Cliffs of the Neuse State Park
Encyclopedia
Cliffs of the Neuse State Park is a North Carolina state park in Wayne County
Wayne County, North Carolina
- Cities and towns :*Brogden*Dudley*Elroy*Eureka*Fremont*Goldsboro*Mar-Mac*Mount Olive*Pikeville*Rosewood*Seven Springs*Walnut Creek*Grantham-Geography:According to the U.S...

, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is located near Seven Springs, North Carolina
Seven Springs, North Carolina
Seven Springs is a town in Wayne County, North Carolina, United States. The 2006 population was estimated at 85. It is included in the Goldsboro, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Seven Springs is located at ....

 and covers 892 acres (3.6 km²) along the southern banks of the Neuse River
Neuse River
The Neuse River is a river rising in the Piedmont of North Carolina and emptying into Pamlico Sound below New Bern. Its total length is approximately , making it the longest river entirely contained in North Carolina. The Trent River joins it at New Bern. Its drainage basin, measuring in area,...

. It has a swimming area, camp sites, hiking trails, fishing areas, and picnic areas. The park's museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...

 features exhibits about the geology and natural history of the cliffs and the park. Extending for 600 yards (548.6 m), the series of cliffs rise 90 feet (27.4 m) above the water. Layers of sand, clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...

, seashells, shale
Shale
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. The ratio of clay to other minerals is variable. Shale is characterized by breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering...

 and gravel
Gravel
Gravel is composed of unconsolidated rock fragments that have a general particle size range and include size classes from granule- to boulder-sized fragments. Gravel can be sub-categorized into granule and cobble...

 form the multicolored cliff face, a rainbow of white, tan, yellow and brown.

History

The cliffs were formed when a fault in the Earth's crust shifted millions of years ago. The Neuse River
Neuse River
The Neuse River is a river rising in the Piedmont of North Carolina and emptying into Pamlico Sound below New Bern. Its total length is approximately , making it the longest river entirely contained in North Carolina. The Trent River joins it at New Bern. Its drainage basin, measuring in area,...

 followed this fault line and, over time, cut its course through layers of sediment deposited by shallow seas that had earlier covered the coastal plain. A portion of the river took a bend against its bank and the water's erosive action slowly carved Cliffs of the Neuse.

Much of the human history of the area centers around the river. The Tuscarora
Tuscarora (tribe)
The Tuscarora are a Native American people of the Iroquoian-language family, with members in New York, Canada, and North Carolina...

 and Saponi
Saponi
Saponi is one of the eastern Siouan-language tribes, related to the Tutelo, Occaneechi, Monacan, Manahoac and other eastern Siouan peoples. Its ancestral homeland was in North Carolina and Virginia. The tribe was long believed extinct, as its members migrated north to merge with other tribes...

 Indian tribes once occupied much of the land between the Neuse and Pamlico rivers. What is now the park used to be a ceremonial ground and a gathering place for hunting expeditions. The river was also used for travel into the surrounding wilderness.

In 1944, local landowner Lionel Weil, a founder of Goldsboro's historic Oheb Shalom
Congregation Oheb Sholom (Goldsboro, North Carolina)
Oheb Sholom is a Reform synagogue located in Goldsboro, North Carolina. It is one of fewer than a hundred nineteenth-century synagogues still standing in the United States, and the second oldest synagogue building in the state.-History:...

 synagogue and uncle of Gertrude Weil
Gertrude Weil
Gertrude Weil was involved in a wide range of progressive/leftist and often controversial causes, including women's suffrage, labor reform and civil rights.-Life:...

, proposed that the cliffs area along the Neuse River
Neuse River
The Neuse River is a river rising in the Piedmont of North Carolina and emptying into Pamlico Sound below New Bern. Its total length is approximately , making it the longest river entirely contained in North Carolina. The Trent River joins it at New Bern. Its drainage basin, measuring in area,...

 be preserved as a state park. The park was established in 1945 when land on the south side of the river was donated by Lionel Weil and other individuals through the Wayne Foundation. An additional contribution of approximately 200 acre (0.809372 km²) extended the boundary east of the river. Additional purchases and donations increased the park to its present size of 892 acres (3.6 km²).

Plants and Animals

A range of habitats contributes to the variety of plants in the park. River margins, flood plains, rolling uplands and ravines are home to a large mixture of trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants. More than 420 species of plants have been recorded in the park.

Opossums, raccoons, foxes, and squirrels
Eastern Gray Squirrel
The eastern gray squirrel is a tree squirrel in the genus Sciurus native to the eastern and midwestern United States, and to the southerly portions of the eastern provinces of Canada...

 are common in the campground and along hiking trails, while river otter
Northern River Otter
The North American river otter , also known as the northern river otter or the common otter, is a semiaquatic mammal endemic to the North American continent, found in and along its waterways and coasts. An adult river otter can weigh between 5 and 14 kg...

 and muskrat
Muskrat
The muskrat , the only species in genus Ondatra, is a medium-sized semi-aquatic rodent native to North America, and introduced in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands and is a very successful animal over a wide range of climates and habitats...

 can be seen swimming along the waterways. Reptiles and amphibians are equally at home in the wetland and aquatic habitats. Most of the snakes are nonvenomous, although copperheads
Agkistrodon piscivorus
Agkistrodon piscivorus is a venomous snake, a species of pit viper, found in the southeastern United States. Adults are large and capable of delivering a painful and potentially fatal bite. When antagonized they will stand their ground by coiling their bodies and displaying their fangs...

 are present. Small nocturnal rodents and white-tailed deer
White-tailed Deer
The white-tailed deer , also known as the Virginia deer or simply as the whitetail, is a medium-sized deer native to the United States , Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru...

 live in the area but are discrete and seldom seen. Sightings of black bears
American black bear
The American black bear is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most common bear species. Black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in largely forested areas, but do leave forests in...

 and a coyote
Coyote
The coyote , also known as the American jackal or the prairie wolf, is a species of canine found throughout North and Central America, ranging from Panama in the south, north through Mexico, the United States and Canada...

 have taken place at the park.

Birds are abundant in the park during any season. The northern parula
Northern Parula
The Northern Parula, Parula americana, is a small New World warbler. It breeds in eastern North America from southern Canada to Florida....

 nests in clumps of Spanish moss
Spanish Moss
Spanish moss is a flowering plant that grows upon larger trees, commonly the Southern Live Oak or Bald Cypress in the southeastern United States....

 while the prothonotary warbler
Prothonotary Warbler
The Prothonotary Warbler is a small songbird of the New World warbler family. It is the only member of the genus Protonotaria....

 lives along the river. Fall and winter bring a host of migratory waterfowl to the area to join the native Wood Duck
Wood Duck
The Wood Duck or Carolina Duck is a species of duck found in North America. It is one of the most colourful of North American waterfowl.-Description:...

.

External links

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