Photographs of the Remains of the Ancient North Fork Earthwork in Ross County, Ohio

North Fork Works in Ross County, Ohio

There is little visible of this once impressive ancient Hopewell earthwork and burial mound site near Chillicothe, Ohio, in Ross County, Ohio. The DNR has turned it into a public park, spending money on a parking lot and bathrooms, but has yet to do anything to restore the earthwork. There are also no signs to direct visitors to the small sections where the original earthwork is still visible.

You can find these spots by going north up the hill. The remaining portion of the earthwork is in the right corner of the map, where it goes up the hill and then turns and parallels the top of the hill. The earthwork can be traced for a short distance at the top of the hill. The best place to see the ditch on the embankment's north side is a little further down to the west.  There are also some remnants of the work on the extreme western side of the hill, where the embankment went back down towards the lower area.

In the lower area are a few Swails on the ground, which was once the site of the longest burial mound in the Ohio Valley.

This is the corner of the earthwork at the top of the hill. The earthwork can be traced a short distance down the hill. From this spot, the square earthwork would have been at the bottom of the hill.

To the west of the corner embankment the ditch that was outside of the earthwork can be traced for a short distance. The best (only) time to investigate these ancient sites is in the winter.