Where Nature and Culture Meet

By Kathleen Goodrich-Arling on Jul 7, 2009

The Seneca Rocks Discovery Center in the Monongahela National Forest links people, communities, and the land in unique ways.

The 2009 summer program guide for the Seneca Rocks Discovery Center in the Monongahela National Forest is aptly titled "Where Nature and Culture Meet." The nature part is instantly obvious to anyone visiting the stone and glass visitor center in the eastern portion of the Forest. One of West Virginia's most recognizable landmarks, Seneca Rocks is visible from almost every angle of the building which was designed and sited specifically to highlight its setting. The 900 foot high Tuscarora sandstone Rocks are the best known of the outcrops located along North Fork Mountain. On any nice day climbers will be making their way up the vertical face along 400+ climbing routes, while hikers will be steadily working their way up the 1.3 mile long West Side Trail zig-zagging to a platform near the top of the rocks. From this overlook visitors have a stunning view of the valley of the South Branch of the Potomac River below. They can easily see where man and nature meet in the valley farms, and view the endless wooded mountain ridges to the west.

Back in the Center itself are interpretive exhibits, including one highlighting the native American history of the building site. During excavations for the building two prehistoric villages were discovered, leading to a much enhanced knowledge of human use in the area. The parking lot for the building was relocated as a result of the find, and exhibit plans altered to include information about the villages. Other exhibits connect visitors to the activities of the people who can be observed crawling up the rock face outside. Still other exhibits help vistors understand the ecology of the area.

The Center goes well beyond the natural history of the area both through its Sites Homestead area and through numerous special program offerings. A log and frame building originally belonging to a long-time area family, the Sites Homestead is used today to interpret the human history of the valley. A heritage garden has been planted with heirloom plants, many donated by area residents, and is tended by a master gardener through a partnership with the Eastern National Forests Interpretive Association (ENFIA.)

The Appalachian mountains were settled by people who lived intimately with the natural resources of the land, and depended upon them as part of their everyday lives. A portion of the Center was designed for use by artisans and craftspeople to demonstrate skills once commonly praticed by area residents. These include basket making, broom making, pottery, wool spinning, coopering, and weaving. Drawing on the many artistic skills still found in the mountains, other programs include stained glass and water color workshops, along with numerous musical offerings. Several times a year the Center offers such activities as quilting bees, soap-making, and apple cider pressing to compliment other programs at the Sites Homestead or the Center itself.

The nearby Seneca Shadows Campground offers yet another venue for programs for visitors. At the campground itself or in the Center are programs on the native snakes of West Virginia; on the use of the Rocks as a training ground for cliff-scaling soldiers in World War II; and on the natural history of the region.

Since the only permanent Forest Service employee at the Center is its director, the Forest relies heavily on the Eastern National Interpretive Association and volunteers as well as a small seasonal workforce. The Center serves as a WV tourism center under the auspices of the WV Division of Tourism. So important is the Center to the local tourism industry that the WV Mountain Highlands, a regional travel and tourism group, sponsors a position to augment the seasonal staff. More than 100,000 visitors a year come through the grounds of the Center. Some are simply seeking directions or a restroom, but all will be offered the opportunity to engage in much, much more, if they so choose.

Over the years the Seneca Rocks Discovery Center has come to truly live up to its name as a place where visitors can discover as much about the human and cultural history of the area as they can about the gorgeous natural surroundings.