Lenape Park, located in Cranford, New Jersey, is a large sprawling 450-acre wildlife reserve and forms part of the Rahway River Parkway that spreads across Union County. The Lenape Park spreads across four different towns including Westfield, Springfield, Kenilworth, and also Cranford.
The Nomahegan Park is only a short walk away from Lenape Park via the linked crosswalks that join these two amazing parks together. The beautiful Lenape Park encompasses both the Nomahegan Brook and also the Rahway River and boasts one of the largest undeveloped properties that make up the Rahway River watershed.
The name Lenape Park is derived from the Native Americans who originally occupied the entire region, and both Nomahegan and Rahway are also derived from their language.
An interesting archeological find was discovered in Lenape Park. In 1936, two tusks that measured over four feet long and believed to be from a mastodon were discovered in the area. The bones are believed to have belonged to a young male mastodon that lived over 12,000 years ago and were probably pushed down into the area during the ice age from parts further north. They are the only ice age bones believed to have been found in the New Jersey area.
In response to the flooding of the Rahway River, the United States Army Corps of Engineers moved into the area in the 1970s and redesigned the Lenape Park to create a series of raised terrain areas. The walking paths form part of the earthen booms that are designed to prevent local areas from flooding during heavy rain periods.
There are some fantastic walking paths, wildlife, and greenery in Lenape Park that visitors can take advantage of on sunny and warm days. If you would like to visit Lenape Park for yourself and experience everything this wonderful place has to offer, then it’s well worth the time taken to get there.
