Pine Mountain State Resort Park
Pine Mountain State Resort Park is a Kentucky state park located in Bell County, southeastern Kentucky, United States. Located on part of the Pine Mountain ridge in the Appalachians, the park opened in 1924 as Kentucky's first state park. Each spring since 1933, the park has hosted the annual Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival. A portion of the park is legally dedicated as a nature preserve by the Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves. History. When Pine Mountain State Resort Park was established in 1926, it was named Cumberland State Park. The name was changed in  1938 in order to avoid confusion with the newly formed Cumberland Falls State Resort Park. During the park's early years, there was little development. In 1933, during the Great Depression, President Franklin D. Roosevelt assigned the Civilian Conservation Corps to numerous infrastructure projects. At this park, they began constructing the main office building, cabins, roads, bridges, shelters, and hiking trails, creating a resource for all the citizens. In the 1960s, the Kentucky State Park System began updating their parks. For Pine Mountain State Park, they constructed a new wing to the lodge, adding 30 more guest rooms; they also  built 10 additional cottages, a swimming pool, and a golf course. Today, the park serves as one of southeastern Kentucky's premier state parks.