On Saturday, July 20, I will be leading two tours, one at 9 a.m. and another at 6 p.m., of the eastern half of the Newark Earthworks.
This is a double helping of the tour I’ve led many times over the last few decades, starting and ending at the Great Circle just off of Ohio 79 on the border of Newark and Heath, but walking the streets to view “remnants” in between the major preserved elements of that two thousand year old, four and a half square mile complex.
We have two major portions preserved by citizens of Licking County back in the 19th century, acts of awareness which we benefit from today: the Great Circle set aside in the 1850s as the county fairground, and the Octagon Earthworks in 1891 by vote of the citizens on a ten year bond issue to purchase the parcel. Yet in between, spanning a mile and more of today’s Newark neighborhoods, there are bits and pieces, remnants of the original complex, you can still see.
The long running “Remnants Tour” I lead takes about three hours, covering three and a half miles of walking, down side streets and along a few alleys, to surprise even longtime local residents with what’s still visible beyond the two large earthwork parks. But it covers barely half of the eastern half of the complex as it once was.
This is why I’m excited about the opportunity on July 22, at 9 a.m., to lead a “Remnants West” tour for the first time, starting and ending at the Octagon Earthworks which has one of its four “open house” days on that date. This one will be a bit shorter, taking about two hours and covering not quite two and a half miles, staying west of 21st Street just as the Remnants East tour (as we’ll need to call it now!) loops north and back to the south all well east of 21st Street.
These remnants tours help the visitor see how much of the Newark Earthworks are still present on the landscape, and by walking the outlines of what was once fully present here you get a sense of the scale of what Native American builders accomplished along Raccoon Creek two millennia ago.
While the route is fairly level and easy, we do cross busy streets, and walkers are asked to bring a good hat or sunscreen, and water (It is July in Ohio, after all!). In previous years we’ve had two ventures at walking the entire outline of the Newark Earthworks, which takes most of a day and covers about seven miles, so it seems prudent to keep with two shorter loops for logistical purposes: but if you come to one of the Remnants East walking tours on July 20, and then Remnants West on July 22, you’ll see most of the whole between the two!
Or just enjoy the grounds of Octagon Earthworks at the corner of Parkview and 33rd Street between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on July 22 for yourself. It is indeed a sight to see, and to experience.
Jeff Gill is a writer, storyteller, and preacher in central Ohio; he’s looking forward to covering some “new ground” this month. Tell him where you’re seeing sights this summer at knapsack77@gmail.com, or follow @Knapsack on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Knapsack: New tours showcase vastness of Newark Earthworks
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