The Olde Gahanna Sanctuary

A beautiful building and a place for many a wedding and reception, The Olde Gahanna Sanctuary has an older world charm for your modern day nuptials!

History:  The church was built in 1895 and was originally the Peace Lutheran Church. The church moved in 1980 to a new location and a non-profit organization bought the building, renovated it into a  community center.

Here are some images of the building, outfitted for a wedding.

The City of Yellow Springs and Their Street Fairs

You'll find very few towns like Yellow Springs, OH.

Yellow Springs seems to be one of those towns that was founded on the concept of peace and love and never moved much farther than that over the years.

In actuality, the town was founded in 1825 and has a long and very interesting history.  There is a good summary of some of the top points at Wikipedia.

There are a lot of great places to visit.  Antioch College's Glen Helen Outdoor Education Center has great programs for all ages and a Raptor Rehabilitation Center.  There are some days that the Raptor Center has an open house and you can see the birds up close and learn how they are cared for and re-released into the wild.

John Bryan State Park is also close and a great place to visit while in the area as is the Young's Jersey Dairy Barn.

VisualOhio plans on doing separate articles on Glen Helen, John Bryan State Park and  Young's Jersey Dairy Barn at a later date, so stay tuned!

Yellow Springs has a very active and robust artistic community, you'll see trees, light poles and buildings decorated in many different fashions.

An example of street art that can be found through out Yellow Springs.

The street fairs are also a great time.  Vendors come from all over to sell their items and all the local business are open to you as well.  There are bands that play as well as independent musicians that are around to entertain you as you walk through the city.

Dawes Arboretum - The Jewel of Newark

There are a lot of great things about Newark, Ohio.  It has many small mom and pop shops, restaurants.  It is close enough to Columbus to be able to still get your dose of the city if you wish.

One of the most outstanding features of Newark, is The Dawes Arboretum.  Memberships are available to help maintain the gorgeous grounds, but it is free to visit.   I highly recommend giving a donation or buying a membership.

The visitor's center houses a section for Japanese bonsai trees, a nature library and a bird and bee viewing area.

On the grounds, you'll find the Dawes family house(Daweswood), that has special tour hours.

Close to the house, you'll find the family cemetery.  There is a mausoleum and several markers of family and close friends and employees of the Dawes family.

There are several walking paths that go through the entire arboretum as well as an auto tour.

One of the first stops on the auto tour is the Japanese Garden.  Here you will find a zen style rock garden, a pond with small island and Japanese style bridge.

There is also a meditation house.

The grounds are sectioned off into different areas and contain different types of trees and landscapes.  These include the following:  Garden Gateway, Glacier Ridge, Daweswood, Woodlands, Dawes Lake, Red Barn Area, Arboretum East, and Dutch Fork Wetlands.

This is from the Red Barn area.

From the Dawes Lake island area.

Regardless of the time of year, the Dawes Arboretum shares its beautiful landscapes with you.

Winter-time views:

Please make sure to take the time to visit this great place with your friends and family!