Bear Brook State Park

Bear Brook State Park is a 10,000-acre (4,000 ha) preserve in Allenstown, New Hampshire, and neighboring towns. It is one of New Hampshire's largest state parks.^[4]

Bear Brook State Park
Beaver Pond as seen from the Beaver Pond Trail near the campground
Location	Allenstown and Hooksett in Merrimack County; Deerfield and Candia in Rockingham County, New Hampshire
Coordinates	43°06′25″N 71°21′07″W[1]
Area	10,083 acres (4,080 ha)[2]
Elevation	617 feet (188 m)[1]
Established	1943[3]
Administered by	New Hampshire Division of Parks and Recreation
Designation	New Hampshire state park
Website	Bear Brook State Park

Description

Canoe on Spruce Pond

The park takes its name from Bear Brook, a stream which runs through the park. Its environment is that of the Northeastern coastal forests ecoregion.^[5]

Amenities at Bear Brook include camp sites, a picnic area, over 40 miles (64 km) of hiking trails, swimming and fishing ponds, archery range, camp store, a ball field, playground, bathhouse, shelters, picnic tables, canoe and rowboat rentals, and a physical fitness course. The park is home to the New Hampshire Snowmobile Museum, Old Allenstown Meeting House, and the Richard Diehl Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Museum, which are in historic buildings built by the Civilian Conservation Corps.^[6]

In 1985 and 2000, the remains of a total of four female bodies, one adult and three children, were found in the park. In January 2017, a suspect in the case was identified as Terry Peder Rasmussen (also known by several aliases)^[7][8] who had died in prison in 2010.^[9] In June 2019, three of the bodies were identified.^[10]

Main article: Bear Brook murders

See also

• New Hampshire portal

• Allenstown Meeting House
• Bear Brook State Park Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) Camp Historic District