{{Short description|State park in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}} {{Infobox park | name = Linn Run State Park | image = Laurel Highlands - Linn Run Road.jpg | image_caption = | image_alt = Snow scene | image_size = 280 | location = [[Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania]], United States | coordinates = {{coord|40.15427|-79.2133|format=dms|display=inline,title}} | coords_ref = <ref name="linnrunsp"/> | area = {{convert|612|acre|abbr=on}}<ref name="linnrunsp"/> | elevation = {{convert|1798|ft}} | established = 1909 | administrator = [[Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources]] | free_label = | free_data = | visitation_num = | visitation_year = | visitation_ref = | website = {{Official website}} | module = {{Infobox protected area | map = USA Pennsylvania#USA | label = Linn Run State Park | label_position = top | map_caption = Location in Pennsylvania | relief = 1 | module = [[List of Pennsylvania state parks|Pennsylvania State Parks]] }} {{infobox NRHP | embed = yes | name = Linn Run State Park Family Cabin District | nrhp_type = hd | nocat = yes | image = Linn Run State Park Family Cabin District Cabin 9.jpg | caption = Cabin #9 | nearest_city = [[Cook Township, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania|Cook Township]] | coordinates = {{coord|40|9|14|N|79|13|00|W|display=inline}} | built = {{Start date|1933}} | added = February 12, 1987 | area = {{convert|13.5|acre}} | mpsub = {{NRHP url|id=64000724|title=Emergency Conservation Work (ECW) Architecture in Pennsylvania State Parks: 1933-1942, TR}} | refnum = 87000107 }} }} '''Linn Run State Park''' is a [[List of Pennsylvania state parks|Pennsylvania state park]] on {{convert|612|acre}} in [[Cook Township, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania|Cook]] and [[Ligonier Township, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania|Ligonier Township]]s, [[Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania|Westmoreland County]], [[Pennsylvania]] in the United States. The park borders [[Forbes State Forest]]. Two smaller streams, Grove Run and Rock Run, join in Linn Run State Park to form Linn Run which has a waterfall, Adams Falls, which can be seen at the park. This state park is just off [[Pennsylvania Route 381]] near the small town of [[Rector, Pennsylvania|Rector]].
==History== The ridges of the Allegheny Mountains had once been covered with [[old-growth forest]]. These forests were [[clearcutting|clear cut]] during the mid-to-late 19th century and early 20th century. The Byers and Allen Lumber Company clear cut the forest that is now Linn Run State Park in the 1890s. Lumbermen took logs to the [[sawmill]] where they were cut into [[lumber]]. Smaller logs were used to reinforce the [[shaft mining|mine shaft]]s of the many [[coal mine]]s throughout southwestern Pennsylvania and [[West Virginia]]. The bark of the [[tsuga|hemlock]] tree was used as a source of [[tannin]] at the [[Tanning (leather)|tanneries]] of the area. The treetops were left behind and dried. [[Steam locomotive]]s of the [[Pittsburgh, Westmoreland and Somerset Railroad]] passing through would ignite this dry brush, causing massive [[wildfire]]s that swept through the mountains and valleys.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=History of Linn Run State Park |url=https://www.dcnr.pa.gov/StateParks/FindAPark/LinnRunStatePark/Pages/History.aspx |access-date=2024-08-25 |website=Pennsylvania Department of Conservation & Natural Resources |language=en-US}}</ref>
In 1909, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania purchased the land from the Byers and Allen Lumber Company. At the time, the land was devoid of timber and wildlife, making it the first major public purchase of denuded forest land in the Ohio River Basin.<ref name=":0" /> In his first report in 1909, [[Forester]] John R. Williams wrote, <blockquote> "I should say that fully three-fifths (60%) of the reserve had been burned since the lumbering was done. The fires did great damage to the young growth. Some places were covered with nothing but [[fern]]s and [[blackberry bush]]es."<ref name=":0" /> </blockquote> Scars from these fires can still be seen today in the Linn Run area.<ref name=":0" />
Most of the [[wildlife]] in the area was devastated due to the destruction of their [[habitat]] or over hunting. [[White-tailed deer]] were imported from [[Michigan]] and [[New York (state)|New York]] to reestablish what had once been a thriving population of deer. These deer were released throughout Pennsylvania in 1910.<ref name=":0" />
During the [[New Deal]] era, the park was further developed by the [[Civilian Conservation Corps]] and [[Works Progress Administration]]. A Civilian Conservation Corps camp operated in the park from 1933 to 1942. Ten rustic cabins, stone fireplaces, and several buildings and bridges were constructed, along with roads, water and sewage systems, and utilities.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Linn Run State Park Family Cabin District |url=https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71994071 |access-date=2024-08-25 |website=catalog.archives.gov}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=1987 |title=Emergency Conservation Work (ECW) Architecture in Pennsylvania State Parks: 1933-1942. |url=https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/GetAsset/NRHP/64000724_text |website=National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places}}</ref>
Today, the area in and around Linn Run State Park is now a thriving [[Secondary forest|second growth forest]].
==Recreation==
===Hiking Trails=== [[File:Linn Run Adams Falls.jpg|thumb|left|Except following periods of heavy rain, only a small amount of water crests the 15-foot Adams Falls.]] All trails at the park are open to [[hiking]]. [[Mountain biking]] and [[snowmobile|snowmobiling]] are not permitted on the hiking trails.<ref name="linnrunsp">{{cite web |url=https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dcnr/recreation/where-to-go/state-parks/find-a-park/linn-run-state-park |title=Linn Run State Park |publisher=Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources |access-date=2026-01-07}}</ref>
* '''Adams Falls Trail''' is {{convert|1.0|mi}} and passes Adams Falls. The trail is very rocky and goes by several large boulders. The waterfall is surrounded a stand of [[tsuga|hemlock]] with overhanging [[rhododendron]].<ref name="linnrunsp"/> * '''Iscrupe Trail''' is {{convert|0.75|mi}} and follows the original Linn Run Road, ending at the Adams Falls Picnic Area.<ref name="linnrunsp"/> * '''Flat Rock Trail''' is {{convert|0.5|mi}} and ends at a large, smooth rock on the banks of Linn Run.<ref name="linnrunsp"/> * '''Grove Run Trail''' is a looping {{convert|4.0|mi}} long behind the Grove Run Picnic Area. It becomes progressively steeper as is passes along Grove Run.<ref name="linnrunsp"/> [[File:LinnRunFlatRock.jpg|thumb|left|The creek travels parallel to the Flat Rock Trail.]]
===Hunting and fishing=== [[Hunting]] is permitted on about {{convert|400|acre}} of Linn Run State Park. The most common game species are [[Eastern Gray Squirrel|squirrel]]s, [[Wild turkey|turkey]] and [[white-tailed deer]]. The hunting of [[groundhog]]s is prohibited. Hunters are expected to follow the rules and regulations of the [[Pennsylvania Game Commission]]. Linn Run is a [[trout]] fishery with stocked trout and native brook trout. <ref name="linnrunsp"/> [[File:Linn Run State Park Waterhole.jpg|thumb|View of Linn Run.]]
===Picnics=== Linn Run State Park has long been a popular destination for families and church groups for picnicking. There are two main [[picnic]] areas at the park. Adams Falls Picnic Area is near Adams Falls. It has a selection of [[picnic table]]s, a [[pavilion]], [[playground]] and modern restrooms. Grove Run Picnic Area is near Grove Run. It lacks a pavilion but otherwise has the same facilities at the Adams Falls Picnic Area.<ref name="linnrunsp"/>
===Cabins=== The cabin area has been designated as the ''Linn Run State Park Family Cabin District'' and is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]]. The older cabins, dating back to 1933, were constructed by the [[Civilian Conservation Corps]] during the [[Great Depression]] in an architectural style known as [[WPA Rustic]].<ref name=":1" /><ref name=nrhpdoc>{{cite report|type=none|url=https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71994071 |title=National Register of Historic Places Registration: Pennsylvania MPS Linn Run State Park Family Cabin District|publisher=National Archives and Records Administration |author= John Milner Assocs.|date= October 1986| access-date=January 12, 2026 }} ({{NationalArchivesNote}})</ref>
There are ten [[Cottage#Cottages in Canada and the U.S.|cabin]]s at Linn Run State Park. Only one of them is modern with a kitchen and bathroom. The other nine cabins are rustic, meaning that there is no indoor plumbing, but they do have basic furniture (bed, table, chairs) as well as wood-burning stoves, electricity, a refrigerator, oven, stove and microwave. Each rustic cabin has an [[outhouse]] and [[water pump]]. There is a modern bathhouse in the area of the cabins.<ref name="linnrunsp"/>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== {{commons category|Linn Run State Park}} {{portal|Pennsylvania}} *[https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dcnr/recreation/where-to-go/state-parks/find-a-park/linn-run-state-park Linn Run State Park] Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources * {{cite web|url= http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/stateparks/parks/linnrun/linnrun_mini.pdf |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110609212732/http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/stateparks/parks/linnrun/linnrun_mini.pdf |url-status= dead |archive-date= June 9, 2011 |title=Linn Run State Park — Official map|format=336 KB}}
{{Protected areas of Pennsylvania}} {{Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania}} {{Pittsburgh Metro Area}}
{{authority control}}
[[Category:State parks of Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Parks in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Laurel Highlands]] [[Category:Parks in Greater Pittsburgh]] [[Category:Protected areas established in 1909]] [[Category:1909 establishments in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Protected areas of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania]]