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How Sweet It Is

Visit Weldon’s Ice Cream Parlor for a delicious treat and a trip back in time.

Weldon’s got its start in 1930 in nearby Millersport, and the company still clings to its traditions. The Lancaster parlor opened in November 2005.

“It’s very old-fashioned,” says clerk Brittanie Bevins, between scoops. “We have a jukebox and a soda fountain, with a toy train running around the ceiling … And the ice cream is all homemade.”

Weldon’s desserts come in about 200 flavors, with 45 or 50 of them available at any one time.

“One of the most popular flavors is mint chocolate chip,” Bevins says.

Butter pecan and cookie dough are close in the running.

The Meet of the Matter

One of most stately and interesting places to host a business meeting or get-together is at the Wagnalls Memorial Library in Lithopolis.

The spacious Tudor-Gothic building that was constructed in 1925 has five meeting rooms, with their capacities ranging from 10 to 400 people. The largest room – an auditorium – has a high, oak-beamed ceiling with a motion picture projection room in the back. Meanwhile, a banquet hall can seat 150 people and comes complete with a full kitchen.

The building was originally designed by Mabel Wagnalls Jones and is named for her parents. Her father was Adam Wagnalls, co-founder of the Funk and Wagnalls Publishing Co.

Room To Vroom

Strap on your helmet and head over to the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum for an interesting afternoon of sightseeing.

The museum in Pickerington is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily with several bikes on display, along with biographies of 200 motorcyclists. Also on exhibit are riding gear, sculptures, trophies and motorcycle racetrack histories.

The museum is dedicated to the inventors, racers, writers, places and events that have made motorcycles so popular in the United States.

Look: Up in the Sky

Ever fly a helicopter? Not ride in one, but actually fly one?

Fairfield Air Ventures, based at Fairfield County Airport, offers flying lessons to people of all ages and backgrounds. Yet the instructors often target their efforts toward recruiting younger pilot trainees in an effort to strengthen the future of aviation.

Besides airplane and helicopter flying lessons, the airport houses 80 single-engine planes and 10 other aircraft. Area military bases also schedule occasional flight exercises at the airport.

Spanning the County

Fairfield County has 18 covered bridges – more than any other county in the state of Ohio.

The earliest dates back to 1849 (Rock Mill Bridge), while the others were constructed between 1871 and 1906. A total of 16 bridges are still on public property, and several have lights.

To encourage their preservation, the surviving bridges are now closed to motorized traffic, but most allow pedestrians to walk through.

Water, Water Everywhere

Fairfield County plays a big role in the history of the Ohio-Erie Canal.

The canal was built between 1825 and 1828 to connect the Ohio River with Lake Erie. It stretches from east to west in Fairfield County, from Buckeye Lake to Canal Winchester. There are a total of 18 locks between those two points, connecting several cities along the route, including Millersport, Baltimore, Ravensport, Carroll, Lockville and Winchester.

In 1834, the Lancaster Lateral Canal (now called the Hocking Canal) opened to intersect the Ohio-Erie Canal from north to south. The Lancaster Lateral Canal runs from Carroll to Lancaster and on to Sugar Grove before leaving Fairfield County.

Bang, Pow, Blam

One of the most explosive fireworks displays in Ohio takes place each year in Lancaster.

The Fairfield County Fourth of July Fireworks Display at the Fairfield County Fairgrounds is part of a daylong celebration that begins at 10 a.m. with a Fourth of July parade. A carnival and other festivities continue throughout the day and into the evening.

Live music begins at noon, and the celebration culminates with a boisterous, eye-opening fireworks extravaganza beginning at 10 p.m. The fireworks display draws crowds of more than 5,000.

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