Lorain County, Ohio facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lorain County
U.S. county
Old county building in Elyria
Flag Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Ohio
Ohio's location within the U.S.
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	Ohio
Founded	April 1, 1824
Named for	Lorraine in France
Seat	Elyria
Largest city	Lorain
Area
• Total	923 sq mi (2,390 km2)
• Land	491 sq mi (1,270 km2)
• Water	432 sq mi (1,120 km2)  47%%
Population  (2020)
• Total	312,964
• Density	637.4/sq mi (246.1/km2)
Congressional districts	4th, 7th, 9th

Lorain County is a county located in the northeastern portion of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 312,964. Its county seat is Elyria. The county was physically established in 1822, becoming judicially independent in 1824.

Lorain County is part of the Cleveland-Elyria, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area.

The county is also home to Oberlin College.

History

Lorain County was established in 1822, from portions of several of its adjacent counties. This county became judicially-independent in 1824. The original proposed name for the county was "Colerain". ( and therefore, the final name "Lorain" seems to have no true intended connection to the Alsace-Lorraine area of France, as theorized by later historians).

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 923 square miles (2,390 km²), of which 491 square miles (1,270 km²) is land and 432 square miles (1,120 km²) (47%) is water. It is the fourth-largest county in Ohio by total area.

Adjacent counties

• Cuyahoga County (east)
• Medina County (southeast)
• Ashland County (south)
• Huron County (southwest)
• Erie County (northwest)

Major highways

• Interstate 80 (Ohio Turnpike)
• Interstate 90 (Ohio Turnpike)
• Interstate 480
• U.S. Route 6
• U.S. Route 20
• State Route 2
• State Route 10
• State Route 18
• State Route 57
• State Route 58
• Ohio Route 82
• Ohio Route 83
• State Route 113
• Ohio Route 162
• Ohio Route 254
• Ohio Route 301
• Ohio Route 303
• Ohio Route 511
• Ohio Route 611

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1830	5,696		—
1840	18,467		224.2%
1850	26,086		41.3%
1860	29,744		14.0%
1870	30,308		1.9%
1880	35,526		17.2%
1890	40,295		13.4%
1900	54,857		36.1%
1910	76,037		38.6%
1920	90,612		19.2%
1930	109,206		20.5%
1940	112,390		2.9%
1950	148,162		31.8%
1960	217,500		46.8%
1970	256,843		18.1%
1980	274,909		7.0%
1990	271,126		−1.4%
2000	284,664		5.0%
2010	301,356		5.9%
2020	312,964		3.9%
U.S. Decennial Census 1790-1960 1900-1990 1990-2000 2020

As of the 2010 census, there were 301,356 people, 116,274 households, and 80,077 families residing in the county. The population density was 613.6 inhabitants per square mile (236.9/km²). There were 127,036 housing units at an average density of 258.7 per square mile (99.9/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 84.8% white, 8.6% black or African American, 0.9% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 2.5% from other races, and 3.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 8.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 26.5% were German, 16.7% were Irish, 10.9% were English, 8.4% were Polish, 8.2% were Italian, 6.2% were American, and 5.2% were Hungarian.

Of the 116,274 households, 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.5% were married couples living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 31.1% were non-families, and 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.51 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 $52,066 and the median income for a family was $62,082. Males had a median income of $49,146 versus $35,334 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,002. About 10.3% of families and 13.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.5% of those under age 18 and 8.0% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Map of Lorain County, Ohio With Municipal and Township Labels

Cities

• Amherst
• Avon
• Avon Lake
• Elyria (county seat)
• Lorain
• North Ridgeville
• Oberlin
• Sheffield Lake
• Vermilion

Villages

• Grafton
• Kipton
• LaGrange
• Rochester
• Sheffield
• South Amherst
• Wellington

Townships

• Amherst
• Brighton
• Brownhelm
• Camden
• Carlisle
• Columbia
• Eaton
• Elyria
• Grafton
• Henrietta
• Huntington
• LaGrange
• New Russia
• Penfield
• Pittsfield
• Rochester
• Sheffield
• Wellington

Census-designated places

• Eaton Estates
• Pheasant Run

Other communities

• Belden
• Brentwood Lake
• Brighton
• Brownhelm
• Brownhelm Station
• Columbia Hills Corners
• Columbia Station
• Henrietta
• Huntington
• North Eaton
• Penfield
• Pittsfield

Whiskyville

Education

Higher education

• Lorain County Community College, Elyria
• Oberlin College, Oberlin

Public school districts

There are 20 public school districts in Lorain County. Those primarily in Lorain County are listed in bold. Each district's high school(s) and location is also listed.

• Amherst Exempted Village School District
  • Amherst Marion L. Steele High School, Amherst
• Avon Local School District
  • Avon High School, Avon
• Avon Lake City School District
  • Avon Lake High School, Avon Lake
• Black River Local School District (also in Medina Co and Ashland Co.)
  • Black River High School, Sullivan
• Clearview Local School District
  • Clearview High School, Lorain
• Columbia Local School District
  • Columbia High School, Columbia Station
• Elyria City School District
  • Elyria High School, Elyria
• Firelands Local School District (also in Erie Co.)
  • Firelands High School, Henrietta Twp (Oberlin)
• Keystone Local School District
  • Keystone High School, LaGrange
• Lorain City School District
  • Lorain High School, Lorain
• Mapleton Local School District (Primarily in Ashland Co.)
  • Mapleton High School, Ashland
• Midview Local School District
  • Midview High School, Eaton Twp (Grafton)
• New London Local School District (primarily in Huron Co.)
  • New London High School, New London
• North Ridgeville City School District
  • North Ridgeville High School, North Ridgeville
• Oberlin City School District
  • Oberlin High School, Oberlin
• Olmsted Falls City Schools (primarily in Cuyahoga Co.)
  • Olmsted Falls High School, Olmsted Falls
• Sheffield-Sheffield Lake City School District
  • Brookside High School, Sheffield
• Strongsville City School District (primarily in Cuyahoga Co.)
  • Strongsville High School, Strongsville
• Vermilion Local Schools (primarily in Erie Co.)
  • Vermilion High School, Vermilion
• Wellington Exempted Village School District (also in Huron Co.)
  • Wellington High School, Wellington

The county also includes the Lorain County Joint Vocational School District, which encompasses the entire county and serves students from the Amherst, Avon, Avon Lake, Clearview, Columbia, Elyria, Firelands, Keystone, Midview, North Ridgeville, Oberlin, Sheffield-Sheffield Lake and Wellington school districts from a 10-acre campus on a 100-acre site near the intersection of State Route 58 and U.S. Route 20 in Oberlin.

Private high schools

• Elyria Catholic High School, Elyria
• Lake Ridge Academy, North Ridgeville
• Open Door Christian School, Elyria
• Christian Community School, North Eaton
• First Baptist Christian School, Elyria