Field Notes Ohio

Ohio's parks, forests and wildlife areas with camping, the ancient mounds beside them, and the Buckeye Trail that links them. Stories, trails, wildlife, and where to eat and fuel up nearby. Book campsites on ReserveOhio.
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The Buckeye TrailA 1,444-mile blue-blazed loop around Ohio, with all 26 sections.
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Mounds & Earthworks43 ancient sites, including the Great Serpent Mound and the Newark Earthworks.
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Historic Sites39 places, from Fort Steuben and Zoar to Camp Chase and the Rankin House, from the frontier to the Civil War.
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Road Trips33 drives, from the Lincoln Highway to the Morgan Heritage Trail.
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Lake Erie Beaches20 public beaches from Conneaut to Toledo and the islands, with a map.
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Oddities & Roadside Attractions19 giants, ghosts and folk-art stops, plus a Mothman just over the line.
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Caves & Caverns12 show caverns, recess caves and rock shelters, with a map.
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Waterfalls34 falls from the Cuyahoga Valley to the Hocking Hills, with trail notes and a map.
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Explore Ohio

One map for every park, mound, historic site, beach, cave, waterfall and oddity in the app.

Lake ErieWest Virginia27 places277 places77 places73 places35 places519 places1913 places1319 places1916 places168 places810 places1010 places109 places98 places820 places204 places43 places3Barkcamp State Park4 places47 places77 places76 places69 places917 places173 places3Harrison Lake State Park2 places2Forked Run State Park3 places32 places26 places610 places103 places32 places2

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117 parks in 7 regions

Hartman Rock Garden

Springfield · Clark County
Folk art

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.
Location confidence
Approximate — boundary or exact point not confirmed
Approximate location, use the address
Seasonal access
Seasonal; confirm hours with the site.

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.

A Depression-era folk-art garden of rock replicas, from Independence Hall to a castle made of 20,000 stones.

Begun
1932, during the Great Depression
Replicas
Miniature versions of Independence Hall, the White House and Mount Vernon
Castle
A large castle built with 20,000 stones
Type
Outdoor folk art, in a Springfield yard

The story

Hartman Rock Garden is an outdoor folk-art installation begun in 1932, in the middle of the Great Depression, on Russell Avenue in Springfield. It holds miniature replicas of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, the White House and Mount Vernon, and a large castle built from 20,000 stones. It is a good reminder of how ordinary people in hard times turned yards into monuments, and it appears on lists of Ohio's unusual attractions.

The map location is approximate.

Visiting

Status
Check before visiting
Hours
Seasonal; confirm hours with the site.
Cost
Check the site.
Phone
See the garden
Please note
Do not climb on the structures.
Address
1905 Russell Ave, Springfield, OH 45506
DirectionsShow on the map

The pin on the map is approximate; use the address for directions.

Hours, prices and even the attractions themselves can change. Confirm before a long drive.

Parks nearby

Buck Creek State Park
About 6 miles · A big lake park on Springfield's edge.
Open

Road trips

Historic National Road (US 40)
A road trip that passes near this stop
Open

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