Kings Gap Environmental Education Center is a Pennsylvania state park in Cooke, Dickinson and Penn Townships, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania acquired the land in 1973, from the C. H. Masland and Son Carpet Company. Kings Gap Environmental Education Center is from Pennsylvania Route 233 on South Mountain.
History
Human influence on South Mountain, 1750-1900
The origin of the name "Kings Gap" is unknown, although it is believed to date back to early settlers in this region. The forests of Kings Gap reflect the influence of the charcoal industry that began in the 1700s and persisted through the late 1800s. Before the discovery of coal, charcoal fueled the iron furnaces located nearby. Some furnaces were as close as Huntsdale, one mile to the southwest of the entrance to Kings Gap. Iron furnaces required tremendous amounts of charcoal as fuel. In 1786, an average furnace consumed in a single day, the charcoal produced from one acre of forest. The forests of South Mountain were clearcut on a 20 - 25-year cycle to satisfy the need for charcoal by nine iron furnaces located in the Kings Gap area. A relatively young forest now exists as a result of these repeated cuttings.
The process of making charcoal demanded great skills and vast quantities of trees. During winter months, wood was cut and stacked. When colliers selected a site for the hearth, they stacked the wood into a conical shape by standing the sticks at the end around a central chimney. The dangerous job of firing and tending these hearths belonged to the collier and one or two helpers. These men usually managed as many as eight or nine hearths at one time. To keep the fires smoldering, fires were carefully controlled 24 hours a day for ten days to two weeks; the time needed to produce the charred wood or charcoal.
The individuals involved in colliery work resided in basic huts situated close to the set of hearths used for charcoal production. Due to the modest accommodations, the process of charcoaling was typically undertaken during the milder seasons. Once the collier deemed the wood sufficiently processed, the fires were extinguished, and the resulting charcoal was carefully accumulated. The collier would then load the charcoal onto wagons and transport it to the furnaces. However, the discovery of coal with higher combustion properties eventually rendered charcoal obsolete, leading to the decline of this industry by the conclusion of the 19th century.
The remains of these hearth sites are visible throughout Kings Gap. Flat, dry spots about 30 – 50 feet in diameter remain fairly free of vegetation revealing the location of a former charcoal hearth. Look for pieces of charcoal that sometimes can be found among the forest litter.
The Camerons, 1906–1951
Near the turn of the century, James McCormick Cameron, a member of the politically prominent Cameron family from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania purchased many tracts of land in this area. He erected the 32-room stone mansion as a summer home around 1908. This building now houses the training center and offices.
James McCormick Cameron's grandfather, Simon Cameron, was a United States Senate United States Senator from Pennsylvania and served briefly as Secretary of War under Abraham Lincoln. Donald Cameron, father of James, was a U.S. Senator. Both men amassed fortunes through business interests in banking, steel mills, printing and railroading, among others. James McCormick Cameron carried forward with the business tradition but shunned politics. He was educated at Harrisburg Academy, Phillips Exeter Academy and Harvard University. A hearing problem accounted for his shy and soft-spoken nature. He did not marry until 1927, when he was 62 years old. He had no children. He divided his time among residences in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Donegal in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and Kings Gap. Eventually purchasing 2,700 acres, Cameron instituted stewardship practices that helped to protect the land.
Mansion: The mansion is approximately 200 feet long and is built of native Quartzite quarried from a nearby ridge. The 32-room house was designed to resemble an Italian villa with its flat roof, huge windows and flagstone terrace. The use of steel-reinforced concrete for the internal structure of the building is believed to be one of the first such applications in local construction. The materials used in the construction were intended to make the mansion as fireproof as possible. Nevertheless, Mr. Cameron only lived at Kings Gap from May through October, during which fire danger is at its lowest.