Damaine Vonada

The ubiquitous historical markers seen on roadsides around the country have their own unique look, state by state. Those in Pennsylvania and Virginia have built-in mounting posts. New York’s use extra-large letters for better readability, but Florida’s have a smaller font that allows for more words. Alabama’s and Maryland’s markers flaunt their state flags; West Virginia’s exhibits the state seal; Mississippi’s highlights the state flower. Only one state has its historical markers topped by an outline of the state and the foliage of its state tree.

When Geauga Park District Naturalist Chris Mentrek is stargazing at Observatory Park, one of his favorite sights is the Summer Triangle. “The Milky Way stripe goes right through the triangle,” says Mentrek, “and Altair, Deneb, and Vega form its corners. They’re three of the brightest stars and are also points in the constellations Aquila, Cygnus, and Lyra.”

When the Directors Guild of America recently presented a Lifetime Achievement Award to Ridley Scott, the Hollywood banquet featured wines from Ohio’s Ravenhurst Champagne Cellars.

Shipping Ohio wines to California may seem counterintuitive, but for Ravenhurst vintner Chuck Harris, the Guild’s order acknowledged that he and his wife, Nina Busch, produce premium estate wines amid Union and Hardin counties’ farm fields near Mt. Victory. “It shows that great wine is great wine regardless of where it comes from,” he says.

While many travelers regard Holmes County as the crux of Ohio’s Amish Country, few realize that Walnut Creek is its cradle. In 1809, Amish farmer Jonas Stutzman migrated from Pennsylvania to present-day Holmes County as the area’s first white settler. More Amish folks soon followed, putting down roots that blossomed into the world’s largest Amish-Mennonite community.

Location: On the east side of Cleveland in Lake View Cemetery.

Provenance: Founded in 1869, Lake View Cemetery was among the nation’s first garden-style cemeteries, and President James A. Garfield, who was born and raised near Cleveland, had expressed his desire to make its scenic grounds his final resting place. Shortly after his inauguration, Garfield was shot by a disappointed office-seeker and lingered for two months before dying on Sept. 19, 1881.