Jefferson County, Ohio facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jefferson County
U.S. county
Jefferson County Courthouse
Flag Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Ohio
Ohio's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Ohio
Founded	July 29, 1797
Named for	Thomas Jefferson
Seat	Steubenville
Largest city	Steubenville
Area
• Total	411 sq mi (1,060 km2)
• Land	408 sq mi (1,060 km2)
• Water	2.6 sq mi (7 km2)  0.6%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	65,249
• Density	158.76/sq mi (61.30/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district	6th

Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 65,249. Its county seat is Steubenville. The county is named for Thomas Jefferson, who was vice president at the time of its creation.

Jefferson County is part of the Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Pittsburgh-New Castle-Weirton, PA-WV-OH Combined Statistical Area.

History

Jefferson County was organized on July 29, 1797 by proclamation of Governor Arthur St. Clair, six years before Ohio was granted statehood.

In 1786, the United States built Fort Steuben to protect the government surveyors mapping the land west of the Ohio River. When the surveyors completed their task a few years later, the fort was abandoned. In the meantime, settlers had built homes around the fort; they named their settlement La Belle. When the County was created in 1797, La Belle was selected as the County seat. The town was subsequently renamed Steubenville, in honor of the abandoned fort.

During the first half of the nineteenth century, Steubenville was primarily a port town, and the rest of the county consisted of small villages and farms. However, in 1856, Frazier, Kilgore and Company erected a rolling mill (the forerunner of steel mills) and the Steubenville Coal and Mining Company sank a coal shaft, resulting in Jefferson County becoming one of the leading centers of the new Industrial Revolution.

Jefferson County's population has declined to 70% of its 1960 figure as its manufacturing base collapsed over the last few decades.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 411 square miles (1,060 km²), of which 408 square miles (1,060 km²) is land and 2.6 square miles (6.7 km²) (0.6%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Columbiana County (north)
• Hancock County, West Virginia (northeast)
• Brooke County, West Virginia (east)
• Ohio County, West Virginia (southeast)
• Belmont County (south)
• Harrison County (southwest)
• Carroll County (northwest)

Demographics

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 69,709 people, 29,109 households, and 18,713 families living in the county. The population density was 170.7 inhabitants per square mile (65.9/km²). There were 32,826 housing units at an average density of 80.4 per square mile (31.0/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.9% white, 5.6% black or African American, 0.4% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.1% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 20.0% were German, 17.1% were Irish, 12.9% were Italian, 9.1% were English, 8.3% were Polish, and 4.6% were American.

Of the 29,109 households, 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were married couples living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.7% were non-families, and 30.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.86. The median age was 43.9 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $37,527 and the median income for a family was $47,901. Males had a median income of $43,601 versus $27,965 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,470. About 12.4% of families and 17.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.5% of those under age 18 and 7.7% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Commercial air service is available at nearby Pittsburgh International Airport to the east via U.S. Route 22. The county is served by two general aviation fields, the Jefferson County Airpark and the Eddie Dew Memorial Airpark.

Ohio Route 7 is the main north–south highway through the county.

Communities

Map of Jefferson County, Ohio with Municipal and Township Labels

Cities

• Steubenville (county seat)
• Toronto

Villages

Townships

Census-designated places

• Brilliant
• Connorville
• East Springfield
• Pottery Addition

Unincorporated communities

Historical community

Carpenter's Fort, or Carpenter's Station as it was sometimes called, was established in the summer of 1781 when John Carpenter built a fortified house above the mouth of Short Creek on the Ohio side of the Ohio River in Coshocton County, but now in Jefferson County, Ohio, near Marietta, Ohio.

Population ranking

The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2010 census of Jefferson County.

† county seat

Education

Colleges and universities

• Franciscan University of Steubenville

Community, junior, and technical colleges

• Eastern Gateway Community College
• Trinity Health System School of Nursing

Public school districts

High schools

See also

In Spanish: Condado de Jefferson (Ohio) para niños