GOhio! Adventures Around Columbus

Early-bird coffee and conversation at Grumpy's Coffee Garage!

The deep indigenous history of the land comprising Blacklick Woods Metro Park came to light in stages, beginning with a major discovery during the park's mid-century expansion. In 1961, the park district acquired a 100-acre parcel of land where a previous owner had stripped away topsoil and gravel from a five-acre section. Beneath the surface, workers uncovered 16 ancient fire rings buried roughly 30 inches underground. The park district promptly invited Dr. Raymond S. Baby, the respected Curator of Archaeology at the Ohio State Museum, to evaluate the site. After a thorough review, Dr. Baby confirmed the authenticity of the find and determined that the fire rings were the unmistakable remnants of a prehistoric Late Woodland period Indian village dating between AD 600 and AD 1200. This incredible area was proudly highlighted as the "Indian Village Site" on official Blacklick Woods park maps throughout the 1960s, anchoring the park's identity in Ohio's rich indigenous heritage.

Decades later, the park's archaeological timeline expanded significantly when a completely separate, grander feature was discovered hidden just west of Blacklick Creek. In 2017, David Lamp, an eagle-eyed former archaeologist from Lancaster, was systematically analyzing historical aerial photographs kept by the USDA to locate undocumented native structures. While examining a photograph captured in 1954 -- back when the property was still a rural farm owned by the Ashton Lamp family -- he spied a massive, distinct dark circle. Because perfect circles are an extreme anomaly in the natural world, Lamp immediately recognized the shadow as the footprint of a forgotten indigenous monument. Before the land became a protected park, decades of heavy agricultural plowing and livestock grazing had flattened the ground, wearing the structure's physical height down to an easily overlooked 10 inches tall.

To verify Lamp's incredible aerial find, a team from the Heartland Earthworks Conservancy partnered with park staff to clear away dense brush and trees covering the site. Renowned volunteer archaeologist Jarrod Burks led a sophisticated geophysical survey on September 24, 2017, inviting the public to watch the science unfold in real time. Burks pulled an array of highly sensitive magnetometers across the soil, measuring minuscule variations in the ground's magnetic content. Because topsoil holds a higher magnetic signature than deeper substrate layers, the instruments clearly mapped a massive, ancient ditch that had filled with topsoil over centuries of erosion. This advanced technology produced a stunning, flawless digital visualization of a hidden prehistoric circular earthwork buried right beneath the feet of unsuspecting park hikers.

The data collected by Burks revealed that the Blacklick Circle originally featured a three-to-five-foot earthen embankment pairing with a distinct interior ditch. The structure is estimated to have a total diameter of just under 100 feet, and the magnetic imaging perfectly captured the precise location of the circle’s original eastern entranceway. Archaeologists attribute this monumental construction to the ancient Adena or Hopewell cultures, pushing the park’s human history back roughly 2,000 to 2,200 years. While the Adena and Hopewell peoples are famous throughout the Ohio River valley for building giant burial mounds, circular enclosures like this one served distinct communal purposes. Because these earthworks do not contain human remains, they are understood to be highly sacred, carefully engineered gathering spaces for spiritual ceremonies and social alignment.

Today, the Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks system treats this miraculous discovery as a crown jewel of regional cultural heritage. Rather than excavating and disrupting the sacred ground, the park utilizes a creative technique known as interpretive mowing. By cutting the grass at strategic heights, rangers visually outline the exact contours and entrance of the ancient circle so visitors can appreciate its scale from the adjacent recreational trail. Educational signs and informative placards now stand near the site, teaching families about the advanced architectural and mathematical skills of the region's first inhabitants. The discovery stands as a powerful reminder that our local green spaces are not just nature preserves, but deeply sacred, historical landscapes that have drawn human communities together for millennia.

Map of the Park

Here is a map of Blacklick Woods.

Summary

For this event, we will hike about 4.5 miles by doing a couple loops of the Buttonbush, Tucker, Maple Loop, and Beech trails. Blacklick Woods is a very nice park, but it is generally flat and not strenuous, so this will be one of our easier hikes.

Where We'll Meet

Drive all the way to the back of the park to the parking lot that is nearest the Nature Center. There are restrooms here next to the Canopy Walk. We'll meet near these restrooms.

After the Hike

Afterward, we'll head over to Eastside Brewing Co for drinks and food. The actual address of the brewery is 1421 Davidson Dr, Reynoldsburg, OH 43068. We should be there by 5 if you can't make the hike and just want to join us for drinks.

Hidden in the Appalachian hills of northern West Virginia, just outside a town called Moundsville, sits an architectural anomaly that feels entirely out of place. It is a structure of marble, gold leaf, and intricate stained glass known as Prabhupada's Palace of Gold. To a first-time visitor, it looks like a piece of royal India was somehow airlifted and dropped into an American coal-mining region.

The story of the Palace is not just a religious history; it is a quintessential "DIY" American immigrant story -- one that began with a modest plan for a simple house and evolved into what The New York Times once called "America's Taj Mahal."

The Visionary and the Volunteers

The story begins in 1966 with A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, a 70-year-old monk who arrived in New York City from India with almost no money. He founded the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), commonly known as the Hare Krishna movement. By the early 1970s, his followers had established a farm community in West Virginia called New Vrindaban, intended to be a spiritual commune focused on "simple living and high thinking."

In 1973, the devotees decided to build a simple, ranch-style home for Prabhupada so he could write his books in the quiet of the countryside. They weren't architects or professional builders; they were mostly young American counter-culture converts -- former hippies and college students -- who learned construction skills on the fly by reading manuals and experimenting.

From House to Palace

As the project progressed, the followers’ devotion transformed the modest plan into something far more ambitious. When Prabhupada passed away in 1977 before the building was finished, the project’s purpose shifted. It was no longer a residence; it became a memorial shrine (a smriti samadhi) dedicated to their founder.

Because they lacked a massive budget, the devotees did almost everything by hand. They taught themselves how to cast gold-veined mirrors, carve intricate wood panels, and work with marble. Over several years, they imported over 50 types of marble and applied more than eight pounds of 22-karat gold leaf to the structure’s domes and accents. The result was a stunning display of "devotional art" -- a fusion of Eastern religious motifs and Western craftsmanship.

Fame and Controversy

When the Palace opened to the public in 1979, it became an overnight sensation. During the 1980s, it was a major tourist destination, drawing nearly 150,000 visitors a year. People traveled from all over the world to see the "miracle in the hills."

However, the late 80s brought a dark chapter. The New Vrindaban community was rocked by leadership scandals, legal battles, and internal strife. For a period, the Palace fell into a state of neglect. The harsh Appalachian winters began to wear down the delicate gold leaf and the intricate stonework. The "Taj Mahal" was at risk of crumbling.

The Modern Renaissance

In the last decade, the Palace of Gold has undergone a massive restoration. The community shifted its focus toward transparency and preservation, reclaiming the site as both a place of pilgrimage and a historic landmark.

Today, the Palace remains an incredible sensory experience. Visitors walk through manicured rose gardens featuring hundreds of varieties and past a large koi pond with fountains. Inside, the floors are polished marble, the ceilings are hand-painted, and the walls are adorned with "Vasari" style murals depicting scenes from ancient Indian texts.

You don't have to be a devotee to appreciate the site. For the secular visitor, the Palace is a testament to human obsession and grit. It represents a moment in American history when a group of young people, driven by a singular idea, built something objectively beautiful in the middle of nowhere using little more than library books and manual labor.

It stands as a strange, shimmering monument to the idea that with enough conviction, the exotic can become local, and a West Virginia ridge can become a gateway to another world.

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Maps of the grounds

In the Photos section, below, you will find a map of New Vrindaban, the unincorporated community in which the Palace, the Temple, and the rest of the associated grounds are located.

You will also find a map of the hiking trails of New Vrindaban, and also a screen shot of some other notes about the area.

Summary

For this event, we will explore the area of New Vrindaban, including the Temple, Goshala (cow sanctuary), the Peacock Walk, the Sri Sri Gaura Nitai (large statues of Krishna and his older brother Balarama), the gift shop, and of course, the Palace of Gold itself (which includes the Rose Garden and the Lotus Pond).

I'm not closed to the idea of also doing an abbreviated hike down the Bhagavad-gita Trail and back (it's a mile each way), and possibly half of the Govardhan Trail to the Palace (which would be about half a mile). It's West Virginia backcountry and completely gorgeous scenery.

The problem is that New Vrindaban itself is big enough and just seeing it will take some time, and I consider it to be the main selling point of this event, not the hiking (though the hiking is just incredible). So we won't plan for this, but we'll leave open the possibility just in case...

At the end of the event, we'll grab dinner at the onsite Govinda's Restaurant before heading back to C-bus.

"Eric, what is 'Krishna' and why should I care?"

Hare Krishna consciousness is basically a monotheistic offshoot of Hinduism. In this philosophy, Lord Krishna is god himself. Balarama is Krishna's older brother, though Balarama is really Krishna (technically, a "plenary expansion") as well. If you read the literature (all of which was written by Prabhupada himself), Krishna kills a lot of demons along with other sorts of humanity-saving and mesmerizing activities, but occasionally Balarama will kill a demon here and there, too.

Really, Prabhupada was writing astrology* with some Exodus and a little Vivid Video thrown in, garnished by a smidge of Jim Jones. The Temple services can be redolent of a Pentecostal church, yet they can also be quiet and serene. But the area of New Vrindaban is so peaceful, beautiful, tranquil, and idyllic, that it really needs to be seen to be appreciated. And sitting in the Temple during quiet times can be incredibly relaxing.

Yes, the whole facility's a couple hours east of Columbus, but if you put aside any sort of concern or interest in the religiosity of the place and see it instead as a marvel of nature and aesthetics, I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy seeing it. I also almost got murdered by a peacock here once.

* I'm being a little facetious here, in that he certainly didn't consciously see himself as an astrologer, though he does literally use the word in a couple places in his writing.

Tickets and pricing

The tour of the Palace is $12. They take credit cards. Everything else is free. (I mean, the restaurant and gift shop aren't free, but you take my point.)

Parking is free.

Where we'll meet

If you just type "Prabhupada's Palace of Gold" into Google Maps, you'll actually be going to the wrong the place. Yes, we're doing the Palace, but we're going to walk up there; we're not meeting at the Palace.

We're going to meet at the Welcome Center. If you type "Prabhupada's Palace of Gold" into Google Maps, the route Maps will give you will actually take you by the Welcome Center. So technically, you could navigate this way.

However, I'd recommend either using the map pin I've provided here, or type "Welcome Center, ISKCON New Vrindaban" into Maps.

When you pull in, you'll see three temporary 30-minute parking spots for lodge guests to unload their cars. Just make a right and drive in a half circle to the parking lot on the other side. It's possible you may see some spots along the half-circle as well where you can park, but you'll certainly find spots on the other side; you just have to drive around the half-circle to get to those spots.

Trust me, it's not nearly as complicated as I'm making it sound. No matter where you end up parking, you're not to be that far away from the Welcome Center.

Cell service and GPS

The Welcome Center, Temple, and restaurant (which are all clustered in the same place) all have free Wi-Fi, and it's actually pretty good Wi-Fi (it's a good strong signal; the password is on the door to the Welcome Center). You may not have cell service down here though; this area's at the bottom of a hill.

Up at the Palace, which is at the top of the hill, you may actually get cell service. I have Verizon (and Android), and I actually was getting a couple bars at the top of the hill, but nothing down by the Welcome Center.

New Vrindaban is maybe 25 minutes away from I-470. I was actually getting cell service most of the way until I got almost all the way to New Vrindaban. The first time I went, I hadn't thought to download an offline map in Google Maps, and my GPS got me there fine anyway.

You might want to download an offline map before you go, but I haven't and I actually haven't had any problems. Subject to the caveat about being at the bottom of the hill, I actually think the cell service here is better than at Hocking Hills.

Gas stations

There are no gas stations anywhere near where we'll be. And the route Google Maps will likely take you on may not naturally go by any once you exit I-470 in West Virginia (though oddly, it seems more likely to take you by them on your way back).

I drive a Corolla hatchback with a six-speed manual transmission. I can get to the Palace and back to Columbus without gassing up along the way. The real upshot here is that, if the car you drive likes gas at all or you otherwise have any doubt, fill up in St. Clairsville* or something before you cross over into West Virginia so that you don't have to think about it.

* The Mall Rd exit (# 218) off of I-70 has a zillion gas stations, and it probably represents your last best chance to get gas before you get to the Mountain State.

Restrooms and water fountains

The Temple, restaurant, and Palace all have restrooms. The Temple has a water fountain. So does the Palace, technically, except the Palace water fountain is out of service as of this writing. So unless it's fixed by then, you won't have any water at the top of the hill unless you bring your own.

Caffeine and alcohol

You can't get caffeinated or alcoholic beverages of any kind at the restaurant or in New Vrindaban. I'm not saying you'd get in any trouble if you walked around with a cup of coffee (trust me, no one would say anything to you). But I am saying that, if do decide you want a cup of coffee or a Diet Pepsi, you're not going to be able to get one any place we'll be at.

Shoes

To enter the (holy part of the) Temple, you have to take your shoes off (either socks or bare feet are okay). On the Palace tour, you have to either take your shoes off or wear coverings (that they provide for free) over your shoes.

We'll be doing some walking as well at this event, so be sure the shoes you wear are comfortable. You won't need hiking shoes, but you will need to be prepared to walk a few miles (possibly as many as four or five) as we tour the grounds.

Anyway, you might not need them, but you might want to bring an extra pair of socks just in case. I usually bring an extra pair when I come here.

Govinda's Restaurant

I've posted a picture, below, of Govinda's menu. I had the Indian food once that they served in the Temple, and other than the rice and maybe some cucumber slices, I don't know what any of it was called, but it was all pretty good.

I've also uploaded a picture of the cooler where they keep (most of) the beverages they sell so you can see what the options are. Next to this cooler (unpictured by me) is one of those fruit juice dispensers that you've seen a million times that looks like this. I don't know what flavors they serve, but I'm sure they're fruity and delicious.

Govinda's is a vegetarian restaurant. I'm not even a little bit of a vegetarian, but I've had both the cheese and vegetable pizzas and they were both good. I liked the veggie pizza better, though. The pizzas are 16 inches, which is a typical extra-large at most places. It's a hand-tossed style crust (that happy medium between thin and thick). It's a lot of pizza.

Please note, if you want water at the Restaurant, you'll either have to buy it or have a water bottle you can fill up at the Temple which is literally right next door.

Peroration

As with all the events that I run, I have done the hard work of getting lost many times in my explorations of this area so you don't have to. (I'll have you know I even lowered myself to asking for directions once. It was the most humiliating six seconds of my life, and the shame still haunts me.) Use my selfless hardships to your advantage, and come on out and see what CNN has called one of the "eight religious wonders to see in the United States."

The Palace and the surrounding area are making a comeback (thanks, in no small part, it must be admitted, to the puddle of natural gas they sit on), and, as always, the forward-thinking denizens of GOhio! are here to help you get in on the ground floor and count yourself among the cool kids who got there first. (Remember, even though the first investors in McDonald's can no longer get a good hamburger, they're still quadrillionaires today.)

Come see America's Taj Mahal. It's an experience you'll never forget.

The Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield stands as one of America's most imposing architectural and historical monuments to nineteenth-century penology. While most people across the globe and many right here in Ohio recognize its towering limestone facade as the fictional Shawshank State Penitentiary from the 1994 film The Shawshank Redemption, the true history of the structure is far more complex than its Hollywood legacy. It is a story that spans over a century, shifting from an idealistic nineteenth-century experiment in human rehabilitation to a overcrowded, violent, maximum-security hellscape, and finally to its modern reincarnation as a historic preservation success story.

The Philosophy of the Intermediate Penitentiary

To understand why the reformatory exists, one must look back to the post-Civil War era. During the late 1800s, Ohio’s primary penal institution was the Ohio Penitentiary in Columbus. It was notoriously brutal, plagued by overcrowding, and mixed first-time teenage offenders with hardened, violent criminals.

In response, social reformers advocated for a new type of institution: the "intermediate penitentiary." The goal was not simply to punish, but to reform. The target demographic was young, first-time offenders aged sixteen to thirty. The theory was that these young men were not yet entirely corrupted by a life of crime and could be saved through discipline, education, religion, and trade registry.

In 1884, the Ohio General Assembly approved the construction of the Intermediate Penitentiary. Mansfield was chosen as the site, largely due to its central location, robust railroad access, and the city's willingness to donate 30 acres of land.

An Architectural Masterpiece of Terror and Grace

To design this grand experiment, the state hired Cleveland architect Levi T. Scofield. Scofield believed that the physical architecture of a prison could spiritually elevate and reform the inmates within it. He utilized a blend of three distinct styles: Victorian Gothic, Richardsonian Romanesque, and Queen Anne.

Scofield intentionally crafted an exterior that resembled a grand, medieval European castle. The soaring towers, arched windows, and intricate brickwork were designed to inspire awe, foster a sense of religious repentance, and subtly remind the inmates of the majestic power of the law.

Construction began with the laying of the cornerstone on November 4, 1886. However, the project was plagued by severe funding shortages and political delays. It took ten years and roughly $1.3 million — an astronomical sum at the time — before the facility was ready to receive its first inmates.

On September 17, 1896, the institution officially opened its doors, re-christened as the Ohio State Reformatory (OSR). The first transfer consisted of 150 young offenders from the Columbus penitentiary. Upon arrival, they were not immediately locked away; instead, they were put to work completing the prison's outer walls and infrastructure.

The Golden Era of Reform (1896–1960s)

For its first few decades, OSR operated largely as its founders intended. The institutional philosophy centered on the Elmira System, which utilized a three-stage grading process.

Upon entry, every inmate was placed in the second grade. Good behavior, academic progress, and diligent work allowed an inmate to promote to the first grade, which carried expanded privileges and paved the way for an early parole. Conversely, bad behavior demoted an inmate to the third grade, stripping them of privileges and adding time to their sentences.

The reformatory functioned as a self-sustaining city. Inmates lived under strict discipline but were given access to a comprehensive high school education and spiritual counseling. More importantly, they were taught viable trade skills. The reformatory featured:

• A fully operational farm that produced food for the facility
• A printing shop
• A shoe factory
• A machine shop
• A tailor shop

By the mid-twentieth century, however, the lofty ideals of the nineteenth-century reformers began to erode under the weight of a changing society and shifting state demographics.

The Descent Into Darkness

By the 1960s, the "reformatory" aspect of OSR was dead in all but name. The state of Ohio faced a massive surge in its prison population, and OSR was forced to transition into a maximum-security facility. The youthful, non-violent offenders the prison was built for were replaced by individuals convicted of violent, serious felonies.

Overcrowding quickly became a catastrophic issue. The prison's cellblocks, designed for single occupancy, began housing two or three men to a cell. The most jarring manifestation of this era is the West Cell Block. Standing six tiers high, it remains the world’s largest free-standing steel cellblock, constructed by the Champion Iron Company of Kenton, Ohio.

As living conditions deteriorated, violence spiked. The prison became a pressure cooker of inmate-on-inmate violence, disease, and psychological despair. The solitary confinement cells — known colloquially as "The Hole" — were dark, damp cages where men were kept in total sensory deprivation for days on end.

The human toll of this era was devastating. Several corrections officers were murdered in the line of duty, including Guard Superintendent Philip Urban in 1926 and Guard John F. Patterson in 1948. In 1932, a prison riot resulted in significant structural damage. By the late 1970s and 1980s, federal courts intervened. Activists and civil rights lawyers filed lawsuits against the state, citing OSR's conditions as "cruel and unusual punishment."

Closure and the Hollywood Resurgence

In 1990, the Council for Human Dignity won its legal battle against the state. The federal court ordered the immediate closure of the Ohio State Reformatory. The remaining inmates were transferred to the newly constructed Richland Correctional Institution, a modern, sterile facility built just behind the historic prison walls.

For a brief window, the abandoned castle in Mansfield faced the wrecking ball. The state intended to demolish the entire complex to clear land. However, fate intervened in the form of Hollywood.

In the summer of 1993, director Frank Darabont utilized the vacant reformatory as the primary filming location for The Shawshank Redemption, starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman. The prison’s grim, towering cellblocks, its imposing warden's quarters, and its gothic administrative halls provided the perfect visual canvas for Stephen King's story of hope and endurance. While the movie was a box-office disappointment upon initial release, it grew into a cultural phenomenon.

Preservation and the Modern Era

Following the success of the film, local activists and preservationists formed the Mansfield Reformatory Preservation Society (MRPS) in 1995. The society bought the property from the state of Ohio for a nominal fee of one dollar, with the condition that they spearhead its restoration and maintain it as a historic site.

Today, the Ohio State Reformatory is one of the most successful historic preservation projects in the Midwest. It operates as a bustling tourist destination, drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors to Mansfield every year. Guests can walk through the jaw-dropping cellblocks, tour the warden's offices, and see preserved set pieces from The Shawshank Redemption, including the office window and the tunnel replica.

Beyond its cinematic ties, the facility honors its dark and complex history. It serves as a museum dedicated to the evolution of the Ohio penal system, keeping alive the memory of the reformers who built it, the guards who worked it, and the thousands of inmates who broke rocks, learned trades, or suffered behind its towering limestone walls.

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Summary

For this event, we will do the self-guided tour of the Reformatory.

Tickets and Pricing

Tickets for this tour are $30 and can be purchased either online or at the Reformatory. There is no discount for purchasing online and the tickets never sell out. No reservations are required.

Length of the Tour

The MRPS recommends an hour and a half to do this tour, but we'll be going at our own pace and won't be in any kind of rush.

Where we'll meet

We will meet either at the front desk or just near the main entrance.

Are there a lot of stairs? Is there a lot of walking?

Yes and yes. We could potentially be up and down 20+ flights of stairs on this tour. The building is approximately 250,000 square feet and the standard tour route spans most of it.

Will this be the full tour?

Yes. From Labor Day to mid-November, part of what is on this tour gets converted over to the Reformatory's haunted house. These parts of the prison are closed off and cannot be seen on the self-guided tours during this time.

However, the date of this event is the first date on which the full tour is once again open after the haunted house closes for the season. So you will be able to see everything at the Reformatory that can normally be seen as part of this tour.

What about the weather?

The museums and administrative areas of the building are temperature controlled. The cell blocks and other sections of the prison are not. Please dress accordingly. In the winter, the cell blocks will be freezing cold.

Is the tour indoors?

Yes. The only time you will be outside is walking from your car into the building. They have a full roof and the entire tour route is indoors.

Are we allowed to take pictures?

Yes.

After the Tour

Afterward, we will head over to Mansfield's Phoenix Brewing Company, an exceptionally highly rated brewery. The brewery always has a food truck on Saturdays. My guess is this will be the V&M food truck (which is quite good and I can vouch for their burgers), but it might also be the Grub Brothers truck (which I haven't had but I'd bet is probably also good).

The actual address of the brewery is 131 N Diamond St, Mansfield, OH 44902. It's only about 5 minutes from the Reformatory. If you like spirits, their upstairs Spirit Room has a unique vibe (and large comfy leather seats) and I'll encourage you to check it out while we're there.