Meramec State Park is located near Sullivan, Missouri, about 60 miles from St. Louis, along the Meramec River. The park has diverse ecosystems such as hardwood forests, and glades. There are over 40 caves located throughout the park, the geology of which is a mixture of limestone and dolomite. The most famous is Fisher Cave, located near the campgrounds. The park borders the Meramec Conservation Area.
In the late 1970s, as part of the Meramec Basin Project, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began work on a dam in the park to impound the river. The resulting reservoir would have permanently flooded much of the park and imperiled many different species, including the endangered Indiana bat. However, in response to direct citizen action against the dam, the project was halted, marking a victory for the environmental movement.
Read more about Meramec State Park: National Register of Historic Places
Famous quotes containing the words state and/or park:
“Most of the folktales dealing with the Indians are lurid and romantic. The story of the Indian lovers who were refused permission to wed and committed suicide is common to many places. Local residents point out cliffs where Indian maidens leaped to their death until it would seem that the first duty of all Indian girls was to jump off cliffs.”
—For the State of Iowa, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)
“Linnæus, setting out for Lapland, surveys his “comb” and “spare shirt,” “leathern breeches” and “gauze cap to keep off gnats,” with as much complacency as Bonaparte a park of artillery for the Russian campaign. The quiet bravery of the man is admirable.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)