The Dawes Arboretum

The Dawes Arboretum is a nearly 2,000-acre conservation area in central Ohio, founded in 1929 by Beman and Bertie Dawes. Beman began the property in 1918 as a 140-acre farm he called "Daweswood," planting more than 50,000 trees before the Arboretum's official founding, with the mission "to encourage the planting of forest and ornamental trees... to give pleasure to the public and education to the youth." Today the Arboretum is dedicated to enriching lives through the conservation of trees, nature, and history. The grounds include a Japanese Garden designed in 1963 and considered one of the first of its kind in Ohio, a boardwalk-accessed Cypress Swamp, a Deep Woods area with trees over 200 years old, and Dawes Lake. Daweswood House, the family's original brick farmhouse, is preserved as a museum with ten rooms of 19th- and 20th-century antiques, alongside historic structures including the Zand Barn and Eagle Gate. The property also holds the Beard-Green Cemetery, a historic burial ground with Revolutionary War veterans. A Visitors Center anchors the main grounds with a Discovery Center, Bird Watching Garden, and gift shop, while the Learning Garden supports educational programming and donates its plantings to local food pantries.