Besides its scenic beauty, Warner's Hollow is one of the most unique natural history in Northeast Ohio.  The gorge itself ranges from 50 to 1200 feet wide and reaches a depth of 140 feet.  The steep sides of the hollow are the result of soft, erodable shale being topped by a layer of harder sandstone.  This combination of layers encourages the sides to continually break away, forming sheer cliffs and overhangs. 

Plants found in the hollow are very similar to those in Canada and the Allegheny Mountains.  hemlock trees are abundant as are yellow birch and mountain maple all are unusual in this part of Ohio.  Because of its variety of habitats, the hollow has long been known of the number of ferns and wild flowers which can be found there.  In the spring, the flood plane and lower slopes are covered with trillium, violets, toothworts, and other blooms.  Many of the plants found in the hollow are on the state list of endangered species. 

Phelps Creek, which flows through Warner's Hollow, is also more than just a pretty stream.  The high water quality and clearness provide ideal habitat for the twenty-eight species of fish which have been collected there.  The area in and around the stream is also noted for the large numbers of eight  different species of salamanders which can be found. 

The diversity of the area in and around Warner's Hollow is ideal for numerous birds.  Ninety-one species of birds have been found nesting at camp, including 11 that are considered endangered or threatened breeding species in Ohio. 

The unique natural history of Camp Whitewood has drawn many students and professional naturalists to study and learn more about the environment of the area.  Such study has always been encouraged and the results incorporated in the nature lessons offered to 4-H and other campers. 

Historians do not completely agree about the Indian tribes that lived in the 4-H Camp Whitewood area.  Early entries suggested that the ancient or pre-historic Erie's were the first tribe there, but later information suggests they were of Iriquoian stock.  They were not nomadic Indians but preferred to live in villages with houses built of saplings and bark or thatch commonly called long houses.  corn, squash, beans, and other crops were cultivated with sticks and crude tools.  Food was prepared and stored in various types of pottery jars.  Evidence suggests that a typical Indian meal consisted of soup made from different plants and animals, with corn as a staple in their diets. 

The Iriquoi Indians were actually  made up of a group or league of tribes.  This league actually settled much of the land from western New York to western Ohio.  They were a powerful group, able to withstand invasion from other Indians. 

By the early 1800's, when settlers started to arrive in northeast Ohio, most of the organized Indian villages were gone from the area.  Ashtabula county was considered choice hunting grounds and a dividing line between eastern and western nations of Indians.  In turn, it was considered a neutral ground.  Most of the tribes located in the area at the time were the Massasaugas, of Delaware background. 

They were a religious, harmless people whom the Iroquois had allowed to stay in the area.  The great hunters of the time, the Ottawa's, Chippewas, Cayugas, and Tonawandas, numbering about 500, lived in the windsor area, probably at the 4-H Camp Whitewood site.  These tribes were not farmers and left the area around 1812, ending centuries of Indian life in Ashtabula County.  More research may suggest that other tribes were a part of the history of the area, but this is the best information available at this time. 

In the shape of an ankle and a foot, what is known as the Indian Fort is a popular spot at 4-H camp.  At the top of the ankle, or the entrance to the fort, were two distinct walls of earthen work built by the prehistoric Indians sometime before 1650 for defense of the area.  A stone barricade was erected on top of the walls.  The entrance from the outside was at the corner adjacent to Grindstone Creek with the inside entrance through the second wall next to phelps Creek.  On the top of the foot is a steep canyon following Phelps Creek. 

At the heel is the juncture of Phelps and Grindstone Creeks, where Indian warriors could watch for the approach of an enemy.  On the back o the foot shaped fort, Grindstone Creek forms a gorge providing natural defense.  At the head of the gorge is the Cataract Falls, joining the earthen works at the ankle where the stones laid up by those pre-historic warriors are considered to still be visible.