The green cathedral: History of Mill Creek Park, Youngstown, Ohio

by John C. Melnick

The Green Cathedral is a history of Mill Creek Park. Dr. Melnick introduces a brief history of the Western Reserve, Native Americans of the Mahoning Valley, Gristmills, John Young, and Volney Rogers. The Park history is presented in a geographical manner beginning at the outlet of Mill Creek into the Mahoning River and ending with the source of Mill Creek in Columbiana County. Chapters include information on park staff, trails and drives, facilities and environs, land acquisitions, water features, bridges, points of interest, and stories and legends.

446 pages, Hardcover

Reviews

[Kris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an excellent historical reference that chronicles the creation of the park as well as the politics involved in that creation. My favorite part was learning what different physical features of the park are, what they used to be, and how they've changed over the years. Terrific photos. The structure of the book which follows the geography of the park makes it easy to read, especially for the avid hikers among us who have been in many of these spots.

The book was published in 1976, so there are 40 years of history to fill in after, but regardless, this book covers as much of the nuances of MCP history as it reasonably can. The only part that is disheartening to me was learning that Volney Rogers warned of water contamination problems re: the sewers, and of course, his predictions have come to pass.

[Lena Hotz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting history of Mill Creek Park, but the writing makes it tough to follow/enjoy.