History
The documented history of Richfield Heritage Preserve (RHP) dates to the early 1800s when the land that is now RHP was divided into several parcels and served largely agricultural purposes. Mason Oviatt purchased the property where the home he built still stands. It is currently being renovated to serve as a museum for the Underground Railroad due to Mr. Oviatt’s help with the network.
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The property also had other occupants, including James Kirby, the inventor. Kirby built a summer home on the property, an operational mill that served as his workshop and a lake. The lake had a patent for a silt management system that Mr. Kirby developed. He also built a dance hall that was fashioned with streetcar springs beneath its floor.
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Other former property owners include the Neal family, who built two homes in the 1920s and 1930s. Clarence Neal had a storage company in the Cleveland area but was interested in providing a more rural and agricultural experience for his family. He and his wife Clara started a tree farm on the property. The building that is now the Giant Eagle was where apples grown on the property were sold.
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In 1937, James Kirby sold his property to the Girl Scouts of America. The camp was named Julia Crowell (after the first Girl Scouts Commissioner). By the late 1950s, the camp expanded the property by purchasing the Neal property in 1957, bringing the total acreage to 336.
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​The Girl Scouts of Northeast Ohio (GSNEO) closed Camp Crowell Hilaka in 2011. The Western Reserve Land Conservancy entered into an agreement with GSNEO to acquire the property in 2012. In 2014, The Richfield Joint Recreation District (RJRD) was formed. A bond and tax levy was subsequently passed by the voters of Richfield Village and Richfield Township to acquire the property avoiding development, timbering or both. The Land Conservancy obtained a $1.1 million Clean Ohio grant on behalf of the RJRD. With the final funding secured, Western Reserve Land Conservancy turned over management of the property to the RJRD in July 2015. Richfield Heritage Preserve opened to the public in August 2015. The Land Conservancy holds a conservation easement on the property, permanently preventing development.
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