June 7 – XENIA TWP., Greene County – Great Council State Park opened its doors to the public on Friday, welcoming a crowd of a few hundred visitors to Ohio State Parks’ newest attraction.
In attendance were representatives from the three Shawnee tribes whose work with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources brought Ohio’s 76th state park to life.
“It’s impossible to describe how I feel, but it’s wonderful. I support this wholeheartedly,” said Chief Glenna Wallace of the Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma.
Great Council State Park is located along US 68 in Xenia Twp in what used to be called “Old Chillicothe”, a vibrant Shawnee town founded in the 1770s and led by Chief Blackfish. The park was developed alongside three federally recognized Shawnee tribes – the Shawnee Tribe, the Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma, and the Absentee Shawnee Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma.
“Governor DeWine, First Lady Fran DeWine, the Ohio History Connection, as well as the Ohio Department of Natural Resources are all examples of doing the right job of conducting government-to-government conversations with tribal nations. They are to be commended ” said Shawnee Chief Ben Barnes.
“These relationships continue to develop and become more fruitful. This is one example,” said Barnes, adding that the World Heritage designation for Ohio’s Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks, located in Chillicothe and Oregonia, is another.
Builders, trustees and ODNR staff spent “tremendous” time talking to the three tribes, Wallace said.
“We had Zoom meeting after Zoom meeting,” she said. “There have been times when we have disagreed with what has been said, and there has been a spirit of cooperation and it has worked beautifully.”
The Grand Council Interpretive Center is a 12,000-square-foot modern interpretation of a council house, the primary meeting place and traditional residence in an 18th-century Shawnee village. Inside, visitors will find a living stream, complete with bluegills, crayfish and other aquatic life for kids to touch, a theater and three floors of artistic and interactive exhibits depicting the lives of the Shawnee and early settlers in the 1770s .
Additionally, sculptor Alan Cottrill unveiled a statue of Tecumseh on Friday, based on one of the earliest depictions of the 18th-century chief, warrior and orator. Tecumseh was born near the state park site in 1768.
The center also includes often forgotten elements of the Shawnee as a vibrant culture and people that persist to this day.
“We’ve always said we love Ohio. We’ve always said it’s in our hearts and it’s our homeland,” Wallace said. “What we would like is for people to re-examine history and realize that we didn’t leave voluntarily. We didn’t want to leave.”
“People learned that we are dead, that we do not exist and that we were savages. World heritage has proven that we were not savages and that our ancestors were, in fact, geniuses. is said,” she added.
As the park continues to develop, trails behind the museum will allow visitors to walk to the Little Miami River, through prairie grass and past vegetable gardens growing the “three sisters:” corn, beans and squash.
“It will be interesting for kids and adults alike,” Wallace said. “There’s something there for everyone.”
Additionally, a bridge over U.S. 68 from the Xenia Bike Path to Great Council State Park is in the works, although it is still in the planning stages, Gov. Mike DeWine said Monday.
Great Council State Park hours are 9am to 5pm Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, 9am to 8pm on Thursday and 11am to 5pm on Sunday. The center is closed Monday and Tuesday.
“I’m grateful for this day, I’m grateful for the time. The turnout is magnificent,” said Wallace.
