Join us at 10:00 a.m. Saturday's and Sunday's only, April 28 through May 19 as park rangers provide guided tours of Mound City Group.

Tours begin at the Mound City Group Visitor Center. Rangers will guide visitors into the Mound City Group earthwork. The tour will last approximately one hour and will be mostly in the sun. Visitors should wear comfortable walking/hiking shoes, bring sun protection and bug spray. All terrain at Mound City Group is flat and considered an "easy" hike/walk.

Hopewell Culture National Historical Park will be celebrating National Park Week with a Junior Ranger-filled day at Mound City Group Visitor Center (16062 State Route 104, Chillicothe, OH 45601).

Become a Junior Ranger by earning a badge or two or six in the following challenges:

• Junior Ranger of Hopewell Culture NHP

• Junior Archeologist of Hopewell Culture NHP

• Junior Angler

• Junior Scientist

• Night Explorer

• World Heritage Junior Ranger

Park staff and volunteers will be greeting future Junior Rangers on the grounds of Mound City Group with interactive Junior Ranger tables on Saturday, April 27

It's National Park Week

Join the Friends of Hopewell for a night of National Park Trivia

at the Pour House at Machinery Hall    25 East Second St.

Sign up at 7:45 p.m.  game begins at 8:00

Ross County Historical Society Archaeology Day – April 13
Join us for the seventh annual Archaeology Day event, hosted by the Ross County Historical Society in collaboration with the Mound City Chapter of the Archaeological Society of Ohio (ASO) and Hopewell Cultural National Historic Park. It will take place on Saturday, April 13, from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm at the Ross County Heritage Center, located at 45 West 5th Street in Chillicothe.

Hopewell Culture National Historical Park is seeking pairs of volunteers to assist in removing the invasive garlic mustard from areas at Mound City Group during the month of April.

All interested volunteers must attend a training session with a partner, which will be held at the Mound City Group Visitor Center on Saturday, March 23, 2024.  Call the park and register for one time slot on March 23.  Time slots to choose from: 9:00am, 11:00am or 1:00pm.  Register for the Garlic Mustard training by calling the park at 740-774-1126.

Volunteers will be trained on proper plant identification, safety requirements and volunteer schedule.  Volunteers must complete training and volunteer paperwork in order to participate.  Then you are ready to pull garlic mustard anytime during the month of April.

Pulling garlic mustard will limit the spread of this invasive, non-native plant and preserve native ecosystems. Volunteers can have a big impact on sustaining park natural resources for future generations to enjoy.

Hopewell Culture National Historical Park preserves and protects five sites comprised of ceremonial earthworks constructed by American Indian people approximately 2000 years ago. For directions and information, call the Visitor Center at (740)-774-1126 daily from 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. or visit the park website at www.nps.gov/hocu or the park Facebook at www.facebook.com/hopewellohionps

Join Hopewell Culture National Historical Park and The Mound City Chapter of the Archaeological Society of Ohio for an evening presentation.

Jonathan E. Bowen, PhD, Clarke-May Museum, Pickaway County Historical Society, will be presenting "Adena-Hopewell Studies: Insights and Opportunities"

This presentation will take place inside the Mound City Group Visitor Center auditorium on Tuesday, March 12 at 6:30pm. This event is free and open to the public.

Hopewell Culture National Historical Park’s, Mound City Group Visitor Center is located at 16062 State Route 104, Chillicothe, Ohio, 45601.

Anyone driving the roads of southeastern Ross County today cannot help but be impressed by the beautiful, well-maintained farms which sprawl across the landscape toward the Scioto River as it flows along the huge, forested sandstone ridge to its west. Few of us, however, realize that this same expanse was once dominated by a series of now-vanished prehistoric geometric earthen complexes which stretched for miles and stood as much as eight feet tall in places.

Of major importance among these was the Liberty Earthworks. Levelled by nearly 200 years of agricultural activity and modern development, the Liberty Earthworks is no longer visible to the naked eye. However, the story of this grand earthen complex provides many useful insights for understanding Ross County’s newly inscribed World Heritage Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks.

Join local educator and researcher Gary Argabright as he discusses the features of this monumental earthen complex and the insights it provides into the amazing landscape created by the ancient Hopewell peoples in the early centuries of the modern era. Sponsored by Ohio University Chillicothe and Friends of Hopewell Culture National Historic Park.

March 2 @ 10:00 am - 11:30 am

FREE

Want the 101 on our 101st?

Join Ranger David for a dive into the past 100 years of the Park Service’s management of Hopewell Culture National Historical Park and an exclusive look into our plans for the future of our sites! This presentation will commemorate the 101st anniversary of Hopewell Culture National Historical Park and will afford time for participants to share their questions, comments, and hopes for the second century of the park!

This event will take place inside the park’s auditorium at the Mound City Group Visitor Center.

The Mound City Group Visitor Center is located at 16062 State Route 104, Chillicothe, OH 45601. The visitor center building is open 7 days a week from 9:00am to 4:00pm. Call the park at 740-774-1125 for more information.

Join us for an unforgettable experience of Birdwatching 101 on February 17th at 9:00 a.m.  Immerse yourself in the beauty of nature as we gather at the Hopewell Mound Group Picnic Shelter located at 4731 Sulphur Lick Road, Chillicothe, Ohio.  Schedule includes:

9:00 a.m. - Introduction to Birdwatching for Beginners

9:30 a.m - 10:30/11:00 a.m. - Ranger-guided birdwatching hike and bird count activity

Join Gary Argabright, local archaeological expert and historian for a presentation “Insights Into Prehistoric People from the Artifacts They Left Behind”. Gary will share 15 artifacts and the clues they give us into their use and the ingenuity of Ohio’s prehistoric peoples. The session will be approximately 1 hour at the Hopewell Culture NHP Mound City Group Visitor Center.

Members Only. Gary Argabright, local archaeological expert and historian, will meet with members only before the lecture at 11:00 a.m. for an informal conversation about his 40 years of surface collecting prehistoric artifacts. He will also set up a display of artifacts from some of his collection sites to give members an idea of what kinds of artifacts have been revealed in local plowed farm fields over the years. Coffee and morning refreshments will be served. To be held at the Hopewell Culture NHP Mound City Group Visitor Center

Members Only. Meet Talon Silverhorn, , a citizen of the Eastern Shawnee Tribe, for a members only reception at the Hopewell Culture NHP Mound City Group Visitor Center Auditorium. Chat with Talon informally while enjoying coffee and morning sweets.

Friday, June 24 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Dr. Bret Ruby, PHD, RPA/ Archeologist, will offer guided tours to active archaeological excavations at Hopewell Mound Group on Sulphur Lick Road, (two time slots available), Tours will begin at the parking lot picnic shelter. The group will then walk ½ mile on a gravel trail to the excavation site, one mile round trip. Each tour will last approximately 2 hours. In case of rain, a lecture will be presented at the shelter house. Bring water, bug spray and sun screen.

Registration is limited. Members will have first opportunity to register, before open to the public.

Friday, June 24 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Dr. Bret Ruby, PHD, RPA/ Archeologist, will offer guided tours to active archaeological excavations at Hopewell Mound Group on Sulphur Lick Road, (two time slots available), Tours will begin at the parking lot picnic shelter. The group will then walk ½ mile on a gravel trail to the excavation site, one mile round trip. Each tour will last approximately 2 hours. In case of rain, a lecture will be presented at the shelter house. Bring water, bug spray and sun screen.

Registration is limited. Members will have first opportunity to register, before open to the public.

Members and potential members of the Friends of Hopewell Culture NHP are invited to a preview showing of the finds of the 2019 field season work at Hopeton Earthworks. Dr. Bret Ruby and Dr. Andrew Weiland will be on hand for discussion and to answer questions. This display opens to the public on Oct. 19th.

Friends of Hopewell Board Meeting is open to Board members