Originally, 35 acres (14 ha) of land was donated by Ethel Sturges Dummer for the creation of the state park in 1938.

The islands of Smith, Hoffman, Langham, and Willow are all located inside the park on the Kankakee River.

Before the arrival of Europeans, Native Americans occupied the Kankakee River valley in the area that is now the state park.

Most Potawatomi left the area by the end of the decade, except for Chief Shaw-waw-nas-see, whose grave is commemorated by a boulder along the nature trail at Rock Creek.

[1] Noel Le Vasseur and other fur traders, including Hubbard Chabare and Francois Bourbonnais, traded with the Potawatomi along the Kankakee and Iroquois rivers in the 1820s.

At the Chippewa Campground, hand-cut limestone pillars mark where a railway bridge was to have been built for the Decatur and State Line Railroad before financiers ran out of money.

A major industry in the area in the 1890s was the Custer Bowery Amusement Park, which drew crowds from Chicago.

In 1938 Chicago resident Ethel Sturges Dummer donated 35 acres (14 ha) of land for a state park.

A 12-mile (19 km) equestrian trail is located in the wildlife management area along Route 113 and is open April 1 through October 31.

Twice a year, the Illinois DNR runs a trout stocking program, releasing fish in various lakes and ponds in the spring and fall.