Greenwood Farm Euclid Creek / Portage Escarpment In 1798, John Moss bought from the Conn. Land Co. © 2014 Bluestone Heights East Branch at Greenwood Farm In 1809, Abraham Bishop built a grist mills at the falls. Roy Larick In 1814, Jonathan Pelton bought the mill. for the In 1828, Euclid Twp School District 6 centered on Peltons Corners. Euclid History Museum Euclid Dist 6 ‘Beechnut’ schoolhouse, c. 1890 Phypers collection Early settler farmhouse, burned 1916 Euclid Creek Moraine Friends of Euclid Creek Greenwood Farm Association Highland Hts Green Task Force Euclid Creek watershed D. Lawrence D. Lawrence James Danforth In 1908, George and Maude Phypers bought 18.6 acres straddling Euclid Creek east branch; they named the property Greenwood Farm. The land held a midnineteenth century farmhouse, which burned in 1916. View W from the base of the bluestone waterfall About 14,000 years ago, the final Ice Age glacier retreated northward from the bluestone terrace of western Lake and eastern Cuyahoga Counties. Phypers collection The ice front stalled for a while at the terrace north edge and dropped a ribbon of fine debris. This Euclid Moraine later became the course for Chardon Rd. Phypers house under construction, 1917 In 1917, the Phypers used paving brick to build a new house of 3,796 sq ft, with a finished attic and a large porch. In 2004, the City of Richmond Heights purchased Greenwood Farm from the last residing Phypers descendants. The property is operated by the Greenwood Farm Historical, Cultural & Arts Association, Inc. The mission is to preserve the farm and grounds, and to promote local arts, culture, education and history. Fourteen thousand years ago, the last glacier, in retreat, generated many streams along the Portage Escarpment. The Euclid Creek established a watershed between the larger preglacial Cuyahoga and Chagrin valleys. The main branch begins in high on the escarpment to flow northward. The east branch gathers headwaters forced westward along the Euclid Moraine. Each branch falls over the Euclid bluestone to create a gorge in the underlying Bedford, Cleveland and Chagrin shales. Greenwood Farm lies where the east branch falls over the bluestone, the start of its two-mile long gorge. The moraine forced meltwater and terrace runoff westward, thereby forming Euclid Creek east branch. Greenwood Farm lies where the east branch falls over the Euclid bluestone. The Greenwood Farm tour explores the bluestone ‘knick point’ area. Greenwood Farm and the nearby Redstone Run Reserve are models for conserving escarpment run (lake-direct) ravines in Euclid and Richmond Heights. Bluestone Heights Friends of Euclid Creek © 2014 Bluestone Heights Greenwood Farm Ravine Preserve Site of Bishop/Pelton mill Portage Escarpment nature and history Garrison et al. 2005 Greenwood Farm 264 Richmond Rd, Richmond Heights, OH 44143 Portage Escarpment at Euclid Creek east branch D. Lawrence Euclid bluestone cap, Redstone Run Greenwood Farm lies atop the Euclid bluestone, a broad expanse of hard fine sandstone. The cap rock resisted several Ice Age episodes of glacial buldozing. Burk Run Babbitt Run Lilly Run Now, the cap rock forms the surface of a large plain stretching from Cleveland Heights eastward to the Chagrin River— the bluestone terrace. Some 14,000 years ago, retreating glacial ice deposited the Euclid Moraine on the terrace north edge. The moraine diverted N-flowing streams W-ward to form Euclid Creek’s east branch. Bluestone Knick Points Greenwood Farm As the east branch and tributaries flow across the bluestone terrace, each cuts a knick point waterfall and gorge. During the last 14,000 years, the bluestone knick points have migrated upstream approximately one mile. Greenwood Farm and Redstone Run Highland Reserve each safeguard bluestone knick point waterfall areas and their downstream ravines. Escarpment Run Ravines Similar knick points and ravines exist on the north side of the Euclid Moraine, where small escarpment runs drain directly to Lake Erie. At least four such ravines are available for conservation within Euclid. Highland Reserve Green Creek USGS LiDAR elevations railsandtrails.com Google Earth aerial viewer Now is the time to preserve these ecological treasures.