Matthew Henson State Park


Matthew Henson State Park is a publicly owned greenway with recreational features that runs along Turkey Branch, a tributary of Rock Creek, in Montgomery County, Maryland. The state park is managed by Montgomery County under an agreement with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. It was named for Maryland native and arctic explorer Matthew Henson.
Matthew Henson Trail, an hard surface hiking/biking trail, was completed through the park in 2009. The trail runs from the Rock Creek Hiker-Biker Trail near Aspen Hill northeast to Alderton Road near Layhill. The trail features of wooden boardwalk through environmentally sensitive areas.

History

Purchased by the state in the 1950s, the land was originally called the Rockville Facility, which would have connected to Montrose Parkway as a spur to the proposed Washington Outer Beltway. In response to residents' calls to the preserve the stream valley corridor, the state legislature designated 83 acres of the land as a state park and 117 acres as a county park in 1989. The state land is owned by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, and the county land is owned by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.
Planning for the Matthew Henson Trail began in 2001. After many public meetings and environmental studies, the trail's preliminary plan was approved by the Montgomery County Planning Board in 2003. Funding was put forth in 2006. The Montgomery County Department of Transportation paid for the design and construction, but the M-NCPPC managed the project. Opened May 9, 2009, the project cost $5.7 million. The trail connects with the Rock Creek Hiker-Biker Trail at Winding Creek Local Park on Dewey Road and continues northeast to Alderton Road. The trail includes ten-foot-wide boardwalks to protect the most sensitive areas and solar-powered emergency cellular phones. The trail's design and construction were nominated for a Planning & Design Award as part of the 2010 National Trails Awards.