[3][4] Efforts to acquire the site were initiated by state and private interests in the 1960s.

In the 1960s and 1970s, land was acquired and money was raised toward establishing a Museum of Surveying on the site.

[5] Although the site was landlocked for many years, in 2014, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources acquired additional property allowing public access from Meridian Road near the Jackson–Ingham county line.

[6] Improvements made at the site included trail clearing and construction of a 10-car parking lot.

[7] After road signs, trail markers, and a bridge over the creek were added, the State of Michigan in conjunction with Ingham and Jackson counties, opened the new access to the park on October 12, 2015.