Cuyahoga Valley National Park
| Cuyahoga Valley National Park | |
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IUCN category II (national park)
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Bedrock outcrops, such as this one, can be found throughout the park.
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| Location | Summit County & Cuyahoga County, Ohio, USA |
| Nearest city | Cleveland, Akron |
| Coordinates | 41°14′30″N 81°32′59″W / 41.24167°N 81.54972°WCoordinates: 41°14′30″N 81°32′59″W / 41.24167°N 81.54972°W |
| Area | 32,950 acres (133.3 km2) |
| Established | October 11, 2000 |
| Visitors | 2,284,612 (in 2015) |
| Governing body | National Park Service |
| Website | Cuyahoga Valley National Park |
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 32,950-acre (13,334 ha; 51 sq mi) park is administered by the National Park Service and is the only national park in Ohio. It was established in 1974 as the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area and was designated as a national park in 2000.
Animals found in the park are 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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