OHIO’S WORLD HERITAGE Opportunity

Ohio is about to make history. Eight earthwork sites in southern and central Ohio, collectively called the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks, may very soon join the likes of Machu Picchu, the Taj Mahal, Stonehenge and the Grand Canyon on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

World Heritage is the highest honor that a cultural or natural site can receive, and this extraordinary designation for the earthworks would be the United States’ 25th and Ohio’s first World Heritage site.

The Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks include the Octagon Earthworks and Great Circle Earthworks in Licking County, Fort Ancient Earthworks in Warren County and five sites that make up the Hopewell Culture National Historical Park in Ross County. For over a decade, the Ohio History Connection and the National Park Service have worked with Tribal nations and stakeholders across the state and the country to achieve this historic honor. In September, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee will consider and vote on our nomination for inscription.

“When we talk about World Heritage, we’re talking about sites with outstanding value to all of humanity,” says Jen Aultman, Chief Historic Sites Officer at the Ohio History Connection. “These places should matter to all people, no matter what flag you live under. We all have something to gain by ensuring these places are preserved.”

Remarkable Sites Will Receive Worldwide Recognition

The Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks were created 2,000 years ago by the ancestors of American Indians and are the largest concentration of geometric and monumental earthen architecture in the world today.

Over just a few generations, the earthwork builders gathered, organized and worked together to plan and build monumental public works on an astonishing scale, with precise geometric shapes and alignments. Using precious materials brought from distant places, they created ceremonial artifacts of exquisite beauty and deposited them in the mounds.

Their achievements made them a dominant cultural influence across much of North America. Getting these sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list will give the achievements of Ohio’s Indigenous people the recognition they deserve and raise the profile of Ohio to the world stage.

It will also strengthen Ohio’s tourism industry and support the communities around the sites. In fact, an economic impact study prepared by Ohio University estimates that visitation to these sites will double. We also expect to see an increase in the number of overnight travelers who will stay in bed and breakfasts, visit nearby attractions and eat at local restaurants.

HELP PRESERVE OHIO’S EARTHWORKS

This decade-long nomination project has been entirely funded by generous contributions from individuals, foundations, organizations and local governments. $1.5M has been raised to date, but Inscription is only the beginning, and more support will be needed to prepare for the future of the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks as World Heritage sites. Ohio History Connection and our partners are working to increase Tribal voices at the sites, planning for Tribal interpreters, guided tours and other interpretive elements like exhibits and programming. People will be able to come and experience the moonrise at the Octagon Earthworks and the summer and winter solstice sunrises at Fort Ancient.

“We envision a future where people from all over will come to learn about the sites and experience them firsthand,” says Aultman. “People will step out of their daily lives and think about what it meant to be human then and what it means today.”

To support this essential work and ensure the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks’ permanent preservation, visit ohiohistory.org/worldheritage.

Questions? We’d love to hear from you! Call 800.647.6821 or email donations@ohiohistory.org.