Tuscarawas County, Ohio

Tuscarawas County, Ohio
Location in the state of Ohio
Ohio's location in the U.S.
Founded	March 15, 1808[1]
Named for	Delaware Indian word variously translated as "old town" or "open mouth".[2]
Seat	New Philadelphia
Largest city	New Philadelphia
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	571 sq mi (1,480 km²) 568 sq mi (1,470 km²) 4 sq mi (10 km²), 0.68%
Population  - (2000)  - Density	90,914 160/sq mi (62/km²)
Time zone	Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Website	www.co.tuscarawas.oh.us

Tuscarawas County is a county located in the eastern part of the state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 92,582. [1] Its county seat is New Philadelphia^[3]. Its name is a Delaware Indian word variously translated as "old town" or "open mouth".^[2][4]

The New Philadelphia–Dover Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Tuscarawas County.

History

For years, European-American colonists on the East Coast did not know much about the territory west of the Appalachian Mountains except for reports from a few explorers and fur traders who ventured into the area. In 1750, Christopher Gist of the Ohio Land Company explored the Tuscarawas Valley. His report of the area hinted at some natural riches and friendly American Indians.

In 1761, missionaries from the Moravians, set out from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania to set up a mission in the Tuscarawas Valley. (This is also known as the Renewed Church of the United Brethren.) Christian Frederick Post and John Heckewelder met with Chief Newcomer (Netawatwees) of the western Lenape, also known as the Delaware. He invited them to the village he founded, Gekelemukpechunk (present-day Newcomerstown, Ohio. He granted the missionaries permission to build a cabin near the junction of the Sandy Creek and Tuscarawas River, in present-day Stark County. They were forced to abandon the mission in 1763 during the French and Indian War (part of the Seven Years War).

At the request of Chief Newcomer (Netawatwees), in 1771 David Zeisberger returned to found some missions in the valley. In the spring of 1772, near the present site of New Philadelphia, Ohio, Zeisberger along with five converted Indian families established Schoenbrunn (beautiful spring). They built a school house and a chapel. In August of that year, John Heckawelder brought an additional 250 converted Lenape Christians, who expanded the village of Schoenbrunn.

They established a second settlement, roughly 10 miles, called Gnadenhutten (cabins of grace). On October 17, 1772, Zeisberger conducted the first religious service at Gnadenhutten. In 1776, Chief Netawatwes donated land for another settlement, Lichtenau (meadow of light), near present-day Coshocton, then the principal Lenape village in the region.^[5]

Tuscarawas County was formed from Muskingum County on Feb. 15, 1808.^[6]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 571 square miles (1,480 km²), of which 568 square miles (1,470 km²) are land and 4 square miles (10 km²) (0.68%) are water.

Adjacent counties

• Stark County (north)
• Carroll County (northeast)
• Harrison County (southeast)
• Guernsey County (south)
• Coshocton County (southwest)
• Holmes County (northwest)

Demographics

Age pyramid of Tuscarawas County, based on 2000 census information.

As of the census^[7] of 2000, there were 90,914 people, 35,653 households, and 25,313 families residing in the county. The population density was 160 people per square mile (62/km²). There were 38,113 housing units at an average density of 67 per square mile (26/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.87% White, 0.73% Black or African American, 0.17% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.21% from other races, and 0.73% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.71% of the population. 95.3% spoke English, 1.3% German and 1.1% Spanish as their first language.

There were 35,653 households out of which 32.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.10% were married couples living together, 9.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.00% were non-families. 24.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the county, the population was spread out with 25.40% under the age of 18, 8.00% from 18 to 24, 28.10% from 25 to 44, 23.60% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $35,489, and the median income for a family was $41,677. Males had a median income of $31,963 versus $20,549 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,276. About 7.20% of families and 9.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.20% of those under age 18 and 7.80% of those age 65 or over.

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1810	3,045		—
1820	8,328		173.5%
1830	14,298		71.7%
1840	25,631		79.3%
1850	31,761		23.9%
1860	32,463		2.2%
1870	33,840		4.2%
1880	40,198		18.8%
1890	46,618		16.0%
1900	53,751		15.3%
1910	57,035		6.1%
1920	63,578		11.5%
1930	68,193		7.3%
1940	68,816		0.9%
1950	70,320		2.2%
1960	76,789		9.2%
1970	77,211		0.5%
1980	84,614		9.6%
1990	84,090		−0.6%
2000	90,914		8.1%
Est. 2007	91,398		0.5%
Population 1810-2007.[1]

Hunting

Deer hunters consistently harvest a higher number of deer in Tuscarawas County than in any other county in Ohio.^[8]

Government

Tuscarawas County Courthouse

Main article: Ohio county government

Communities

Map of Tuscarawas County, Ohio With Municipal and Township Labels

Cities

• Dover
• New Philadelphia
• Uhrichsville

Villages

Baltic Barnhill Bolivar Dennison

Gnadenhutten Midvale Mineral City Newcomerstown

Parral Port Washington Roswell Stone Creek

Strasburg Sugarcreek Tuscarawas Zoar

Townships

Auburn Bucks Clay Dover Fairfield Franklin

Goshen Jefferson Lawrence Mill Oxford Perry

Rush Salem Sandy Sugar Creek Union

Warren Warwick Washington Wayne York

Unincorporated communities

( West Chester

Dundee Sandyville

Fiat,Ohio Somerdale Stillwater

Ragersville,Ohio Wainwright

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Tuscarawas County, OhioRagersville

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Ohio County Profiles: Tuscarawas County" (PDF). Ohio Department of Development. http://www.odod.state.oh.us/research/FILES/S0/Tuscarawas.pdf. Retrieved 2007-04-28. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "The Export of Pennsylvania Placenames, William A. Russ, Jr.". http://cip.cornell.edu/DPubS/Repository/1.0/Disseminate/psu.ph/1130874805/body/pdf. Retrieved 2007-05-02. 
3. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-07. 
4. ^ "Tuscarawas County data". Ohio State University Extension Data Center. http://www.osuedc.org/profiles/profile_entrance.php?fips=39157&sid=0. Retrieved 2007-04-28. ^{[dead link]}
5. ^ Guide to Tuscarawas County, Federal Writers Project of Ohio Work Projects Administration, F.C. Harrington, Florence Kerr, Carl Watson, 1939
6. ^ "Historical Collections of Ohio, Henry Howe". 1888. http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~henryhowesbook/tuscarawas.html. Retrieved 2010-04-27. 
7. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
8. ^ http://www.timesreporter.com/local_news/x1355825770/Deer-kill-nears-6-000

Baltic ohio

External links

• Tuscarawas County Government's website
• Tuscarawas County Convention & Visitors Bureau's website
• Kent State University The Olmstead Collection, Tuscarawas County Historical Society
• Ohio and Erie Canal National Heritage Corridor, a National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary

Coordinates: 40°27′N 81°28′W / 40.45°N 81.47°W / 40.45; -81.47