The North Carolina State Parks system was launched on March 3, 1915 when the General Assembly passed legislation appropriating funds to buy land for a park at Mount Mitchell. A year later, following the acquisition of 795 acres at the mountain's summit, Mount Mitchell became the state's first park and the first park in the southeastern United States. Today the North Carolina State Parks system covers 225,000 acres from the mountains to the sea.

Table of Contents

State Parks Facts

Park Type

# Park Units

Size

State Parks

35

156,900 acres

State Recreation Areas

4

13,256 acres

State Natural Areas

20

24,194 acres

State Lakes

7

29,135 acres

State Rivers

4

146 miles

State Trails

5

2,052 acres, 806 miles

Visitors to State Parks, 2015       17.3 million

State Parks Superintendents/Directors

Superintendent/Director

Years Served

Thomas W. Morse*

1935 – 1961

Thomas C. “Red” Ellis

1961 – 1974

Ronald D. Johnson

1974 – 1977

James S. Stevens, Jr.

1977 – 1984

William “Wes” Davis

1984 – 1989

Philip K. McKnelly

1989 – 2003

Lewis R. Ledford

2003 – 2014

Michael A. Murphy

2014 to present

*During the time Morse served in World War II, R.J. Pearce served in an Acting role.

Citation

Agan, Kelly. "Exploring North Carolina: State Parks, Trails, Lakes, Rivers, & Natural Areas." NCpedia. State Library of NC. 2015. https://www.ncpedia.org/exploring-north-carolina-north-0.