Moran State Park | |
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Location | San Juan, Washington, United States |
Coordinates | 48°39′23″N122°49′04″W / 48.65639°N 122.81778°W Coordinates: 48°39′23″N122°49′04″W / 48.65639°N 122.81778°W [1] |
Area | 5,424 acres (21.95 km2) |
Elevation | 932 ft (284 m) [1] |
Established | 1921 |
Operator | Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission |
Website | Moran State Park |
Moran State Park | |
Location | 3572 Olga Road, Olga, San Juan County Orcas Island, Washington |
Built by | Civilian Conservation Corps |
Architect | Civilian Conservation Corps; Storey, Ellsworth; Paterson, Jack |
NRHP reference No. | 12001140 |
Added to NRHP | January 2, 2013 |
Moran State Park is a public recreation area on Orcas Island in Puget Sound's San Juan Islands in the state of Washington, United States. [2] The state park encompasses over 5,000 acres of various terrain including forests, wetlands, bogs, hills, and lakes. It is the largest public recreation area in the San Juan Islands and the fourth largest state park in the state. A park focal point is the observation tower atop Mount Constitution, the highest point in San Juan County at 2,407 feet. [3] [4]
The park was originally the estate of Seattle mayor and shipbuilder Robert Moran. Due to poor health, Moran moved to Orcas Island and between 1906 and 1909 built his estate, which included a large mansion named Rosario. Wood and stone material found on the island were used to construct the estate's houses and buildings. In 1921, Moran gave a large portion of his property to the state of Washington for the creation of Moran State Park. The mansion and its grounds remain in private hands, operated as Rosario Resort and Spa. [5]
In August 1935, 28 men from the 4768th Company of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) began constructing a stone observation tower atop 2,407-foot (734 m) Mount Constitution. Designed by noted Seattle architect Ellsworth Storey, the tower became the literal and figurative high point of eight years of work by crews from the CCC's Camp Moran. [6] The state park was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2013. [7]
The park has more than 30 miles (48 km) of trails for hiking, biking and horseback riding, non-motorized boating from two boat ramps, and year-round camping in five camping areas. The Mount Constitution observation tower commands sweeping marine views from the highest point in the San Juan Islands. [2]
Friends of Moran raise money for park needs through fundraising and by operating a small gift shop at the top of the mountain. The volunteer group organizes park cleanups and improvement events. [8] [9]
Deception Pass is a strait separating Whidbey Island from Fidalgo Island, in the northwest part of the U.S. state of Washington. It connects Skagit Bay, part of Puget Sound, with the Strait of Juan de Fuca. A pair of bridges known collectively as Deception Pass Bridge cross Deception Pass. The bridges were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
The San Juan Islands are an archipelago in the Pacific Northwest of the United States between the U.S. state of Washington and Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The San Juan Islands are part of Washington state, and form the core of San Juan County.
Whatcom County is a county located in the northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Washington, bordered by the Lower Mainland of British Columbia to the north, Okanogan County to the east, Skagit County to the south, San Juan County across Rosario Strait to the southwest, and the Strait of Georgia to the west. Its county seat and largest population center is the coastal city of Bellingham, comprising the Bellingham, WA Metropolitan Statistical Area, and as of the 2020 census, the county's population was 226,847.
San Juan County is a county located in the Salish Sea in the far northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 17,788. The county seat and only incorporated city is Friday Harbor, located on San Juan Island. The county was formed on October 31, 1873, from Whatcom County and is named for the San Juan Islands, which are in turn named for Juan Vicente de Güemes, 2nd Count of Revillagigedo, the Viceroy of New Spain.
Anacortes is a city in Skagit County, Washington, United States. The name "Anacortes" is an adaptation of the name of Anne Curtis Bowman, who was the wife of early Fidalgo Island settler Amos Bowman. Anacortes' population was 17,637 at the time of the 2020 census. It is one of two principal cities of and included in the Mount Vernon-Anacortes Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Orcas Island is the largest of the San Juan Islands of the Pacific Northwest, which are in the northwestern corner of San Juan County, Washington.
Sucia Island is located 2.5 miles (4.0 km) north of Orcas Island in the San Juan Islands, San Juan County, Washington, United States. It is the largest of an archipelago of ten islands including Sucia Island, Little Sucia, Ewing, Justice, Herndon, the Cluster Islands islets, and several smaller, unnamed islands. The group of islands is about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) in length and just short of a half mile wide. Sucia island is roughly the shape of a hand. The total land area of all islands is 2.74 km². The main island of Sucia Island by itself is 2.259 km². There was a permanent population of four persons as of the 2000 census, all on Sucia Island. Sucia Island State Park is a Washington State Marine Park.
San Juan Island National Historical Park, also known as American and English Camps, San Juan Island, is a U.S. National Historical Park owned and operated by the National Park Service on San Juan Island in the state of Washington. The park is made up of the sites of the British and U.S. Army camps during the Pig War, a boundary dispute over the ownership of the island. The camp sites were designated a National Historic Landmark in 1961, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966. The park was created by an act of Congress in 1966 and expanded slightly in 2013.
Eastsound is an unincorporated community on Orcas Island in San Juan County, Washington, United States.
Fay Bainbridge Park is a locally operated, public recreation area situated immediately south of the Point Monroe sandspit on the northeast tip of Bainbridge Island, Washington and is open from dawn to dusk. The park comprises 17 acres (6.9 ha) of land, including 1,420 feet (430 m) of shoreline on Puget Sound.The park offers beach activities and camping in addition to views of Puget Sound, the Cascade Mountains and two volcanoes: Mount Rainier and Mount Baker.
Lime Kiln Point State Park is a 42-acre Washington state park on the western shore of San Juan Island in the San Juan archipelago. The park is considered one of the best places in the world to view wild orcas from a land-based facility. Due to the unique bathymetric properties of the site, visitors on the shore can be within 20 feet of whales jumping out of the water. It houses one of Friday Harbor's two lighthouses along with a stone lookout with picnic tables. The park was the site of lime kilns beginning in 1860, and one kiln has been restored as a public exhibit.
Jones Island State Park is a Washington state park coterminous with Jones Island, one of the San Juan Islands in San Juan County, Washington, USA. It is located one mile (1.6 km) west of the southwestern corner of Orcas Island and accessible only by boat. The island has a land area of 188 acres (76 ha) and no resident population. The island was named by the Wilkes Expedition in 1841 for naval officer Jacob Jones.
Mount Constitution is a mountain on Orcas Island, the highest point in the San Juan Islands and the second highest mountain on an ocean island in the contiguous 48 states. Only Devils Peak in the Channel Islands of California is higher.
James Island is one of the San Juan Islands in San Juan County, Washington, United States. It lies in Rosario Strait just off the eastern shore of Decatur Island and west of the city of Anacortes. The entire island comprises James Island State Park of the Washington State Park System. It has a land area of 113 acres (46 ha) with 12,335 feet (3,760 m) of saltwater shoreline. The island has no potable water or residents. It has three different camping areas, each with at least one toilet. The camping areas combine for a total of 13 campsites and are connected by a loop trail. James Island was named by Charles Wilkes in 1841 to commemorate the naval hero Reuben James. The property was transferred from the federal government to the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission in 1964.
Robert Moran was a Seattle shipbuilder who served as the city's mayor from 1888 to 1890. Today he is primarily remembered for Moran Brothers Co. shipbuilders, his work as mayor to rebuild after the Great Seattle fire, and his large estate on Orcas Island, which became a resort and Moran State Park.
Clark Island is an island in the San Juan Islands of the Pacific Northwest, located near Barnes Island off the northeast coast of Orcas Island. It is part of the U.S. state of Washington. Clark Island Marine State Park, which encompasses the entire 55-acre (22 ha) island, has two picnicking sites, 15 primitive campsites, and nine mooring buoys.
KISM is a commercial FM radio station in Bellingham, Washington, United States. The station's transmitter is on Mount Constitution on Orcas Island, within Moran State Park. KISM is run by the Cascade Radio Group, owned by Saga Communications. It airs a classic rock radio format.
Doe Island State Park is a public recreation area comprising the entirety of Doe Island, a seven-acre (2.8 ha) island lying some 300 feet (91 m) off the eastern flank of Orcas Island in San Juan County, Washington. It has 2,049 feet (625 m) of shoreline and a trail three-tenths of a mile long that circles the island. It is accessible only by water. Washington State Parks acquired a portion of the island from the Bureau of Land Management in 1964 for $15.27, with a second acquisition in 1967 from DNR for no cost. Activities include camping, boating, fishing, crabbing, birdwatching, and wildlife viewing.
Rosario is the former estate of Seattle mayor and shipbuilder Robert Moran. Due to poor health, Moran moved to Orcas Island and between 1906 and 1909 built his estate. Wood and stone material found on the island were used to construct the estate's houses and buildings. In 1921, Moran gave a large portion of his property to the state of Washington for the creation of Moran State Park. The mansion and its grounds remain in private hands, operated as Rosario Resort and Spa. The Rosario mansion features a museum honoring Robert Moran, complete with original furnishings. The mansion's music room is home to a 1913 34-rank Aeolian pipe organ and 1900 Steinway grand piano, both of which are played for visitors. Rosario was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.