Since the 1800, the Cuyahoga Valley has been a place of retreat from urban life, and citizens later worked tirelessly to preserve what became Cuyahoga Valley National Park in 1974. The park protects open countryside, a canal that helped build the nation, and the river that helped spark Earth Day and the Clean Water Act. In the early 1800s, the power of Brandywine Falls was harnessed to drive grist, saw, and woolen mills that supported a thriving industrial community. From the 1920s through the early 1940s, the beauty of the area attracted a progressive artists’ community, and the cascading waters continue to provide a natural scene for inspiration, photography, and weddings today.