Ohio River Scenic Byway - Ohio
Ohio River Scenic Byway - Ohio is a National Scenic Byway in Ohio. Within Ohio it covers roughly 450 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Ohio River Scenic Byway - Ohio with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
This byway follows the Ohio River along the state's southern border, through wooded hills and historic river towns. It passes Marietta, the first organized American settlement in the Northwest Territory, with its riverfront mansions and sternwheeler heritage. Overlooks of the broad, barge-traveled river and the West Virginia and Kentucky hills beyond line the route.
- Ohio River
- historic Marietta
- Northwest Territory history
- sternwheeler heritage
- wooded river hills
Designated for its historic qualities
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Places to stop along Ohio River Scenic Byway - Ohio
Historic Fort Steuben
A reconstructed 1786 fort on its original site in Steubenville, built to protect surveyors mapping the Northwest Territory.
Ohio River Islands National Wildlife Refuge
Wooded islands scattered along 400 miles of the river, protecting nesting birds and freshwater mussels.
Campus Martius Museum
A Marietta museum built around the house of Rufus Putnam, on the site of the 1788 fort of the first organized American settlement in the Northwest Territory.
The Castle
An 1855 Gothic Revival house museum in Marietta, furnished in Victorian style, with tours and seasonal ghost walks.
U.S. Grant Boyhood Home and Schoolhouse
The Georgetown house where Ulysses S. Grant grew up, plus his one-room schoolhouse and his father's tannery.
National Underground Railroad Freedom Center
A Cincinnati museum on the riverbank that once separated slavery and freedom, including a two-story slave pen moved from Kentucky.
WebsiteHarriet Beecher Stowe House
The Cincinnati home where the author of Uncle Tom's Cabin lived as a young woman and witnessed the realities of slavery across the river.
Where to Stay along Ohio River Scenic Byway - Ohio
5 campgrounds and RV parks sit within about 5 miles of Ohio River Scenic Byway - Ohio.
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Photos of Ohio River Scenic Byway - Ohio
What is a National Scenic Byway?
National Scenic Byways are roads recognized at the federal level for at least one outstanding quality — scenic, natural, historic, cultural, archaeological or recreational — that gives travelers a reason to seek them out rather than just pass through.