The first a camper may notice when seeing a sign for it is the name - Ha Ha Tonka State Park. Ha Ha Tonka is in Missouri near Lake of the Ozarks in the center of the state. The unusual name has a bit of mystery in terms of origin. After asking around, I’ve discovered it means "laughing" or "smiling water" and comes from the Osage Native Americans that inhabited the area. After more research, this seems a bit too convenient and probably not true, considering Ha Ha doesn't mean laughing in Osage. According to The State Historical Society of Missouri, Ha Ha Tonka was named by Major Kellogg, who was from Iowa, but owned the land that Ha Ha Tonka State Park rests on. "He claimed it was derived from the Indian words, "Iha-ha," meaning to smile, and "tonka," meaning water. It means then 'smiling waters,'" the website's archive says. They go on to point out that this is basically a butchering of words, as Iha-ha in Osage is closer to "to ridicule" and "tonka" in the Osage language means "big." So, likely, the name is simply an "artificial, 'made-up' Indian appellation, a highly dubious one," according to the archive.
Going beyond the state park’s curious name, one can find why the park was named 4th best state park to visit by USA Today in 2015. "People come for the three big attractions - the castle, the natural bridge, or the spring," says Ryan King, Natural Resource Manager at the park. Indeed, these attractions give the park unique beauty that is hard to find anywhere else in Missouri or in the United States.
Ruins of a turn-of-the-century stone castle overlooking the Lake of the Ozarks and Ha Ha Tonka Spring. [Photo/Missouri State Parks]
The castle is perhaps the most peculiar aspect of the park. "It was started by a wealthy businessman from Kansas City named Robert Snyder," King says, "He bought the property for its beauty in 1903 and decided he wanted to build a European style castle on it." Snyder was planning to use the area as a retreat from the city. Unfortunately, instead of finishing the castle and becoming one of the first people to build a castle in Missouri, he became one of the first people to die in a car accident in Missouri in 1906. As a result, "his sons took over and completed it in 1922, but it wasn't quite as elaborate as Snyder planned it to be," King says. The sons would use it as a retreat for their families for a few years, but change was coming.
King explains that around this time a dam was being built that would alter the landscape surrounding the castle. "Snyder bought the property because of a beautiful spring-fed lake that the castle would overlook," he explains, "But with the building of the dam, the lake would be consumed." The sons battled the dam’s construction and, though they got a settlement, the dam was built and they sank a lot of their fortune as well as inspiration into this battle. "They kind of fell out of love with the area," King says. The Bagnell Dam caused the property the Snyder's owned to divide into sections and the small lake was taken over by the Lake of the Ozarks. In the 1930s, the castle was used as a hotel. In 1942, sparks from the chimney ignited the cedar shake shingles and quickly spread down to the carriage house, eventually gutting the castle. "They say it was such a small fire at first that, if someone could have reached it, they could have put it out with a bucket of water," King told The Buzz. The castle was never restored and the ruins are the only parts that remain. As such, though, it provides such a unique sight in the middle of Missouri.
According to the Missouri State Parks website, "Ha Ha Tonka State Park is Missouri’s premiere showcase of karst geology and is unique in the quality and number of its remarkable geologic features." Karst is a topography that showcases the effects of water on soluble rocks, often showing sinkholes and caves. At Ha Ha Tonka, a popular sight is the 12th largest spring in Missouri, which discharges "48 million gallons of water a day." There is a boardwalk that goes to the spring and provides excellent viewing of the unique geological feature. The other prominent feature in the park is the natural bridge, which is 70 feet wide and spans 60 feet. There is a sinkhole on the other side of the bridge called the Colosseum, which was, according to Missouri State Parks, formed by the collapse of a giant cavern and measures 500 feet long and 300 feet wide. Legend tells of it being used for tribal meetings and church revivals.
There are hiking trails, swimming and boat launches at the cove area, fishing, and much more to spend one’s day doing at Ha Ha Tonka State Park. For King, who has worked for Missouri State Parks for 5 years, it is his favorite park he has worked for. “It has been on my bucket list,” he says, “Because with the lake, the land, cave systems, and more, you just can’t beat all the resources.”
Adventure, Destinations, History, Missouri, Outdoors, State Parks