Few People Know There’s A Mysterious Rock Hidden In A State Park In Massachusetts
By Melissa Mahoney|Published May 23, 2022
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Melissa Mahoney
Author
I'm an east coast girl living in a west coast world. I grew up in New England before moving to SoCal for several years. I then lived in NYC or a year before moving to AZ in 2009. I worked in the entertainment industry for many years of my adult life and have a deep love for photography, writing, and traveling around the U.S. as well as to far-flung locations around the world. Travel is my life and writing about it is a dream!
There’s a tiny museum in a state park home to a mysterious rock found long ago. The rock has petroglyphs etched into it and no one over the centuries has quite figured out what they mean. It’s become quite a mysterious wonder in Massachusetts and it is worthwhile to see it in person.
Dighton Rock State Park is named after the Dighton Rock which was found on the banks of the Taunton River in Berkley back in the 1680s. Berkley was once part of the town of Dighton.
The Dighton Rock weighs 40 tons and is 11 feet long and five feet tall. Aside from its immense size, it is marked with petroglyphs that have baffled people since it was discovered.
The mysterious rock has perplexed archaeologists, historians, and scholars for centuries. And several theories as to the meaning of inscriptions have been made, yet little has been agreed upon.
In 1963, the rock was moved from the bed of the Taunton River during the construction of a dam. It was placed into its own small museum for preservation.
If you're curious to see the Dighton Rock for yourself, a self-guided tour must be arranged ahead of time by calling the Freetown State Forest at (508) 644-5522.
Aside from seeing the mysterious Dighton Rock, the 85-acre Dighton Rock State Park is a wonderful place to go fishing and canoeing or kayaking along the Taunton River.
The Dighton Rock is quite the mysterious wonder in Massachusetts. Have you been to Dighton Rock State Park yet to see it? If so, please tell us all about it in the comments. To learn more, visit the Dighton Rock State Park web page.