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State Park Overview |
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Dixon Springs State Park is one of several state parks in the Illinois Shawnee Hills. The park is on a giant block of rock which was dropped 200 feet along a fault line that extends northwesterly across Pope County.
The 801 acre park is about 10 miles west of Golconda on Illinois Route 146 near its junction with Illinois Route 145. The first land acquisition was in 1946. |
History of the Area |
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The area around the park was occupied by various tribes of Algonquins who, after the Shawnee had been driven from Tennessee, had settled near the mouth of the Wabash River. Dixon Springs was one of their favorite camping grounds and was called "Kitchemuske-nee-be" for the Great Medicine Waters.
One of the better known Indian Trails, which the early French called the "Grand Trace," passed to the west of the park and south to Fort Massac, then branched out into lesser trails. Much of the "Grand Trace" is Illinois Route 145, one of the most scenic highways in the state, running nearly all of its length south from Harrisburg through the Shawnee National Forest.
Dixon Springs became a 19th century health spa which attracted hundreds to the seven springs of mineral-enriched water. A bathhouse provided mineral or soft water baths, hot or cold, available at any time. The natural beauty of the area and its interesting stone formations helped to give the park valley a more equable temperature in the summer than most of southern Illinois. This made the resort so popular that people came by steamboat excursions from as far away as Paducah, KY, Evansville, IN, and Cairo to Golconda. They then traveled by train to within a couple miles of the park.
The entire county is hilly and during rainy weather rivulets cascade down the hills in the park forming waterfalls of varying sizes and heights.
Bold cliffs and crags overhang a bubbling brook while large boulders, overgrown with ferns, ivy, lichens, and moss, fringe the hillside. Giant century-old trees interlock above the small creek as cliffs rise on either side and huge boulders are scattered through the valley.
Equally intriguing are the names given numerous points of interest, including Album Rock, Red Mans Retreat, Wolf Pen, Lovers Leap, Ghost Dance, Plutos Cave. Alligator Rock, the Chain of Rocks, Devils Workshop, and Honeycomb Rock. The principle canyon has walls nearly 60 feet high with a long, narrow passageway.
Deer, squirrels, rabbits, groundhogs, and foxes scamper around the oak, cypress, gum, pine, sycamore, walnut, persimmon, hickory, birch, and maple trees. Dogwood and catalpa trees blossom profusely in season. In the spring the Jack-in-the-pulpit, violet, ladys slipper, May apple, and sweet William brighten the natural beauty of the park.
This section of the state was part of an Indian Reservation occupied for a time by about 6,000 Native Americans. Like the buffalo, most of the Indians were gone by the early 1830s.
Dixon Springs takes its name from William Dixon, one of the first white settlers to build a home in this section, who obtained a school land warrant in 1848 from Governor Augustus C. French. His cabin was a landmark for many years as was an old log church on the adjoining knoll.
A small community grew up at Dixon Springs with a general store, post office, blacksmith shop, grist mill, and several churches. |
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More Info | |
DNR ... Parks & Recreation Publications Research/Surveys State Museums Search DNR Illinois [IL Search Tips] Dixon Springs State Park South Region R.R. #2, Box 178 Route 146 Golconda, IL 62938 618.949 ... | |
... Tour the City Home About Us brought to you by Dixon Springs State Park 10,000 years before the hustle and bustle of city life ... are waiting for you. Dixon Springs State Park in the Illinois ... | |
Click to Get Advertising Dixon Springs State Park, Ill We Need Your Picture Click Below for Seven Day Forecast Directions to park From Dixon Springs (south of Marion), go east on highway 146 to ... | |
Dixon Springs State Park Click on the thumbnails for an enlargement Looking for little critters Taking a break Find anything? Whose your friend? Examining the fault zone | |
Old Bethlehem School Cottage Bed & Breakfast is a charming inn located adjacent to the Shawnee ... and 5 miles south of Dixon Springs State Park. Approximate travel times from these cities and ... | |
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