Fort Ancient Earthworks designated ‘World Heritage Site’

DAYTON, Ohio ( WDTN ) — Just in time for World Heritage Day, the Miami Valley is now home to a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Fort Ancient Earthworks & Nature Preserve is one of eight earthworks sites in Ohio, selected for their cultural significance to humanity. There are only 25 in the United States.

World Heritage is a designation given by UNESCO to recognize that a site has a natural or cultural heritage of global significance.

“The site encloses over a hundred acres. The earthen walls that go around it, if you were to stretch that out in a line, would be three and a half miles long,” said Bill Kennedy, site manager.

The site is noteworthy for its scale, geometric precision, and astronomical accuracy. According to the Ohio Historical Connection , evidence shows site builders followed an 18.6-year lunar cycle.

Native Americans built the Fort Ancient Earthworks around 2,000 years ago. Archeologists say they hosted elaborate ceremonies that drew crowds from as far west as the Rocky Mountains. It is Ohio’s oldest state park and the largest hilltop enclosure in North America.

“They were not just geniuses. They were uncommon geniuses. Their genius lives on today in many descendent tribes, including the Seneca Nation, the Miami nation, the Pokagon band of Pottawatomi and the Wyandot nation, who have also sent representatives here with us today,” said Glenna Wallace, Chief, Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma at the UNESCO World Heritage Nominations in Suadi Arabia.

Fort Ancient is open Wednesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Admission costs $7 for adults, $6 for seniors, $6 for children ages 6 to 17, and free for children under 6 years old. OHC members also have free admission.

The Earthworks is located at 6123 State Route 350, Oregonia, OH 45054.

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