The land where Taylorsville MetroPark now sits has a robust and storied history. It was once the site of the bustling town of Tadmor, one of the most important centers of transportation in early Ohio history.

As early as 1809, keelboats were poled up river from Dayton to take on freight from Tadmor. In 1822, the construction of a canal to connect Lake Erie to the Ohio River was commissioned. By 1837, the Miami/Erie Canal stretched, through Tadmor, connecting Cincinnati to Piqua and was finally connected to Lake Erie by 1845. Just two years later the first federally funded road (The National Road) was constructed through Tadmor. In 1851, the Dayton & Michigan Railroad established freight and passenger service to Tadmor. This faster and more dependable mode of transportation eventually led to the demise of the Miami-Erie Canal. Nevertheless, in 1852, trains, canal boats, keelboats, and wagon and coaches were heading in all directions from Tadmor. With all four means of transportation of the day within yards of each other, Tadmor was truly the Crossroads of America.

The great flood of 1913 put an end to Tadmor. As the Great Miami River swelled out of its banks, it drowned the stretch of train tracks surrounding the town and destroyed the aqueducts of the Miami/Erie Canal. When the water retreated, the train tracks were moved to higher ground and the canal, already in decline, was abandoned. The Miami Conservancy District took over the land and built the Taylorsville Dam in 1922. Old National Road was moved south to cross the top of the new dam. A structure or two remained in Tadmor until about 1960, when the last tenants moved out of the original grain dealer’s house and it was demolished.

Today, the Buckeye Trail follows the path of the original Dayton & Michigan Railroad through the park, and takes walkers and bikers through the ruins of Tadmor for a glimpse of important regional history.