The Cuyahoga Valley between Cleveland and Akron has changed a lot in 200 years. From it’s Connecticut Western Reserve days, to industrial use along the historic Cuyahoga Valley Railroad, to a recreational destination for North East Ohio…a lot has changed, a lot has been left behind, and a lot has been forgotten. With this post, I will share some of the photographs of the places and artifacts left behind during the Valley’s changing identity.

Over the last 20 years, I have trekked hundreds of miles through wooded areas that were once cultivated fields and have found turn-of-the-century farming equipment left to be swallowed up by the land and vegetation. I have found clues and traces of mills and industry, and many old roads that were once dotted with homes that are now barely paths through the dense hills and ravines that are the Cuyahoga Valley.

I won’t be able to give exact addresses and names for some of these locations because, unfortunately, some people have no respect for the history of this place and will vandalize.

Let’s start with some of the homes in the Valley. I’ve found houses, cabins, and foundation ruins from the mid-1800’s to the turn-of-the-century

Near many of the home locations, there are trash dumps just down the hill. I always find these personal artifacts that have survived interesting!

Construction of the Jaite Paper Mill began in 1905. At Jaite, they made flour and cement bags early on and later, fertilizer and bread sacks. The Jaite Mill was very successful at first and found easy access to transportation as it was built next to the Ohio & Erie Canal and the railroad. The mill was sold in 1951 and changed hands many times after that until the National Park Service bought the factory in 1985 after it finally closed. Much of the historic factory was destroyed in a 1992 arson fire and the park service started demolition in 2006. I took these photos in 2000 and 2004.

And, here is a photo from the demolition in March 2006.

Since the Cuyahoga Valley was designated a National Recreation Area in 1974, many sections of road have been closed. Some are integrated into the trails now, and some are lost to the wilderness.

With so many people once living, working, and farming in the Valley, there have been a lot of cars and trucks moving through here. Some of those vehicles found their final resting place within these hills and ravines. I have found many modes of transportation returning to the earth on my wanderings.

There are lot’s of barns and outbuildings that still remain in the Cuyahoga Valley. Several have been preserved and are still used today. These are some pictures of the ones that have not seen the same amount of attention.

We also have tractors, balers, and other farm implements left behind on these old farmlands.

There are still some remnants of the old sawmill/gristmill at Brandywine Falls and of the Deep Lock Quarry in Peninsula. The quarry produced millstones for Quaker Oats in Akron. It’s easy to imagine the men who worked the quarry as you explore the ruins and find the historic graffiti on the stones.

George Wallace built the mill at Brandywine in 1814. Wallace also added a distillery. The whiskey produced at the still was used for barter, and the whiskey became known as “Brandywine Currency.”

So get off the beaten path and keep an eye out! There’s a lot of history out there waiting to be discovered!