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For Immediate Release
Ohio Sites Make Final Cut for U.S. World Heritage List
Department of Interior To Nominate 14 Sites
(COLUMBUS, Ohio, Jan. 24, 2008) -Three Ohio nominations made the Department of Interior’s final list of 14 U.S. cultural and natural areas to be considered for World Heritage status, the most for any state. The Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks, Serpent Mound and Dayton Aviation Sites nominations represent 12 historic and prehistoric sites in the state.
“Ohio’s nominations made the final cut in this competitive process after an intensive public awareness campaign and tremendous support from Ohio citizens,” said William K. Laidlaw, Jr., executive director of the Ohio Historical Society. “To be ultimately recognized as a World Heritage site will be an international honor for our state that would raise awareness of the sites, promote their preservation for future generations and advance regional economic development through increased tourism.”
The World Heritage List, which is maintained by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), recognizes natural and cultural sites of significance to all peoples of the world. Sites that have achieved World Heritage status include the Palace of Versailles in France, the Acropolis in Greece and Florida’s Everglades.
Ohio Nominations Included on U.S. World Heritage List.
- THE HOPEWELL CEREMONIAL EARTHWORKS, a multi-site nomination consisting of Hopewell Culture National Historical Park’s five ancient earthworks in Ross County, including the Ohio Historical Society’s Seip Mound, as well as the Society’s Newark Earthworks in Licking County and Fort Ancient in Warren County. The extraordinarily large earthworks are outstanding examples of an architectural form and landscape design which illustrate 700 years of the Ohio Hopewell culture.
- SERPENT MOUND in Adams County, a state memorial administered by the Ohio Historical Society, is probably the best known archeological site in Ohio and features the earthen effigy of a snake.
- DAYTON AVIATION SITES, a multi-site nomination associated with the Wright Brothers and development of the airplane is comprised of Huffman Prairie Flying Field at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, The Wright Cycle Company and Wright and Wright Printing Company building, the Wright Flyer III enshrined in Wright Hall at Carillon Historical Park, and the Wright family home, Hawthorn Hill, in Dayton. The first three components are part of Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park, a unit of the National Park System, although Huffman Prairie is owned by the U.S. Air Force and Wright Hall by Dayton History. Hawthorn Hill is owned by the Wright Family Foundation.
“The Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks and Serpent Mound are unique in the world,” said Dean Alexander, superintendent of the Hopewell Culture National Historical Park. “These ancient structures are representative of the rich cultural heritage of Ohio’s early Native Americans.”
Larry Blake, superintendent of the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park, points out that, “The nomination of the Dayton sites, which represent modern technology, along with the earthworks show the importance of Ohio’s history over the
This will be the first time since 1982 that the Department of the Interior has prepared a list of U.S. cultural and natural areas for consideration by UNESCO. The preparation of a tentative list is a necessary first step in the process of nominating a site to the World Heritage List, because a country cannot nominate a property unless it has been on its tentative list for a minimum of a year.
Being nominated for or included on the World Heritage List imposes no legal restrictions on owners or neighbors of sites nor does it give the United Nations any management authority or ownership rights in U.S. World Heritage Sites, which continue to be subject to U.S. law.
The tentative list developed by the Department of the Interior will serve as the source of nominations as the United States submits two sites every year for consideration by UNESCO between 2009 and 2018. If World Heritage status is granted, the nomination will join the 851 World Heritage sites in 141 counties, including the 20 sites in the United States—none of which are from Ohio.
More information about the World Heritage List and the nominated Ohio sites can be found at www.ohiohistory.org.
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Media contact: Kim Schuette: 614.297.2314 or kschuette@ohiohistory.org
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