Virginia's Explore Park
Encyclopedia
Virginia's Explore Park is a currently closed living history
museum; however, recreational facilities are open to the public. The park is located at milepost 115 on the Blue Ridge Parkway
in Roanoke County, Virginia
. It includes various restored local historical structures and both hiking and biking trails, along with access to the Roanoke River
for recreational use via an external county road. The park is located near the gorge where the Roanoke River leaves the Roanoke Valley
.
Bern Ewart left his post to oversee the park's development. A lack of investment funds led the park to become a more modest living history museum focused on the early history of Southwest Virginia
. Today's Explore Park began to emerge in late 1991 when reconstruction began on the 1837 Hofauger House of Roanoke County. Between 1991 and 2002 various other historical structures including a working tavern
and grist mill were added to the property.
In 2001 Roanoke County made a long term financial commitment to the park when Virginia reduced the park's annual appropriation. The county later signed an option for a 100 year lease with Larry Vander Maten, a Florida
based entrepreneur
, to develop Explore Park into a viable business. On April 28, 2009, Vander Maten revealed a plan to open a resort named "Blue Ridge America" featuring amenities which include an equestrian center, man-made lakes, retail shops, a golf course, conference center, spa and a system of overhead gondolas to transport visitors around the park. Mr. Vander Maten was unable to raise the necessary funds, and the lease option was allowed to expire.
Living history
Living history is an activity that incorporates historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers and participants a sense of stepping back in time. Although it does not necessarily seek to reenact a specific event in history, living history is...
museum; however, recreational facilities are open to the public. The park is located at milepost 115 on the Blue Ridge Parkway
Blue Ridge Parkway
The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway and All-American Road in the United States, noted for its scenic beauty. It runs for 469 miles , mostly along the famous Blue Ridge, a major mountain chain that is part of the Appalachian Mountains...
in Roanoke County, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. It includes various restored local historical structures and both hiking and biking trails, along with access to the Roanoke River
Roanoke River
The Roanoke River is a river in southern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina in the United States, 410 mi long. A major river of the southeastern United States, it drains a largely rural area of the coastal plain from the eastern edge of the Appalachian Mountains southeast across the Piedmont...
for recreational use via an external county road. The park is located near the gorge where the Roanoke River leaves the Roanoke Valley
Roanoke Valley
The Roanoke Valley in southwest Virginia is an area adjacent to and including the Roanoke River between the Blue Ridge Mountains to the east and the Appalachian Plateau to the west...
.
History
Explore Park was founded in 1985 by the River Foundation to draw visitors driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway to the Roanoke area. Land was acquired and the site became a Virginia state park. Early ideas included an expanded Mill Mountain Zoo and a historical theme park that would educate visitors on the journey of Lewis and Clark through the American frontier. Roanoke's then city managerCity manager
A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city, in a council-manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are sometimes referred to as the chief executive officer or chief administrative officer in some municipalities...
Bern Ewart left his post to oversee the park's development. A lack of investment funds led the park to become a more modest living history museum focused on the early history of Southwest Virginia
Southwest Virginia
Southwest Virginia, often abbreviated as SWVA, is a mountainous region of Virginia in the westernmost part of the commonwealth. Southwest Virginia has been defined alternatively as all Virginia counties on the Appalachian Plateau, all Virginia counties west of the Eastern Continental Divide, or...
. Today's Explore Park began to emerge in late 1991 when reconstruction began on the 1837 Hofauger House of Roanoke County. Between 1991 and 2002 various other historical structures including a working tavern
Tavern
A tavern is a place of business where people gather to drink alcoholic beverages and be served food, and in some cases, where travelers receive lodging....
and grist mill were added to the property.
In 2001 Roanoke County made a long term financial commitment to the park when Virginia reduced the park's annual appropriation. The county later signed an option for a 100 year lease with Larry Vander Maten, a Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
based entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, to develop Explore Park into a viable business. On April 28, 2009, Vander Maten revealed a plan to open a resort named "Blue Ridge America" featuring amenities which include an equestrian center, man-made lakes, retail shops, a golf course, conference center, spa and a system of overhead gondolas to transport visitors around the park. Mr. Vander Maten was unable to raise the necessary funds, and the lease option was allowed to expire.