When Ron Ehrbar was growing up in the 1960s, he would visit the site of Kelleys Island glacial grooves, an unusual geological feature left from the ice age that was discovered during quarrying.
“I can remember pulling pollywogs from the crevices of the grooves when they were still covered,” Ehrbar says.
Today, he is the mayor of
Kelleys Island and proud to welcome more than 100,000 people each year to the
Glacial Grooves Geological Preserve, believed to be the largest preserved glacial grooves site in the world.
After a $2.27 million upgrade to the site that added handicapped-accessible features, interpretive panels that explain the site’s geology and fossils embedded in the limestone, observation platform, and improved viewing areas, the public can better appreciate this rare landmark.
The
Ohio Department of Natural Resources and
Ohio History Connection, which partnered to run the site until OHC turned the site’s management over to ODNR in May, unveiled the upgrades on May 19. The grooves are located on the north side of the island next to
Kelleys Island State Park.
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The grooves are a product of the ice age when glaciers that formed the Great Lakes and Lake Erie Islands came through the area tens of thousands of years ago and scoured the rock. (Photo/Kristina Smith)“Each island has its own unique charms and attractions, but the grooves really stand out at Kelleys,” says
Mary Mertz, ODNR Director. “It’s an amazing place. Now it is in a state we can really be proud of and draw people here to enjoy it.”
So far, that is exactly what the project has done, says Chris Ashley, Glacial Grooves Geological Preserve Park Manager.
“It’s been fantastic,” Ashley says of the feedback from visitors. “They’re just amazed. The experience is so much better.”
The clear safety guards around the site replace a chain-link fence that surrounded the grooves since they opened to the public in 1973. The new features and viewing platform that overlooks the former stone quarry over scenic views of the island, and in the spring, blooms of the endangered
Lakeside daisy that grows on the island.
“With the chain-link fence, you weren’t able to see everything,” Mertz says. “I think what you see is a first-class improvement.”
In addition to visitor experience upgrades, the project included drainage improvements to help preserve the grooves, she says. The
Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Geological Survey, funded the project, says Assistant Division Chief J.D. Stucker.
The three-year project began in 2020 with a study of the site and how to best implement the desired upgrades, Stucker says. The design was completed in 2021, and construction took place from early 2022 through fall 2022.
Despite concern that the grooves were eroding, the site review found they have been well preserved, says Bill Kennedy, OHC archaeologist who worked on the upgrades project.
“There are some changes in the grooves’ appearance. When they were first uncovered, they were more polished and shiny,” Kennedy says. “The weather has changed somewhat that appearance. Otherwise they look the same as in the 1970s.”
Although the grooves were unearthed in 1972, islanders were aware of their existence since the 1800s through the quarrying process. The glacial grooves are 400 feet long, 35 feet wide and 15 feet deep.
“There were lots more grooves,” Kennedy says. “This was the part that was saved and preserved. They are probably the most famous glacial grooves in the world. There are not many that are accessible.”
The grooves tell two stories of Ohio’s past and are a textbook example of what glacial grooves are, Stucker says.
The fossils embedded into the Columbus limestone, which are easily visible to visitors, show ancient marine life that lived in that spot about 400 million years ago. They include cephalopods, which are related to modern squid and octopi; gastropods, which belong to a group that includes snails; and corals, which are related to jellyfish and sea anemones.
The grooves themselves are a product of the ice age when glaciers that formed the Great Lakes and Lake Erie Islands came through the area tens of thousands of years ago and scoured the rock.
“Glaciers really changed the landscape,” Kennedy says. “When you see this, you can appreciate the immense power of the glaciers to really scour the rock and shape the stone. It’s one of those sites that when you get there, it’s larger than you expect, and that’s not always true when people go to see a historical or natural history site. I think the grooves usually exceed what you’re expecting.”
The glacial grooves are located at 739 Division St., Kelleys Island. The island is accessible by ferry boats, the Kelleys Island Ferry Boat Line and the Jet Express.