Blacklick Woods Metro Park

Blacklick Woods Metro Park
Blacklick Creek as it travels through Blacklick Woods Metro Park
Type	Metro park
Location	6975 E. Livingston Avenue, Reynoldsburg, Ohio
Coordinates	39°56′06″N 82°48′27″W / 39.9350°N 82.8075°W / 39.9350; -82.8075
Area	643 acres (260 ha)
Opened	1948
Administered by	Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks
Open	Year-round
Paths	6
Habitats	Forest, fields, swamp ponds, prairie
Parking	Multiple lots
Website	Official website
U.S. National Natural Landmark
Designated	1974

Blacklick Woods Metro Park is a metropolitan park in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, owned and operated by Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks. The park was established in 1948, the first park in the Metro Park system. It was named a National Natural Landmark in 1974.

Blacklick Woods Metro Park has 643 acres (260 ha).^[1] Within a forested area in the park is the Walter A. Tucker State Nature Preserve preserving one of the oldest Beech-maple forest in central Ohio. In the southern area of the preserve you can find an assortment of white and pin oak, white ash with specimens of red maple, red elm, shagbark and bitternut hickory, hophornbeam, American hornbeam and dogwood. There are also wetlands and seasonable ponds in the southern area of the nature preserve where salamanders, chorus frogs, and wood ducks among other aquatic life and amphibians can be found.^[2] Fox, rabbits, and white-tailed deer can also be seen throughout the park. It is also well known as a good spot for bird watching.^[3] The golf course has been certified by Audubon International as a Cooperative Sanctuary.^[4] The Blacklick Woods Nature Center with naturalists and volunteers is also available to answer questions. Blacklick Creek flows south along the eastern boundary of the park and is accessible by several trails that travel through a variety of fields, meadows, and forests.

The land for Blacklick Woods Metro Park was purchased in 1947 after the Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks received funding.^[5] It was the first park in the Metro Parks system.^[1] The park was dedicated on October 24, 1948 despite concern it was too far in the country.^[6] Featuring graded roads and picnic facilities that could accommodate 400, it became a role model for the rest of the Metro Park system.^[5][6] By the 1950s, a trailside museum was created, often used in conjunction with the outdoor classroom and the small amphitheater. Trailside zoo houses were home to held up to 75 animals, from about 25 different species. It was later phased out of operation in the mid-1970s when the nature center was planned.^[6]

By the 1960s, the park was experiencing overcrowding, leading to the need for overflow parking, more picnic facilities, and damage of natural areas. To overcome these issues, a levey was passed in 1962 enabling the park to expand to 506 acres.^[6]

In 1973, the Blacklick Woods Golf Course was added to the park after the park's board purchased the nearby Stoney Creek Country Club to save it from development.^[6]

In 1974, Blacklick Woods was designated as a National Natural Landmark by the National Park Service.^[7]

In 2017, prehistoric circular earthworks were discovered at the park.^[8] The earthworks are believed to be made by Late Woodland pre-Columbian peoples who lived in Ohio between AD600 and AD1200.^[6]

• List of National Natural Landmarks in Ohio

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Blacklick Woods Metro Park.

• Official website