Van Buren State Park is a public recreation area surrounding

Van Buren Lake Van Buren Lake is a lake in Hancock County, Ohio, in the United States. The lake is formed by a dam on Rocky Ford Creek, which was built in 1939. Van Buren Lake was named after Martin Van Buren, 8th President of the United States. See also *Lis ...

in Hancock County, Ohio, in the United States. The

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...

covers abutting the southern boundary of the village of

Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party, he ...

and offers fishing, boating, camping, hiking, and other recreational activities.

History

The process of creating the park began in 1939 when a dam was built over Rocky Ford Creek creating

as part of a private wildlife preserve. The lake and preserve were transferred to the state of Ohio for use as a state park in 1950.

Ecology

Van Buren State Park is in a rich

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...

area. Northwest Ohio is part of the Interior Plains region of North America. The land is largely flat with a few hills that are a remnant of the last ice age. Beneath the topsoil lies a layer of dolomitic limestone. The park is in a small patch of woods surrounded by thousands of acres of fields of

corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...

, wheat and soybeans. The land was largely forested before it was cleared by farmers. A small patch of woodland, made mostly of

beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...

and sugar maple trees, remains at Van Buren State Park. Typical woodland mammals found in the park include white-tailed deer,

red fox The red fox (''Vulpes vulpes'') is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the Order (biology), order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere including most of North America, Europe ...

red squirrel The red squirrel (''Sciurus vulgaris'') is a species of tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus'' common throughout Europe and Asia. The red squirrel is an arboreal, primarily herbivorous rodent. In Great Britain, Ireland, and in Italy numbers ...

skunk Skunks are mammals in the family Mephitidae. They are known for their ability to spray a liquid with a strong, unpleasant scent from their anal glands. Different species of skunk vary in appearance from black-and-white to brown, cream or ginge ...

, and

opossum Opossums () are members of the marsupial order Didelphimorphia () endemic to the Americas. The largest order of marsupials in the Western Hemisphere, it comprises 93 species in 18 genera. Opossums originated in South America and entered North ...

. Bird species include the cowbird, woodcock, eastern bluebird, short-eared owl and eastern meadowlark. The park is also home to garter snakes and

spring peepers The spring peeper (''Pseudacris crucifer'') is a small chorus frog widespread throughout the eastern United States and Canada. They prefer permanent ponds due to their advantage in avoiding predation; however, they are very adaptable with respect ...

. Wildflowers in the area include chicory, spring beauty,

Dutchman's breeches ''Dicentra cucullaria'', Dutchman's britches, or Dutchman's breeches, is a perennial herbaceous plant, native to rich woods of eastern North America, with a disjunct population in the Columbia Basin. The common name Dutchman's breeches deriv ...

daisy fleabane Daisy fleabane is a common name for several species in the genus ''Erigeron'': * ''Erigeron annuus'', the eastern daisy fleabane * '' Erigeron bellidiastrum'', the western daisy fleabane * ''Erigeron strigosus ''Erigeron strigosus'' is a species ...

and thimbleweed.

Activities and amenities

The park features boating for hand- and electric-powered water craft, trails for hikers, mountain bikers and horseback riders, and primitive, full-service and equestrian camping. Fish species found in the lake include largemouth bass,

carp Carp are various species of oily freshwater fish from the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. While carp is consumed in many parts of the world, they are generally considered an invasive species in parts of ...

bluegill The bluegill (''Lepomis macrochirus''), sometimes referred to as "bream", "brim", "sunny", or "copper nose" as is common in Texas, is a species of North American freshwater fish, native to and commonly found in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and ...

channel catfish The channel catfish (''Ictalurus punctatus'') is North America's most numerous catfish species. It is the official fish of Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and Tennessee, and is informally referred to as a "channel cat". In the United States, the ...

, bullhead and

crappie Crappies () are two species of North American freshwater fish of the genus ''Pomoxis'' in the family Centrarchidae (sunfishes). Both species of crappies are popular game fish among recreational anglers. Etymology The genus name ''Pomoxis'' ...

. Hunting is limited to bowhunting.

References

External links

Van Buren State Park
Ohio Department of Natural Resources
Van Buren State Park Map
Ohio Department of Natural Resources {{authority control State parks of Ohio Protected areas of Hancock County, Ohio Protected areas established in 1950 1950 establishments in Ohio