The interim facilities are on a 398-acre site just north of Mayodan on N.C. 220 Business and known locally as Mayo Park. The site was developed in 1948 by Washington Mills as a community recreation area. The state parks system acquired the property in 2004 from Avalon Development Corp.Land acquisition for Mayo River State Park continues within a 12-mile river corridor from Mayodan north to the Virginia state line. The state parks system owns about 400 acres contiguous to the state line, which could be developed as a second principal access to the park.The former Mayo Park site included the picnic pavilion, a cooking shelter and a bathhouse designed by Raymond, a protg of Frank Lloyd Wright who introduced a Japanese style of architecture to the U.S. incorporating natural materials. The pavilion and cooking shelter have been fully restored in wood and natural stone. The bathhouse was deemed too dilapidated for restoration, although portions of the structure were salvaged for potential later use as exhibits. The site also includes two small ponds, one of which has been drained to allow dam renovation.Five individual picnic sites are being installed at the site. A half-mile hiking trail is in place and volunteers and park staff are building another 1.8-mile trail. The initial development project also includes renovation of a former caretakers quarters as a ranger contact station, a restroom building designed in a style similar to Raymonds and park infrastructure including entrance road, parking areas and utilities.
