Ohio
Discover Ohio
Introduction
Ohio is the seventh-most populous American state, with nearly 11.9 million people on 44,825 square miles between Lake Erie and the Ohio River, and the seventh-largest economy, $823 billion in 2022. It was the first state carved from the Northwest Territory and the first free state admitted after independence, on 1 March 1803; it calls itself the Buckeye State after its tree, the Mother of Presidents for the seven born here, and the Birthplace of Aviation for the Dayton bicycle-makers who built the first aeroplane. Its three big cities are a triangle: Columbus, the capital and the largest at 905,748, in the centre; Cleveland on the lake, once the fifth-largest city in the country and still the home of a Big Five orchestra and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; and Cincinnati on the river, the Queen City of the steamboat age with the most intact German-built historic district in the country.
The land is glaciated plain across most of the state, with the Great Black Swamp in the north-west, the unglaciated Allegheny hills of the Appalachian south-east, and 312 miles of Lake Erie shore. Under it lie the earthworks of the Adena and Hopewell peoples: the Great Serpent Mound, the largest serpent effigy in the world, and the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks, eight geometric monuments of the first four centuries AD that became the country's 25th World Heritage Site in 2023. Ohio's industry -- Cleveland's steel and oil, Akron's rubber, Dayton's cash registers, the Maumee River port's glass, Youngstown's mills -- built the American century and then fell with it, and the state is now a manufacturing power again, third in the country, alongside insurance, medicine and universities.
For the visitor it is Cedar Point's eighteen roller coasters, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Football Hall of Fame, the Air Force museum with a million visitors a year, Cuyahoga Valley National Park between two cities, the Hocking Hills' gorges, the Amish farms of Holmes County, the Lake Erie islands and the birding marshes of the west shore, Cincinnati chili and the buckeye candy. The national park and the Cleveland Museum of Art are free, city buses cost $2 to $2.50, and 911 answers everything.
Do I need a visa?
Every visitor needs an approved ESTA or a visa before travelling, by any route; Canadians can usually stay six months without one. Carry your passport as proof of status.
Do I need a car?
Yes for the state -- the Hocking Hills, the earthworks, Amish country, the lake shore -- and no inside the three big cities, where buses and Cleveland's Rapid cost $2 to $2.50. Foreign licences are accepted; get an IDP and an E-ZPass arrangement for the Turnpike.
What is free?
Cuyahoga Valley National Park, the Hopewell earthworks park, the Dayton aviation sites, Perry's memorial, the Garfield and Taft houses, the Cleveland Museum of Art and the Newark Earthworks grounds.
When is the best time?
September and October for colour, harvest and football; early May for the birds and the parks' opening; summer for the lake and the fair; winter for museums and orchestras, with snow.
Is Cincinnati chili really chili?
No: it is a Greek-spiced meat sauce for spaghetti and hot dogs, ordered by the way, and it contains no chocolate.
What is the emergency number?
911.