An ancient earthwork at the center of a years-long court fight will finally open to the public. Ohio History Connection and Moundbuilders Country Club have agreed to terms over the Octagon Earthworks in Licking County. The site is part of Ohio's Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks, added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2023.
"I am pleased to announce that the Ohio History Connection has reached a settlement with Moundbuilders Country Club to buy out its lease on the Octagon Earthworks property in Newark. This means no trial will be necessary to determine the fair market value of the lease, and we will be able to open the Octagon Earthworks for full public access," says Megan Wood, executive director and CEO of the Ohio History Connection.
Speaking on behalf of Moundbuilders Country Club, attorney Joe Fraley describes his clients as "relieved."
"The only way we could settle this case is if we could survive as a club, and this settlement allows us to survive as a club," Fraley tells WVXU.
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The Ohio Supreme Court ruled in 2022 that Ohio History Connection could terminate Moundbuilders Country Club's lease to operate a golf course on the site of the Octagon Earthworks. The sides have been fighting over how much Ohio History should pay Moundbuilders to recover the property.
Terms of the settlement are not being disclosed at this time. However, Fraley says it will be enough for Moundbuilders to move forward at a new location in Licking County.
"We are in talks, and we have an agreement in principle with the Trout Club, which is a club in Licking County," he says. "Details are being ironed out there, and we hope to conclude that within the next 30 days or so."
The club is still operating the golf course at the Moundbuilders site and intends to do so, Fraley says, through the end of the year.
In a statement to WVXU, the Shawnee Tribe says it's pleased to hear the earthworks will be opened to the public.
"The Shawnee Tribe has historical connections to more than two dozen states, necessitating that we maintain countless working relationships with various organizations and communities. Among these, the Ohio History Connection has consistently set the gold standard for meaningful consultation with Indian tribes. Their dedication to preserving and advancing our shared history is commendable and aligns with our values," the tribe writes in a statement. "We look forward to continuing our partnership with the Ohio History Connection. Together, we will ensure that the Octagon Earthworks and other Shawnee cultural sites and resources are protected and accessible, allowing for vibrant visitor experiences."
Chief Glenna Wallace of the Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma added, "At last. So many people have worked so long for this to become reality. I will forever be indebted to each individual. I look forward to the moment when I can go to Newark Earthworks , remove my shoes, feel Mother Earth beneath my bare feet, look to the heavens and say to our ancestors, 'We did not forget you. We are here in our homelands honoring the sacred sites you created. You will forever be recognized for your uncommon genius.'"
How the case unfolded
Ohio History Connection (OHC) had repeatedly leased the land which included the Octagon Earthworks to Moundbuilders Country Club. OHC moved to revoke the lease as it pursued UNESCO World Heritage status for the Octagon Earthworks and other Hopewell mounds.
The agency sought to reclaim the land where the Octagon Earthworks sit through eminent domain. On Dec. 7, 2022, the Ohio Supreme Court upheld two lower court rulings siding with Ohio History Connection. The country club immediately asked the state supreme court to reconsider, but that request was promptly denied, and a jury trial was set to determine how much OHC must pay the country club.
That jury trial was set to start in mid-October of 2023. Experts hired by OHC appraised the value of the country club at around $2 million, while experts hired by Moundbuilders Country Club put the value at around $22 million.
RELATED: State Supreme Court sides with Ohio History Connection in bid for Newark earthworks site
In filings leading up to the scheduled jury trial, Licking County Judge David Branstool ruled the experts hired by Moundbuilders inappropriately included the value of the earthworks in their estimates.
Branstool wrote "the Country Club is not entitled to be compensated for any value attributed by the earthworks as they are owned by the OHC for the benefit of the public."
In his Oct. 6, 2023 decision, the judge notes that the average sale price of golf courses in Ohio over the previous two years was $2.5 million. He disallowed any witnesses tied to the valuations that included the worth of the earthworks, which was effectively excluded all witnesses the country club intended to call.
Attorneys for the country club then appealed the judge's order.
RELATED: Ohio's Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks are now a UNESCO World Heritage site
"The court recently eliminated all of our witnesses," attorney Joseph Fraley wrote in an email to WVXU. "A trial that only allows the state to present evidence is not a trial at all."
The jury trial was put on hold while the appeal was sent to the Fifth District, which dismissed the appeal Jan. 16 of 2024. Moundbuilders then asked the Ohio Supreme Court to hear the appeal, which the court declined April 16.
The sides returned to Branstool's Licking County courtroom, ultimately arriving at the settlement announced Aug. 1.
Hopewell Culture
Present day Ohio was once home to various Indigenous nations. The bulk of their descendants were forcibly removed and now there are no federally recognized tribes located in Ohio.
The term Hopewell is applied to Indigenous cultures that existed across the Midwest between 200 BCE to 500 CE, with Ohio at its epicenter. Hopewell is understood to have been a religious movement of people across North America.
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In modern-day Ohio, they built thousands of intricate and precise earthworks, many with solar and lunar alignments. The people who built the mounds were highly intelligent. The designs indicate they understood mathematics, architecture and astronomy.
Eight remaining sites collectively known as Ohio's Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks. They were inscribed earlier last year on the prestigious list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, elevating them among locations considered of outstanding universal value such as the Pyramids, the Great Wall of China, the Historic Sanctuary of Machu Picchu, the Great Barrier Reef, and the Grand Canyon.
