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| Add Photo — Add Link — Add Commentary — Correct this page — Print | | Archbold in Fulton County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes) |
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Draining the Great Black Swamp
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By Christopher Light, November 2, 2007 | |
| | | 1. Draining the Great Black Swamp Marker | | |
Inscription. The landscape of northwest Ohio was formed by melting ice and glacial lakes left behind in its wake. Because of the low gradient (3 feet fall per mile) to the northeast, the flat lacustrine plain evolved into a large swamp. A massive swamp forest with huge hardwoods, broken only sporadically with intermittent wet prairies and savannas, dominated the landscape. Both prehistoric and historic Indians farmed the flood plains of the Maumee River and its tributaries: Auglaize, Tiffin, and Blanchard rivers.
The geography of the swamp retarded major settlement up to the Civil war. The 1859 Ohio Ditch Law, a harbinger of drainage legislation nationally, created a cooperative system for individuals to petition county government to surface drain the area. Simultaneous to the surface drainage projects, a massive effort was underway timbering the former swamp forest. Virgin timber for the fleets of America and Europe, grade lumber for the farms and the emerging cities of the area, stave wood for the barrel and stave mills, and the left-over slabwood to fuel the hundreds of clay tile mill kilns dotting the counties of the swamp nearly denuded the landscape of these giant trees. The family-owned clay tile mills allowed under-drainage to transform the swamp into Ohio's most contiguously farmed and productive region.
Erected | | | | 
By Christopher Light, November 2, 2007 | |
| | | 2. Side 2 | | |
2003 by The Ohio Bicentennial Commission, Northwest State Community College, The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 2-35.)
Location. 41° 27.079′ N, 84° 18.022′ W. Marker is in Archbold, Ohio, in Fulton County. Marker can be reached from Ohio Route 34 1 mile from Ohio Route 66. Click for map. The marker is located in front of the main doors to the Northwest State Community College. Use the west driveway. The second road to the right is a drop-off at the front doors. The marker is on the left as you approach. To park, continue around to the back and park. You'll have to walk a little or a lot, depending on the time of day and day of the week. Marker is in this post office area: Archbold OH 43502, United States of America.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 12 miles of this marker, as the crow flies. Stryker (approx. 7.5 miles away); The Henry County Courthouse (approx. 10 miles away); Lock No. 13 & Independence Dam (approx. 11 miles away); Two Canals (approx. 11 miles away); Coohcooche (approx. 11.4 miles away); Shawnee Glen (approx. 11.4 miles away); Johnny Appleseed (approx. 11.5 miles away); Chief Pontiac (approx. 11.6 miles away).
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker.
Also see . . .
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By Christopher Light, November 2, 2007 | |
| | | 3. Picture from the front of the marker | | |
1. The Great Black Swamp. A link to information on the Black Swamp, it's history and the history around and through it. (Submitted on December 7, 2007, by Christopher Light of Valparaiso, Indiana.)
2. The Black Swamp Conservancy. History and preservation activities (Submitted on December 7, 2007, by Christopher Light of Valparaiso, Indiana.)
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By Christopher Light, November 2, 2007 | |
| | | 4. Approach to the school and the marker is barely visible | | |
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By Christopher Light, November 2, 2007 | |
| | | 5. Draining the Great Black Swamp Marker | | |
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By Christopher Light, November 2, 2007 | |
| | | 6. Draining the Great Black Swamp Marker | | Bare fields after harvest, reveal the flatness of the land that once was encompassed by the Black Swamp. This is south of the school campus. | | |
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By Christopher Light, November 2, 2007 | |
| | | 7. Harvest from the productive swamp lands | | |
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| Credits. This page originally submitted on November 6, 2007, by Christopher Light of Valparaiso, Indiana. This page has been viewed 2,559 times since then. Last updated on December 7, 2007, by Christopher Light of Valparaiso, Indiana. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. submitted on November 6, 2007, by Christopher Light of Valparaiso, Indiana. • Kevin W. was the editor who published this page. | | Add Photo — Add Link — Add Commentary — Correct this page — Print |
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