From Village to Golf Course to Park: The History of Shawnee Lookout

Pull on your warmest jacket, step into your sturdiest boots, and join us for a winter hike at Shawnee Lookout! This month’s hike is an opportunity to emerge from your den and experience one of the largest and continuously occupied sites in the country.

Join Great Parks of Hamilton County and Green Umbrella’s Greenspace Alliance for the Meet A Greenspace Hike at Shawnee Lookout on Friday, January 23, from 3-4:30 PM.

Before the Advent of Golf

Long before the slopes of North Bend, Ohio, were seeded with turfgrass and putting greens and filled with the sounds of motorized golf carts and shouts of “Fooooour!,” the area was home to various Indigenous peoples. For over 10,000 years, Native Americans built homes, established villages, and created mounds that stretched along the ridgeline, perched above the sprawling and braided Ohiyo—theSeneca word for “Great River.” The combination of river bottoms and hillsides made Shawnee Lookout an attractive site for prehistoric settlement. This advantageous geography undoubtedly contributed to its status as one of the largest and most continuously occupied hilltop sites in the United States.

Daylighting

After the golf course closed in 2019, the site was acquired by Great Parks of Hamilton County. The staff immediately began restoring the native seed bank and removing invasive honeysuckle, gradually unveiling the area’s history with each new sprout and cleared thicket. The most recent effort to recover the past is a comprehensive stream restoration project. Beneath layers of sediment and underground culverts lie streams that once sustained the region’s peoples. Now, through a collaborative initiative between Great Parks and The Nature Conservancy, work is underway to restore these waterways in a process known as “daylighting.” Restoration began in the spring of 2025 with the removal of culverts and asphalt that had covered the streams, followed by the creation of riffles and pools. Invasive plants will be removed, and 24,000 native trees and shrubs will be planted throughout the park. These efforts will enhance habitat for birds and other wildlife, provide shade for the stream, and improve water retention. Additionally, a new two-mile natural surface trail will replace the former cart path, honoring the land’s history as both a sustainer of life and a site for recreation.

Explore Shawnee Lookout!

We hope you’ll join us at our upcoming Meet A Greenspace Hike at Shawnee Lookout! The hike will take place on Friday, January 23, from 3-4:30 PM and will be guided by Great Parks of Hamilton County Staff. We will meet in the parking lot by the former clubhouse, located at 2008 Lawrenceburg Road, North Bend, OH, 45052. 

This hike is part of our monthly Meet a Greenspace Hiking series. We hope these hikes will provide those who join the time and space they need to reconnect with nature. If you have any questions, contact Green Umbrella’s Greenspace Alliance Manager Claire Carlson at claire@greenumbrella.org. 

The Greenspace Alliance would like to thank its sponsors, Duke Energy and the Cincinnati Wildflower Preservation Society, for making this hiking series possible!