Aurora, Ohio facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Aurora, Ohio
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Aurora Town Hall
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| Country | United States |
| State | Ohio |
| County | Portage |
| First Settled | 1799 |
| Incorporated | 1929 (Village) |
| Incorporated | 1971 (City) |
| Founded by | Ebenezer Sheldon |
| Area | |
| • Total | 24.06 sq mi (62.31 km2) |
| • Land | 22.91 sq mi (59.35 km2) |
| • Water | 1.15 sq mi (2.97 km2) |
| Elevation | 1,135 ft (346 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 17,239 |
| • Estimate
(2023)
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17,717 |
| • Density | 752.33/sq mi (290.48/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (EST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code |
44202
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| Area code(s) | 330 |
| FIPS code | 39-03086 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1086822 |
| Website | www.auroraoh.com |
Aurora is a city located in Portage County, Ohio, in the United States. It's a suburb found between the larger cities of Akron and Cleveland. In 2020, about 17,239 people lived there. Aurora is part of the bigger Akron metropolitan area.
Some people say Aurora was named after the daughter of Major Amos Spafford. Others believe it was named after Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn. The city was once a township formed from the Connecticut Western Reserve. Aurora has also been recognized as a Tree City USA by the National Arbor Day Foundation.
Contents
History of Aurora
In 1799, a former soldier named Ebenezer Sheldon became the first settler in Aurora. He built a small cabin and soon brought his family from Connecticut to live there. By 1807, many more settlers arrived, and the first wooden house was built two years later.
Most early residents lived along three main roads: the Cleveland–Warren road, the Chillicothe Turnpike, and Old Mill road. Where these roads met, inns and stores opened for travelers and new settlers. By the mid-1800s, the Chillicothe road was busy with shops, hotels, and a school.
In 1862, the Silver Creek Cheese Factory was built by Frank and Elisha Hurd. This was one of the first cheese factories in the area. Ten years later, in 1872, the Aurora Station was built, which became an important business area. By the end of the 1800s, Aurora had seven schools and a church.
In 1904, Aurora became the biggest cheese producer in the United States, making four million pounds of cheese! A year later, a stone sidewalk was completed, connecting Aurora Station to the town center. Sadly, a flood destroyed the Silver Creek Factory in 1913. The cheese industry in Aurora began to decline after that.
In 1929, Aurora officially became a village, and Lee Gould was its first mayor. Later, other parts of the Aurora Township joined the village. By 1970, Aurora's population grew to almost 6,500 people. In 1971, Aurora officially became a city.
Where is Aurora?
Aurora is located in Portage County, Ohio. It shares borders or is close to several other towns and townships:
- Hudson in Summit County (to the southwest)
- Solon in Cuyahoga County (to the northwest)
- Bainbridge Township in Geauga County (to the north)
- Auburn Township in Geauga County (to the northeast)
- Streetsboro in Portage County (to the south)
- Twinsburg Township in Summit County (to the west)
- Reminderville in Summit County (to the west)
The city covers a total area of about 24 square miles (62 square kilometers). About 1.15 square miles (2.97 square kilometers) of this area is covered by water.
People of Aurora
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1880 | 222 | — | |
| 1940 | 518 | — | |
| 1950 | 571 | 10.2% | |
| 1960 | 4,049 | 609.1% | |
| 1970 | 6,549 | 61.7% | |
| 1980 | 8,177 | 24.9% | |
| 1990 | 9,192 | 12.4% | |
| 2000 | 13,556 | 47.5% | |
| 2010 | 15,548 | 14.7% | |
| 2020 | 17,239 | 10.9% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 17,717 | 14.0% | |
| Sources: | |||
Aurora's Population in 2010
In 2010, there were 15,548 people living in Aurora. There were 6,018 households, which are groups of people living together in one home.
Most people in Aurora were White (93.9%). There were also people who identified as African American (1.0%), Asian (3.9%), and other backgrounds. About 1.3% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.
About 32.9% of households had children under 18 living with them. The average household had 2.54 people, and the average family had 3.03 people.
The average age of people in Aurora was 45.4 years old. About 24.6% of residents were under 18, and 19.1% were 65 or older. Slightly more than half of the residents (52.1%) were female, and 47.9% were male.
Fun Things to Do in Aurora
Some parts of central Aurora are known as the Aurora Center Historic District. This area was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 because of its important history.
Aurora has several private country clubs, like Club Walden and Barrington Golf Club. There was also the Aurora Golf and Country Club, which had a championship golf course designed in 1924. Famous golfer Arnold Palmer even played there! The club closed in 2012, and the land is now a nature preserve called Paddock River Preserve.
Aurora High School has had some great achievements! In 2008, the Aurora High School Greenmen football team won the Division III State Championship. In 2016, the Aurora Robotics Team TBD won the FIRST Tech Challenge FIRST Championship in St. Louis.
For many years, there were fun parks around Geauga Lake, which is partly in Aurora. An amusement park called Geauga Lake had a famous roller coaster called the Big Dipper, which opened in 1925. In 1970, SeaWorld Ohio opened nearby. Later, these parks combined to become Six Flags Worlds of Adventure. Eventually, the amusement park closed in 2007, but a water park called Wildwater Kingdom stayed open until 2016.
Learning in Aurora
The Aurora City School District has several schools:
- Three elementary schools: Leighton, Craddock, and Miller
- One middle school: Harmon
- One high school: Aurora High School
In 2019, Aurora High School was ranked very highly. It was second in Northeast Ohio, ninth in the entire state, and 308th in the nation! Many students (78%) take advanced classes. The school has a good student-teacher ratio of 18 students for every teacher, with 986 students in total.
Aurora is also home to Valley Christian Academy, a private school. The city also has a public library, which is part of the Portage County District Library system.
Famous People from Aurora
- AJ Barner, a professional football player
- Blanton Collier, a professional football coach
- Gary Collins, a professional football player
- Tom Curtis, a professional football player
- Jericka Duncan, a TV news correspondent for CBS News
- Sean Grandillo, a professional actor
- Anne Heche, a professional actress
- Fritz Heisler, a professional football coach and scout
- Chris McCarrell, a professional actor
- Ryan Norman, a professional racing driver
- Bernie Parrish, a professional football player
- Harold Sauerbrei, a sports executive
- Dick Schafrath, a professional football player
- Jim Thome, a professional baseball player
See also
In Spanish: Aurora (Ohio) para niños
