Independence Dam State Park
Encyclopedia
Independence Dam State Park is a 591 acres (239.2 ha) in Defiance County
, Ohio
in the United States. This Ohio state park lies on the banks of the Maumee River
and features ruins of the Miami and Erie Canal
. The park was established in 1949 and is open for year round recreation including, boating, fishing, hiking and picnicking. It is off U.S. Route 24
just east of Defiance, Ohio
.
of the Auglaize River
and Maumee River
. The area has played a key role in the history of northwest Ohio providing a travel route for numerous Indian tribes
including the Iroquois
, Miami
, Lenape
, Ottawa
, Erie
, Wyandot, and Shawnee
. Anglo-American explorers were also drawn to the rivers for many of the same reasons as the Native Americans. It provided a reliable source of water as well as an abundance of fish
and game
.
Two Indian leaders spent part of their lives in the area. Pontiac
, an Ottawa leader, is believed to have been born near the confluence of the rivers. He went on to lead what is known as Pontiac's Rebellion against the trade policies of the British
rulers in the years following the French and Indian War
. Blue Jacket
a Shawnee leader made his home in the area. He was a leader in the Northwest Indian War
an effort by a united group of tribes
to halt the westward expansion of American settlement.
President George Washington
dispatched General Anthony Wayne
and his army to the Northwest Territory
to put down the Indian uprising. After the Native Americans were driven out and west, the land was opened to settlement by Anglo-Americans. Homesteaders arrived soon after. They cleared the land and began farming.
The Miami and Erie
and Wabash and Erie Canal
s passed through the area of Independence State Park. The canals connected the Ohio River
with Lake Erie
. Cities such as Defiance
grew along the banks of the canal. They developed into trade and industrial centers. The canal system thrived for about thirty years in the mid-to-late 19th century before they were replaced by the railroads.
A flood
in 1913 destroyed much of what remained of the canals. Seven preserved miles of the canal stretch between Independence Dam State Park and Ohio State Route 424
. The ruins of Lock Number Thirteen of the canal are crossed by the main park entrance.
Independence Dam was built in the 19th century to provide water for the canal system. The original wooden dam was replaced in 1924 by the current concrete dam. At this time several civic organizations began a drive to set aside the land between the river and the canal as a state park. The Ohio Department of Public Works purchased the lands and Independence Dam State Park was opened to the public in 1949.
which was 30 to 40 miles (64.4 km) wide and about 120 miles (193.1 km) long. It was a heavily forested area that was home to massive sycamore trees that were converted into barns and in some cases homes. Oak
and tulip trees
were mixed in with the sycamore and walnut
. Nearly every tree was cut in less than 100 years after the settlement of Ohio.
The Maumee Valley was one of the last areas of Ohio to be cleared. The swampy ground made it difficult for settlers to enter. The swamp was drained between 1859 and 1875 with a series of ditches and drains. Nearly 2500000 acres (10,117.2 km²) of land were cleared after the swamps were emptied. The region was covered with farms, as it is today, by 1885. Only six percent of the Maumee Valley is now covered with forests, some of this land is in Independence Dam State Park and up and down the Maumee River from the park.
Stands of Great Sycamore, beech
, maple
and Black Locust trees line the river banks. The river banks support a variety of woodland plant and animals including Skunk
s, Raccoon
s, Fox Squirrel
s, Groundhog
s, jewelweed
, spring beauties
, Louisiana waterthrush
, and Yellow-throated warbler
s.
. The river is home to northern pike
, crappie
, walleye
, smallmouth bass
, and catfish
. Anglers must have a valid Ohio fishing license when fishing at the park. The former towpath
for the Miami and Erie Canal is open for hiking and biking. There are several picnic tables along the banks of the river.
Defiance County, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 39,500 people, 15,138 households, and 11,020 families residing in the county. The population density was 96 people per square mile . There were 16,040 housing units at an average density of 39 per square mile...
, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
in the United States. This Ohio state park lies on the banks of the Maumee River
Maumee River
The Maumee River is a river in northwestern Ohio and northeastern Indiana in the United States. It is formed at Fort Wayne, Indiana by the confluence of the St. Joseph and St. Marys rivers, and meanders northeastwardly for through an agricultural region of glacial moraines before flowing into the...
and features ruins of the Miami and Erie Canal
Miami and Erie Canal
The Miami and Erie Canal was a canal that connected the Ohio River in Cincinnati, Ohio with Lake Erie in Toledo, Ohio. Construction on the canal began in 1825 and was completed in 1845. It consisted of 19 aqueducts, three guard locks, and 103 canal locks. Each lock measured by and they...
. The park was established in 1949 and is open for year round recreation including, boating, fishing, hiking and picnicking. It is off U.S. Route 24
U.S. Route 24
U.S. Route 24 is one of the original United States highways of 1926. It originally ran from Pontiac, Michigan, in the east to Kansas City, Missouri, in the west. Today, the highway's eastern terminus is west of Clarkston, Michigan, at an intersection with I-75 and its western terminus is near...
just east of Defiance, Ohio
Defiance, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 16,465 people, 6,572 households, and 4,422 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,562.4 people per square mile . There were 7,061 housing units at an average density of 670.0 per square mile...
.
History
Independence Dam State Park is near the confluenceConfluence (geography)
In geography, a confluence is the meeting of two or more bodies of water. It usually refers to the point where two streams flow together, merging into a single stream...
of the Auglaize River
Auglaize River
The Auglaize River is a tributary of the Maumee River in northwestern Ohio in the United States. It drains a primarily rural farming area in the watershed of Lake Erie. The name of the river either comes from a Shawnee phrase meaning "fallen timbers" or a French term for "frozen water."It rises in...
and Maumee River
Maumee River
The Maumee River is a river in northwestern Ohio and northeastern Indiana in the United States. It is formed at Fort Wayne, Indiana by the confluence of the St. Joseph and St. Marys rivers, and meanders northeastwardly for through an agricultural region of glacial moraines before flowing into the...
. The area has played a key role in the history of northwest Ohio providing a travel route for numerous Indian tribes
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
including the Iroquois
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
, Miami
Miami tribe
The Miami are a Native American nation originally found in what is now Indiana, southwest Michigan, and western Ohio. The Miami Tribe of Oklahoma is the only federally recognized tribe of Miami Indians in the United States...
, Lenape
Lenape
The Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...
, Ottawa
Odawa people
The Odawa or Ottawa, said to mean "traders," are a Native American and First Nations people. They are one of the Anishinaabeg, related to but distinct from the Ojibwe nation. Their original homelands are located on Manitoulin Island, near the northern shores of Lake Huron, on the Bruce Peninsula in...
, Erie
Erie (tribe)
The Erie were an Native American people historically living on the south shore of Lake Erie. An Iroquoian group, they lived in what is now western New York, northwestern Pennsylvania, and northern Ohio...
, Wyandot, and Shawnee
Shawnee
The Shawnee, Shaawanwaki, Shaawanooki and Shaawanowi lenaweeki, are an Algonquian-speaking people native to North America. Historically they inhabited the areas of Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Western Maryland, Kentucky, Indiana, and Pennsylvania...
. Anglo-American explorers were also drawn to the rivers for many of the same reasons as the Native Americans. It provided a reliable source of water as well as an abundance of fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
and game
Game (food)
Game is any animal hunted for food or not normally domesticated. Game animals are also hunted for sport.The type and range of animals hunted for food varies in different parts of the world. This will be influenced by climate, animal diversity, local taste and locally accepted view about what can or...
.
Two Indian leaders spent part of their lives in the area. Pontiac
Chief Pontiac
Pontiac or Obwandiyag , was an Ottawa leader who became famous for his role in Pontiac's Rebellion , an American Indian struggle against the British military occupation of the Great Lakes region following the British victory in the French and Indian War. Historians disagree about Pontiac's...
, an Ottawa leader, is believed to have been born near the confluence of the rivers. He went on to lead what is known as Pontiac's Rebellion against the trade policies of the British
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
rulers in the years following the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
. Blue Jacket
Blue Jacket
Blue Jacket or Weyapiersenwah was a war chief of the Shawnee people, known for his militant defense of Shawnee lands in the Ohio Country...
a Shawnee leader made his home in the area. He was a leader in the Northwest Indian War
Northwest Indian War
The Northwest Indian War , also known as Little Turtle's War and by various other names, was a war fought between the United States and a confederation of numerous American Indian tribes for control of the Northwest Territory...
an effort by a united group of tribes
Western Confederacy
The Western Confederacy, also known as Western Indian Confederacy, was a loose confederacy of North American Natives in the Great Lakes region following the American Revolutionary War...
to halt the westward expansion of American settlement.
President George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
dispatched General Anthony Wayne
Anthony Wayne
Anthony Wayne was a United States Army general and statesman. Wayne adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his military exploits and fiery personality quickly earned him a promotion to the rank of brigadier general and the sobriquet of Mad Anthony.-Early...
and his army to the Northwest Territory
Northwest Territory
The Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, more commonly known as the Northwest Territory, was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 13, 1787, until March 1, 1803, when the southeastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of Ohio...
to put down the Indian uprising. After the Native Americans were driven out and west, the land was opened to settlement by Anglo-Americans. Homesteaders arrived soon after. They cleared the land and began farming.
The Miami and Erie
Miami and Erie Canal
The Miami and Erie Canal was a canal that connected the Ohio River in Cincinnati, Ohio with Lake Erie in Toledo, Ohio. Construction on the canal began in 1825 and was completed in 1845. It consisted of 19 aqueducts, three guard locks, and 103 canal locks. Each lock measured by and they...
and Wabash and Erie Canal
Wabash and Erie Canal
The Wabash and Erie Canal was a shipping canal that linked the Great Lakes to the Ohio River via an artificial waterway. The canal provided traders with access from the Great Lakes all the way to the Gulf of Mexico...
s passed through the area of Independence State Park. The canals connected the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
with Lake Erie
Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...
. Cities such as Defiance
Defiance, Ohio
As of the census of 2000, there were 16,465 people, 6,572 households, and 4,422 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,562.4 people per square mile . There were 7,061 housing units at an average density of 670.0 per square mile...
grew along the banks of the canal. They developed into trade and industrial centers. The canal system thrived for about thirty years in the mid-to-late 19th century before they were replaced by the railroads.
Flood
A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...
in 1913 destroyed much of what remained of the canals. Seven preserved miles of the canal stretch between Independence Dam State Park and Ohio State Route 424
Ohio State Route 424
State Route 424 is an east–west state highway in the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of Ohio. Its western terminus is at the Defiance County/Henry County line, and its eastern terminus is at U.S. Route 24 near Napoleon....
. The ruins of Lock Number Thirteen of the canal are crossed by the main park entrance.
Independence Dam was built in the 19th century to provide water for the canal system. The original wooden dam was replaced in 1924 by the current concrete dam. At this time several civic organizations began a drive to set aside the land between the river and the canal as a state park. The Ohio Department of Public Works purchased the lands and Independence Dam State Park was opened to the public in 1949.
Ecology
Independence Dam State Park is in the Maumee Valley. This valley has been changed tremendously since it was settled after the Northwest Indian War. It was in the middle of the Great Black SwampGreat Black Swamp
The Great Black Swamp, or simply Black Swamp, was a glacially caused wetland in northwest Ohio, United States, extending into extreme northeastern Indiana, that existed from the end of the Wisconsin glaciation until the late 19th century...
which was 30 to 40 miles (64.4 km) wide and about 120 miles (193.1 km) long. It was a heavily forested area that was home to massive sycamore trees that were converted into barns and in some cases homes. Oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
and tulip trees
Liriodendron
Liriodendron is a genus of two species of characteristically large deciduous trees in the magnolia family .These trees are widely known by the common name tulip tree or tuliptree for their large flowers superficially resembling tulips, but are closely related to magnolias rather than lilies, the...
were mixed in with the sycamore and walnut
Walnut
Juglans is a plant genus of the family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are known as walnuts. They are deciduous trees, 10–40 meters tall , with pinnate leaves 200–900 millimetres long , with 5–25 leaflets; the shoots have chambered pith, a character shared with the wingnuts , but not the hickories...
. Nearly every tree was cut in less than 100 years after the settlement of Ohio.
Stands of Great Sycamore, beech
Beech
Beech is a genus of ten species of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia and North America.-Habit:...
, maple
Maple
Acer is a genus of trees or shrubs commonly known as maple.Maples are variously classified in a family of their own, the Aceraceae, or together with the Hippocastanaceae included in the family Sapindaceae. Modern classifications, including the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group system, favour inclusion in...
and Black Locust trees line the river banks. The river banks support a variety of woodland plant and animals including Skunk
Skunk
Skunks are mammals best known for their ability to secrete a liquid with a strong, foul odor. General appearance varies from species to species, from black-and-white to brown or cream colored. Skunks belong to the family Mephitidae and to the order Carnivora...
s, Raccoon
Raccoon
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
s, Fox Squirrel
Fox Squirrel
The fox squirrel is the largest species of tree squirrel native to North America...
s, Groundhog
Groundhog
The groundhog , also known as a woodchuck, whistle-pig, or in some areas as a land-beaver, is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots. Other marmots, such as the yellow-bellied and hoary marmots, live in rocky and mountainous areas, but...
s, jewelweed
Impatiens
Impatiens is a genus of about 850–1,000 species of flowering plants, widely distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere and tropics. Together with the puzzling Hydrocera triflora, this genus makes up the family Balsaminaceae...
, spring beauties
Claytonia
Claytonia is a genus of 26 species of flowering plants in the family Montiaceae, primarily native to North America, with a few species extending south to Guatemala in Central America, and northwest to northeastern Asia....
, Louisiana waterthrush
Louisiana Waterthrush
The Louisiana Waterthrush is a New World warbler. It breeds in eastern North America from southernmost Canada and south through the eastern USA, excluding Florida and the coast....
, and Yellow-throated warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
The Yellow-throated Warbler, Dendroica dominica, is a small migratory songbird species breeding in temperate North America. It belongs to the New World warbler family .-Description:...
s.
Recreation
Independence Dam State Park is open for year round recreation. Access to the Maumee River is provided at the park. Unlimited horsepower boating is allowed on the river. A four mile (6 km) section above Independence Dam is open to water skiingWater skiing
thumb|right|A slalom skier making a turn on a slalom waterski.Waterskiing is a sport where an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation on a body of water, skimming the surface.-History:...
. The river is home to northern pike
Northern Pike
The northern pike , is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus Esox...
, crappie
Crappie
Crappie is a genus of freshwater fish in the sunfish family of order Perciformes. The type species is P. annularis, the white crappie...
, walleye
Walleye
Walleye is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European pikeperch...
, smallmouth bass
Smallmouth bass
The smallmouth bass is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family of the order Perciformes. It is the type species of its genus...
, and catfish
Catfish
Catfishes are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Named for their prominent barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, catfish range in size and behavior from the heaviest and longest, the Mekong giant catfish from Southeast Asia and the second longest, the wels catfish of Eurasia, to detritivores...
. Anglers must have a valid Ohio fishing license when fishing at the park. The former towpath
Towpath
A towpath is a road or trail on the bank of a river, canal, or other inland waterway. The purpose of a towpath is to allow a land vehicle, beasts of burden, or a team of human pullers to tow a boat, often a barge...
for the Miami and Erie Canal is open for hiking and biking. There are several picnic tables along the banks of the river.