View source for Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park

{{Short description|Park and nature preserve in Central Ohio, U.S.}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox park
| name             = Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park
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| image            = Darby Creek-Mixed Fall Forest near the Bison Range 1.jpg
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| mapframe-custom  = {{Maplink|frame=yes|plain=y|frame-align=center|frame-height=200|frame-width=250|zoom=12|title=|type=point|coord={{coord|39.90360|-83.21544}}|marker=park|marker-color=#519D61}}
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| type             = [[Regional park|Metro park]]
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| location         = 1775 Darby Creek Dr., [[Galloway, Ohio]]
| coordinates      = {{coord|39.90360|-83.21544|format=dms|display=inline,title|name=Pickerington Ponds Metro Park|type:forest_region:US-OH}}
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| area             = {{cvt|7103|acre}}
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| administrator    = [[Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks]]
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| open             = Year-round
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| parking          = Multiple lots
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| website          = {{official|https://www.metroparks.net/parks-and-trails/battelle-darby-creek/}}
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'''Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park''' is a [[Regional park|metropolitan park]] in [[Central Ohio]], owned and operated by [[Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks]]. The park is within the [[Pleasant Township, Franklin County, Ohio|Pleasant]] and [[Prairie Township, Franklin County, Ohio|Prairie]] townships, southwest of [[Columbus, Ohio|Columbus]]. It is the largest park in the Metro Parks system, with {{cvt|7103|acre}}.<ref>{{cite web|title=Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park|url=https://www.trails.com/tcatalog_trail.aspx?trailid=XMR033-001|website=trails.com|access-date=February 27, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.metroparks.net/ParksBattelleDarbyCreek.aspx|title=Battelle Darby Creek - Metro Parks - Central Ohio Park System|website=metroparks.net|access-date=April 19, 2018}}</ref>
The park encompasses lands and creek beds north & south of the confluence of the Big & Little Darby Creeks. Unique features include restored [[tallgrass prairie]] areas totalling {{convert|2,000|acres}}<ref>{{Cite news|last=Wilde|first=Renee|date=May 25, 2021|title=Baby Bison Welcomed To Restored Metro Park Prairie Habitat|url=https://www.wyso.org/local-and-statewide-news/2021-05-25/baby-bison-welcomed-to-restored-metro-park-prairie-habitat|access-date=May 27, 2021|work=WYSO|language=en}}</ref> that house a group of 10 [[American bison]],<ref>{{Cite news|last=O'Donnell|first=Waylon|date=September 8, 2020|title=American bison are gone from Ohio's ecosystem, but can they be reintroduced?|url=https://www.ashlandsource.com/life/american-bison-are-gone-from-ohios-ecosystem-but-can-they-be-reintroduced/article_ff669c32-ea4e-11ea-b647-ffbe3515ff00.html|access-date=September 10, 2020|work=Ashland Source|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/05/08/baby-bison.html|title=Bison born at Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park, just in time for Mother's Day|first=Kelly |last=Lecker |work=The Columbus Dispatch|access-date=April 19, 2018}}</ref> a large nature center with exhibits about the exceptional biodiversity of [[Big Darby Creek]], and a [[Fort Ancient]] mound. Thirteen miles of the Big Darby Creek and [[Little Darby Creek (Ohio)|Little Darby Creek]] flow through the park. Much of the land for the park was donated by the [[Battelle Memorial Institute]]. The northern parcel lies just outside the town of West Jefferson (in Madison County). The park follows the Darby Creeks south past the village of Georgesville and continues towards the crossroads of Darbydale. Detached parcels of the park extend along Darby Creek to the village of Harrisburg (into Pickaway County).
== History ==
In the 1945 report recommending the formation of the Metro Park system, the [[Big Darby Creek|Big Darby]] and [[Little Darby Creek (Ohio)|Little Darby]] creeks were identified as a site of a future park. In 1950, the organization began acquiring land that would become the Darby Creek Metro Park. The park opened to the public in 1959 with 119 acres.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=vgordon |date=May 19, 2022 |title=20 IN 22: The Darby Creeks and the Darby Plains |url=https://www.metroparks.net/blog/20-in-22-darby-creeks-darby-plains/ |access-date=June 4, 2023 |website=Metro Parks - Central Ohio Park System |language=en-US}}</ref>
In the 1960s, the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|US Army Corps of Engineers]] began making plans to construct a dam on Big Darby Creek to provide flood control in the Big Darby Creek Watershed, the Scioto River Basin, and the [[Ohio River|Ohio River Valley]]. The project was riddled with issues including the discovery of an underground hole, construction delays, rising costs, and public opposition. Due to the issues, the project was put on hold and eventually decommissioned in 1978. In 1984, the park acquired the 834 acres earmarked for the dam.<ref name=":0" />
The Big Darby is one of the most biologically diverse aquatic systems in the [[Midwestern United States]].<ref name="Nature">The Nature Conservancy, [http://www.nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/ohio/bigdarby/ Darby Creek Watershed] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090922190632/http://www.nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/ohio/bigdarby/|date=September 22, 2009}}</ref> Recognizing the need for conservation, Metro Parks wrote a proposal to the Board of Trustees of the [[Battelle Memorial Institute|Battelle Memorial Institute Foundation]] requesting a grant to acquire 2,440 acres of land. Battelle offered one million dollars to the project, with additional funding coming from the US Department of the Interior’s Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service and the US Federal Bureau of Outdoor Recreation. After this acquisition, the park was renamed as Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park.<ref name=":0" />
The park's prairies were former homes of the American bison and in February 2011, six female bison arrived making their home in two prairie enclosures. A nature center was opened in 2012, where visitors can view the herd.<ref name=":0" />
==References==
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
{{commons category}}
* {{official website|https://www.metroparks.net/parks-and-trails/battelle-darby-creek/}}
{{Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks}}
[[Category:Parks in Ohio]]
[[Category:Protected areas of Fairfield County, Ohio]]
[[Category:Protected areas of Franklin County, Ohio]]
[[Category:1959 establishments in Ohio]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1959]]
[[Category:Parks established in the 1950s]]
[[Category:Protected areas established in 1959]]