Great Dismal Swamp

The Great Dismal Swamp is a marshy region on the Coastal Plain of southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina between Norfolk, Virginia, and Elizabeth City, North Carolina in the United States. It is a southern swamp, the northernmost of many along the Atlantic Ocean's coast which includes the Everglades and the Big Cypress Swamp in Florida, the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia, the Congaree Swamp and Four Holes swamps of South Carolina, and some of the Carolina bays in the Carolinas. Along the eastern edge runs the Dismal Swamp Canal, completed in 1805.

Related Topics:
Virginia - North Carolina - Norfolk, Virginia - Elizabeth City, North Carolina - United States - Swamp - Atlantic Ocean - Everglades - Big Cypress Swamp - Florida - Okefenokee Swamp - Georgia - Congaree Swamp - Four Holes - South Carolina - Carolina bay - Dismal Swamp Canal

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Essential to the swamp ecosystem are its water resources, native vegetative communities, and varied wildlife species. The Great Dismal Swamp's ecological significance and its wealth of history and lore make it a unique wilderness. It is one of the last large and wild areas remaining in the Eastern United States.

Related Topics:
Ecosystem - Water resources - Vegetative - Wildlife - Ecological - History - Wilderness

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After centuries of logging and other human activities which were devastating the swamp's ecosystems, the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge was created in 1973 when the Union Camp Corporation of Franklin, Virginia donated 49,100 acres (200 km²) of land; the refuge was officially established through The Dismal Swamp Act of 1974.

Related Topics:
Logging - Human - Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge - 1973 - Union Camp Corporation - Franklin, Virginia

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The refuge consists of over 111,000 acres (500 km²) of forested wetlands. Lake Drummond, a 3,100 acre (13 km²) natural lake, is located in the heart of the swamp. Outside the boundaries of the National Refuge, the state of North Carolina has preserved and protected additional portions of the swamp.

Related Topics:
Refuge - Lake Drummond - Lake - North Carolina

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