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Auglaize County, Ohio facts for kids

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Auglaize County
County courthouse in Wapakoneta
County courthouse in Wapakoneta
Official seal of Auglaize County
Seal
Map of Ohio highlighting Auglaize County
Location within the U.S. state of Ohio
Map of the United States highlighting Ohio
Ohio's location within the U.S.
Country  United States
State  Ohio
Founded February 14, 1848
Named for Auglaize River
Seat Wapakoneta
Largest city Wapakoneta
Area
 • Total 402 sq mi (1,040 km2)
 • Land 401 sq mi (1,040 km2)
 • Water 0.5 sq mi (1 km2)  0.1%%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 46,442
 • Density 115.53/sq mi (44.61/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district 4th

Auglaize County is a county in northwestern Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,442. Its county seat is Wapakoneta.

The county is named for the Auglaize River. Some sources say it is a corruption of the French description of the clay (glaise) water (eau); others say it comes from a Native American word for fallen timbers. Another remote possibility is that it derives from the French glace [*aux glaces?], meaning "mirror" or "ice" ['at the ices'?].

There is something to be said for the unattested eau glaise ("clay water"), like the attested terre glaise ("clay soil"), but Ramsey and Stewart agree that Auglaize (and variants, implying "*aux glaises") is American French for "at the lick(s)", literally "at the clays", where wild beasts came to lick salt and minerals from the soil, filling the lacuna in standard French for a salt lick. The spelling "glaize" is archaic (as in Cotgrave's French-English dictionary of 1611). In addition, in Arkansas there is a creek and mountain Glazypeau, from French glaise à Paul ("Paul's lick"). The assumed indigenous American (Algonquian) "fallen timbers" or "overgrown with brush" has no support without any attested etymons supplied and would not match phonetically in the case of Shawnee.

Auglaize County comprises the Wapakoneta Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Lima-Van Wert-Celina Combined Statistical Area.

History

Under the terms of the Treaty of Greenville signed in 1795, northwestern Ohio was reserved for Native Americans. The area now comprising Allen County was officially off-limits to European settlement until the Treaty of Maumee Rapids in 1817.[24] Under the terms of this treaty, the Shawnee tribe was assigned reservations at Wapakonetta and at their "Hog Creek" settlement along the Ottawa River; this comprised most of what is the present-day Shawnee Township. The latter treaty opened the way for the Ohio Legislature on March 1, 1820 to create fourteen counties, including Allen,[24] which was defined as Ranges 5 through 8 east and Towns 3 through 6 south.

The first permanent settlement within the present-day bounds of Allen County took place in 1824, when Christopher S. Wood and his family settled in section 7 of Bath Township.[25] The organization of Bath Township predates that of Allen County, with its first township meeting held on March 2, 1829. On Feb. 12, 1829, an act of the legislature set aside land for a "county town".[26] Wood was appointed commissioner to determine the location of this "seat of justice" for Allen County. This was done on March 3, 1831, with Wood appointed as Town Director. He laid out plots of land to be sold in section 31 of Bath Township,[27] and the plat was filed April 20, 1831, founding what developed as the city of Lima, Ohio.

The organization of Allen County dates from the first meeting of the county commissioners, held on June 6, 1831. Present at this meeting were commissioners James Daniels, John G. Wood, and Samuel Stewart. Also present were William G. Wood, county auditor; Adam White, county treasurer; and Henry Lippincott, sheriff.[28]

The first court of justice was held in August 1831,[28] and it is believed that the assembly of men, in informal session, selected the name for the seat of justice by drawing names from a hat. with suggesting the name of "Lima" (capital of Peru and source of the quinine used to treat the malaria prevalent in the area of the Great Black Swamp). At the County Commission session on June 6, 1831, the formation of a second township, Jackson, was approved.[28]

In 1832 the Shawnees, including those living in the Hog Creek reservation (present day Shawnee Township), were removed to eastern Kansas. They received payment of $30,000 in fifteen annual installments for their lands, which had an estimated value of over $200,000 at that time.[29] They arrived at their new home with few provisions and immediately suffered an epidemic of cholera, due in part to the poor sanitation in their new territory.[29]

Lima was established as a village in 1841, and the town of Lima was organized March 29, 1842. Henry DeVilliers Williams was elected the first mayor and Amos Clutter was elected the first town marshal.

In 1848, the boundaries of Allen County were reduced after Auglaize County, Ohio was organized from the southern half of the original county. Town 2S, Range 7E (Monroe Twp.); Town 2S, Range 8E (Richland Twp.); the southern half of Town 2S, Range 5E, and the southern half of Town 2S, Range 6E (Sugar Creek Twp.) were transferred from Putnam County to Allen County. Parts of Van Wert and Mercer counties were also transferred to Allen to form Spencer Township and part of Marion Township. In May, 1853, Allen and Putnam counties agreed on a cash settlement for Putnam's loss.[30]

Following these changes Lima, the county seat, was located in what became the center of the county, rather than in the northern quarter. The western part of the county gained a significant stretch of the Miami and Erie Canal, which was completed in 1845. The reorganization also brought the towns of Spencerville, laid out in 1844 and located on the canal,[13] and Bluffton within the bounds of the county.

In 1885, oil was discovered in Lima. This began a boom in Allen County which lasted until after 1910.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 402 square miles (1,040 km2), of which 401 square miles (1,040 km2) is land and 0.5 square miles (1.3 km2) (0.1%) is water. It is the second-smallest county in Ohio by total area.

The county is crossed by the Auglaize River and the Miami and Erie Canal. The headwaters of the Saint Marys River, the Great Miami River and the Scioto River as well as portions of Grand Lake St. Marys and Lake Loramie are located within the county.

Adjacent counties

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1850 11,338
1860 17,187 51.6%
1870 20,041 16.6%
1880 25,444 27.0%
1890 28,100 10.4%
1900 31,192 11.0%
1910 31,246 0.2%
1920 29,527 −5.5%
1930 28,034 −5.1%
1940 28,037 0.0%
1950 30,637 9.3%
1960 36,147 18.0%
1970 38,602 6.8%
1980 42,554 10.2%
1990 44,585 4.8%
2000 46,611 4.5%
2010 45,949 −1.4%
2020 46,442 1.1%
U.S. Decennial Census
1790-1960 1900-1990
1990-2000 2020

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 45,949 people, 17,972 households, and 12,749 families residing in the county. The population density was 114.5 inhabitants per square mile (44.2/km2). There were 19,585 housing units at an average density of 48.8 per square mile (18.8/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.8% white, 0.4% Asian, 0.3% black or African American, 0.2% American Indian, 0.3% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.2% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 53.0% were German, 12.6% were Irish, 8.9% were American, and 8.0% were English.

Of the 17,972 households, 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.9% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.1% were non-families, and 25.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.02. The median age was 40.0 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $52,018 and the median income for a family was $60,318. Males had a median income of $44,267 versus $30,591 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,290. About 5.8% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.5% of those under age 18 and 4.6% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

AuglaizeCounty2017.png

Cities

Villages

Townships

  • Clay
  • Duchouquet
  • German
  • Goshen
  • Jackson
  • Logan
  • Moulton
  • Noble
  • Pusheta
  • Saint Marys
  • Salem
  • Union
  • Washington
  • Wayne

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Geyer School of Ohio in 1915
A 1915 class at Geyer School

Ghost towns

  • Bay
  • Pusheta Town
  • Rineharts

Economy

Auglaize County's economy is based on manufacturing. Employers with more than 400 employees are Crown Equipment Corporation, Joint Township District Memorial Hospital, the Minster Machine Company, Setex, Inc, AAP-St. Mary's Corporation (a division of Hitachi Metals), Veyance Technologies, Inc (Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company), and the Dannon Company.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Condado de Auglaize para niños

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