Native Americans of the Cuyahoga Valley

Native Americans of the Cuyahoga Valley presents an accessible distillation of the complex history of Native peoples of the region, from precontact times to today. Essential to anyone seeking a fuller understanding of the history of the Cuyahoga Valley and Northeast Ohio, the book includes essays on archaeology, history, and contemporary issues in today’s Native American communities. 

About the editors

Linda Whitman, MS, is a visiting research scholar and an emerita instructor of archaeology and former director of the community archaeology program in the department of anthropology at The University of Akron. She is also a retired cultural resource specialist for Summit Metro Parks. Previously, she conducted cultural resource management projects for the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee Archaeological Research Lab and for ASC Group in Columbus. Her research areas are precontact and historic archaeology in the Midwest. She is the author of numerous archaeological reports and journal articles. 

Peg Bobel is a freelance writer and former cultural resource specialist for Summit Metro Parks. Peg holds a Master of Science in Social Administration from Case Western Reserve University and for nearly twenty years was a social worker in public agencies. Later, while serving as executive director of the Cuyahoga Valley Association, she and her husband Rob edited the book Trail Guide: Cuyahoga Valley National Park, and the popular Towpath Companion. In 2009, Peg and her colleague Lynn Metzger edited and contributed to Canal Fever: The Ohio & Erie Canal from Waterway to Canalway. 

Praise for Native Americans of the Cuyahoga Valley

For anyone who has walked the paths of the beautiful Cuyahoga Valley and wondered about the original inhabitants, this book is a must read. Written by scholars, including anthropologists, archaeologists, and historians, the essays provide an intriguing window into the past and bring readers full circle to the present to explore the complexity of Indigenous history and culture. The narrative compels readers to look beyond myths, legends, and misconceptions to consider the contributions of Native Americans in the Cuyahoga Valley and northeastern Ohio, which continue to the present day. General readers and scholars alike will enjoy this engaging and important work. 

—Catherine Rokicky, Professor of History, Cuyahoga Community College 

This is a vitally important contribution to our collective understanding of northeastern Ohio’s Indigenous heritage—from the Ice Age to the day before yesterday. It fills a huge gap in Ohio’s Indigenous history and delves deeply and thoughtfully into how that history has been written. 

—Bradley Lepper, Ohio History Connection