Letchworth State Park is a New York State Park located in Livingston and Wyoming Counties in western Upstate New York. The park is roughly long, following the course of the Genesee River as it flows north through a deep gorge and over several large waterfalls. It is located southwest of Rochester and southeast of Buffalo, and spans portions of the Livingston County towns of Leicester, Mount Morris and Portage, as well as the Wyoming County towns of Castile and Genesee Falls.
In 1859, Buffalo industrialist William Pryor Letchworth (1823–1910) began purchasing land near the Middle Falls, and started construction of his Glen Iris Estate. In 1906 he bequeathed the estate to New York, which soon after became the core of the newly created Letchworth State Park. The park prominently features three large waterfallsthe Upper, Middle, and Lower Fallson the Genesee River, which flows within a deep gorge that winds through the park. The rock walls of the gorge, which rise up to in places, prompted the area's reputation as the "Grand Canyon of the East".
Features and activities
thumb|left|View of Middle Falls at Letchworth State Park
thumb|left|Map of Letchworth State Park and surrounding area.
Park entrances are located near Mount Morris, Perry, Castile and Portageville. A paved two or three-lane road follows the west side of the gorge, allowing many scenic viewpoints for the geologic features.
The park includes pavilions, picnic tables, playgrounds, of hiking trails, two large swimming pools, cabins, campsites for tents, trailer sites with dumping stations, and horse-riding trails. Activities within the park include hiking, biking, fishing, whitewater rafting and kayaking, geocaching, and hunting (wild turkey and deer when in season). During the winter, the park facilitates snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, snow tubing, and horse-drawn sleighs. Hot air ballooning is available at the park, weather permitting. In 2020 the park topped a similar list.
Waterfalls and geology
thumb|left|Lower Falls and stone footbridge at Letchworth State Park
Within the park, there are three large waterfalls on the Genesee River and as many as 50 waterfalls found on tributaries that flow into it; the deep gorge formed by the river, with rock walls rising up to in places and which narrow to across above the middle of the three falls, prompted the area's reputation as the "Grand Canyon of the East".
The park also features the William Pryor Letchworth Museum, which was founded with the collections of the park's founder. The exhibits focus on the natural and cultural history of the Genesee Valley, and include archaeological artifacts of the Seneca nation, and displays on Mary Jemison, early pioneers, the Genesee Valley Canal and William Pryor Letchworth.
The Humphrey Nature Center opened in 2016. Operated year-round by New York State, the sustainable building features classrooms and meeting rooms, a research lab, a butterfly garden, and connections to various trails.
Mount Morris Dam
thumb|Mount Morris Dam
Construction of the Mount Morris Dam, at the north end of the park, was begun in 1948 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers under the Flood Control Act of 1944, and completed in 1954. The Genesee River became wider and deeper immediately upstream as a result, but areas downstream were spared yearly flooding which destroyed valuable farmland.
The Mount Morris Dam is the largest flood control device of its kind (concrete gravity) east of the Mississippi River. It is in length and rises from the riverbed. The dam proved its worth during the Flood of 1972, saving thousands of acres of farmland and the city of Rochester from flooding.
Portage Viaduct
thumb|upright|Upper Falls with a train passing over the old Portage Viaduct
The Portage Viaduct (1875) was an iron Erie Railroad bridge located upstream and within view of the park's Upper Falls. The bridge was long and high. Although walking on the structure was considered trespassing, visitors to the park commonly disregarded warning signs in order to view the gorge from the bridge, despite the safety concerns associated with walking on an active railroad bridge.
On November 29, 2011, Norfolk Southern Railway announced plans to demolish the Portage Viaduct and build a new bridge approximately to the south of the 1875 structure. Norfolk Southern had offered the old bridge to the State of New York, but the offer was declined due to a lack of available funds to convert the bridge into an observation platform. The project was completed in late 2017. New train-activated gates at both ends of the new bridge now keep trespassing tourists off it when no approaching freight train is present.
Park history
thumb|left|upright|Genesee Scenery, an 1847 oil painting by [[Thomas Cole.]]
The territory of the park was long part of the homeland of the Seneca people, who were largely forced out after the American Revolutionary War, as they had been allies of the defeated British. The Seneca called the land around this canyon Sehgahunda, the "Vale of the three falls"; the Middle Falls (Ska-ga-dee) was believed to be so wondrous it made the sun stop at midday. Dr. Kunz helped with the organization and preservation of the library of William Pryor Letchworth when the society took over the management of his estate in New York. In 1907, it was stated: "The library embraces one of the finest, if not the finest, private collection of books on charities in the country. It contains also a good collection of local histories, books about Indians, and a miscellaneous assortment of standard literature. His mementos - personal gifts and testimonials - are extremely interesting. It is most desirable that these should be kept together and adequately-preserved in a new library building, as part of the monument to the generous donor of Letchworth Park."
Further, Dr. Kunz helped with the 1910 memorial to Mary Jemison, "The White Indian of the Genesee", who is buried at "the ancient Indian Council House of the Senecas" located on the grounds of the Letchworth park.
Letchworth, having earned "life-residence" at the Glen Iris, died there on December 1, 1910. He was buried in Buffalo at Forest Lawn Cemetery.
The park was the beneficiary of numerous enhancements enacted by workers from the Civilian Conservation Corps, who inhabited a large camp at the park during the 1930s. Improvements enacted by the CCC included the construction of cabins, overlooks, bridges and trails.
In the early morning hours of Thursday, May 6, 1875, the great wooden railroad bridge was destroyed in a tremendous fire. The bridge was a total loss, leaving only the concrete bridge abutments.
Immediately after the Portage Bridge fire, officials of the Erie Railroad Company moved quickly to replace the wooden bridge with an iron design. Construction began on June 8, 1875, and the Portage Viaduct opened for traffic on July 31, 1875: an incredible construction feat for that or any other time.