This land, once known as the Ohio Country, was originally inhabited by Native Nations including the Shawnee and Miami before explorers and settlers arrived and displaced indigenous peoples. In 1803, most of the Ohio Country north and west of the Ohio River officially became the State of Ohio. The place now known as Oldtown was one of the last locations of the Shawnee capital Chillicothe, a vibrant settlement of around 1,000 residents led by Chief Blackfish that also served as a strategic base for raids on encroaching settlers in Kentucky. Founded in the 1770s, the village is remembered in tradition as the birthplace of Tecumseh, though some historians dispute this. In 1779, Kentucky militia forces attacked the settlement and mortally wounded Chief Blackfish; the village was successfully defended, but it was later evacuated and destroyed as another military expedition approached. European settlers moved into the area by 1797, and during the 1800s homes, mills, and a school were built as the former site of Chillicothe grew into the village of Oldtown. The village school closed in the mid 1900s and later became the Tecumseh Motel, which the Ohio Department of Natural Resources acquired and demolished in 2021, making way for the present interpretive center. Today, three federally recognized Shawnee Tribes are located in Oklahoma, and Great Council State Park offers insights into Shawnee culture and history.