Don't Badger the Mill Hollow Badger – April 1963

American Badger (courtesy of Wikipedia)

Mill Hollow (or more properly, the Vermilion River Reservation) has always been one of my favorite Lorain County Metro Parks – ever since I was a kid.

Camping at Mill Hollow in 1960s
(Courtesy Lorain County
Metro Parks)

There’s lot of reasons why. Maybe it’s the dramatic shale cliffs. Or the shallow river, ideal for stone skipping and fishing. Or the Benjamin Bacon Museum (which ironically was closed every time we visited the park).

I’ve mentioned before how you used to be able to camp at Mill Hollow. It’s where my family first learned how to camp, in preparation for our later cross-country trips.

Anyway, it’s always interesting to me to read something about the early years of the park.

Below is an article that appeared in the Journal on April 1, 1963. It reveals that the park’s animal collection included a somewhat cantankerous badger.

Until I saw this article, I had forgotten that there used to be live animals on display down at the park. Those critters were yet another reason why we liked Mill Hollow; we were sorry when they were no longer there.

Mill Hollow live animal exhibit
(Courtesy Lorain County Metro Parks)