Protected areas in the U.S. State of Ohio include national forest lands, Army Corps of Engineers areas, state parks, state forests, state nature preserves, state wildlife management areas, and other areas.

Federal lands

thumb|right|The Towpath Trail is a popular attraction of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park

National Park Service, Department of the Interior

  • Cuyahoga Valley National Park
  • Hopewell Culture National Historical Park
  • Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park

U.S. Forest Service, Department of Agriculture

  • Wayne National Forest

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior

  • Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge Complex
  • Cedar Point National Wildlife Refuge
  • Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge
  • West Sister Island National Wildlife Refuge

Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Defense

  • Belleville Locks and Dam
  • Caesar Creek Dam (at Caesar Creek State Park)
  • Tom Jenkins Dam (at Burr Oak State Park)

State lands

State parks

{|class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%"

|-

! rowspan=2 |Name

! rowspan=2 |County

! colspan=2 | Size

! class="unsortable" rowspan=2 |Image

! rowspan=2 |Year established

|-

! acres

! km<sup>2</sup>

|-

||A. W. Marion State Park ||Pickaway || style="text-align: right;"|454 || style="text-align: right;"|1.84 || 150px || 1950

|-

||Adams Lake State Park ||Adams || style="text-align: right;"|96 || style="text-align: right;"|0.39 || 150px || 1950

|-

||Alum Creek State Park ||Delaware || style="text-align: right;"|8,017 || style="text-align: right;"|32.44 ||150px || 1974

|-

||Barkcamp State Park ||Belmont || style="text-align: right;"|1,122 || style="text-align: right;"|4.54 ||150px|| 1955

|-

||Beaver Creek State Park ||Columbiana || style="text-align: right;"|2,726 || style="text-align: right;"|11.06||150px|| 1949

|-

||Blue Rock State Park ||Muskingum || style="text-align: right;"|337 || style="text-align: right;"|1.36||150px|| 1949

|-

||Buck Creek State Park ||Clark || style="text-align: right;"|4,016 || style="text-align: right;"|16.25||150px|| 1975

|-

||Buckeye Lake State Park ||Fairfield, Perry || style="text-align: right;"|3,349 || style="text-align: right;"|13.55||150px|| 1949

|-

||Burr Oak State Park ||Athens, Morgan || style="text-align: right;"|2,593 || style="text-align: right;"|10.49||150px|| 1952

|-

||Caesar Creek State Park ||Warren, Clinton, Greene || style="text-align: right;"|7,941 || style="text-align: right;"|32.13||150px|| 1978

|-

||Catawba Island State Park ||Ottawa || style="text-align: right;"|677 || style="text-align: right;"|2.73||150px|| Early 1950s

|-

||Cowan Lake State Park ||Clinton || style="text-align: right;"|1,775 || style="text-align: right;"|7.18||150px|| 1968

|-

||Deer Creek State Park ||Fayette, Pickaway || style="text-align: right;"|3,564 || style="text-align: right;"|14.35||150px||

|-

||Delaware State Park ||Delaware || style="text-align: right;"|3,016 || style="text-align: right;"|12.20||150px|| 1952

|-

||Dillon State Park ||Muskingum || style="text-align: right;"|3,845 || style="text-align: right;"|15.56||150px || 1961

|-

||East Fork State Park ||Clermont || style="text-align: right;"|7,030 || style="text-align: right;"|28.45||150px|| 1978

|-

||East Harbor State Park ||Ottawa || style="text-align: right;"|1,831 || style="text-align: right;"|7.41||150px|| 1947

|-

||Findley State Park ||Lorain || style="text-align: right;"|931 || style="text-align: right;"|3.77|| ||

|-

||Forked Run State Park ||Meigs || style="text-align: right;"|893 || style="text-align: right;"|3.61||150px|| 1951

|-

||Geneva State Park ||Ashtabula || style="text-align: right;"|698 || style="text-align: right;"|2.82||150px|| 1964

|-

||Grand Lake St. Marys State Park ||Auglaize || style="text-align: right;"|14,091 || style="text-align: right;"|57.02||150px|| 1949

|-

||Great Council State Park ||Greene || style="text-align: right;"|0.7 || style="text-align: right;"|0.0028||150px|| 2023

|-

||Great Seal State Park ||Ross || style="text-align: right;"|1,864 || style="text-align: right;"|7.54||150px|| 1979

|-

||Guilford Lake State Park ||Columbiana || style="text-align: right;"|489 || style="text-align: right;"|1.98||150px||

|-

||Harrison Lake State Park ||Fulton || style="text-align: right;"|247 || style="text-align: right;"|1.00||150px|| 1950

|-

||Headlands Beach State Park ||Lake || style="text-align: right;"|120 || style="text-align: right;"|0.48||150px|| 1953

|-

||Hocking Hills State Park ||Hocking || style="text-align: right;"|2,373 || style="text-align: right;"|9.60||150px|| 1924

|-

||Hueston Woods State Park ||Butler, Preble || style="text-align: right;"|3,596 || style="text-align: right;"|14.55||150px|| 1957

|-

||Independence Dam State Park ||Defiance || style="text-align: right;"|591 || style="text-align: right;"|2.39||150px|| 1949

|-

||Indian Lake State Park ||Logan || style="text-align: right;"|6,600 || style="text-align: right;"|26.71||150px||

|-

||Jackson Lake State Park ||Jackson || style="text-align: right;"|349 || style="text-align: right;"|1.41||150px|| 1979

|-

||Jefferson Lake State Park ||Jefferson || style="text-align: right;"|962 || style="text-align: right;"|3.89||||

|-

||Jesse Owens State Park ||Morgan || style="text-align: right;"|5,735 || ||150px||2020

|-

||John Bryan State Park ||Greene || style="text-align: right;"|752 || style="text-align: right;"|3.04||150px|| 1951

|-

||Kelleys Island State Park ||Erie || style="text-align: right;"|677 || style="text-align: right;"|2.73||150px|| 1956

|-

||Kiser Lake State Park ||Champaign || style="text-align: right;"|927 || style="text-align: right;"|3.75||150px|| 1940

|-

||Lake Alma State Park ||Vinton || style="text-align: right;"|352 || style="text-align: right;"|1.42||150px||

|-

||Lake Hope State Park ||Vinton || style="text-align: right;"|3,103 || style="text-align: right;"|12.56||150px|| 1937 (renamed in 1949)

|-

||Lake Logan State Park ||Hocking || style="text-align: right;"|718 || style="text-align: right;"|2.91||150px|| 1964

|-

||Lake Loramie State Park ||Auglaize || style="text-align: right;"|2,062 || style="text-align: right;"|8.34||150px|| 1949

|-

||Lake Milton State Park ||Mahoning || style="text-align: right;"|1,700 || ||||

|-

||Lake White State Park ||Pike || style="text-align: right;"|429 || style="text-align: right;"|1.74||150px||

|-

||Little Miami State Park ||Hamilton, Clermont, Warren, Greene || style="text-align: right;"|707 || style="text-align: right;"|2.86||150px||

|-

||Madison Lake State Park ||Madison || style="text-align: right;"|182 || style="text-align: right;"|0.74||150px||

|-

||Malabar Farm State Park ||Richland || style="text-align: right;"|878 || style="text-align: right;"|3.55||150px||

|-

||Mary Jane Thurston State Park ||Henry || style="text-align: right;"|591 || style="text-align: right;"|2.39||150px||

|-

||Maumee Bay State Park ||Lucas || style="text-align: right;"|1,436 || style="text-align: right;"|5.81||150px||Acquisition:1973, Established: 1975

|-

||Middle Bass Island State Park ||Ottawa || ||||150px||

|-

||Mohican State Park ||Ashland, Holmes || style="text-align: right;"|1,115 || style="text-align: right;"|4.51||150px||

|-

||Mosquito Lake State Park ||Trumbull || style="text-align: right;"|6,483 || style="text-align: right;"|26.24||150px||

|-

||Mount Gilead State Park ||Morrow || style="text-align: right;"|181 || style="text-align: right;"|0.73||150px||

|-

||Muskingum River State Park ||Coshocton, Morgan, Muskingum, Washington ||||||150px||1958

|-

||Nelson Kennedy Ledges State Park ||Portage || style="text-align: right;"|167 || style="text-align: right;"|0.67||150px||

|-

||Oak Point State Park ||Ottawa || style="text-align: right;"|677 || style="text-align: right;"|2.73||150px||

|-

||Paint Creek State Park ||Ross || style="text-align: right;"|6,842 || style="text-align: right;"|27.67||150px||

|-

||Pike Lake State Park ||Ross || style="text-align: right;"|600 || style="text-align: right;"|2.43||150px||

|-

||Portage Lakes State Park ||Summit || style="text-align: right;"|2,475 || style="text-align: right;"|10.02||150px||

|-

||Punderson State Park ||Geauga || style="text-align: right;"|891 || style="text-align: right;"|3.61||150px||

|-

||Pymatuning State Park ||Ashtabula || style="text-align: right;"|3,512 || style="text-align: right;"|14.21||150px||

|-

||Quail Hollow State Park ||Stark || style="text-align: right;"|703 || style="text-align: right;"|2.84||150px||

|-

||Rocky Fork State Park ||Highland || style="text-align: right;"|3,464 || style="text-align: right;"|14.02||150px||

|-

||Salt Fork State Park ||Guernsey || style="text-align: right;"|20,181 || style="text-align: right;"|81.67||150px|| 1960

|-

||Scioto Trail State Park ||Ross || style="text-align: right;"|248 || style="text-align: right;"|1.00||150px|| 1922

|-

||Shawnee State Park ||Scioto || style="text-align: right;"|1,163 || style="text-align: right;"|4.71||150px||

|-

||South Bass Island State Park ||Ottawa || style="text-align: right;"|677 || style="text-align: right;"|2.73||150px||

|-

||Spiegel Grove State Park ||Sandusky || style="text-align: right;"|25 || ||150px|| 1873

|-

||Stonelick State Park ||Clermont || style="text-align: right;"|1,258 || style="text-align: right;"|5.09||150px|| 1948

|-

||Strouds Run State Park ||Athens || style="text-align: right;"|2,606 || style="text-align: right;"|10.54||150px|| 1953

|-

||Sycamore State Park ||Montgomery || style="text-align: right;"|2,389 || style="text-align: right;"|9.67||150px||

|-

||Tar Hollow State Park ||Hocking || style="text-align: right;"|619 || style="text-align: right;"|2.51||150px|| 1949

|-

||Tinker's Creek State Park ||Geauga || style="text-align: right;"|370 || style="text-align: right;"|1.50||150px|| 1973

|-

||Van Buren State Park ||Hancock || style="text-align: right;"|296 || style="text-align: right;"|1.20||150px|| 1950

|-

||West Branch State Park ||Portage || style="text-align: right;"|8,002 || style="text-align: right;"|32.38||150px|| 1966

|-

||Wingfoot Lake State Park ||Portage || style="text-align: right;"|614 || ||150px|||

|-

||Wolf Run State Park ||Noble || style="text-align: right;"|1,266 || style="text-align: right;"|5.12 ||150px|| Acquisition: 1963, Dedication: 1968

|}

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State memorials

  • Adena State Memorial
  • Buckeye Furnace State Memorial
  • Campbell Mound State Memorial
  • Flint Ridge State Memorial
  • Friends Meeting House State Memorial
  • Fort Ancient State Memorial, Warren County
  • Fort Hill State Memorial
  • Glendower State Memorial, Warren County
  • Leo Petroglyph State Memorial
  • Miamisburg Mound State Memorial, Montgomery County
  • Serpent Mound State Memorial
  • Story Mound State Memorial
  • Tarlton Cross Mound State Memorial

State forests

  • Blue Rock State Forest – 4,572 acres (19&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Brush Creek State Forest – ca. 12,000 acres (49&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Dean State Forest – 2,745 acres (10&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Fernwood State Forest – 2,107 acres (9&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Gifford State Forest – 320 acres (1.3&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>); Athens County
  • Harrison State Forest – 1,345 acres (5&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Hocking State Forest – 9,374 acres (38&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Maumee State Forest – 3,068 acres (12&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Mohican-Memorial State Forest – 4,192 acres (17&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>); Ashland County
  • Perry State Forest – 4,567 acres (18&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>); Perry County
  • Pike State Forest – 11,621 acres (47&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Richland Furnace State Forest – 2,343 acres (9&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Scioto Trail State Forest – 9,371 acres (38&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Shade River State Forest – 2,601 acres (11&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>); Meigs County
  • Shawnee State Forest – 59,603 acres (241&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>); Scioto and Adams Counties
  • Sunfish Creek State Forest – 637 acres (2.6&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Tar Hollow State Forest – 16,126 acres (65&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Vinton Furnace State Experimental Forest -
  • Waterloo State Forest (administered by Zaleski State Forest); Athens County
  • Yellow Creek State Forest – 756 acres (3.1&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>)
  • Zaleski State Forest – 26,313 acres (107&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>); Athens and Vinton Counties

State wildlife management areas

  • Cooper Hollow Wildlife Area (Jackson County)
  • Fox Lake Wildlife Management Area (Athens County)
  • Highlandtown Wildlife Area (Columbiana County, Washington Township)
  • Milan State Wildlife Area
  • Sunday Creek Wildlife Management Area (Athens County)
  • Tiffin River Wildlife Area (Fulton County)
  • Trimble Wildlife Management Area (Athens County)
  • Turkey Ridge Wildlife Area (Vinton County)
  • Waterloo Wildlife Research Station (Athens County)
  • Wolf Creek Wildlife Management Area (Morgan County)

State nature preserves

Metroparks

thumb|right|The Cleveland Metroparks' South Chagrin Reservation in autumn

A number of regional park districts have been organized in Ohio:

  • Cleveland Metroparks [http://www.clemetparks.com/]
  • Columbus and Franklin County Metropolitan Park District [http://www.metroparks.net/]
  • Erie MetroParks [http://www.eriemetroparks.org/]
  • Five Rivers Metroparks (Dayton) [http://www.metroparks.org/]
  • Geauga County Park District [http://www.geaugaparkdistrict.org/]
  • Johnny Appleseed Metropolitan Park District [http://www.johnnyappleseedparks.com/]
  • Lake Metroparks [http://www.lakemetroparks.com/]
  • Stark County Park District
  • Tuscarawas County Park Department
  • Lorain County Metro Parks [http://www.loraincountymetroparks.com/]
  • Metro Parks, Serving Summit County [http://www.summitmetroparks.org/]
  • MetroParks of Butler County [http://www.yourmetroparks.net/]
  • Metroparks of the Toledo Area [https://web.archive.org/web/20080114013344/http://www.metroparkstoledo.com/metroparks/]
  • Mill Creek MetroParks [http://www.millcreekmetroparks.com/]
  • Great Parks of Hamilton County

Other significant local areas

  • Arc of Appalachia
  • Athens Conservancy preserves, in Athens County, Ohio
  • Crane Hollow Nature Preserve, Hocking County, Ohio
  • Edge of Appalachia Preserve, in Adams County, Ohio
  • Highlands Sanctuary, centered in Highland County, Ohio
  • Moonville Rail-Trail, a rail-trail in Athens and Vinton Counties
  • Strouds Ridge Preserve, City of Athens, Ohio
  • Trimble Community Forest in Athens County, Ohio
  • The Wilds (Muskingum County, Ohio)

References

  • Art Weber. Ohio State Parks. Saginaw, Michigan: Glovebox Guidebooks, 1995. .
  • Ohio State Parks
  • List of parks