Lost River State Park is a state park located in Hardy County, West Virginia near the community of Mathias. The park encompasses managed by the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. Despite the name of the park, it does not abut the Lost River; it lies about west of the river.

The park features a selection of twenty-six vacation cabins. It also provides hiking trails, horses, a swimming pool, and other sports facilities that include tennis, badminton, volleyball, and archery. Lost River State Park includes the historic Lighthorse Harry Lee Cabin (c. 1800), which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Park structures built by the Civilian Conservation Corps are also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The park is located near the site of the 1756 Battle of the Trough, a skirmish between Virginia militia and a band of French and Indian warriors, during the French and Indian War.Inn at Lost River web site, accessed July 25, 2006

History After the Revolutionary War, a portion of the parkland was awarded to Henry Lee III for his services during the war."Romance Attached to Scenic Beauty of Lost River Area". Cumberland Event Times (Cumberland, Maryland). October 1, 1947. p. 12. Lee built a summer house on the land. The land was called Lee Sulphur Springs at the time."A West Virginia 'Circle Tour'". The Independent-Herald (Hinton, West Virginia). August 7, 1952. p. 6. Lee's house still stands, now called the Lee Cabin Museum.

In February 1934, Governor Herman G. Kump recommended that the West Virginia Legislature appropriate sufficient funds in order to buy the land in order to turn it into a state park."New State Parks in West Virginia". Covington Virginian (Covington, Virginia). February 26, 1934. p. 6.

Lost River State Park was developed by the Civilian Conservation Corps under the technical supervision of the National Park Service in cooperation with the West Virginia State Conservation Commission.McKnight, Blanche Syfret (October 17, 1937). "Lost River Park Arises from Ashes of Old Resort". Washington Evening Star. p. F1.

See also

List of West Virginia state parks

References

External links