Ohio, birthplace of eight US presidents, is located in the heart of the Midwest. The sandy shores of Lake Erie mark the state's northern border and the long and winding Ohio River marks its southern border.

The state's expanse of fertile farmland is dotted with industrial centres, but also embraces the rolling hills overlooking the Scioto River Valley in the north. The landscape becomes wilder and steeper as it reaches the foothills of the Appalachian mountain chain, and the thick forest lands full of waterfalls and sandstone cliffs in the south.

The Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation area in the northeast near Cleveland has rugged terrain with river valleys and steep, forested hills. The state also has 40,869km (25,543 miles) of waterways, including the Mohican and Tuscarawas rivers. Columbus is Ohio's capital and is the largest city in both area and population - it is the 15th-largest city in the USA.