Sheldon Marsh State Nature Preserve, formally known as Sheldon’s Folly, was owned by Dr. Dean Sheldon from 1954 to 1979. A Sandusky obstetrician and conservationist, Dr. Sheldon bought the 56 acres from Cedar Point, which included the original entrance and roadway to the amusement park.
Dr. Sheldon built a cabin as a family retreat, but otherwise did little to develop the wetlands beyond adding ponds and plantings to provide food and shelter for wildlife. He often opened the area to visitors, including Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, schools and other youth groups.
The State of Ohio purchased Sheldon's retreat in 1979 from his estate, adding another 330 acres of marsh and barrier beach to the property and dedicating it as a nature preserve the next year. Grants helped the state later add another 75 acres to the preserve.
The original entrance and road to Cedar Point was built for the 1913 season. Before then Cedar Point was accessible only by boat. One of the first concrete roads built in Ohio, it extended one mile north to the water and six miles west along the lakeshore. Storms destroyed the road in 1919 and the entrance was relocated two miles west.At he end of the Old Cedar Point Roadway is a pump station, which the federal government built in 1941 to provide water for the manufacture of munitions at the Plum Brook Ordnance Works. A new pump was installed in 2018 and today it provides drinking water for area residents.The 472 preserve contains many types of habitats such as old field, hardwood forest, woodland swamp, cattail marsh, barrier sand beach and open water-lake. All are relicts of the lake-marsh-forest ecosystem which originally encompassed thousands of acres along Lake Erie's western basin.It is also home to many species of wildlife. (Sue Shamhart photo)Sheldon Marsh is known to attract nearly 300 bird species, especially during the spring migration. The marsh also provides habitat for many kinds of wildflowers. From the middle of April into June, the woodland floor is covered with blooming wildflowers. Dutchman's breeches, cut-leaved toothwort and spring beauties are followed by trout lilies, trilliums, wild ginger and wild geraniums. (Sue Shamhart photo)
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