The Ohio Foothills is one of the Midwest’s most compelling travel destinations, inviting visitors to wander freely while exploring a region rich in unique experiences for the whole family. The region is home to 10 counties in the Appalachian Foothills that showcase the heritage and creativity of the people who make it a hidden gem.
The Ohio Foothills region is filled with history! Come to hear stories of prehistoric peoples, of Revolutionary War battles, and of Civil War and modern-day heroes. Stories are told through theater, historic sites, museums, and festivals throughout the region. The Coshocton Flint Festival and Knap-In is a bi-annual gathering of prehistoric artifact collectors and knappers, or people who create flint arrowheads and points. Trumpet in the Land is Ohio’s longest-running outdoor drama, telling the story of Schoenbrunn, Ohio’s oldest Christian settlement, founded in 1772. Fort Laurens is the site of Ohio’s only Revolutionary War fort and battle. Fort Steuben was built in 1786 to protect surveyors of the Northwest Territories. The McCook House features information about the nine McCook brothers who served in the Union Army during the Civil War, five of whom were generals. The new Underground Railroad Museum Ohio Valley shares the history of America and its connection to the region by displaying more than 8,000 artifacts. Other stories told in the region include the arrival of religious groups from Europe. Zoar Village was founded in 1817 by German religious dissenters. Amish and Mennonites began arriving in the region in 1809. Behalt Amish and Mennonite Center tells its story through a 10-by-226-foot cyclorama painting. Yoder’s Amish Home explains modern Amish traditions, as well as schooling, farming, and transportation.
Tales of the Ohio and Erie Canal are told at Historic Roscoe Village and aboard the Monticello III Horse-Drawn Canal Boat Ride. Veteran stories are honored at The Dennison Railroad Depot Museum and at The John and Annie Glenn Homestead, the childhood home of WWII veteran, astronaut and Senator John Glenn. Other notable Americans from the Ohio Foothills are honored with museums, murals, and monuments, including George Armstrong Custer, Zane Grey, Clark Gable, Woody Hayes, and Cy Young.
Arts and culture are an important part of life in The Ohio Foothills. Warm summer months are celebrated with court square concerts and multi-day music festivals, including Alive and Rock Coshocton. Venues like the Pritchard Laughlin Center and Performing Arts Center at Kent State Tuscarawas, along with many regional community theaters, present concerts and theatrical productions year-round. Pottery, glass, and sculpture are showcased at The Zanesville Art Museum, Alan Cottrill Studio and Gallery, Inn at Honey Run Outdoor Art Museum, and Mosser Glass, as well as many area shops, galleries, and antique malls. World-class carver Ernest “Mooney” Warther was born in the 1880’s and spent his free time carving intricately detailed scale models of steam engines. The Ernest Warther Museum features his work, along with an extensive Swiss garden and “Button House,” which showcases his wife Freida’s collection of beautifully displayed buttons. Mooney’s grandson, David, specializes in maritime carvings; his work is showcased in the David Warther Museum.
Unique festivals fill the calendar each year, giving guests an opportunity to sample the flavors and sounds of life in The Ohio Foothills. Agriculture is celebrated at area farm markets and at festivals, including the Bolivar Strawberry Festival, Barnesville Pumpkin Show, Apple Butter Stirrin’ Festival, Paul Bunyan Show, and Coshocton Sunflower Festival. Special winter events fill towns with holiday light displays, live nativity scenes, life-sized nutcrackers, Charles Dickens characters, and tree-lighting ceremonies.
With its creative and welcoming people, the Ohio Foothills is the perfect place to explore history and culture. The ten Appalachian Ohio counties that comprise the region are Belmont, Carroll, Columbiana, Coshocton, Guernsey, Harrison, Holmes, Jefferson, Muskingum, and Tuscarawas. Defined by rolling hills of the Appalachian Mountain region, the region is filled with charming towns and cities nestled within the scenery of the region’s rivers, hills and valleys, and wooded areas. Learn more about all The Ohio Foothills has to offer at VisitOhioFoothills.com.
