Nolde Forest Environmental Education Center
| Nolde Forest Environmental Education Center | |
| Pennsylvania State Park | |
 A trail at Nolde Forest Environmental Education Center
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| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| State | Pennsylvania |
| County | Berks |
| Township | Cumru |
| Location | |
| - elevation | 718 ft (219 m) |
| - coordinates | 40°16′30″N 75°57′23″W / 40.27500°N 75.95639°WCoordinates: 40°16′30″N 75°57′23″W / 40.27500°N 75.95639°W |
| Area | 665 acres (269 ha) |
| Founded | 1970 |
| Management | Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources |
| IUCN category | III - Natural Monument |
 Location of Nolde Forest Environmental Education Center in Pennsylvania
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| Website: Nolde Forest Environmental Education Center | |
Nolde Forest Environmental Educational Center is a 665-acre (269 ha) Pennsylvania state park in Cumru Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Programs are offered for youth and adult groups, school groups, and individuals. The center grounds provide opportunities for hiking, birdwatching, and nature photography. The park is open from sunrise until sunset. Nolde Forest Environmental Education Center is on Pennsylvania Route 625 just south of Reading.
Nolde Forest Environmental Education center is on land that was formerly owned by Jacob Nolde, an environmentalist who immigrated to the United States from Germany. Nolde had made his fortune in the hosiery industry. When Nolde purchased the land, a single large white pine was growing there. Inspired by this single tree, Nolde set out to create a "luxury forest" to be a source of family pride and pleasure. Known as the "Inspiration Pine" by the family, the pine was soon surrounded by a forest of native and foreign coniferous trees that were planted under Nolde and later, the supervision of Austrian born forester William Kohout.
Nolde dreamt that his forest would resemble the coniferous forests of his native Westphalia. He bought about 500 acres (200 ha) of future timberland in Cumru Township in 1904 and continued to acquire the land that would become Nolde Forest Environmental Education Center until his death in 1916. This land had been either farmland that had lain fallow for a number of years, or scrubby deciduous forest just beginning to recover from being stripped to make charcoal by colliers for the nearby iron furnaces. Nearly 500,000 coniferous trees were planted by 1910, but then Nolde realized that his dream of a small forest had surpassed all his expectations and saw the need to properly manage the forest.
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