biking and equestrian use.<ref name=parks/>
{| class="wikitable" border="1" style="width:100%" |+ Park trails<ref name=parktrails/> |- ! Trail ! Length ! Uses ! Notes |- | Al Foster Trail || {{convert|4.7|mi|km|1}} || Hiking, biking || Abandoned railroad bed following the river from [[Glencoe, Missouri|Glencoe]] to Sherman Beach County Park. |- | Castlewood Loop || {{convert|2.75|mi|km|1}} || Hiking, biking, equestrian || Floodplain trail skirting Lincoln Beach. |- | Cedar Bluff Loop || {{convert|2.25|mi|km|1}} || Hiking, biking || Accessed from Al Foster Trail; climbs to highest point in the park. |- | Chubb Trail || {{convert|6.5|mi|km|1}} || Hiking, biking, equestrian || Runs from [[Lone Elk County Park]] to [[West Tyson County Park]]. |- | Grotpeter Trail || {{convert|3.75|mi|km|1}} || Hiking, biking, equestrian || Challenging terrain with numerous elevation changes. |- | Lone Wolf Trail || {{convert|1.5|mi|km|1}} || Hiking, biking || Rugged trail named for a former area roadhouse. |- | River Scene Trail || {{convert|3.25|mi|km|1}} || Hiking, biking || Passes former resort sites; only hiking is allowed on the section atop the bluffs; hiking and biking on the bottomland section. |- | Stinging Nettle Trail || {{convert|2.5|mi|km|1}} || Hiking, biking || Follows river from Sherman Beach County Park to a junction with Al Foster Trail. |} {{wide image|Castlewood SP Panorama 20090802.jpg|900px|View of the [[Meramec River]] valley from Castlewood's bluffs}}
==References== <references> <ref name=parks>{{cite web|url=https://mostateparks.com/park/castlewood-state-park |title=Castlewood State Park |date=10 December 2010 |publisher=Missouri Department of Natural Resources |access-date=October 1, 2014}}</ref>
<ref name=AtlasObscura>{{cite web |url=https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/castlewood-state-park-missouri-vacation-destination |title=The Hidden History of a Missouri State Park |author=Evan Nicole Brown |date=July 29, 2019 |work=Atlas Obscura |access-date=December 27, 2020}}</ref>
<ref name=StlPublicRadio>{{cite web |url=https://news.stlpublicradio.org/arts/2019-07-24/curious-louis-answers-does-castlewood-state-park-have-a-hidden-history#stream/0 |title=Curious Louis Answers: Does Castlewood State Park Have A Hidden History? |author=Shahla Farzan |date=July 24, 2019 |publisher=St Louis Public Radio |access-date=December 27, 2020}}</ref>
<ref name=acquisition>{{cite web |url=https://mostateparks.com/page/59045/state-park-land-acquisition-summary |title=State Park Land Acquisition Summary |date=25 August 2011 |publisher=Missouri State Parks |access-date=April 17, 2018 |archive-date=June 12, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612142442/https://mostateparks.com/page/59045/state-park-land-acquisition-summary |url-status=dead }}</ref>
<ref name=parkdata>{{cite web |url=https://mostateparks.com/sites/mostateparks/files/Datasheets_Castlewood.pdf |title=Data Sheet: Castlewood State Park |publisher=Missouri Department of Natural Resources |access-date=December 27, 2024}}</ref>
<ref name=parkinfo>{{cite web |url=https://mostateparks.com/page/54950/general-information |title=Castlewood State Park: General Information |publisher=Missouri Department of Natural Resources |access-date=April 17, 2018}}</ref>
<ref name=parktrails>{{cite web |url=https://mostateparks.com/page/89611/castlewood-state-park-trails |title=Castlewood State Park: Trails |publisher=Missouri Department of Natural Resources |access-date=December 27, 2024}}</ref> </references>
==External links== {{commons category|Castlewood State Park|<br>Castlewood State Park}} *[https://mostateparks.com/park/castlewood-state-park Castlewood State Park] Missouri Department of Natural Resources *[https://mostateparks.com/sites/mostateparks/files/Castlewood.pdf Castlewood State Park Map] Missouri Department of Natural Resources
{{Protected Areas of Missouri}}
{{authority control}}
[[Category:State parks of Missouri]] [[Category:Protected areas established in 1974]] [[Category:Protected areas of St. Louis County, Missouri]] [[Category:1974 establishments in Missouri]] [[Category:Parks established in the 1970s]]