Starved Rock sets record with 2015 attendance of nearly 2.5M

UTICA, Ill. -- Starved Rock State Park in north-central Illinois had a record nearly 2.5 million visitors last year.

The (LaSalle) News-Tribune reports that the 2015 attendance is up 8 percent over 2014's 2.3 million visitors, which was the previous highest-ever attendance.

The record number comes despite Illinois River flooding that nearly swamped the area in June. Park complex superintendent Kerry Novak says "for losing the summer as much as we did, that is incredible." The park had more than 850,000 visitors between Memorial Day and Labor Day. That breaks attendance records for June, July and August.

Park attendance topped 2 million for the first time in 2004. Starved Rock is located near Utica, about 85 miles southwest of Chicago.