Field Notes Ohio

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117 parks in 7 regions

Great Seal State Park

Chillicothe · Ross County

Ohio Department of Natural Resources

1,682acres

5trail miles

1979established

Visiting information you can trust

Content last reviewed: September 2026 — this is when Field Notes Ohio's content was last checked, not a live status.
Primary official source: ODNR park finder (search this park)
Location confidence: Verified property location
Great Seal State Park, 4908 Marietta Rd, Chillicothe
Check current conditions: Official conditions or closures
Reservations or tickets: ReserveOhio — camping and cabin bookings
Hunting or permits: Check current park regulations before planning a hunt here; the park is relatively small and heavily used by hikers and riders.

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 story of this land

Look at the Ohio state seal: a sun rising over a range of rounded peaks, a sheaf of wheat and a bundle of seventeen arrows in front. Those peaks are not decorative. The ridge is Mount Logan, and the hills behind it are the ones you hike here.

The story goes that in the early 1800s, when Chillicothe was Ohio's first capital, a small group met at Thomas Worthington's estate, Adena, to work out what the new state's seal should look like. Worthington was the father of Ohio statehood and its first U.S. senator; with him were Edward Tiffin, the first governor, and William Creighton, the first secretary of state. They talked all night. At dawn they walked outside and watched the sun come up over Mount Logan and this ridgeline, and that was the image. The wheat stood for Ohio's farms, the seventeen arrows for the seventeenth state in the Union, the thirteen sun rays for the original colonies.

Mount Logan carries its own weight. It's named for Chief Logan, the Mingo leader whose lament — delivered after frontier settlers murdered his entire family — became one of the most quoted pieces of Native American oratory in early American history. And before any of that, this was Shawnee country. Three Shawnee towns, all named Chillicothe, stood below these hills. The intersection of five major Native trails lay just north. Tecumseh was born not far from here. Geologically, this is the ragged western edge of the Allegheny Plateau, where flat glaciated farmland gives way to deeply eroded unglaciated country — which is exactly why the trails go from gentle to brutal in about a hundred yards. Hikers consistently rate these among the hardest climbs in Ohio.

Things to do in the park

Climb Sugarloaf Mountain or Bunker Hill for the Scioto Valley views
18-hole disc golf course
The COVID-19 Pandemic Memorial Grove, opened 2021 — 15 native Ohio trees and a paved walkway
Primitive campsites
Mountain biking and horseback riding on the multi-use system

Trails

Maps, reviews and recent trail reports for Great Seal State Park.

Find trails on AllTrails →

Things to do nearby

Adena Mansion — Worthington's estate, where the seal was conceived, now a state memorial
Hopewell Culture National Historical Park and the Mound City Group
The outdoor drama 'Tecumseh' at Sugarloaf Mountain Amphitheatre in summer
Scioto Trail State Park, just south of Chillicothe

Hiking trails

About 5 miles of nature trail plus roughly 17 miles of multi-use trail open to hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding — around 22 miles total. The climbs are short but genuinely steep; Sugarloaf and Bunker Hill are the ones people talk about afterward.

Wildlife you might see

White-tailed deer and wild turkey
Hardwood ridge forest with strong fall color
Raptors riding the thermals over the ridgelines
Spring wildflowers in the hollows

Fishing

No significant fishing water inside the park — this is a hiking and ridgeline park. The Scioto River runs in the valley below.

Hunting

Check current park regulations before planning a hunt here; the park is relatively small and heavily used by hikers and riders.

The Sunrise That Made the Seal

Ohio's founders are said to have stayed up all night. It was 1802 and 1803, the constitution was done, and the new state still needed a seal. The tradition places the men at Thomas Worthington's estate, Adena, in Chillicothe: Worthington, the first governor Edward Tiffin, and the first secretary of state, William Creighton. When they stepped outside at dawn, the sun was rising over a ridge across the Scioto Valley. They agreed that was the picture, and Creighton put it on paper.

That ridge is Mount Logan, and the hills in front of it are the ones that make up Great Seal State Park. The seal shows the sun peeking over the mountain with thirteen rays, a sheaf of wheat for farming, and seventeen arrows because Ohio was the seventeenth state. A river runs between the fields and the peak, and it is the Scioto.

Behind the legend

Nobody wrote down the all-night meeting, which is why ODNR's own marker says the design is 'said to have been' the joint inspiration of Worthington, Tiffin and Creighton, and why a second park sign calls it historical lore. What is documented is the paper trail. Ohio's lawmakers described the first state seal in 1803, with wheat, seventeen arrows and a mountain in the background, and the design was changed many times before the General Assembly approved the present one in 1967 and tweaked it in 1996. The 'mountains' on the first seal became the more honest hills.

The place names hold up better than the meeting. The Shawnee had three towns called Chillicothe below these hills, and the Scioto was their road. Mount Logan is said to be named for Chief Logan, the Mingo leader, and his famous speech was reportedly made not far from here (see the Tar Hollow entry for the full story). Look at the seal on any state document and you are looking at this valley, however the decision was actually made.

If you go

Come at sunrise and climb to a ridge with a view east or north across the Scioto Valley. Then drive into Chillicothe and visit Adena, Worthington's estate, to stand where the story says the founders stood. The trails here are steep, so give yourself extra time.

Mounds & earthworks near Great Seal State Park

Ancient earthworks within easy reach of this park. Tap one for its history, legends and visiting details.