Ohio
Ohio names 3 different subjects across the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf. Each is set out below. 1 of them is described by more than one encyclopedia.
Ohio a central state of the American Union
Described by 2 of the 6 encyclopedias.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
a central state of the American Union. It may be described as lying west of Pennsylvania between the Ohio River and Lake Erie. It is bounded by Indiana on the west and Michigan, in part, on the north. It is known popularly as the "Buckeye State." It was the first state formed from the Northwest Territory . The name is that of the river, meaning in the Indian language beautiful river. The greatest length of the state from north to south is 210 miles, from east to west 215 miles. The area is 41,060 square miles. The general surface of the state is rolling. There are no mountains. The highest point, 1,540 feet above the sea, lies in Logan County. The lowest point in the state is the bank of the Ohio River below Cincinnati. A gentle rise of land crosses the state from east to west, dividing the drainage basin of Lake Erie from that of the Ohio. As the streams empty into the Ohio and Lake Erie they have carved the surface into deep valleys and bluffs. The principal tributaries of the Ohio are the Muskingum, Mahoning, Hocking, Scioto, and the two Miamis. The principal rivers of the northern basin are the Maumee, Sandusky, and the Cuyahoga. MINERALS. The principal rock formations of the state are sandstone, shale, and limestone. Vast beds of the latter reach entirely across the state and furnish the chief stone for building material. There are salt and gypsum deposits near Sandusky. The state is rich in petroleum and reservoirs of natural gas. Owing to wasteful management the flow of the latter has decreased of late. Extensive coal measures are thought to underly a good fourth of the state. Fine sandstone in the vicinity of Berea supplies over half the grindstones and whetstones used in this country. SOIL AND CLIMATE. The average annual rainfall for the state is about forty inches. Naturally the northern half has cooler summers and colder winters than the southern portion. The soil is composed largely of glacial drift and disintegrated limestone. With proper cultivation, almost the entire area of the state may be said to be fertile. FORESTS. The earlier settlers found dense forests, particularly in the western part. Forests of oak, hickory, elm, walnut, beech, chestnut, maple, sycamore, and buckeye occupy the valleys and rolling uplands. Even yet over twenty per cent of the state is said to be covered by standing timber. The woods mentioned hold a high reputation for furniture and the wooden portions of machinery. According to the last United States census, Ohio ranked first in the Union in the manufacture of vehicles. The annual output of lumber is still valued at $20,000,000. The output of sash, doors, and wares dependent upon wood for the raw material brings the total up to $50,000,000. AGRICULTURE. The leading industry of the state is agriculture. About three-fourths of the state is under cultivation either as meadow or field. The leading field crops in order of acreage are corn, wheat, hay, oats, tobacco, potatoes, rye, buckwheat, and barley. The chief center of tobacco culture is not the most southerly part of the state, as might be expected, but an area lying northwest of Dayton. Vegetable growing is an important industry in the vicinity of the large cities, especially Toledo, Cleveland, and Cincinnati. Springfield and Dayton are famous for growing potted plants and nursery stock. Small fruits, as strawberries, raspberries, currants, and gooseberries, do well everywhere. The state is noted for fruit. An annual apple crop of from 10,000,000 to 20,000,000 bushels may be depended upon. A few peach trees are to be found on nearly every farm. Commercial peach orchards are confined, however, to a comparatively few especially favored area. In the same way, the culture of grapes for commercial purposes is confined chiefly to the shore of Lake Erie and the region about Cincinnati. Small orchards of pears, plums, and cherries for home consumption are of general occurrence. While not preeminently a hay state, Ohio is noted for dairy products. Prior to the growth of the industry in Montana and other western regions, Ohio led the Union in wool. INDUSTRIES. Prior to 1850 Cincinnati was the most important meat-packing city in the Union. The state is still noted for the production of pork. Aside from manufactures of wood already mentioned, Ohio is second in the Union in the manufacture of agricultural implements. It is the third state in the output of flour and other meal products. The same rank is held in the roasting of coffee and the spices, in the distribution of liquors, and in the making of soap, candy, tobacco, and cigarettes. There are extensive manufactures of boots, shoes, rubber goods, cars, clothing, and electrical supplies. The state ranks fifth in the printing of books, newspaper, and periodicals. The output of manufactures for the year 1900 was reported at the magnificent total of $832,438,113 and that total has been exceeded every year since. HISTORICAL. Ohio was wrested from France by the French and Indian War, terminated by the peace of 1763. The territory of Ohio was claimed by Virginia by virtue of its original charter. An Ohio land company was formed in 1748 for the purpose of establishing settlements in the valley. The pioneers of the state were involved in Indian warfare with the Shawnees and the Wyandots. The Indians, having defeated Generals Harmar and Saint Clair, were not pacified until they were routed by General Anthony Wayne in the spring of 1794. Among the agencies influential in opening up the state was the Ohio Company of Associates, formed in Boston by General Rufus Putnam. The first permanent settlement was formed by a company of emigrants under the direction of General Putnam. They crossed the Alleghanies with their teams and families by wagons, built a flat boat, descended the Ohio, and settled at Marietta in 1788. Other settlements were soon formed by parties who came down the Ohio River, likewise in flat boats. Another current of emigration, chiefly from Connecticut, entered the state by way of Lake Erie and occupied the country about Cleveland. The state was admitted to the Union in 1802. In early days the capital was shifted back and forth between Cincinnati and Chillicothe. In 1810 it was located at Zanesville. Columbus was designated as the permanent capital in 1812. The legislature first met in that city December 2, 1816. The first church in Ohio was erected in 1790 at Columbia, five miles above Cincinnati. The first newspaper, The Sentinel of the Northwest Territory, was printed at Cincinnati November 9, 1793. Ohio now ranks fourth in the Union in the circulation of newspapers and periodicals. EDUCATION, ETC. Ohio was the first state that received a national grant of land for educational purposes. The common school system was established in 1825. Ohio University at Athens was established in 1804, and Miami University at Oxford in 1809. In 1902 state normal schools were established in connection with these institutions. There are a large number of denominational and private institutions. Of these Oberlin, Ohio Wesleyan at Delaware, and Western Reserve at Cleveland, are the most noted. The state has furnished five presidents, William Henry Harrison, Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, William McKinley, and William H. Taft. Benjamin Harrison was a native of the state. The census of 1900 returned a population of 4,157,545. The largest nine cities, named in order of population, are Cleveland, Cincinnati, Toledo, Columbus Dayton, Youngstown, Akron, Springfield, and Canton. STATISTICS. The following statistics are the latest to be had from trustworthy sources: Land area, square miles 38,060 Water area 300 Population (1906) 4,448,677 Cleveland (1909) 506,923 Cincinnati 351,212 Toledo 174,059 Columbus 155,340 Dayton 109,393 Youngstown 57,959 Akron 54,744 Springfield 43,975 Canton 40,037 Lima 29,665 Hamilton 29,548 Lorain 26,077 Number counties 88 Members of state senate 34 Representatives 118 Salary of governor $10,000 U. S. representatives 21 Presidential electors 23 Assessed valuation of property $2,239,786,000 Bonded indebtedness none State revenue $7,000,000 Acres of improved land 19,244,000 Agricultural Productions- Corn, bushels (1908) 137,000,000 Wheat, bushels 33,000,000 Oats, bushels 38,000,000 Barley, bushels 825,000 Rye, bushels 808,000 Potatoes, bushels 13,000,000 Tobacco, pounds 63,000,000 Wool, pounds 13,000,000 Beet sugar, pounds 8,000,000 Fruits, value $10,000,000 Capital invested in manufactures $570,908,000 Wage earners 364,298 Raw material $527,000,000 Products, total value (1905) 960,811,000 Iron and steel 153,000,000 Foundry products 95,000,000 Flour and grist 41,000,000 Meat products 29,000,000 Boots and shoes 25,000,000 Liquors 37,000,000 Railway repair shops 21,000,000 Clothing 31,000,000 Printing and publishing 37,000,000 Planing mill products 18,000,000 Vehicles 16,000,000 Rubber goods 16,000,000 Furniture 13,000,000 Tobacco 13,000,000 Agricultural implements 13,000,000 Lumber products 12,000,000 Mineral Products- Petroleum, barrels 12,000,000 Coal, tons 32,000,000 Iron ore, tons 2,300 Salt, barrels 3,851,000 Natural gas, value $8,000,000 Clay products $25,000,000 Lime and cement $2,600,000 Quarry products $5,197,000 Domestic Animals- Horses 949,000 Mules 20,000 Milk cows 928,000 Other cattle 1,050,000 Sheep 3,110,000 Swine 3,159,000 Miles of railway 9,290 Banking capital $60,000,000 Teachers in public schools 26,517 Pupils enrolled 827,414 Percentage of male teachers 31.9 Average monthly salary of teachers $41.79 Average annual expenditure per pupil $33.32 See Mound Builders; Wayne ; Tecumseh ; Blennerhassett; Cleveland ; Northwest Territory ; Western Reserve ; Cincinnati ; Columbus ; Toledo
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a State in the North Central Division of the North American Union; bounded by Michigan, Lake Erie, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Indiana; admitted to the Union, Feb. 19, 1803; capital, Columbus; number of counties, 88; area, 41,040 square miles; pop. (1890) 3,672,316; (1900) 4,157,545, (1910) 4,767,121; (1920) 5,759,394. Topography. The surface of the State is an undulating plain with a tranverse ridge crossing it in a N. E. and S. W. direction just N. of the center of the State. This ridge forms the watershed between those rivers belonging to the St. Lawrence, and those of the Ohio river systems. The highest altitude in the State is near Bellefontaine, in Logan county, 1,550 feet. The N. side of the watershed, though smaller, has a more gentle slope than the S. side. The lands in the N. W. were originally swampy. The Ohio river forms over half the E., and the entire S. boundary of the State, and though it has an average descent of eight inches to the mile, is navigable its entire distance along the State. Lake Erie forms over two-thirds the N. boundary and provides Ohio with several excellent harbors. The principal rivers flowing into the lake are the Cuyahoga, whose mouth forms the harbor of Cleveland; the Black, the Vermilion, the Ottawa, the Sandusky, emptying into Sandusky Bay, and the Maumee, emptying into Maumee Bay. All of these rivers have excellent harbors at their mouths. The Maumee river drains the larger portion of the N. of Ohio. The streams flowing into the Ohio are the Muskingum, emptying at Marietta; the Scioto, at Portsmouth; the Little Miami, 6 miles from Cincinnati; the Big Miami, 20 miles below Cincinnati, and the Hocking. Geology. The entire geological formation of Ohio consists of Palæozoic strata, having an average thickness of about 3,500 feet. The Carboniferous, Devonian, and Silurian systems form the surface rock of the State. The Quaternary or drift deposits, cover a large area of the State, consisting of a blue bowlder clay, covered by the Erie clay. The Carboniferous deposits cover one-third the surface, overlying the Devonian, which geologically forms the surface of the N. part of the State. The whole S. E. half of Ohio is underlaid with coal measures, showing seven distinct veins of superior coal, for gas making, or iron smelting. These coal measures have a practical working thickness of over 50 feet. Mineralogy. The mineralogical resources of Ohio are very extensive. The State ranks ninth in the United States in the production of petroleum, and clay products; fourth in coal and natural gas; and fourth in salt. Iron is found in several counties, and is adapted to fine class castings. Carbonate of lime, hydraulic cement, and quicklime are extensively manufactured. The sandstone near Cleveland is used extensively for building purposes in the N. States and Canada. Ohio is one of the most important of the mineral producing States. Its two leading products are coal and clay products. There were produced in 1919 47,919,202 short tons of coal. The petroleum produced in the same year amounted to 7,825,226 barrels, valued at $10,061,493. The natural gas production was valued at $17,391,060. The value of the products of the quarries, chiefly sandstone and limestone, was $5,816,923. The Portland cement produced was 1,- 983,217 barrels, valued at $1,940,824. The value of the clay products was $36,- 839,621. Manufactures. - There were in 1914 15,658 manufacturing establishments, employing 510,435 wage earners. The capital invested was $1,677,552,000, and the amount paid in wages was $318,924,- 000. The value of the materials used was $1,020,782,000 and the value of the finished product was $1,782,808,000. Soil and Agriculture. The soil is divided into three grades, limestone soils, clay of the uplands, and swamp lands in the N. W. The former two are well adapted to agriculture, all the fruits, cereals, and vegetables of the temperate zone thriving well. The following figures give the acreage, production and value of the principal crops, in 1919: corn, 3,700,000 acres, production, 162,- 800,000 bushels, value $196,988,000; oats, 1,548,000 acres, production 51,858,000 bushels, value $37,338,000; wheat, 2,860,- 000 acres, production 54,440,000 bushels, value $115,413,000; hay, 2,879,000 acres, production 3,973,000 tons, value $86,611,- 000; tobacco, 90,000 acres, production 77,400,000 pounds, value $26,000,084; potatoes, 150,000 acres, production 9,300,- 000 bushels, value $17,856,000. Banking. On Oct. 31, 1919, there were reported 372 National banks in operation, having $65,033,000 in capital, $45,- 049,000 in outstanding circulation, and $156,342,000 in United States bonds. There were also 609 State banks, with $58,417,000 capital and $39,138,000 surplus; 169 private banks, with $2,657,000 capital, and $990,000 surplus. The exchanges at the United States clearing houses at Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus for the year ending Sept. 30, 1919, aggregated $8,780,512,000. Education. - School attendance is compulsory for children from 6 to 15 years. There were in 1919 about 11,000 public elementary schools, with about 30,000 teachers and about 870,000 enrolled pupils. There were over 1,000 public high schools, with nearly 130,000 pupils, and 6,500 teachers. There were 5 State normal schools, with about 1,200 students. The total expenditure for education exceeds $55,000,000 annually. Among the colleges are the University of Cincinnati, at Cincinnati; Western Reserve University, at Cleveland; Ohio State University, at Columbus, Ohio Wesleyan University, at Delaware; Oberlin College, at Oberlin; St. Xavier College, at Cincinnati, Oxford and Western Colleges, at Oxford, s, at Oxford, and the Lake Erie Colleg College and Seminary at Painesville. Churches. The strongest denominations in the State are the Roman Catholic; Methodist Episcopal; Presbyterian; Regular Baptist, North; Disciples of Christ; United Brethren; Lutheran, Independent Synods; Reformed; Congregational; German Evangelical Synod; and Christian. Railways. The total mileage in 1919 was 9,316. There were in addition over 4,300 miles of electric railway track. Finances. The receipts for the fiscal year ending July 1, 1918, were $25,411,- 743. The disbursements were $33,199,- 499. The cash on hand at the beginning of the year amounted to $7,787,756. There was a balance on July 1, 1919, of 1919 $7,375,351. The public debt amounted to $1,665, being a canal loan not bearing interest. State Government. The governor is elected for a term of two years. Legislative sessions are held biennially and limited in length to 60 days each. The Legislature has 37 members in the Senate, and 125 members in the House. There are 22 Representatives in Congress. The State government in 1921 was Republican. History. The site of the present State of Ohio was first explored by La Salle in 1680. About 1750 the English laid claim to the region, and their effort to make good their claim brought on the French and Indian War. In 1763, the whole region was ceded by France to England, and after the Revolutionary War it became part of the territory of the United States. The Ohio Company, organized in New England in 1787, composed of men who had served in the Revolutionary War, purchased from the government a large tract N. of the Ohio, paying for it in Continental currency. The first permanent settlement was made at Marietta in 1788. Cincinnati was founded soon after, and the settlement of the S. section of the territory progressed rapidly. In 1791 the Indian became stirred up by the encroachments of the whites, and a war ensued, which at first proved disastrous to the United States troops, but was finally ended in victory by General Wayne, in 1794. In the treaty of peace that followed, the Indians ceded a large section of territory, in which several new towns were quickly established. Ohio formed part of the Northwest Territory till 1800, when it was organized as a separate Territory, Chillicothe being made the seat of government. In 1802 a constitution was adopted for the "Eastern Division of the Territory N. W. of the Ohio," under the name of Ohio, and it was formally admitted into the Union on Feb. 19, 1803. Steamboat navigation on the Ohio began in 1812; excavation of the State canals began in 1825, and was completed in 1844; and the first railroad, begun in 1837, was opened to traffic by 1842. Ohio took an active part in the Civil War, and since the war has given seven Presidents to the Union-Grant, Hayes, Garfield, Harrison, McKinley, Taft, and Harding, all born in this State.
Ohio a river of the United States
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a river of the United States, caled by the French explorers, after its Indian name, la Belle Rivière (The Beautiful River), next to the Missouri the largest affluent of the Mississippi. It is formed by the union of the Allegheny and Monongahela at Pittsburgh, Pa., and flows W. S. W. 950 miles, with a breadth of 400 to 1,400 yards, draining, with its tributaries, an area of 214,000 square miles. In its course it separates the States of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois from the States of West Virginia and Kentucky. The principal towns on its banks are Pittsburgh, Wheeling, Cincinnati, Louisville (where there are rapids of 22 feet in a mile, with a steamboat canal), Evansville, New Albany, Madison, Portsmouth, Covington, and Cairo. The river's principal affluents are the Tennessee, Cumberland, Wabash, Kentucky, Great Kanawha, Green, Muskingum and Scioto. It is usually navigable from Pittsburgh.
Ohio ARMY OF THE, a division of the Federal army in the Civil War
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
ARMY OF THE, a division of the Federal army in the Civil War; organized in 1861-1862 by General Buell; afterward came under the command of General Rosecrans and was called the Army of the Cumberland. A second department of the Ohio was formed, and was also in 1865 incorporated in the Army of the Cumberland.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
Aiton's called agriculture "the leading industry of the state" in 1910, when Ohio held 4.8 million people; today it holds about 11.8 million, farming employs a small fraction of them, and the manufacturing boom the entry celebrated has itself receded — Cleveland, a city of over 900,000 at its 1950 peak, now has fewer than 400,000 residents. The natural gas whose flow had "decreased of late" through "wasteful management" returned after 2010 with hydraulic fracturing of the deep Utica shale in eastern Ohio, while the Berea grindstone trade has vanished. The Cuyahoga, listed here simply as a northern river, became a national symbol of pollution when it caught fire in 1969, helping drive the Clean Water Act of 1972; Lake Erie now contends with summer algal blooms that shut off Toledo's drinking water in 2014. The geography stands: still no mountains, the high point still in Logan County, now measured as Campbell Hill at 1,549 feet.
Written for this edition, 2026.