Catch the July 4th Spirit & Plan a Historical Trip

    COLUMBUS, Ohio, July 2 /PRNewswire/ -- The July 4th holiday weekend is a
 good time to reflect on our nation's past -- and plan a visit to nearby
 historical sites using the first annual edition of Gateways, the most
 extensive travel guide featuring Ohio Historical Society sites ever published.
 The free, 32-page publication, produced in partnership with Ohio Publishing
 and Bob Evans Farms, features one of the largest systems of state-owned
 historical sites in the nation.  The guide is available by calling toll-free
 1-888-909-OHIO (6446).
     Gateways presents descriptions of OHS historical landmarks through
 articles featuring particular themes in American history.  Readers will learn
 about American Indian heritage, military history, settlement and
 transportation, African-American heritage, the state's leaders, social and
 economic history, and natural history.
     All 62 OHS sites are described, including the newly opened Museum at Fort
 Ancient near Lebanon and the society's flagship Ohio Historical Center and
 Ohio Village complex in Columbus, where a new 19th-century style church and
 modern education center will be unveiled July 4th.  Other sites represent
 periods in Ohio history spanning from the ice age (at Cedar Bog near Urbana)
 to the space age (at the Neil Armstrong Air & Space Museum in Wapakoneta).
     Among other historical sites described in the travel guide are military
 forts, nature preserves, prehistoric earthworks, living history villages and
 museums focusing on a wide array of topics.
     The gateway concept represented in the publication's title relates to the
 OHS Gateway initiative, a comprehensive capital improvements program funded by
 state and private dollars.  The program's purposes are to make OHS sites more
 identifiable and informative to people interested in various aspects of Ohio's
 past, to illustrate the significance of the historical sites in American
 history and to demonstrate how the landmarks relate to each other.
     Through the new initiative, gateway -- or principal -- sites leave been
 selected for many of the themes presented in Gateways.  For example, Campus
 Martius in Marietta and Fort Ancient near Lebanon are serving as gateway sites
 for the areas of settlement and transportation and American Indian heritage,
 respectively.  Enhancements have been made to these historical sites, and many
 more improvements are planned for other landmarks in the OHS system.
     Callers requesting Gateways also will receive the OhioPass travel planner
 and a state map provided by the Ohio Division of Travel and Tourism.
 Information about OHS sites also is available on the OHS web site,
 www.ohiohistory.org.
 
 

SOURCE  Ohio Historical Society