Shelby County: Cultural History, Canals, and Nature

For a stay in Shelby County, choose from different themes: cultural history, historic waterways, and parkland. Museums, an Airstream factory visit, and seasonal events add more topics to explore along with trails and natural areas. Plan your trip around whether you want to focus on exhibitions, the history of technology, outdoor activities, or an event date.

Museums, History, and Technology

The Ross Historical Center houses the Shelby County Historical Society and features year-round permanent and rotating exhibits on the history of Shelby County, Ohio. The Wallace Family Learning & Innovation Center offers a different focus: its six galleries explain how Shelby County evolved 200 years ago from an original wilderness into an innovative, diverse, and continually developing community. The two sites therefore differ both in exhibition format and in their narrative focus.

The Ft. Loramie Wilderness Trail Museum displays uniforms and memorabilia from the Civil War and the First and Second World Wars. Other exhibits include Indigenous artifacts, shops from around the turn of the century, shoemaking equipment, and agricultural implements from the region. The exhibits thus cover military history, everyday objects, regional work, and agriculture.

The Airstream Heritage Center is a 16,000-square-foot public museum about the history of Airstream. In Jackson Center, Airstream also offers three different factory tours, each lasting one hour; reservations are required. GreatStone Castle is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Check current access arrangements before visiting.

Historical monuments in Hardin Park may be of interest to visitors. There is a small parking lot at the park on Hardin-Wapakoneta Road.

Canal History Along the Trails

The Lockington Locks preserve the stepped lock walls of the Miami and Erie Canal system, which opened to navigation in 1845. The locks therefore connect a visible structural feature with the history of the canal.

The Canal Feeder Trail includes a 3,400-foot paved path along the towpath of the former Sidney Feeder Canal. The trail has three designated access areas; check access information before visiting. On the Miami Erie Canal Trail, a section between Pampel Road in Houston and State Route 47 in Newport is nearly cleared for foot and mountain bike traffic, though natural obstacles should be taken into account. The Miami Erie Canal Trail is currently unmarked. Check current wayfinding along the trail before visiting.

Parks, Habitats, and Bridges

Tawawa Park is a 220-acre wooded park with Tawawa Lake and Amos Lake. The Ross Covered Bridge is also in the park. It has been photographed for years for its tranquil, artistic setting, was named in honor of William Ross Jr. in 1974, and resembles several covered bridges built by bridge builder Rueben L. Partridge in Central Ohio. The park brings together landscape, bridge building, and local history.

Lockington Reserve includes floodplain forest, higher-elevation woodland, groups of pines, wetlands, streams and ponds, as well as a 90-foot-high escarpment. A network of hiking trails connects the reserve’s different habitats. For nature enthusiasts, the focus here is on the variety of landscapes rather than a single viewpoint.

Seasonal Events

The Shelby County Fair is an annual tradition featuring livestock shows, 4-H exhibits, and agricultural displays, along with fair food, rides, and live music. A farmers’ market takes place in downtown Sidney on Saturdays from June to early October. While the fair brings together a variety of agricultural and entertainment events, the market offers a seasonal Saturday outing. Check the specific event dates if either event is to determine your travel dates.

Explore more destinations: Sidney, Hamilton, Stark, Sandusky County, Miami, Harrison County, Coshocton County, Wayne.

For the main travel overview: Ohio.