Hike trails through the 533-acre preserve and see ancient pits left by American Indians who came from the surrounding area to quarry flint. The unique rainbow-colored flint was used as an item of trade, tools and weapons. Within the museum, learn about Ohio’s official gemstone and the shaping of flint into tools, known as knapping.
A picnic area with tables, grills, drinking water and restrooms is available for visitors to the quarry. Average visit time: Allow 1+ hours
Flint Ridge is a nearly eight-mile-long vein of high-quality flint located in Licking and Muskingum counties of eastern Ohio. Hundreds of quarry pits and workshop sites are scattered across more than 2,000 acres of ridge top in these Appalachian foothills. It has been called the “Great Indian Quarry of Ohio.”
Flint Ridge seems to have been well known in the ancient world, as small amounts of it have been found at American Indian sites across the present-day eastern United States. Because of this flint’s great beauty, it has been respected throughout the ages in the tools, weapons and ceremonial objects of native cultures and in modern times in the production of jewelry.
Flint Ridge Ancient Quarries & Nature Preserve is managed locally by the Ohio History Connection.
Step into the past at Flint Ridge, where students explore an ancient flint quarry and the surrounding old-growth forest. This hands-on experience includes a museum tour, nature hike, flint knapping and atlatl throwing. Students will also examine the tools and daily lives of the Indigenous peoples who once lived in Ohio.
Our programs explore Ohio’s Native American earthworks and the everyday lives of the people who built and used them. Each experience is hands-on and interactive, rooted in Indigenous history and culture and designed to meet Ohio Learning Standards.
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