Description: Dated ca. 1935-1940, this shows four photographs of Cascade Park in Elyria, Ohio. Cascade Park, located on Park Road, near the intersection of West River Road North and Furnace Street, lies in a deep gorge of the Black River, carved by the same glaciers that created the Great Lakes. It is the largest and most popular park in Elyria and has retained its natural beauty despite is modern playground. Ohio Guide mentions a swimming pool, but it appears to be gone. Winding trails lead through thick clumps of trees and shrubs, though picnic groves, and past craggy masses of the gorge. Time and erosion have carved Shelter Cave, Bear Den, Robber's Den, Natural Bridge, and other configurations scattered throughout the park. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B09F16_071
Subjects: Waterfalls; Parks; Geography and Natural Resources; Geology; Lorain County (Ohio)
Places: Elyria (Ohio); Lorain County (Ohio)
 

Description: Caption reads; "Dam at Baerd's Mill on Greenville Creek (on site of Major Adam's Mill)." Major George Adams erected a mill five miles below Greenville. It became a township in 1819, and was named in Major Adams honor. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B05F07_024_1
Subjects: Geology and Natural Resources; Rivers; Business and Labor; Mills
Places: Greenville (Ohio); Darke County (Ohio)
 

Description: On January 31, 1810, the State of Ohio authorized the creation of Coshocton County. The county's name comes from the Delaware Indian word for "black bear town." The Delaware Indians' territory centered in modern-day Coshocton County until white settlement led the tribe to move further west in the years following the American Revolution. County residents began to prosper with completion of the Ohio and Erie Canal. Thanks to the canal, Coshocton became a major commercial center in eastern Ohio during the 1820s and 1830s. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B05F05_002_1
Subjects: Geology and Natural Resources; Rivers; Coshocton County (Ohio)--History.
Places: Coshocton County (Ohio)
 

Description: This image depicts a quarry in the Sandstone Center of the World, Amherst, Ohio. The City of Amherst was founded in 1811. Beginning in 1847, Amherst developed and prospered around the sandstone industry and its associated quarries. This sandstone proved to be an important economic blessing to our early settlers and is the foundation of Amherst's existence. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06513
Subjects: Geology--Ohio; Natural resources--Ohio;
Places: Amherst (Ohio); Lorain County (Ohio)
 

Description: Dated ca. 1935-1940, this photograph shows a shelter house near Cantwell Cliffs at Hocking Hills State Park in Logan, Ohio. A note on its reverse reads "Shelter House Cantwell Cliff W. Benton." Cantwell Cliffs, one of the six major features of Hocking Hills State Park, known for its rock formations including deep valleys, cliffs, and rock shelters. In 1924, the state of Ohio purchased 146 acres in the Hocking Hills that became Hocking Hills State Park in 1949. In 1972, the park added a dining lodge and cabins. Hocking Hills State Park is known for its geologic features of blackhand sandstone, including Old Man's Cave, Cedar Falls, and Rock House. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B12F11_030_001
Subjects: Hocking Hills State Park (Ohio); Cabins; State parks and reserves; Geology and Natural Resources
Places: Hocking County (Ohio)
 

Description: Dated ca. 1940-1949, this photograph shows the Blue Hole in Castalia, Ohio, a large spring fed by an underground river, about 43-45 feet deep. The Castalia Blue Hole was a major tourist attraction from the 1920s up to its closure, especially due to its close proximity to Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio. It maintains a water temperature of 48 degrees year round. The blue hole shown in this photograph closed access to the public in 1990, but a new blue hole is open to the public at the Castalia State Fish Hatchery. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B02F08_001_1
Subjects: Castalia Blue Hole (Ohio); Geography and Natural Resources; Springs; Tourism--Ohio; Geology
Places: Castalia (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows a boulder at Old Man's Cave at Hocking Hills State Park in Logan, Ohio. Old Man's Cave is located in a gorge of Black Hand Sandstone. Thousands of years of erosion, principally caused by glaciation and Salt Creek, a creek that flows through the gorge, carved away the sandstone and created the cave. Sandstone is a very porous substance and much more susceptible to erosion than many other types of rocks. While Old Man's Cave is relatively small, the gorge itself extends for approximately one half mile and reaches a depth of approximately 150 feet at its deepest point. Various forms of plant life, most notably hemlock, black birch, and Canadian yew, thrive in the gorge. According to legend, Richard Rowe lived at least briefly in the cave beginning in 1796. He had migrated to Ohio with his family from the Cumberland Mountains in Tennessee. He eventually settled in the Hocking Hills, and he is purportedly buried in the cave. As a result of Rowe's occupancy of the cave, locals named the structure "Old Man's Cave." Evidence exists that various groups occupied Old Man's Cave well before Rowe arrived. Archaeologists have documented that American Indians visited the region perhaps as long as seven thousand years ago. The Shawnee, the Wyandotte, and the Lenape (Delaware) all occupied the area at various times in the 1600s and 1700s. Rowe also might not have even been the first white man to visit the cave. It appears that two brothers, Nathaniel and Pat Rayon, arrived in 1795. They built a cabin near Old Man's Cave, and it is rumored that they are buried either in the cave or nearby it. The photographs in the Community Profiles Collection, images of Ohio's cities, towns, and villages, were taken by the Ohio Film Commission. The Ohio Film Commission was established in 1979 to promote Ohio to the filming industry as a diverse place to film and a home to specialists with a wide range of film-making skills, including actors and set crews. The commission worked to bring to Ohio such films as Rain Man, Eight Men Out, City of Hope, The Shawshank Redemption, and The Deer Hunter, among others filmed in Ohio. The commission's functions included scouting locations, arranging support services and helping in-state filmmakers to make and export their work. In 2002, the commission was eliminated as a cost-saving measure. The Division of Travel and Tourism absorbed all functions. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA6576AV_B56790_F4-36
Subjects: Hocking Hills State Park (Ohio); Geology; Boulders; Geography and Natural Resources
Places: Logan (Ohio); Hocking County (Ohio)
 

Description: Dated ca. 1940-1949, this photograph shows the Blue Hole in Castalia, Ohio, a large spring fed by an underground river, about 43-45 feet deep. The Castalia Blue Hole was a major tourist attraction from the 1920s up to its closure, especially due to its close proximity to Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio. It maintains a water temperature of 48 degrees year round. The blue hole shown in this photograph closed access to the public in 1990, but a new blue hole is open to the public at the Castalia State Fish Hatchery. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B05F01A_021_1
Subjects: Castalia Blue Hole (Ohio); Geography and Natural Resources; Springs; Tourism--Ohio; Geology
Places: Castalia (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)