Mirror Lake - A Spring, a Legend and a Retired Tradition
Photo: Maria Rimmel, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
A stop on Ohio State University Campus Walk, a free self-guided tour.
This little lake was once a spring on William Neil's farm. Campus lore says the trustees chose this land for the new college after drinking from that spring, a nice story that no one can prove. The spring itself dried up in 1891, when the city struck its source while laying a sewer line, and the lake has been fed by other sources ever since, most recently a well dug in 2014.
For many years Mirror Lake hosted a famous tradition. From 1990, thousands of students jumped into the cold water in the week before the Michigan game. That ended after a student died following the 2015 jump. Jumping into the lake is not allowed, and when the lake area was rebuilt, reopening in 2018, dense plantings were added along the edge to discourage it.
Today it is a peaceful spot for a walk or a break on a bench. In some years, the Light Up the Lake event decorates the area with holiday lights after Thanksgiving.
Getting here: Walk down from the amphitheatre to the water's edge; the path circles Mirror Lake.
Did you know?: From 1891 until 1972, the lake was filled with water from the Olentangy River.
Photo op: From the path on the lake's far side, frame the water with the trees and buildings reflected in it, best on a still morning.
More on Wikipedia: Mirror Lake · Michigan-Ohio State football rivalry
Stops on this tour
- The Oval - Where Desire Paths Became Sidewalks
- University Hall - The First Building, Rebuilt
- Wexner Center for the Arts - A Building That Looks Unfinished
- Ohio Union - Campus Living Room
- Hale Hall - The First Union at a State University
- Orton Hall - A Building Made of Ohio
- Browning Amphitheatre - Shakespeare in the Ravine
- Mirror Lake - A Spring, a Legend and a Retired Tradition
- Ohio Stadium - Welcome to the Horseshoe
- Buckeye Grove - A Tree for Every All-American
- Thompson Library - Back to the Oval