Washington County, Ohio

Washington County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 59,711. Its county seat is Marietta. The county, the oldest in the state, is named for George Washington. Washington County comprises the Marietta, OH Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna, WV-OH Combined Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.3%) is water. It is the fifth-largest county in Ohio by land area.

Washington County's southern and eastern boundary is the Ohio River. The Muskingum River, Little Muskingum River, Duck Creek, and the Little Hocking River flow through the county to the Ohio River.

History

Washington County, originally about one-half the territory now included in the State of Ohio, was established by proclamation of Gov. Arthur St. Clair – Governor of the Northwest Territory, on the 26th day of July, 1788. Events which led up to this establishment were due to the perseverance of two great men, Gen. Rufus Putnam and Rev. Dr. Manasseh Cutler, the formation and function of the Ohio Company and the passage by the Continental Congress of the “Ordinance of 1787”. Settlement at Marietta on April 7, 1788 grew out of the appropriation of lands made by Congress in 1776 to officers and soldiers of the army. In 1783 the Newburgh Petition of 285 Continental Army officers was presented to Congress asking for western lands to be located in the country which is now approximately the eastern one-half of the State of Ohio. Following this Gen. Putnam and Gen. Benjamin Tupper founded the Ohio Company which met in Boston, March 1, 1786 when they decided to raise funds in continental certificates for buying western lands in the Western Territory and making a settlement. Rev. Dr. Manasseh Cutler, one of the Directors of the Company, was employed to purchase land for the Company and in July 1787 went to Continental Congress. He helped to frame the Ordinance of 1787, which allowed for the purchase of 1,500,000 acres located on the Ohio and Muskingum Rivers.

The location of Fort Harmar, built in 1785-86, at the confluence of the Ohio and Muskingum Rivers, had an influence upon the Ohio Company in their choice of the Muskingum region as settlement in the West. Gen. Putnam was superintendent of the colony of 47 pioneers who landed in Marietta for the first lawful, organized English settlement in the Northwest Territory. He started a survey of the town of 8-acre lots. A stockade was built called Campus Martius where the Court of Common Pleas was first held on Sept. 2, 1788. The first judges of the Court were Gen. Rufus Putnam, Gen. Benjamin Tupper and Col. Archibald Crary: the Sheriff was Col. Ebenezer Sproat and the Clerk, Col. Return Jonathan Meigs. Paul Fearing, Esq., was the first attorney in the territory.

As early as 1792, the Court of Quarter Sessions submitted estimates for a Court House and Jail to cost $1,000 for each. A log house near Campus Martius was fitted for a jail in 1793 and the first Court House was built in 1799 costing about $3,000. By 1819 a new Court House was needed and this one was built on Second and Putnam Streets in 1822. By 1854 an addition was built, a jail having been built in 1848. The present Court House was built in 1901.

During the winter of 1788-89 a company of about 40 formed another community down the Ohio River, which was called Belle Prairie, now known as Belpre. A settlement about 20 miles up the Muskingum River was made on April 20, 1789 by 19 men at what is now Beverly. In July a party settled on Wolf Creek and erected “Wolf Creek Mill”, the first mill in the State of Ohio. The community below this mill was first called Millersburgh, then Plainfield and later Waterford.

Migration into Ohio was almost stopped in 1790 by the outbreak of the Indian Wars, which continued until 1795. Marietta was more or less protected by the presence of Fort Harmar. Fear of Indians led the Ohio Company to petition Congress to create a buffer community. Part of Washington County was included in the Donation Tract which was territory set out in parcels of 100 acres which were given to each male who would settle there within five years after passage of the Act of April 21, 1792. By 1797 squatters seeking lands crowded Marietta. Most of the first settlers were New Englanders who had lost fortunes in the Revolution. Many squatters and those who settled on free lands were Pennsylvanians and Kentuckians and those of Scotch-Irish extractions.

Germans began to arrive in 1833. Scotchmen also arrived at this time as a result of Naham Ward’s trip to Scotland where he published “A Brief Sketch of the State of Ohio”. Later migrations brought Catholic German and Irish immigrants. Marietta was incorporated in 1800 and the population of Washington County was 5,427. The population increased to 11,730 by 1830 but at the same time the size of the county was reduced with the formation of new counties. By 1850 the population had increased to 29,540 and in 1900 it reached 48,245.

Adjacent counties

Noble County (north)
Monroe County (northeast)
Tyler County, West Virginia (east)
Pleasants County, West Virginia (southeast)
Wood County, West Virginia (south)
Athens County (southwest)
Morgan County (northwest)

Major highways

Protected areas

Wayne National Forest (part)
Boord State Nature Preserve

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 59,771. The median age was 44.3 years, 19.9% of residents were under the age of 18, and 21.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 96.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 94.8 males.

As of the 2020 census, the racial makeup of the county was 93.6% White, 1.0% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% Asian, less than 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.5% from some other race, and 4.1% from two or more races, while Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.2% of the population.

As of the 2020 census, 41.7% of residents lived in urban areas and 58.3% lived in rural areas.

As of the 2020 census, there were 25,254 households in the county, of which 25.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them; 48.3% were married-couple households, 18.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 25.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 30.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

!Pop 1990

!Pop 2000

!Pop 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" | Pop 2020

!% 1980

!% 1990

!% 2000

!% 2010

!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020

|White alone (NH)

|62,919

|60,931

|61,320

|59,281

|style='background: #ffffe6; |55,663

|97.90%

|97.87%

|96.95%

|95.96%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |93.13%

|Black or African American alone (NH)

|776

|773

|580

|657

|style='background: #ffffe6; |600

|1.21%

|1.24%

|0.92%

|1.06%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.00%

|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)

|53

|111

|149

|128

|style='background: #ffffe6; |114

|0.08%

|0.18%

|0.24%

|0.21%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.19%

|Asian alone (NH)

|201

|185

|274

|341

|style='background: #ffffe6; |309

|0.31%

|0.30%

|0.43%

|0.55%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.52%

|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)

|24

|style='background: #ffffe6; |8

|0.04%

|0.01%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.01%

|Other race alone (NH)

|56

|29

|37

|48

|style='background: #ffffe6; |158

|0.09%

|0.05%

|0.06%

|0.08%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |0.26%

|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)

|543

|853

|style='background: #ffffe6; |2,202

|0.86%

|1.38%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |3.68%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|261

|225

|324

|461

|style='background: #ffffe6; |717

|0.41%

|0.36%

|0.51%

|0.75%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |1.20%

|Total

|64,266

|62,254

|63,251

|61,778

|style='background: #ffffe6; |59,771

|100.00%

|style='background: #ffffe6; |100.00%

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 61,778 people, 25,587 households, and 17,092 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 28,367 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 96.5% white, 1.1% black or African American, 0.6% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.7% of the population.

Of the 25,587 households, 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.5% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.2% were non-families, and 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.84. The median age was 43.0 years.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 63,251 people, 25,137 households, and 17,671 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 27,760 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.33% White, 0.92% Black or African American, 0.24% Native American, 0.43% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races. 0.51% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 29.5% were of German, 23.4% American, 12.3% English and 11.0% Irish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 25,137 households, out of which 30.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.90% were married couples living together, 9.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.70% were non-families. 25.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.50% under the age of 18, 8.80% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 25.10% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 94.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,275, and the median income for a family was $41,605. Males had a median income of $32,034 versus $21,346 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,082. About 8.60% of families and 11.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.70% of those under age 18 and 10.20% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Washington County has a 3-member Board of County Commissioners that oversee the various County departments, similar to all but 2 of the 88 Ohio counties. Washington County's elected commissioners are: Eddie Place (R), James Booth (R), and Charlie Schilling (R).

Politics

thumb|Results from the 2020 Presidential Election in Marietta, the county's largest city.

Washington County typically votes Republican. In 1976, it was one of only two counties on the eastern Ohio border to vote for President Gerald Ford, and in 1996, it was the only county on the eastern border to vote for Bob Dole. Only five Democratic Party presidential candidates have won the county from 1856 to the present day, the most recent being Lyndon B. Johnson in his statewide & national landslide of 1964.

Education

School districts in Washington County, including those that may operate their schools in other counties, include:

Belpre City School District
Caldwell Exempted Village School District
Fort Frye Local School District
Frontier Local School District
Marietta City School District
Morgan Local School District
Warren Local School District
Wolf Creek Local School District

There are six high schools in the county boundaries that serve the people of Washington County (as of 2016).

Belpre Golden Eagles
Beverly Fort Frye Cadets
New Matamoras Frontier Cougars
Marietta Tigers
Vincent Warren Warriors
Waterford Wildcats

There is also the Washington County Career Center, a tech school, Washington State College of Ohio, a two-year college, and Marietta College, a four-year college. All are located in Marietta.

Communities

thumb|250px|Map of Washington County, Ohio With Municipal and Township Labels

thumb|250px|Downtown Marietta and the Muskingum River in July 2006

Cities

Belpre
Marietta (county seat)

Villages

Beverly
Lower Salem
Lowell
Macksburg
Matamoras

Townships

Adams
Aurelius
Barlow
Belpre
Decatur
Dunham
Fairfield
Fearing
Grandview
Independence
Lawrence
Liberty
Ludlow
Marietta
Muskingum
Newport
Palmer
Salem
Warren
Waterford
Watertown
Wesley

Census-designated places

Devola
Little Hocking
Newport
Reno
Vincent
Waterford

Unincorporated communities

Archers Fork
Barlow
Bartlett
Beavertown
Beckett
Bevan
Bloomfield
Bonn
Briggs
Caywood
Churchtown
Coal Run
Constitution
Cornerville
Cow Run
Cutler
Dalzell
Dart
Decaturville
Deucher
Dunbar
Dunham
Elba
Equity
Fillmore
Fleming
Germantown
Gracey
Grandview
Layman
Leith
Lower Newport
Luke Chute
Moore Junction
Moss Run
Newell Run
Oak Grove
Patten Mills
Pinehurst
Qualey
Rainbow
Relief
Sitka
Stanleyville
Tick Ridge
Veto
Wade
Warner
Watertown
Whipple
Wingett Run
Yankeeburg

References

External links

County website
The Marietta Times newspaper website