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Pratt Rock, known locally as the “Mount Rushmore of the East,” was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992. Built between 1842 and 1862, the Rock was originally designed to memorialize Pratt’s life.
The carvings on the Rock depict Zadock Pratt, his son George, a horse, a hemlock tree, the tannery, the Pratt coat of arms, a wreath with the names of two of Pratt’s children, and an arm raising a hammer. The monument became a memorial dedicated to George after George died in the Civil War in 1862.
The Pratt Rock Park, an early 19th-century pleasure park, also included an early use of Far Eastern terraced gardening influenced by Pratt’s visit to Korea in the late 1830s.
In May 2019 the Town of Prattsville approved $27,700 to restore the Pratt Rock Park and make it more accessible to the public.
Pratt Rock Park is open to the public every day, and there in no admission fee. The climb to the rocks is steep, and may be unfit for young children, but the path is clear and ascends in a series of gently graded inclines to the carved cliff wall 500 feet above the road. The stonecutters hacked chairs and benches out of the rocks along the way, and picnicking is permitted, so take your time and enjoy the ascent in a relaxed and thoughtful manner. The sculptures and the view of the valley make the short climb more than worth the effort.
