Tennessee State Parks officials dedicated a universally accessible greenway at Henry Horton State Park, adding to the state parks’ standing as the most accessible in the nation.
The multi-use 1.5-mile accessible greenway features scenic views of the park and access to the Duck River, while highlighting amenities such as pollinator gardens, native grass fields, the gravesite of Gov. Henry Horton, and a historic rock wall original to the property. The multi-year greenway project was funded by grants from the Tire Environmental Act Program and the Recreation Trails Program, along with in-kind park labor, totaling $360,000.
Parks officials also thanked General Motors for a $20,000 grant to the Friends of Henry Horton for a replica millwheel at the park. The event today also served as a meet-and-greet with new Park Manager Shaun Rainone and was a kickoff to the Duck River Outdoor Expo, an annual event dedicated to the conservation and education of the Duck River, scheduled through Sunday, July 13.
“This is quite a week for Henry Horton State Park,” said Greer Tidwell, deputy commissioner of Conservation for the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. “The new greenway is part of our commitment to accessibility throughout all Tennessee State Parks, and we invite everyone to come and enjoy these new features.”
The Tire Environmental Act Program re-purposes scrap tires for new uses. The new trail’s porous-pave surface includes 125,000 lbs. of crumb rubber, the equivalent of 6,220 passenger tires all sourced solely from Tennessee. The Recreation Trails Program is a federally funded, state-administered grant program for land acquisition for trails, trail maintenance, and restoration.
The millwheel, originally displayed at the Tennessee State Museum, was moved and reconstructed outside the park Visitor Center as a model of what would have been commonly found along the Duck River in the mid-19th century. The General Motors grant also went toward interpretive signage and helped in acquiring documentation about the Wilhoite Mill, which operated for nearly 100 years.
Henry Horton State Park was constructed in the 1960s on the estate of Horton, governor of Tennessee from 1927-33. The park is on the shores of the Duck River, known as the most bio-diverse river in North America.
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