Cleveland Metroparks

The genesis of the Cleveland Metropolitan Park System began with a vision by William Albert Stinchcomb in the early 20th century.[3] A self-taught engineer working as a surveyor for the City of Cleveland in 1895, Stinchcomb was appointed chief engineer of the City Parks Department by Mayor Tom Johnson in 1902, and shortly thereafter began to conceptualize an Emerald Necklace for the city.[4] Stinchcomb lobbied the Ohio legislature to amend the state constitution so as to permit the authorization of natural resource conservation at the county level in 1913.[5] However, the Ohio Supreme Court overturned Cuyahoga County's new park law as unconstitutional. Unflappable in his pursuit, Stinchcomb then went back to Columbus lobbying for new legislation allowing for the establishment of what was to become the Metropolitan Park District, which is today the oldest metropolitan park district in Ohio.[6]

In 1915, Stinchcomb received the break that would finally allow him to pursue his ambitious goal. While serving as Cuyahoga County engineer, he was approached by city council and offered an appointment as consulting engineer on what was eventually to become the Cleveland Metropolitan Park District board—the same board he'd lobbied for two years prior. Stinchcomb accepted and, at the urging of city council, immediately hired the renowned landscape architectural firm, the Olmsted Brothers. The group immediately went to work drawing up plans for a system of connecting parks as well as the acquisition of land and resources.[4] The proposed Cuyahoga County Park and Boulevard System, which included a parkway encircling the Cleveland area, following various creeks and rivers in the area, was the framework for what would become today's Metroparks system.[7]

Stinchcomb returned to the Statehouse in 1917, this time as an officer of the newly formed Metropolitan Park District board, and proposed a bill that would authorize the Metropolitan Park District board to levy a one-tenth mill tax to fund the district's operations. This was followed shortly after by the authorization of a second on-tenth mill tax to fund property acquisition[4] By 1921, the fledgling Park District had acquired the land that would become the Rocky River and Big Creek Reservations, most of which was donated.[4] Between 1920 and 1930, the system grew through the investment of capital from its tax levies. Purchased for approximately $4 million, land for the Hinckley, Brecksville, Bedford, South Chagrin, North Chagrin and Euclid Creek Reservations increased the district's holdings from just over 100 acres to more than 9,000 within the span of a decade.[7]

With free admission and almost unlimited access during daylight hours, the Metroparks' 23,000+ acres are a widely popular destination for runners, hikers, cyclists, boaters, fishermen, and nature enthusiasts. A major source of outdoor recreation in the region, official attendance figures recorded 18.5 million recreational visitors to the system's 18 reservations and the zoo in 2018, making the attraction one of the most visited in the state of Ohio.[8] The Metroparks golf courses, amenities that do exact a fee, attract over 400,000 golfers annually. With varying resources, terrains and geographical features, each park is unique. Some features, such as the toboggan chutes (also ask a fee) at Mill Stream Run Reservation's Chalet, are found nowhere else in the entire State of Ohio.[9]

The Metroparks are patrolled by the Cleveland Metroparks Police Department, whose name was changed from "Rangers" to its original 1921 name in 2019 so that the public would understand the police function the department provides. Officers in the department are fully certified police officers.[10] The department's primary goal is to provide a safe environment for the millions of visitors to the park system. The Police Department is a full service law enforcement agency. Metropark officers patrol the reservations 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, enforcing both traffic and criminal laws including wildlife violations. The department was founded in 1917. Today the Cleveland Metroparks Police Department utilizes several specialized police units including; K-9 Unit, Mounted Unit, Dive Team, Detective Bureau, Bicycle unit, Traffic Unit, Special Operations, and a Subject Control team.[11]

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  Chippewa Creek in the Brecksville Reservation.
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  An African Elephant at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo.
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  Whipps Ledges at Hinckley Reservation.
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  Squire's Castle at the North Chagrin Reservation.
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  Buttermilk Falls in the North Chagrin Reservation.
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  A bend in the Rocky River in the Rocky River Reservation.
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  Shale cliffs along the Rocky River in the Rocky River Reservation.
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  The Chagrin River as viewed from the South Chagrin Reservation.
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  The Chagrin River as viewed from Cleveland Metroparks (Willoughby Hills, Ohio).
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  Water falling over the shale creek bed in Euclid Creek Reservation.
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  Beyer's Pond, in the Big Creek Reservation, Middleburg Heights.

• Squire's Castle (North Chagrin Reservation, Willoughby Hills)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cleveland Metroparks.

• Cleveland Metroparks site
• Cleveland Metroparks Zoo site