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Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area

Cuyahoga Valley National Park
IUCN category II (national park)
Cuyahoga Valley National Park.jpg
Bedrock outcrops, such as this one, can be found throughout the park
Map showing the location of Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Map showing the location of Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Map showing the location of Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Map showing the location of Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Location Summit County & Cuyahoga County, Ohio, US
Nearest city Cleveland, Akron
Coordinates 41°14′30″N 81°32′59″W / 41.24167°N 81.54972°W / 41.24167; -81.54972Coordinates: 41°14′30″N 81°32′59″W / 41.24167°N 81.54972°W / 41.24167; -81.54972
Area 32,572 acres (51 sq mi; 132 km2)
Established October 11, 2000
Visitors 2,423,390 (in 2016)
Governing body National Park Service
Website Cuyahoga Valley National Park
Map all coordinates using: OpenStreetMap · Google Maps
Download coordinates as: KML · GPX
Map all coordinates using: OpenStreetMap · Google Maps
Download coordinates as: KML · GPX

Cuyahoga Valley National Park is a United States national park that preserves and reclaims the rural landscape along the Cuyahoga River between Akron and Cleveland in Northeast Ohio. The 32,572 acres (51 sq mi; 132 km2) park is administered by the National Park Service and is the only national park in Ohio. It was originally designated the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area in 1974, and was redesignated as a national park in 2000.

Animals found in the park include raccoons, muskrats, coyotes, skunks, red foxes, beavers, peregrine falcons, river otters, bald eagles, opossums, three species of moles, white-tailed deer, Canada geese, gray foxes, minks, great blue herons, and seven species of bats.

The valley began providing recreation for urban dwellers in the 1870s when people came from nearby cities for carriage rides or leisure boat trips along the canal. In 1880, the Valley Railroad became another way to escape urban industrial life. Actual park development began in the 1910s and 1920s with the establishment of Cleveland and Akron metropolitan park districts. In 1929 the estate of Cleveland businessman Hayward Kendall donated 430 acres (170 ha) around the Richie Ledges and a trust fund to the state of Ohio. Kendall's will stipulated that the "property should be perpetually used for park purposes". It became Virginia Kendall park, in honor of his mother. In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps built much of the park's infrastructure including what are now Happy Days Lodge and the shelters at Octagon, Ledges, and Kendall Lake.


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