Poinsett State Park
| Poinsett State Park | |
|---|---|
IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape) | |
Shanks Creek, flowing through Poinsett State Park near Wedgefield, South Carolina | |
| Location | Sumter County, South Carolina, United States |
| Nearest city | Wedgefield, SC |
| Coordinates | 33°48′24″N 80°32′22″W / 33.80667°N 80.53944°W |
| Area | 1,010 acres (4.1 km2) |
| Established | 1936 |
| Visitors | 48,256 (in fy 2006-2007) |
| Governing body | South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism |
| www | |
Poinsett State Park is located in Sumter County, South Carolina. The park is best known for its botanical oddities, combining flora from the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Piedmont region of Upstate South Carolina, the xeric Sandhills, and the Atlantic coastal plain. Poinsett State Park contains mountain laurels draped with Spanish moss. The park is named after Joel Roberts Poinsett, former United States Secretary of War, the first American ambassador to Mexico and the popularizer of the poinsettia. The park is surrounded by the Manchester State Forest and provides access to the Palmetto Trail, as well as linked hiking and mountain bike trails. Manchester State Forest also features designated equestrian trails.
Poinsett State Park is located in the High Hills of Santee, a nearly 25-mile-long upland region with hills up to 5 miles wide. Formed from the erosion of an ancient seashore, the High Hills of Santee lie on the eastern side of the upper Santee River and extend north through Sumter and Lee Counties, running parallel to the Wateree River.