Henderson, Ky. — Hugging the forested hills along the banks of the Ohio River just north of the village of Henderson, John James Audubon State Park is a celebration of life in wood and stone.

Here, nearly two centuries ago, John James Audubon, renowned naturalist and artist, came with his family to operate a small mercantile business and to explore the surrounding wilderness in search of wild birds to study and sketch.

At John James Audubon State Park in Henderson, Ky., visitors can get up close to wild birds in the observation room. The park, named for the bird illustrator against whom all others are measured, also features cabins, trails, lakes and the world's largest collection of Audubon's work.
IF YOU GO Getting there • Audubon State Park is on U.S. 41 north of Henderson, Ky.  Information • John James Audubon State Park: www.parks.ky.gov/stateparks/au, 270-826-2247 • Henderson, Ky.: www.hendersonky.org. Just west of Audubon State Park, Henderson, on the southern shore of the Ohio River, offers dining, shopping and a range of accommodations from motels to quaint inns.

Today, the park's museum houses the world's largest collection of Audubon's art and offers exhibits on the artist's life, a children's play area, and a delightful observation room where floor-to-ceiling windows bring wild birds and other creatures up close. Recent additions to the park include several modern cabins and a nine-hole golf course.

Audubon, born in Haiti in 1785 to a French sea captain and his mistress, was raised in France, coming to America in 1803 to avoid conscription in Napoleon's army. Despite his father's efforts, he failed in school and, later, in various business ventures largely because of his single-minded passion to follow his heart, and his art, into the wilderness.

While it was business that brought him to nearby Louisville with his wife, Lucy, in 1808, it was their move to Henderson in 1810, and his wanderings along the nearby Ohio River migratory flyway, that led to some of the most productive years of his artistic life.

Unfailingly supportive, Lucy she did all she could to help Audubon realize his dreams, writing in her diary, "I have a rival in every bird."

She stood by him when, penniless, he was jailed for unpaid debts and lost all their property except, as Audubon noted in his journal, "the clothes I wore that day, my original drawings, and my gun."

Remarkably, for Audubon and for us, Lucy urged him to turn from this failure and devote the remainder of his life to his art.

With unwavering energy, Audubon completed his remarkable "Birds of America," a portfolio of more than 400 birds drawn from life. Unable to find a publisher in America, he sailed to England in 1826 and found an engraver and publisher ready to produce his work.

The remarkable folio of life-size images took another 13 years to complete and was produced by subscription at a cost of $1,000 each (nearly two years' wages for the average person of the time). This magnificent work is still considered the standard by which modern bird artists such as Roger Tory Peterson, Kenn Kaufman and David Allen Sibley, are measured.

Audubon's legacy in western Kentucky was not forgotten. In 1934, Emma Guy Cromwell, director of Kentucky's fledgling state parks system, sought support from the New Deal's Emergency Conservation Works (ECW) program in establishing a state park near Henderson to honor Audubon.

The site chosen was in the rolling, heavily forested Wolf Hills above the Ohio River, where Audubon likely once roamed. In September 1934, 200 young men of Civilian Conservation Corps Company 1540, nicknamed "Camp Cromwell," arrived to build the park. These CCC "boys" came from families hardest hit by the Depression.

Clyde "Tubby" Littrell, a Henderson resident and park volunteer, worked at Audubon and later at a CCC camp in Oregon. He is quick to tell his story to visitors, noting, "I was one of eight children and my dad was out of work. For me, the CCC was a godsend."

Over the next four years, the men carved out roads and hiking trails, and built rustic cabins, shelters, two lakes and a campground area. Working with artisans from the Works Progress Administration, they constructed the park's two signature buildings: the Tea House, an English cottage-style structure originally operated as a restaurant and now the park's visitor center; and the John James Audubon Museum, designed in the French Norman style honoring the artist's French heritage.

For the museum's 1938 opening, Alice Tyler, widow of Audubon's great-grandson, arranged for her personal collection of Audubon's works to be relocated here from Yale University's Peabody Museum.

The national Audubon Society has recognized Kentucky as one of the country's premier birding destinations. The Audubon Trail section of the Kentucky Wildlife and Birding Trail follows the broad Ohio River and features the 700-acre Audubon State Park as well as two nearby sites. The Henderson-Sloughs Wildlife Management Area (off Ky. 268 about 15 miles from Henderson) is a 1,775-acre refuge where more than 40,000 Canada geese and other waterfowl spend the winter. The Higginson-Henry Wildlife Management Area (off Ky. 56 near Morganfield) is home to more than 135 species of birds as well as other animals. The area features more than 20 miles of trails and lightly traveled roads, an 80-acre lake, campground and picnicking areas. (For details about these and other Kentucky trails, www.1000trails.com /wildlife.)

Audubon State Park's story goes far beyond the birds the artist so loved. It includes the legacy of the hard work and quality craftsmanship that the Boys of the CCC put into the wildlife haven and recreational playground we continue to enjoy today.