There are some really incredible destinations hidden throughout the state of Ohio.
One of these hidden gems is the Cherry Valley Coke Ovens in the small town of Leetonia. Constructed in 1866 as part of the Leetonia Iron and Coal Company, the coke ovens, blast furnaces, and mill were an economic powerhouse in the area.
So what exactly is a coke oven? The beehive-shaped ovens were used to transform hard coal into coke. The coking process burnt impurities out of the coal. The end product, aka the coke, was the best fuel source for the furnaces that were used to manufacture iron and steel.
In Leetonia, the Iron and Coal Company remained in use until 1930, when the business closed. For over half a century, the former coal site was basically forgotten. In 1993, a group of concerned citizens decided to clean up the site, earning the Leetonia Beehive Coke OVens a place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Now, this piece of industrial history is a 10-acre public park.
There is an additional 25 acres that serve as a nature preserve. Many visitors comment that the coke ovens look like Ohio’s very own Hobbiton, and they’re not wrong. The grass covered-structures certainly give off a “Shire” vibe.
There are trails throughout the park, but your first glimpse of the earth-covered mounds will be when you pull into the parking lot.
By taking the trails, you can get a closer look at these interesting historical features, but you can’t get too close. The coke ovens have varying structural integrity, which means it’s not safe for visitors to go inside of them.
If you’d like to visit the park by bicycle, there’s a path that connects the coke ovens to the Greenway Bike Trail, a trail that connects Lisbon to Washingtonville, Ohio.
The park is located at 999 Cherry Valley Road, Leetonia, OH 44431 and you can learn more about it by visiting leetonia.org/parks-recreation.
Featured image via Facebook.
