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 Gold Dredge hours: 8:30 a.m. To 5:00 p.m Oregon State Park Hours: 7:00 a.m.To 7:00 p.m. Remember......Park Gates Will Close Promptly at 7 pm! Workers Reunion to share with us? We would like to hear it! We love to hear from folks who have favorite stories about the Historic Sumpter Gold Dredge! We invite you to join discussions in our Forum Be sure to sign
our guestbook in the gift store when you visit the Sumpter Valley Dredge! Visit these local websites for good information about our historic town! Find lodging, food and other points of interest in Sumpter! www.sumpter.org www.historicsumpter.com www.sumptermuseum.org www.java-net.biz  |
State Park Projects
Important Partnerships Several partnerships have been initiated in conjunction with the
Sumpter Dredge State Park. Our Friends of The Dredge group was formed to promote the park and raise money for interpretive improvements. The Sumpter Valley Railroad has been working with Oregon Parks and Recreation Staff for their rail line into the Sumpter Depot and to continue the planned rail loop through the 77 acre State Park which will eventually bring the historic steam train full circle around the Dredge. The beautiful new train depot was finished in 2004 and the Austin St. crossing was completed Spring of 2005. The University of Oregon has provided a placer mining inventory for interpretive opportunities in the area. OPRD Staff have been working hard to develop a new fish habitat for the park
as well as protecting the abundant wildlife which calls the State Park home. Improvements include trail development for both Summer and Winter recreation and wildlife habitat restoration and preservation. Perhaps one of the most exciting additions to our park is the new park entrance sign which was erected July 2005.  The Friends of the Dredge has teamed up with The Cracker Creek Museum of Mining, in Sumpter, to assist
in raising money for one of the most ambitious historic projects of our area: restoring the Monighan walking dragline excavator. This partnership seems natural since this beast often was called upon to dig the dredge out of a jam from time to time. Research has shown that the Monighan is the oldest remaining walking-type dragline in the world! Not only will this important piece of machinery be restored, plans are in place to actually have it operating once again..... To help raise money for the project, "Restore the Monighan" buttons are now on sale in our Interpretive Store at the dredge. We are proud and excited to be a part of this important project! Visit their website: www.sumptergold.com. Another much anticipated project is the acquisition of the Dredge Superintendent's house located next to the Sumpter Museum. The Superintendent's house is on the National Registry and is open to the public during the summer. Plans call for continued development of this important part of the historic heritage of our state park. For more info, contact park staff here Throughout the summer, visitors can see several groups working throughout the park. These groups assist with the general cleanup and maintenance of the park area. We greatly appreciate their efforts in maintaining the park. These groups include the Blue Mountain Oregon Youth Conservation Corps of Baker City and the NW Youth Corps. We also appreciate the hard work of the local correctional institution inmates who have contributed greatly to the appearance of our park. We also have small local area groups who donate their time and efforts towards the maintenance of our park. Working on projects in the park can be a memorable and worthwhile project for your group! If your group would be interested in donating its time to the park, please let us know! Restoration and Maintenance Projects for the Dredge are ongoing. These projects are funded with grant monies received through the Friends of The Dredge group, the Oregon State Parks and Recreation Department as well as private donations. One of the best ways you, your family, company or private organization can contribute to our many projects is to become a member of our group! Learn more about our memberships here! |