Field NotesOhio
Upper Falls in the Old Man's Cave gorge, Hocking Hills, with visitors on the rocks

An independent field guide · 365 places

The field guide to outdoor Ohio

Parks and forests, ancient mounds, caves, waterfalls and back roads, with the story behind each place and where to eat and fuel up nearby.
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  • 117parks & forests
  • 64ancient mounds
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Old Man's Cave, Hocking Hills · Photo: Rhododendrites, CC BY-SA 4.0

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State parks & forests117 places, with cabins, campsites and trails117 places Waterfalls34 falls, with trail notes34 falls Mounds & earthworks64 ancient sites, from Serpent Mound to Newark64 ancient sites Caves & caverns12 show caverns, recess caves and rock shelters12 caves Lake Erie beaches20 public beaches, Conneaut to Toledo20 beaches Historic sites40 places, from the frontier to the Civil War40 places Road trips33 drives, from the Lincoln Highway to the Morgan Heritage Trail33 drives Oddities19 giants, ghosts and folk-art stops19 roadside stops The Buckeye TrailA 1,444-mile loop, all 26 sections1,444 miles

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Six places to start

One from every corner of the state, each with its full story inside.

01Old Man's CaveHocking Hills · SoutheastA gorge of waterfalls and recess caves where a hermit is said to have lived, with the park's visitor center. 02Great Serpent MoundAdams County · SouthwestA gigantic earthen snake on a hilltop over Ohio Brush Creek, built by a people whose name is still argued over. 03Brandywine FallsCuyahoga Valley · NortheastThe tallest waterfall in Cuyahoga Valley National Park, reached by an easy boardwalk with an accessible upper overlook. 04Marblehead LighthouseMarblehead · Lake ErieThe oldest continuously operating lighthouse on the Great Lakes, lit since 1821, on nine acres of limestone shoreline. 05Zoar VillageTuscarawas County · EasternA well-preserved communal village founded by German separatists in 1817, on the Ohio & Erie Canal. 06Longaberger Basket BuildingNewark · CentralA seven-story office building shaped like a picnic basket, with handles that are heated in winter.

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Lake ErieWest Virginia36 places368 places813 places135 places523 places2321 places2124 places2416 places1613 places134 places418 places182 places217 places1710 places1014 places142 places27 places76 places613 places133 places34 places414 places143 places3Harrison Lake State Park2 places22 places22 places26 places64 places4

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Sugarcreek, the Little Switzerland of Ohio

Sugarcreek · Tuscarawas County · Eastern Ohio
A Swiss cheese town in the heart of Amish country
Little Switzerland of OhioWorld's Largest Cuckoo Clock
Alpine Hills Historical Museum, 106 W Main St, Sugarcreek Directions →Official source →

An Amish and Swiss cheese town whose Alpine storefronts and giant cuckoo clock earn it a Swiss village nickname.

Settled
1814 by Amish families, first as East Shanesville
Swiss arrival
Swiss immigrants came from the 1830s and made cheese with the Amish
Tourism
Grew as Little Switzerland from the early 1970s
Landmark
The World's Largest Cuckoo Clock, 23 feet tall and 24 feet wide
Festival
The Ohio Swiss Festival since 1953, in early fall
Museum
Alpine Hills Museum, free, at 106 W Main St

The story

Sugarcreek was first settled in 1814 by Amish families, and was first called East Shanesville. Swiss immigrants began arriving in the 1830s and joined the Amish in making cheese, and as cheese factories opened, the town became known as the Little Switzerland of Ohio. Storefronts got Alpine paintings, and by the early 1970s the look had become the town's tourist business.

The centerpiece is the World's Largest Cuckoo Clock, 23 feet tall and 24 feet wide, commissioned in 1972 by the Alpine Alpa restaurant from the clockmaker Karl Schleutermann. It took twelve years to finish, and the Guinness Book of World Records lists it as the largest of its kind. The free Alpine Hills Museum shows a 19th-century Amish kitchen and an 1890s cheese house, and the Ohio Swiss Festival, started in 1953, celebrates the cheese makers with parades, wine and cheese tastings and the traditional stone throw.

Related sites

Visiting information you can trust

Check before driving — this site is seasonal, approximate, privately run, or otherwise uncertain. Confirm hours and access with the official source above.
Content last reviewed
September 2026 — this is when Field Notes Ohio's content was last checked, not a live status.
Primary official source
Official page
Location confidence
Verified entrance or visitor center
Alpine Hills Historical Museum, 106 W Main St, Sugarcreek
Seasonal access
The cuckoo clock plays every hour or half hour in season; the Alpine Hills Museum is a free visitor center, so check its hours. The Ohio Swiss Festival is held on the fourth Thursday to Saturday after Labor Day.
Check current conditions
Official conditions or closures
Reservations or tickets
Tickets or admission info

Prices, hours, closures, campsite availability and trail conditions shown elsewhere on this page are not live — always confirm with the official source before you go.

The Swiss Town the Amish Settled First

The Alps are nowhere near Sugarcreek, but if you stand on Main Street on the hour, a Swiss oompah band starts up and a couple of wooden dancers pop out of a 23-foot clock. The town is proud of the look, and it has earned it: Swiss immigrants came in the 1830s and taught the Amish farmers there to make cheese.

Every fall, the town throws the Ohio Swiss Festival, and men and women compete at an Alpine tradition older than the Swiss Confederation, throwing a heavy stone.

Behind the legend

The 1814 Amish settlement, the 1830s Swiss arrivals, the 1953 start of the Swiss Festival and the clock's dimensions are consistent across the sources. The tourist look dates from the early 1970s, so the Swiss theme is a mix of real heritage and marketing. The steintossen tradition is described as going back to the 13th century in the Alps.

If you go

Time your visit for the clock, walk the murals, buy cheese from Broad Run Cheese and go in early fall for the festival.

Visiting

Status
Open; the town is a working village
Managed by
Village of Sugarcreek and local businesses
Hours
The cuckoo clock plays every hour or half hour in season; the Alpine Hills Museum is a free visitor center, so check its hours. The Ohio Swiss Festival is held on the fourth Thursday to Saturday after Labor Day.
Admission
Free to walk the village and see the clock and museum.
Phone
330-852-4113
Please note
This is an Amish community; do not photograph people who object.
Address
106 W Main St, Sugarcreek, OH 44681
Official information →DirectionsFind trails nearby on AllTrails →

Hours and prices change. Confirm with the site before you go.

Parks nearby

Leesville Lake
About 23 miles · A muskie lake with marina camping.
Open
Tappan Lake Park
About 27 miles · A big lake park with camping and cabins.
Open

Details last checked 2026-09-22. Confirm hours and prices before you go.

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