HANOVER TOWNSHIP – The Ohio Department of Natural Resources opened the Mohican State Park Visitor Center on Tuesday — the first visitor center since the state park opened in 1949.
The grand opening began with remarks from Park Manager Jenny Roar, Gov. Mike DeWine, ODNR Director Mary Mertz, Chief of the Division of Parks and Watercraft Glenn Cobb and Chief of the Division of Engineering Jeremy Wenner.
“Our goal every single day is for our 76 free state parks to be the best in the country,” DeWine said.
The Visitor Center is located near the park’s main campground area at 3136 State Route 3.
“This is public land, this is your land, and we want you to check it out and enjoy it and help us preserve it for the future,” Mertz said.
ODNR administered the roughly $4.7 million project with the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission through funding from Ohio’s capital budget. The project broke ground on June 10, 2024.
After the opening remarks, Gov. DeWine and his family, Mertz, Ashland County Sheriff Kurt J. Schneider and other attendees cut the ribbon and welcomed guests inside.
A Kayak sits in the central display of the Visitor Center.
Inside the main entrance, guests are greeted with a vestibule containing restrooms and drinking fountains.
The central area boasts an exhibit equipped with recreational gear, including a kayak, educational panels along the walls detailing the human and natural history of the park, and displays of animals found in the park.
Further in the building, there is a seating area in front of a fireplace and an activity center where children can play in a model camper site and scan their drawings of fish, leaves and dragonflies to be displayed on a TV.
The Visitor Center also includes a gift shop.
“ It gives people a place to learn, gather, and launch their adventures,” Cobb said. “It will serve as the hub for exploration, whether it’s along the river, deep in the forest trails or up on the scenic over loops that make this park so special.”
Throughout the event, food truck vendors offered shaved ice, hot dogs, barbeque and more. A two-man band also played before and after opening remarks.
Mohican State Park visitors can enjoy the Visitor Center seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.