The Bethel Historical Society and Museum inside the Grant Memorial Building was dedicated to the memory of Ulysses S. Grant in 1930. The Grant Memorial building today displays artifacts highlighting both local history and larger historical events residents participated in, such as the Revolutionary War, The Civil War, and WWII. The museum is open to the public on the first and third Sat. of each month from 1:00pm- 4:00pm or by appointment. There is no admission fee to the museum.

In the heart of downtown Batavia, you will find the Clermont County Courthouse which was constructed in 1936. Inside the courthouse you will find a limestone carving of Thomas Morris and Ulysses S. Grant. The building features a Clermont County bicentennial window that highlights the birthplace of Ulysses S. Grant’s birthplace and a plaque listing famous and influential people from Clermont County, including Ulysses S. Grant.

Since 1958 the Clermont County Historical Society has dedicated itself to preserving and promoting the historical heritage of Clermont County. Located with the Harmony Hill Dairy House Museum in Williamsburg, both museums will feature U.S Grant Bicentennial displays which feature photos and artifacts from Grant’s Centennial Celebration.

The quaint painted green wrought iron gate with its white enamel lettering greets those coming to visit Confidence Cemetery. The creek near this cemetery, which feeds into White Oak Creek, is the site where a 15-year-old Ulysses single-handedly moved a two-and-a-half-ton chunk of limestone a full mile to serve as a local doctor’s front door step. The stone now sits behind Grant’s childhood home and is decorated with a commemorative placard that was affixed in 1947 to commemorate Grant’s childhood ingenuity. Visiting hours are from dawn to dusk.

Straddling the bank of the Ohio River sits a red and white brick building that once housed the home and office of Dr. John G. Rogers. Dr. Rogers was a prominent abolitionist as well as the physician who assisted Hannah Simpson Grant in delivering her first son, Hiram Ulysses Grant. The duplex is now a part of the Clermont County Freedom Trail and can be visited externally. Dr. Rogers was married to Julia Morris, daughter of former U.S. Ohio Senator Thomas Morris, another ardent abolitionist and local historic figure.

Where Kakes and Karaoke sits used to be the site of the former home of Ohio Senator Thomas Morris, an outspoken abolitionist and father to Julia Rogers. Dr. John Rogers’ wife (the man who delivered Ulysses S. Grant.) The house would later be rented by Jesse and Hannah Grant who lived in the home for ten years. During that time Jesse Grant operated a second tannery nearby and was elected as the first mayor of Bethel, Ohio.

Gifted to Ohio History Connection by Robert Waters, a Georgetown resident, Jesse Grant’s Tannery sits just across the street from Ulysses S. Grant’s Boyhood Home. The tannery served as the Grant family’s livelihood for many years. Built in 1823 by Jesse Grant, young Grant expressed a strong dislike for the practice and was not fond of his father’s tannery business. He found other ways to make his money which ultimately helped steer him towards West Point. Though the tannery was converted into a house in 1938, the Ohio History Connection and U.S. Grant Homestead Association plan to restore the nearly 200 year old property to approximate the original.

Sitting just to the left side of Park Rd. No. 1, the Old Bethel Methodist Cemetery was originally established by John Collins in 1805, a Methodist Episcopal preacher who settled in the Northwest Territory in 1802. Though the congregation was disbanded in 1968 when the United States Army Corps of Engineers purchased the church and surrounding land to make East Fork State Park, today the chapel remains as a historic site where the maternal grandparents of Ulysses S. Grant are buried alongside other members of their family.

Between W. Grant Ave. And W. State St., on a dogleg of W. State St., sits the Old Georgetown Cemetery. Located adjacent to a road named after the former President, the cemetery is also the final resting place of U.S Congressman Thomas L. Hamer. Hamer is responsible for appointing Grant to West Point and the clerical error that effectively renamed Hiram Ulysses Grant to Ulysses S. Grant, the S being short for his mother’s maiden name Simpson. Likewise, John D. White also lays at rest in the cemetery. White was Grant’s childhood school teacher at the schoolhouse in Georgetown. Visiting hours are dawn to dusk.

Nestled between Big Indian Creek and the Ohio River sits the small white house where Grant’s mother, Hannah Simpson Grant, gave birth with the aid of Dr. John Rogers, to the little boy who would become the 18th President of the United States. The future president lived here in Point Pleasant for less than a year, as his family moved to Georgetown one month before his first birthday. Today the birthplace is furnished with items that once belonged to Grant as well as other period items. The birthplace is open and available for tours April through September, Wed.-Sat., 10:00am-5:00pm and Sun., 1:00-5:00pm.

Located just south of the birthplace of Ulysses S. Grant and spanning the junction of Big Indian Creek and the Ohio River is the U.S. Grant Memorial Bridge. Ornamental beacons and cannons beset each side of U.S Rt. 52 while a bronze placard bearing the likeness of Grant is affixed under the cannon closest to Grant’s Birthplace. The bridge as it sits today is a 1985 renovation on the original 1927 construction, but the decorations are all original.

Near the center of historic Georgetown, Ohio, stands the dwelling of the Grant family. Jesse and Hannah Grant, the parents of the young Hiram Ulysses Grant, built the original two-story brick home when the family moved to Georgetown in 1823 from Point Pleasant. Ulysses lived with his parents and four siblings at the home until 1839 when he left to attend West Point. Grant lived in this home longer than any other house during his lifetime. The Boyhood Home has been open to visitors since 1982 when it was named a National Historic Landmark, the highest designation awarded to historic properties by the federal government.

Sculpted by Eric Oberg in 2012, on the corner of Grant Ave. And Main St., the statue of the Union General sits just down the street from the Georgetown Courthouse. The depiction is that of a more youthful and lean Grant clothed in his General’s uniform. He stands with his sword and riding coat, facing south to the river beyond. His jacket bears four stars, denoting him as Commanding General of the United State Army. Today you can visit the statue from dawn to dusk. Street parking is available.

The creek, named for the white oak trees that flank the shoreline along the course of the creek, is the site where Ulysses spent time playing and swimming as a young boy. Today, with its class II-IV (depending on the season and amount of rainfall) rating by American Whitewater, White Oak Creek is an excellent place for those looking to kayak, swim or walk along the banks, where Grant played nearly 200 years ago. Today the creek guides visitors into Georgetown on their way up St. Rt. 221.