Gnadenhutten ( , meaning "Huts of Grace" in German) is a village located on the Tuscarawas River in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,240 at the 2020 census. It is Ohio's oldest existing European founded settlement, being founded by Moravian Christians in 1772 and was the site of the Gnadenhutten massacre during the American Revolutionary War. It is part of the New Philadelphia–Dover micropolitan area.

Etymology

Gnadenhutten is derived from the German name Gnadenhütten (), meaning literally "huts of grace" or "mercy huts" and figuratively "log tabernacle". Gnadenhutten was declared the "most difficult to pronounce" place name in the state of Ohio by Reader's Digest.

History

Gnadenhutten, originally Gnadenhütten, was founded in October 1772 as the second settlement of German Americans and Lenape Indians affiliated with the Moravian Church. Tribes of Christian Lenni Lenape people had settled at Schoenbrunn nearby, founded months earlier by missionary David Zeisberger. On July 4, 1773, a baby boy was born to the Roth family, becoming the first white child known to be born in the Ohio territory. This community, originally led by the Christian Mohican chieftain Joshua (who died August 1 of the following year), had grown to about 200 persons by 1775.

As pacifists, they remained neutral during the American Revolution and subsequent Revolutionary War. However, the British and their Indian Wyandot and Delaware allies suspected that members of the Christian Gnadenhutten, Schoenbrunn, and Salem communities had provided aid to American patriots. As a result, the British forced the Lenape tribespeople in the region to the Upper Sandusky area of the Ohio territory.

Although three 4,000 acre tracts were reserved for Indians as an "act of indemnity", John Ettwein petitioned Congress in 1783 and the area was then opened to European American settlers. John Heckewelder from Pennsylvania built the first house in 1798, and Moravians remain in the town today. Few Native Americans chose to live there and they gave up title in 1823 after the Moravians had made many improvements.

Gnadenhutten was on a major wagon road crossing the Tuscarawas River. The first Ohio Canal was dug nearby in 1825–1830, providing access to markets as well as further immigrants via Cleveland. A railroad linked to the area in 1853, further improving market access and allowing industrial development. A flood in 1915 destroyed the canal, which was not rebuilt as other means of transportation had superseded it.

The Moravians rebuilt their church in 1903 and dedicated it as a memorial to John Heckewelder. The village also has a Masonic Temple (built 1855 and rebuilt), Methodist church (built circa 1910), as well as a Church of Christ and Full Gospel Pentecostal Church on the outskirts. Its current library was erected in 1942.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 1,288 people, 509 households, and 359 families living in the village. The population density was . There were 553 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 99.1% white, 0.2% from other races, and 0.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.5% of the population.

There were 509 households, of which 35.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.3% were married couples living together, 6.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 29.5% were non-families. 25.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.05.

The median age in the village was 39.3 years. 25.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 26.2% were from 25 to 44; 24.3% were from 45 to 64; and 17.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 49.5% male and 50.5% female.

2000 census

As of the census

Education

Children in Gnadenhutten are served by the public Indian Valley Local School District. The current schools serving the village are:

  • Port Washington Elementary School – grades K-5
  • Midvale Elementary School – grades K-5
  • Indian Valley Middle School – grades 6-8
  • Indian Valley High School – grades 9-12

Notable people

  • Bob Huggins, former men's college basketball coach
  • Eldon Miller, former men's college basketball coach

References

  • Ohio History Central