CINCINANTI

Just north of the University of Cincinnati campus is a large green space called Burnet Woods.  It is owned and operated by the Cincinnati Park Board.  In all, it encompasses 90 acres and includes a catch and release fishing lake, shelters and picnic areas, a bandstand, hiking trails, and a disc golf course.

The highlight of the park is the Trailside Nature Center that includes a children's museum.  At the Center you will also find the Wolff Planetarium.  In all weather, 20 people at one time can sit and view the night sky in the dome of the oldest planetarium west of the Alleghenies.  It is extremely low-tech and friendly.  Trained leaders can show you the sky as seen in any part of the world.  

How did the park get it's name?  Jacob Burnet was admitted to the bar in 1796 in Cincinnati.  He served on local territorial councils when Cincinnati and the Northwest Territory were being developed.  The lawyer had a stint in the Ohio House of Representatives.  He served on the Ohio Supreme court as an Associate Justice and was largely responsible for writing Ohio's Constitution.  He then served as a U.S. Senator from Ohio.  After leaving the Senate, he became President of Cincinnati College and the Medical College of Ohio (these were two of the entities that eventually became the University of Cincinnati.)  He practiced law here until he died in 1853.

The park is beautiful.