Shore Acres State Park

Shore Acres State Park is a state park 13 miles (21 km) south of Coos Bay in the U.S. state of Oregon.[1] It is one of three state parks along the Cape Arago Highway, which runs along the Pacific Ocean west of U.S. Route 101. Sunset Bay State Park is about 1 mile (1.6 km) north of Shore Acres, and Cape Arago State Park is about a mile south.[3]

Shore Acres State Park
Formal garden in the park
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Type	Public, state
Location	Coos County, Oregon
Nearest city	Coos Bay
Coordinates	43°19′25″N 124°22′55″W[1]
Area	745 acres (301 ha)[2]
Created	1942
Operated by	Oregon Parks and Recreation Department
Visitors	About 250,000 a year[2]
Open	8am to dusk
Website	http://oregonstateparks.org/index.cfm?do=parkPage.dsp_parkPage&parkId=68

The park features 5 acres (2 ha) of formal gardens including a rose-testing plot and Japanese lily pond,[3] as well as ocean views and beach access.[1] In the cooler months, visitors can watch storms and migrating whales from the park's sandstone cliffs.[3] Another seasonal attraction is the Shore Acres Holiday Lights, lasting from Thanksgiving to New Year's Eve, when the gardens are decorated with lights and illuminated sculptures.[3]

Shore Acres was originally built as an estate in 1910 for Louis J. Simpson, a Coos County timber baron and son of shipping magnate Asa Meade Simpson.[4] After a 1921 fire and financial losses devastated his estate holdings, Simpson sold the land to the State of Oregon for use as a park in 1942.[4][5] The site was initially used as a radar station by the U.S. Army during World War II and decommissioned in 1948; the buildings on the property were used as barracks and were demolished after the war.[5] The state, which acquired park additions from other owners between 1956 and 1980, began restoring the garden in 1970.[2]