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Heavener Runestone Park

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Heavener Runestone Park
A map of Oklahoma showing the location of Heavener Runestone Park
A map of Oklahoma showing the location of Heavener Runestone Park
LocationLe Flore County, Oklahoma, United States
Nearest cityHeavener, OK
Area55 acres (22 ha)
Governing bodyCity of Heavener
www.travelok.com/listings/view.profile/id.3398

Heavener Runestone Park is a 55-acre (220,000 m2) park located in Le Flore County, Oklahoma. It is located near the city of Heavener, Oklahoma.[1] Formerly a state park of Oklahoma, it is now owned and operated by the city of Heavener, Oklahoma.

Opened in 1970, the park has been erected around the Heavener Runestone, a runestone found in 1923, and most likely inscribed in the 19th century, perhaps by a Swedish immigrant. The stone is located on Poteau Mountain just outside the town's limits.

Transfer from state to city park

The Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department announced in March 2011 that it would close the Heavener Runestone State Park on August 15, 2011, due to budget cuts.[2] However, the City of Heavener agreed to assume ownership and operation of the 55-acre park beginning July 1, 2011.[3]

Park facilities

Heavener Park is a day-use only park offering group shelters for picnics, picnic tables, outdoor grills, comfort stations, amphitheater, playground, hiking, exploring, and educational programs about the Runestone. Overnight camping can be found in nearby Lake Wister State Park. The park offers a park office, gift shop and interpretative center with educational information.[4] 6, 2015.

Assessment of the runestone

Henrik Williams, a professor of Scandinavian languages at Uppsala University has studied the Heavener stone, as well as many other such stones elsewhere in the world. He said that the Heavener stone is an impressive runic memorial,[a] but is unlikely to be as old as some of the local legends claim. He noted that there is no evidence that any Europeans were in this area during the Viking era. He stated that these runes represent the Elder Futhark system that was common during 100 to 700 A. D., which predated the Viking era (750 to 1000 A. D.). Tool marks are still visible on the stone, whereas they should have weathered away if they were created in the Viking era.[5]

Notes

  1. ^ The rock is 12 feet (3.7 m) by more than 12 feet (3.7 m) wide. Williams said the English translation of the eight runes is GNOMEDAL or GNLOMEDAL, which he interprets as Little Valley.[5]

References

  1. ^ "Heaveer Runestone State Park". Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
  2. ^ Regina Smith (March 5, 2011). "Heavener Runestone State Park Closing Due To Budget Cuts". Poteau Daily News.
  3. ^ Mary L. Crider (June 11, 2011). "Brushy Lake State Park Transfers To Sallisaw". The Times Record.
  4. ^ "Heavener Runestone State Park". Oklahoma Historical Society. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
  5. ^ a b Wallace, Josh. "Oklahoma runestone is impressive but not from Vikings, Swedish scholar says". NewsOK. May 27, 2015. Accessed August 6, 2016.

See also


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