08/13/2026
So much History at our Park!
Canals helped connect Ohio to the outside world. From the Ohio River to Lake Erie, these waterways crisscrossed the state before railroads began taking their place in the 1850s.
Even so, many canals remained in use until the destructive Great Flood of 1913.
The Sandy and Beaver Canal was perhaps Ohio's most difficult canal to construct. This waterway took nearly two decades to build and featured numerous tunnels, reservoirs, dams and locks.
Upon completion in 1846, it connected Bolivar, Ohio with Glasgow, Pennsylvania. A devastating flood that occurred just years after it opened left the canal inoperable.
The ODNR Historical Marker in Beaver Creek State Park tells the history of the boom-and-bust cycle that often accompanied canal building. This marker is next to Hambleton's Mill—the only remnant of a canal-era ghost town. This historic gristmill carries the name of the Hambletons, a family that migrated to Columbiana County in the early 1800s from the East Coast. The town they created, Sprucevale, lived and died by the canal's success.
A great way to see the historic remnants of the Sandy and Beaver Canal while talking in some of Ohio's most gorgeous scenery is to hike the Vondergreen Trail located at the end of the Sprucevale parking lot. This trail takes hikers past historic canal remains, like Gretchen's Lock, through hemlock-covered hollows and alongside the Little Beaver Creek.
Directions to Hambleton's Mill : 12374 Sprucevale Rd, East Liverpool, OH 43920
