WILL THEY SHOW UP!?

March 15th is the day the buzzards are supposed to return to Hinckley. Many will be there to witness the event and then the celebration will begin!

Wonderful World of Ohio, March 1970, p 21

Why do they celebrate buzzards in Hinckley? 

Cleveland Memory Project

In 1957, a Cleveland Metropark's patrolman told a Cleveland Press reporter how the buzzards return to a certain area in the Hinckley Reservation every year and how their return was logged for over 30 years. The reporter wrote up the story and then other media reported on it and the word spread. That year area bird watchers, along with about 9,000 others, came to see if it was true. They were not disappointed, the buzzards did return.

However, Hinckley was not prepared for the number of visitors and area restaurants actually reported running out of food. In later years, The Chamber of Commerce rallied together and began offering a pancake breakfast and other activities. The official "Buzzard Day" is now the first Sunday after March 15th. It has grown into a full blown festival with the pancake breakfast along with crafts, history and other entertainment.

Why do the buzzard's return each year?

Folklore and some of the local history books will tell you it was because of a "Great Hunt" in 1818. The story says that a group of over 450 men came together to hunt and reduce the number of bears and wolves that were causing problems in the area. After the hunt a lot of carcasses were left behind which led to the arrival of the buzzards. 

There wasn't any information as to why they come back on March 15th, but the event was compared to the sparrows who always return to San Juan Capistrano on March 19th. 

Do they truly come back on March 15th every year? 

Medina County Gazette, 15 March 1984

Most every year the buzzards do return to Buzzards Roost on March 15th. However, in March of 1984 they failed to appear. According to an article written in the Medina Gazette, the buzzards broke a 150-year tradition and did not show up! 

Are they really buzzards? 

Technically, they are turkey vultures. Yet, early Americans identified them as buzzards and the name stuck. So, they can go by either name. 

How can you celebrate Buzzard Day this year? 

On March 15th you can take your binoculars to Buzzard Roost and scan the sky for the first sighting of buzzards. The area opens at 8 a.m. and is just off State Road near West Drive at the Hinckley Reservation.

On March 16th the Highland Library is celebrating with a Buzzard Day Story Time with buzzards, crafts, snacks and stories! Click on the link to sign up.

https://medinacounty.evanced.info/signup/EventDetails?EventId=44990&backTo=Calendar&startDate=2022/03/16

The Hinckley Chamber of Commerce will be celebrating on Sunday, March 20th, with a pancake breakfast, arts & crafts, animals and storytelling. For more information, click the link to the Chamber of Commerce website:
https://www.hinckleyohchamber.com/

We can only hope the buzzards don't get lost this year and show up on March 15th! 

Sources:

Virginia Wheeler Martin Family History & Learning Center (VWMFH&LC), Medina Library, Landmark files, books 40 & 41, 9 March 2022.

VWMFH&LC, Medina Library, hanging files, Hinckley, 9 March 2022.

Perrin, William, History of Medina County and Ohio...etc., etc., (Baskin & Battey: Chicago, 1881) volume 2, p 607-611; Virginia Wheeler Martin Family History & Learning Center, Medina Library, 9 March 2022.