Ohiopyle State Park

In the mid 1700s, George Washington searched for a water route to the forks of the Ohio (present day Pittsburgh). Following the Potomac River upstream from tidal Virginia, he crossed Allegheny Mountain and entered the headwaters of the Youghiogheny River where his hopes were raised. However, facing Ohiopyle Falls (Fayette County) and the surrounding rapids, his plans turned to disappointment and the project was abandoned.

Ohiopyle State Park exists in its present form because of three voices: Lillian McCahan, Edgar Kaufmann Sr.and Mrs. Albert S. Keister.

The earliest, and most persistent was Lillian McCahan, a station agent for the Western Maryland Railroad who called the area home. She is described by Dr. Graham Netting as a diminutive woman who was fully capable of confronting any opponent of any size or sex. She wanted the state to protect the natural beauty of Ohiopyle, and, in particular, Ferncliff Peninsula. She enlisted the aid of WPC President Dr. Charles Chubb in a letter dated September 17, 1951. The letter tells of her childhood in West Virginia saying "I saw the most destructive type of lumbering practiced, and, even though I was not but seven or eight - I kept wanting to save some of the beauty. When I was twelve my school, my town and my schoolmates were all taken from me in one fell swoop - the lumber had been cut out and the town was torn down."

McCahan had discovered that a developer wished to purchase Ferncliff Peninsula, cut the lumber and build an amusement park. Dr. Chubb formed a committee and it became quickly apparent that, given the time constraints, fundraising in Uniontown would not raise the necessary funds.

Dr. Chubb contacted Edgar Kaufmann and asked if his Charitable Trust would advance the $40,000 necessary for the Ferncliff property. The WPC board decided to offer below the asking price and turned in a bid of $37,500. There was no immediate reply and the board later discovered that the principal heir had dropped dead on a Uniontown golf course. The deal was accepted, which pleased Mr. Kaufmann "immensely" according to Dr. Netting. Not all in the Laurel Highlands shared his sentiment. "Lumbermen had anticipated more work when Ferncliff was timbered and shopkeepers looked forward to the surge in business that an amusement park would bring," Netting wrote. "Instead of a heaven-sent developer, they had ended with a poor organization acting as custodian of a scenic treasure."

The Keister family, of Sewickley, Pa, owned some 589 acres that comprised the wooded slopes facing Ferncliff Peninsula. The land had been subdivided into unmanageable factions owned by far-flung members of the Keister family. Mrs. Albert Fraiser Keister told the Conservancy she would work to convince other members of the family to donate or sell the land. In 1960, she dedicated herself for more than a year and used her own funds to buy the interests of many holders and beneficiaries of the land. In 1961, she donated her half interest in the 589 acres, which included a mile of Cucumber Run above and below Cucumber Falls.

WPC enlisted William H. Pugsley as its filed representative. Netting states that his "pleasant manner was so effective in real estate negotiations that in four years the Conservancy acquired more than 10,000 acres - close to 16 square miles - of the lands needed for the projected 18,500-acre park.

Today, at nearly 20,000 acres, Ohiopyle is Pennsylvania's second largest state park.

Read Dr. Otto Jennings account of Edgar Kaufmann's role in Ohiopyle State Park.