COLUMBUS, OH -- A bronze marker, commemorating Clifton Gorge State Nature Preserve as a classic example of how Ohios glacial past shaped its landscape, was dedicated today as part of the state's Bicentennial celebration, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).
The marker is one of 10 that ODNR, with the financial support of International Paper Company, is erecting around the state. Each designates an important feature of Ohio's natural history. Additional marker sites are Old Woman Creek State Nature Preserve in Erie County, Big and Little Darby Creeks in Franklin County, Killdeer Plains State Wildlife Area in Wyandot County, Old Man's Cave in Hocking County, Magee Marsh State Wildlife Area in Ottawa County, Salt Fork State Wildlife Area in Guernsey County, Clear Fork Gorge State Nature Preserve in Ashland County, Spring Valley Wildlife Area in Greene and Warren counties, and Marblehead Lighthouse State Park in Ottawa County.
More than 200 similar markers, each associated with an important aspect of Ohio's 200-year history, are going up in this Bicentennial year as part of the Ohio Heritage Marker Program.
The dolomite and shales of Clifton Gorge date back to the Silurian Period, 400 million years ago. The canyon was created by meltwater from a retreating glacier that cut into this bedrock at the end of the last Ice Age. This is one of the most spectacular sites in the state for viewing spring wildflowers, including the rare snow trillium. During the 1800s, the Little Miami State and National Scenic River, which flows through the preserve, powered mills, paper factories and breweries, spurring development in southwestern Ohio.