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  • 😍 These Abandoned Coke Ovens Have Been Totally Reclaimed By Nature

😍 These Abandoned Coke Ovens Have Been Totally Reclaimed By Nature

Plus: 💐 After More Than A Century, A Columbus Florist Closes Its Doors

Author

Chelsea Wiley
June 09, 2025

Sponsored by Columbus Recreation and Parks 🎶
Your favorite ’90s bands (sort of) are back. Tribute Tuesdays is bringing free live music, food, and drinks to Bicentennial Park all summer long. Catch tribute sets of Green Day, Nirvana, Weezer, and more. It’s all happening along the Scioto Mile — and yes, admission is totally free. Music starts at 6:30, but come early for happy hour vibes at 5. Please click here for more info.

Hello, Monday! Chelsea here.

There’s something extra satisfying about uncovering a place that feels like a secret, especially when it’s an actual piece of forgotten Ohio history that looks like it was plucked straight from a fantasy novel. That’s exactly what you’ll find at the Cherry Valley Coke Ovens in Leetonia, a quiet town in northeast Ohio. Left untouched for decades, these moss-covered, beehive-shaped ovens once powered a booming coal and iron industry. Today, they’re the heart of a peaceful 10-acre park that’s part nature preserve, part time capsule, and 100% worth the road trip.

🎥 The Rust Belt Road Trip Movie That Defined a Generation Is Getting a Festival
Holy schnikes! Sandusky is throwing a weekend-long party for Tommy Boy’s 30th anniversary this summer, complete with movie screenings, wing-eating contests, and a Q&A with the film’s director.

💐 After More Than A Century, An Iconic Columbus Florist Closes Its Doors
Favorite Columbus florist 5th Avenue Floral Co. has closed after 124 years, leaving behind a legacy of blooms, memories, and community roots.

Headlines 📰 

🐦‍⬛ A 13-year-old from Gahanna is making national waves in the birding world. Killian Sullivan just earned the American Birding Association’s 2025 Young Birder of the Year award for his leadership, conservation work, and impressive skills spotting nearly 700 species across North America. (NBC4)

🏡 What happened to the cottage where Ulysses S. Grant died? Take a look at the history and preservation of the former president’s final home. (WOSU)

💻 Smart Columbus just launched a new digital skills program aiming to train 10,000 Central Ohioans by 2027, and participants get a free laptop or tablet when they finish. The initiative focuses on closing the digital divide for underserved groups like older adults, veterans, and new Americans. (Axios Columbus)

🌧️ Weather: 72 and rainy

Coming Up 📆

🎸 6/10: Tribute Tuesdays: Weezer
🎭 6/10: Danny GO!
🤣 6/10: Sarah Millican
🎻 6/11: Punch Brothers
🍸 6/12: COSI After Dark: PRIDE PROM
🪄 6/12: Justin Willman: Illusionati Tour
🩰 6/12-6/14: BalletMet presents Black Voices
🎭 6/12-6/15: Emma
🎵 6/13: Victor Herbert's Naughty Marietta
🛍️ 6/13: Franklinton Fridays
🍷 6/13-6/14: Heart of Grove City Wine & Arts Festival
🏳️‍🌈 6/13-6/14: Stonewall Columbus Pride Festival & Resource Fair
🎷 6/13-6/15: Creekside Blues & Jazz Festival
🍻 6/14: 614 Day!
🏳️‍🌈 6/14: Pride On High
🎻 6/14: A Boy Band Symphony
🌈 6/14: All Out Music Festival Columbus
⚽️ 6/14: Columbus Crew vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC
🏡 6/14: 13th Annual Westgate Home and Garden Tour
🖼️ 6/14-6/15: Worthington Arts Festival
⚾️ 6/15: Bat-n-Rouge
🖼️ 6/15: Free Sundays at Columbus Museum of Art

Today's Photo 🤳

🌳 Ready to get summer started? Grab your hammock and head to a metro park. There are plenty of places to set up shop, pop open a good book, and enjoy hanging with the trees.

Want your photo to be featured? Use #columbusnavigator or tag us!

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- Chelsea