Ross County

County

Ross County, Ohio

Ohio · county seat Chillicothe · 76,429 residents (July 2025 estimate) · 10 ZIP codes · 25 cities, villages and townships

76,429 people (July 2025 estimate), -0.9% since the 2020 census; life expectancy 72.2 years; median household income $67,519 (2024). The county in numbers

Open on the map Places ZIP codes

Ross County, Ohio

Local events in Ross County

301 events in the next 90 days from 12 public calendars. All local events in Ross County

Saturday, October 31

Downtown Trick or Treat

All day · Downtown Chillicothe · From Chillicothe Ross Chamber of Commerce
Saturday, October 31

Early Voting in Ohio

Oct 6 to Nov 1 · 475 Western Avenue Suite D, Chillicothe · From Chillicothe Ross Chamber of Commerce
Saturday, October 31

PARTNER EVENT - Central Center Halloween Bash

All day · Central Center Western Ave., Chillicothe · From Chillicothe Ross Chamber of Commerce

Checked October 20; the events page is refreshed daily.

Ross County in numbers

The public records that are kept county by county, in 25 blocks. Every figure names its source; a tile's small line gives the comparison or the date.

Population

How many people live here, how the count has moved since 2020 and since 1900, and how the USDA classes the county.

residents, July 2025 estimate: 76,429; Census Bureau vintage 2025

since the April 2020 census: -0.9%; from 77,094 in the Census Bureau's April 2020 estimates base

births since July 2020: 3,688

deaths since July 2020: 5,304

net migration since July 2020: +983; people who moved in, minus people who moved out

net domestic migration, 2025: +654; moved in from elsewhere in the U.S., minus moved out

net international migration, 2025: -1

Ross County peaked at 78,064 people in 2010.

It is 1.9 times its 1900 size.

USDA rural-urban continuum code 4 of 9 (1 is the most metropolitan): nonmetro - urban population of 20,000 or more, adjacent to a metro area.

USDA ERS county typology (2015 codes): a nonmetro county with a government-dependent economy, flagged for low employment.

Ross County population by census year (Census Bureau)
Year	People	Source
1800	8,540	first census that counted the county
1850	32,074	decennial census
1900	40,940	decennial census
1950	54,424	decennial census
1970	61,211	decennial census
1990	69,330	decennial census
2000	73,382	Census Bureau estimates base, April 1
2010	78,064	decennial census
2020	77,094	Census Bureau estimates base, April 1
2025	76,429	July estimate

Source: Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (vintage 2025, join_popest.py); decennial counts 1900-1990 from 'Population of States and Counties of the United States 1790-1990', 2000/2010 from intercensal files; USDA ERS Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023; USDA ERS county typology codes, 2015 edition · Census population estimates · USDA ERS county codes · USDA ERS county typology · About this topic

Moving in and out

People on tax returns that changed county between the returns filed in 2022 and 2023, counted by the IRS.

people moved in, 2022 to 2023: 2,529; on tax returns filed from a new county

people moved out: 2,573

net people: -44; moved in, minus moved out

people stayed put: 54,806

income that moved in: $71 million; adjusted gross income on the arrivals' 2023 returns

income that moved out: $73 million; adjusted gross income on the leavers' 2023 returns

Where arriving people came from (IRS returns, 2022 to 2023)
From	People
Franklin, OH	376
Pike, OH	309
Pickaway, OH	287

Where leaving people went (IRS returns, 2022 to 2023)
To	People
Pike, OH	322
Pickaway, OH	272
Franklin, OH	268

Source: IRS Statistics of Income county-to-county migration flows, 2022-2023 · IRS migration data · About this topic

Income and poverty

The Census Bureau's 2024 small-area estimates for the county.

of residents below the poverty line, 2024: 13.4%

of children below the poverty line, 2024: 18.2%

median household income, 2024: $67,519

Source: Census SAIPE 2024 county estimates · Census SAIPE · About this topic

Jobs and wages

Unemployment in the latest month and what employers in the county pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

unemployment rate, July 2026: 4.2%; 5.3% a year earlier

people in the labor force, July 2026: 31,932

looking for work: 1,341

average weekly wage, first quarter of 2026: $1,163; +2.5% on the year

jobs covered by unemployment insurance: 27,842; -3.7% on the year

establishments: 1,537

Largest private sectors, first quarter of 2026 (BLS QCEW)
Sector	Jobs	Average weekly wage
health care and social assistance	5,514	$1,316
manufacturing	3,617	$1,552
retail	3,545	$698

Source: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics; BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2026 Q1 · BLS local unemployment · BLS QCEW · About this topic

The county economy

What the county produces and earns, from the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

real GDP, 2024 (2017 dollars): $3.1 billion; +5.6% since 2019

GDP in 2024 dollars: $3.9 billion; current dollars, before adjusting for inflation

personal income per person, 2024: $48,854; 76th of Ohio's 88 counties

change in income per person since 2019: +27.1%; before inflation

Source: BEA regional accounts: county GDP (CAGDP1), per capita personal income (CAINC1), 2024 · BEA county GDP · About this topic

Businesses opening and closing

How many workplaces with employees opened and closed each year since 1978, how many people applied to start a business, and how many businesses run with no employees at all.

workplaces opened in 2023: 89; 82 closed

net workplaces, 2019 to 2023: +34; openings minus closings

applications to start a business, 2025: 685; +108% since 2019

businesses with no employees, 2023: 4,300; +13% since 2012

A workplace here is one location with paid employees: a chain with five stores is five. An application to start a business is a request for a federal employer number, not an opening, and most applicants never hire anyone.

Workplaces opened and closed, average per year
Years	Opened	Closed	Net
1978 to 1989	125	113	+12
the 1990s	114	102	+12
the 2000s	110	115	-5
the 2010s	80	85	-4
2020 to 2023	94	92	+2

Workplaces opened and closed, 2019 to 2023
Year	Opened	Closed	Net
2019	94	68	+26
2020	93	99	-6
2021	100	95	+5
2022	94	92	+2
2023	89	82	+7

Source: U.S. Census Bureau: Business Dynamics Statistics 1978-2023; Business Formation Statistics, county business applications 2005-2025; Nonemployer Statistics 2012-2023 · Census Business Dynamics Statistics · Census Business Formation Statistics, counties · Census Nonemployer Statistics · About this topic

Federal money

What the federal government obligated to the county in fiscal 2025, by county of performance; Social Security, Medicare and most benefits are not counted.

in federal contracts performed in the county, fiscal 2025: $105 million; $1,361 a resident

in federal grants, fiscal 2025: $162 million; $2,108 a resident

in federal loans and loan guarantees: -$55,017

in direct federal payments to people and organizations: $470 million

Source: USAspending federal awards by county of performance, fiscal 2025 · USAspending · About this topic

Health rankings

County Health Rankings 2025 measures for the county, with the Ohio figure alongside.

life expectancy at birth: 72.2 years; Ohio 75.2

years of life lost before 75, per 100,000 (premature death): 12,209.2; Ohio 9,740

population health group among U.S. counties: 6 of 10; 1 is healthiest

community conditions group among U.S. counties: 5 of 10; 1 is best

of children in poverty: 22.8%; Ohio 17.5%

uninsured: 6.8%; Ohio 7.1%

No community water system in the county had a health-based drinking water violation in the rankings' reporting year.

County Health Rankings 2025: Ross County and Ohio
Measure	Ross County	Ohio
Life expectancy at birth (years)	72.2	75.2
Years of potential life lost before 75, per 100,000 (premature death)	12,209.2	9,740
Adults in fair or poor health	21.7%	17.9%
Uninsured	6.8%	7.1%
Children in poverty	22.8%	17.5%
Median household income	$61,651	$67,873
Income inequality (80th to 20th percentile household income ratio)	4.4	4.6
Households with severe housing problems	13.7%	12.7%
People per primary care physician	1,508	1,328
People per mental health provider	164	286
People per dentist	1,741	1,535
Preventable hospital stays per 100,000 Medicare enrollees	1,898	3,033
Medicare enrollees with a flu vaccination	43%	51%
Injury deaths per 100,000	140.5	100.7
Suicides per 100,000	15.9	14.7
Child deaths per 100,000 (under 18)	50.9	59.2
Infant deaths per 1,000 live births	5.9	7.0
Teen births per 1,000 females 15 to 19	28.8	17.4
Average daily fine-particle pollution (PM2.5, µg/m³)	8.1	7.8
Any drinking water violation in the county	No
Population used by the rankings	76,501
Population health group (1 to 10 among U.S. counties; 1 is healthiest)	6
Community conditions group (1 to 10 among U.S. counties; 1 is best)	5

Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute) · County Health Rankings · About this topic

Cancer

New cancers and cancer deaths per 100,000 people, age-adjusted, from the National Cancer Institute's State Cancer Profiles.

new cancers a year per 100,000 people, age-adjusted, 2018 to 2022: 522.9; 95% confidence interval 502.6 to 543.9 · Ohio 472.9 · U.S. 448.6

cases a year: 529

incidence trend: stable

cancer deaths a year per 100,000, age-adjusted, 2019 to 2023: 178.5; Ohio 160.3 · U.S. 145.4

cancer deaths a year: 180

death-rate trend: falling; -1.1% a year

Cancer incidence by site, 2018 to 2022 (NCI State Cancer Profiles)
Site	Per 100,000	Ohio	Cases a year	Trend
Lung	92.7	63.6	100	stable
Colorectal	43.3	38.4	43	stable
Female breast	123.0	133.0	61	stable
Prostate	101.1	120.8	53	stable
Leukemia	18.4	13.0	17	stable
Bladder	21.3	21.8	22	stable

Source: NCI State Cancer Profiles, county incidence 2018-2022 and mortality 2019-2023 · NCI cancer profiles · About this topic

Drug overdoses

Provisional overdose death counts by county from the CDC, 12 months at a time.

overdose deaths in the 12 months ending December 2025: 20; CDC provisional count

deaths per 100,000 residents: 26.1; Ohio 20.8

deaths a year earlier: 35

highest 12-month total since 2020: 64; 12 months ending March 2022

Source: CDC NCHS provisional county drug overdose deaths, 12-month-ending counts; CDC VSRR for the Ohio row · CDC overdose data · About this topic

Medicare

Who in the county is on Medicare and how they are covered, from CMS enrollment counts.

people on Medicare, 2025: 17,256; 23% of residents

aged 65 or over: 14,594

younger people with disabilities: 2,662

chose a Medicare Advantage plan: 56.5%

also on Medicaid: 19.4%

with Part D drug coverage: 82.8%

enrollment since 2020: +6.3%; 16,231 enrollees then

Source: CMS Medicare Monthly Enrollment by county, 2025 · CMS Medicare Monthly Enrollment · About this topic

Severe weather

Hail, wind, flooding and tornado reports logged for the county in NOAA's Storm Events database.

severe weather reports, 2016 to 2025: 151; NOAA Storm Events log

death: 1

injury: 1

in reported damage: $1 million

largest hail: 3 in; May 26, 2019

strongest measured gust: 73 mph; June 10, 2020

The costliest event was tornadoes on October 16, 2021, $300,000 in damage. The tornado initially caused damage to trees east of South Salem Cemetery and within Sunset Park. The highest intensity occurred shortly after touch down with t…

Severe weather reports by kind, 2016 to 2025 (NOAA Storm Events)
Kind	Reports
damaging thunderstorm wind	71
river and street flooding	45
flash floods	19
hail	11

Zone-wide advisories by kind, 2016 to 2025 (NOAA Storm Events)
Kind	Reports
winter weather	36
winter storms	14
high wind	5

Source: NOAA Storm Events database, 2016-2026 · NOAA storm events · About this topic

Weather warnings

Every warning, watch and advisory the National Weather Service has issued for the county since 2015.

tornado warnings since 2015: 17

severe thunderstorm warnings: 181

flash flood warnings: 23

winter storm or blizzard warnings: 19

warnings, watches and advisories in all: 1,009

National Weather Service products for Ross County since 2015 (Iowa Environmental Mesonet archive)
Product	Count
Tornado Warning	17
Tornado Watch	29
Severe Thunderstorm Warning	181
Flash Flood Warning	23
Flood Warning	9
Areal Flood Warning	15
Areal Flood Advisory	126
Winter Storm Warning	19
Winter Weather Advisory	80
Excessive Heat Warning	4
Heat Advisory	30
Extreme Cold Warning	2
Wind Chill Warning	2
Snow Squall Warning	3

Tornado warnings by year
Year	Warnings
2017	1
2019	4
2020	1
2021	3
2022	1
2023	2
2024	2
2025	3

Source: National Weather Service warnings/watches/advisories, Iowa Environmental Mesonet VTEC archive, since 2015 · IEM warning archive · About this topic

Drought

How often the U.S. Drought Monitor has put the county in drought since 2000.

weeks in moderate drought or worse since 2020: 33

of them severe or worse: 9; most recently 9 weeks in 2024

weeks at least abnormally dry since 2020: 64

of all weeks since 2000 in drought: 7%

The worst reading since 2000 was exceptional drought in September 2024.

As of September 1, 2026: no drought.

Source: U.S. Drought Monitor weekly county statistics, 2000-2026 · U.S. Drought Monitor · About this topic

The long-run climate

Average temperature and precipitation over the whole county since 1895, from NOAA's county climate series; only complete years count.

average year, 1996 to 2025: 53.6 °F; 51.9 °F in 1901 to 1930 · 51.8 °F in 1951 to 1980

change since 1901 to 1930: +1.6 °F

warmest year since 1895: 2024; 56.2 °F

precipitation in the average year, 1996 to 2025: 42.8 in; 41.2 in 1901 to 1930 (+3.9%)

wettest year since 1895: 2018; 58.6 inches

average temperature, 2025: 53.7 °F; 46.3 inches of precipitation

Source: NOAA nClimDiv county monthly temperature and precipitation, 1895-2026 (climdiv-tmpccy / climdiv-pcpncy) · NOAA climate at a glance · About this topic

Hazard mitigation

FEMA-funded projects in the county that reduce future flood, storm and other losses: buyouts, plans, studies and equipment.

hazard mitigation projects since 1992: 2; FEMA grants, program years 1992 to 2003

total project worth: $1 million; $630,163 federal

properties covered: 15

Largest: Acquisition of Private Real Property (Structures and Land) - Riverine for Ross County, $633,300 (fiscal 1992).

Mitigation projects by type since 1992 (OpenFEMA)
Project type	Projects
Acquisition of Private Real Property (Structures and Land) - Riverine	2

Source: OpenFEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance projects, v4 API · OpenFEMA · About this topic

Air toxics

The EPA's modeled lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics across the county.

lifetime cancer risk from outdoor air toxics: 30 in a million; EPA AirToxScreen 2020

Mostly formaldehyde (18.5 in a million) and carbon tetrachloride (2.9 in a million).

Source: EPA AirToxScreen 2020 · EPA AirToxScreen · About this topic

Water use

The 2015 figures are the U.S. Geological Survey's last county estimate, made a different way; the two are not a trend.

million gallons of fresh water withdrawn a day, 2015 (USGS estimate): 43.2

people served by public water systems, 2015: 57,800; 82 gallons a person a day used at home

people supplying their own water at home, 2015: 19,400

The U.S. Geological Survey's 2015 county estimate, which also counts small wells (million gallons a day)
Use	Million gallons a day
All uses	43.2
Public water systems	9.5
Power plants (thermoelectric)	0.0
Industry (own supply)	31.6
Irrigation	0.5
Mining	0.1
Livestock	0.1
Fish farms (aquaculture)	0.0

Source: USGS 2015 county water-use census (Dieter and others 2018) · ODNR Water Withdrawal Atlas (archived copy) · USGS county water use 2015 · About this topic

Fluoridated water

The share of county residents on community water whose water is fluoridated, from the Ohio Department of Health.

of residents on community water receive fluoridated water: 85.6%

Source: Ohio Department of Health county fluoridation profiles (DataOhio) · ODH fluoridation report (DataOhio) · EPA SDWIS search · About this topic

Road salt grants

H2Ohio pays for brine makers, calibrated spreaders and covered salt barns so less chloride reaches streams and wells.

H2Ohio chloride-reduction grant awarded in the county: 1

Source: Ohio EPA H2Ohio chloride reduction grants · Ohio EPA chloride reduction grants · About this topic

Farms

The county's farms in the 2022 Census of Agriculture. A dash means NASS published no figure: withheld to protect individual farms, or none reported.

farms, 2022: 1,107; 245 acres to a farm on average

acres in farms: 270,703; 187,663 acres of cropland

of the county's land is cropland: 42.2%

farm products sold, 2022: $145 million; 13% from livestock, poultry and their products

Crops and livestock, 2022 Census of Agriculture
Crop or animal	Acres or head
Corn for grain (acres harvested)	58,401
Soybeans (acres harvested)	73,605
Irrigated land (acres)	1,853
Cattle and calves	12,916
Hogs and pigs	375
Egg-laying chickens	59,911
Broilers and other meat chickens	385
Turkeys	10

Source: USDA NASS 2022 Census of Agriculture county totals (Quick Stats bulk file) · USDA Census of Agriculture · NASS 2022 county profile · About this topic

Farm pesticides

Pesticides applied on the county's farms in 2018 as estimated by the U.S. Geological Survey, in kilograms of active ingredient.

of pesticide active ingredient used on farms, 2018: 158,549 kg; USGS estimate (preliminary, high estimate)

per square mile of land: 228.4 kg; 43rd of Ohio's 88 counties, most per square mile first

atrazine: 24,550 kg

glyphosate: 56,682 kg

compounds with an estimate: 127

Largest pesticides by amount applied, 2018 (USGS, kilograms)
Compound	Kilograms
glyphosate	56,682
atrazine	24,550
metolachlor	18,491
acetochlor	9,582
2,4-D	5,739

Source: USGS preliminary county agricultural pesticide-use estimates, 2018 (high estimate) · USGS county pesticide-use estimates, 2018 · About this topic

Rail accidents

Accidents railroads reported to the Federal Railroad Administration in the county since 2010. Yard mishaps at walking speed dominate; main-line derailments are the rare, dangerous ones.

rail equipment accidents since 2010: 5; FRA Form 54

derailments: 2

Source: FRA Form 54 rail equipment accident reports, county fallback for railAccidentLine() · FRA rail equipment accidents (Form 54) · About this topic

House records

Where the house-by-house records on this county's ZIP pages come from, and how current they are.

parcel records placed on the map: 31,903; snapshot of February 6, 2026

Ross County Auditor CAMA and tax extract (Pivot Point, ARC 3rd Party Extract layout) with Ross County GIS parcels and address points.

Office: Ross County Auditor, 2 N Paint St, Chillicothe OH 45601 (CAMA vendor Pivot Point); parcel polygons and address points by Ross County GIS.

These are full appraisal records: every house's year built, value and sales history opens from its ZIP page.

Source: Ross County Auditor CAMA and tax extract (Pivot Point, ARC 3rd Party Extract layout) with Ross County GIS parcels and address points, snapshot 2026-02-06 · Ross County Auditor · About this topic

What stands out

Where this county sits among Ohio's 88 on the measures the atlas tracks, and the sentences the inference engine built from them. Rankings and associations only: nothing here says one measure causes another, and a county-level pattern is not a fact about anyone who lives here.

measures flagged for this county: 13; 12 in the worst tenth of the 88

of the 85 counties with anything flagged: 26th worst; economy, health, housing and household

losing ground on Ohio: 1; the gap to the state is widening

peer group the engine compares it against: small metro and micropolitan; Appalachian county

"Losing ground on Ohio" compares trends, not levels: a county can be losing ground while its own number improves, if the rest of the state improved faster over the same years.

Ross County has Ohio's lowest excessive drinking: 17.6% (2025). Source: University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute / RWJF.

Across Ohio, share of adults with arthritis and population, age 65 and over per 10,000 residents move together. Ross County is an exception: its population, age 65 and over per 10,000 residents is 1,768.9 (2022), far lower than the statewide pattern predicts from its share of adults with arthritis of 32.2% (2025). Sources: CDC; Ohio Department of Health.

Ross County has the 2nd-highest flood and flash-flood events of Ohio's 87 counties: 20 events (2025). Source: NOAA NCEI.

Ross County is among Ohio's ten highest for drug overdose deaths, 12 months ending 31 December per 10,000 residents (6.5, 2023) and among the ten lowest for public school revenue, local share (36.5%, 2023), two measures that move in opposite directions across the state (rank correlation -0.81 with population held fixed). Sources: CDC/NCHS; National Center for Education Statistics.

Ross County is among Ohio's ten highest for share of adults with housing insecurity in the past year (12.5%, 2025) and among the ten lowest for votes cast for Auditor of State per 10,000 residents (2,934.1, 2022), two measures that move in opposite directions across the state (rank correlation -0.80 with population held fixed). Sources: CDC; OpenElections.

Ross County is among Ohio's ten highest for share of adults lacking social and emotional support (22.6%, 2025) and among the ten lowest for votes cast for President per 10,000 residents (4,330.3, 2024), two measures that move in opposite directions across the state (rank correlation -0.78 with population held fixed). Sources: CDC; OpenElections.

Ross County is among Ohio's ten highest for share of adults with chronic kidney disease (3.0%, 2023) and among the ten lowest for votes cast for U.S. Senate per 10,000 residents (4,298.3, 2024), two measures that move in opposite directions across the state (rank correlation -0.79 with population held fixed). Sources: CDC; OpenElections.

Ross County is among Ohio's ten lowest for share of adults screened for cholesterol (84.2%, 2025) and among the ten lowest for votes cast for U.S. Senate per 10,000 residents (4,298.3, 2024), two measures that move together across the state (rank correlation 0.80 with population held fixed). Sources: CDC; OpenElections.

Measures where Ross County stands out, worst first
Measure	Latest	Ohio median	Rank, worst first	Change
Drug overdose mortality rate (County Health Rankings)	76.5 per 100,000 (2025)	38.6	6th of 84
Injury death rate (County Health Rankings)	140.5 per 100,000 (2025)	95.7	7th of 88
Share of adults with a routine checkup in the past year (crude)	78.0% (2025)	79.7%	4th of 88
Share of adults lacking social and emotional support (crude)	22.6% (2025)	21.1%	5th of 88
Share of adults with asthma (crude)	11.6% (2025)	11.1%	7th of 88
Share of adults with chronic kidney disease	3.0% (2023)	2.8%	9th of 88
Share of adults with obesity	43.9% (2025)	39.3%	6th of 88
Share of adults with diagnosed diabetes	12.6% (2025)	11.3%	6th of 88
Share of adults with depression (crude)	27.9% (2025)	25.8%	8th of 88
Share of adults screened for cholesterol (crude)	84.2% (2025)	85.7%	8th of 88
Share of adults with housing insecurity in the past year (crude)	12.5% (2025)	10.9%	9th of 88
Annual payroll, all industries (CBP) per resident	$15,687 (2023)	$15,708	43rd of 88	$15,687 from $13,140 since 2014 · losing ground on Ohio
Teen birth rate (County Health Rankings)	28.8 per 1,000 females 15-19 (2025)	19.0	7th of 88

Source: Cracked Buckeye inference engine (scripts/inference) over the county-year panel, run 2026-09-21 · What moves with what across Ohio

Places

The 25 cities, villages and townships whose residents live mostly in Ross County, with the population of each.

Cities 1

Chillicothe22,059

Villages 6

Townships 18

ZIP codes

The 10 ZIP codes whose residents live mostly in Ross County, largest first. Each links to its own page; the water system column links to the utility serving most of its residents.

ZIP codes of Ross County: residents (2020 census), the water system serving most residents, radon, home value, school district and flood exposure
ZIP	Name	Residents	Water system	Radon	Home value	School district	Flood
45601	Chillicothe	56,849	Chillicothe City 46% Groundwater (wells)	6.3 pCi/L average radon	Median home $173,100	Chillicothe City 3 stars overall	2.9% of residents in the 1% floodplain
45628	Concord Township and Frankfort	5,429	Ross County Water Co. Inc 80% Groundwater (wells)	Too few radon tests	Median home $182,800	Adena Local 3 stars overall	6.4% of residents in the 1% floodplain
45612	Paxton Township and Bainbridge	5,059	Bainbridge Village 15% Mostly private wells	3.9 pCi/L average radon	Median home $147,300	Paint Valley Local 3 stars overall	2.4% of residents in the 1% floodplain
45644	Kingston	4,316	Ross County Water Co. Inc 41% Groundwater (wells)	3.6 pCi/L average radon	Median home $238,300	Zane Trace Local 3 stars overall	0.2% of residents in the 1% floodplain
45647	Liberty Township and Londonderry	2,410	Ross County Water Co. Inc 92% Groundwater (wells)	2.0 pCi/L average radon	Median home $216,300	Southeastern Local 4 stars overall	1.5% of residents in the 1% floodplain
45681	Buckskin Township and South Salem	1,589	Ross County Water Co. Inc 68% Groundwater (wells)	Too few radon tests	Median home $143,200	Greenfield Exempted Village 3.5 stars overall	5.8% of residents in the 1% floodplain
43115	Deerfield Township and Clarksburg	1,260	Clarksburg Village 33% Groundwater (wells)	4.2 pCi/L average radon	Median home $156,700	Adena Local 3 stars overall	1.0% of residents in the 1% floodplain
45673	Jefferson Township and Richmond Dale	398	Ross County Water Co. Inc 65% Groundwater (wells)	Too few radon tests	Median home $87,000	Southeastern Local 4 stars overall	12% of residents in the 1% floodplain
43101	Adelphi	322	Laurelville, Vlg Of 100% Groundwater (wells)	Too few radon tests	Median home $164,300	Zane Trace Local 3 stars overall	0.0% of residents in the 1% floodplain
45617	Twin Township and Bourneville	76	Ross County Water Co. Inc 100% Groundwater (wells)	Too few radon tests	No Census data	Paint Valley Local 3 stars overall	38% of residents in the 1% floodplain

Source: residents: 2020 Census (POP100, ZCTA) · water systems: EPA SDWIS + service-area-boundary join · radon: Ohio Department of Health radon test results by ZIP since 2010 · home value: Census ACS 2020-2024 5-year by ZCTA (housing/commute tables) · school districts: Ohio school district boundaries (OGRIP via ODOT) · flood: FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer.

On the map

Open the map fitted to Ross County. Every ZIP code in the table above links to its page, and each page opens the map at that ZIP.

Historic places: 22 National Register listings in Ross County. See every one on the map, each with its record and its National Park Service file.

Rankings within the county

The county's ZIP codes ranked by what the map measures; each heading links to the topic's page.

Highest radon

45601Chillicothe6.3 pCi/L
43115Deerfield Township and Clarksburg4.2 pCi/L
45612Paxton Township and Bainbridge3.9 pCi/L
45644Kingston3.6 pCi/L
45647Liberty Township and Londonderry2.0 pCi/L

Most snow

45673Jefferson Township and Richmond Dale20.7 in a year
45681Buckskin Township and South Salem18.3 in a year
45628Concord Township and Frankfort18.3 in a year
43115Deerfield Township and Clarksburg15.4 in a year
45647Liberty Township and Londonderry15.3 in a year

Oldest homes

45617Twin Township and Bournevillemedian year built 1946
43101Adelphimedian year built 1959
45673Jefferson Township and Richmond Dalemedian year built 1959
43115Deerfield Township and Clarksburgmedian year built 1972
45601Chillicothemedian year built 1972

Highest home values

45644Kingston$238,300
45647Liberty Township and Londonderry$216,300
45628Concord Township and Frankfort$182,800
45601Chillicothe$173,100
43101Adelphi$164,300

Best school stars

45673Jefferson Township and Richmond Dale4.0 stars
45647Liberty Township and Londonderry4.0 stars
45681Buckskin Township and South Salem3.5 stars
45644Kingston3.0 stars
45628Concord Township and Frankfort3.0 stars

Local government

Who holds office in Ross County, how its elections and ballot issues came out, and the state auditor's record.

Turnout

Election	Registered	Ballots cast	Turnout
2024-03-19 primary	46,022	10,254	22.3%
2022-11-08 general	45,929	22,973	50.0%
2022-05-03 primary	45,188	9,017	20.0%
2020-03-17 primary	43,861	8,407	19.2%
2019-05-07 primary	9,380	1,400	14.9%

Who holds office

Office	Name	Contact
County Commissioner	Jack Everson	740-702-3085 2 North Paint Street, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
County Commissioner	James E. Lowe	740-702-3085 2 North Paint Street, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
County Commissioner	David Glass	740-702-3085 2 North Paint Street, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
County Auditor	Jeff Lehner	740-702-3080 2 N Paint St, Suite G, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
County Treasurer	David Jeffers	740-702-3080 2 N Paint St, Suite F, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
County Recorder	Anthony Maughmer	740-702-3000 2 N Paint St, Suite E, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
County Engineer	Charles R. Ortman, P.E., P.S.	740-702-3130 755 Fairgrounds Road, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
County Coroner	Dr. Ben Trotter, D.O.	740-775-7464 217 Delano Ave. Suite A, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
Sheriff	George W. Lavender	740-773-1186 28 North Paint Street, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
Prosecuting Attorney	Jeffrey C. Marks	740-702-3115 33 W Main St, Suite 200, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
Clerk of Courts	Jordan L. Wheeler	740-702-3010 2 North Paint Street, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website

Roster as of 2026-09-19: county board of elections.

Money issues on the ballot since 2022: 2 of 2 passed.

Ballot issues

Date	Issue	For	Against	Result
2024-03-19	Issue: Local Liquor Option Paxton Bainbridge	60	37	Passed (61.86% for), unofficial
2022-11-08	Issue: Ross County Children's Services (Renewal)	14,529	7,987	Passed (64.53% for)
2022-11-08	Issue: Ross County Senior Citizens Services (Renewal)	16,101	6,390	Passed (71.59% for)
2022-11-08	Issue: Local Liquor Option 3-C	89	60	Passed (59.73% for)
2022-11-08	Issue: Local Liquor Option for 3-D	234	118	Passed (66.48% for)
2022-11-08	Issue: Local Liquor Option Liberty East	190	155	Passed (55.07% for)
2022-11-08	Issue: Local Liquor Option Scioto Six	350	139	Passed (71.57% for)
2022-11-08	Issue: Local Liquor Option Scioto West	242	112	Passed (68.36% for)
2022-05-03	Issue: Local Option Cross Creek Petroleum - Weekday	119	54	Passed (68.79% for)
2022-05-03	Issue: Local Option Cross Creek Petroleum - Sunday	103	70	Passed (59.54% for)
2022-05-03	Issue: Local Option - Paps Hilltop Distillery - Weekday	89	27	Passed (76.72% for)
2022-05-03	Issue: Local Option - Paps Hilltop Distillery - Sunday	75	40	Passed (65.22% for)

Elections for office

Date	Office	Candidates and votes
2024-03-19	Sheriff (REP primary) (unofficial count)	George W. Lavender Jr. 6,549, 100.0%
2024-03-19	Prosecuting Attorney (REP primary) (unofficial count)	Jeffrey C. Marks 6,152, 100.0%
2024-03-19	County Treasurer (REP primary) (unofficial count)	David Jeffers 6,272, 100.0%
2024-03-19	County Recorder (DEM primary) (unofficial count)	Kathy Dunn 2,066, 100.0%
2024-03-19	County Recorder (REP primary) (unofficial count)	Anthony Major Maughmer 6,065, 100.0%
2024-03-19	County Engineer (REP primary) (unofficial count)	Charles R. Ortman 6,382, 100.0%
2024-03-19	County Commissioner (DEM primary) (unofficial count)	Mark Hirsch 2,073, 100.0%
2024-03-19	County Commissioner (REP primary) (unofficial count)	David A. Glass 4,778, 65.63%; Ken Shelton 2,502, 34.37%
2024-03-19	County Commissioner (REP primary) (unofficial count)	Jason Link 2,341, 34.23%; James E. Lowe 4,499, 65.77%
2024-03-19	Coroner (DEM primary) (unofficial count)	Write-In: Ben Trotter 44, 29.33%
2024-03-19	Clerk of Courts (REP primary) (unofficial count)	Joseph A. Weathersbee 2,644, 39.27%; Jordan Wheeler 4,089, 60.73%
2022-11-08	County Commissioner	Doug Corcoran (DEM) 9,905, 43.61%; Jack A. Everson (REP) 12,810, 56.39%
2022-11-08	County Auditor	Robyn M. Brewster (DEM) 7,488, 33.1%; Jeff Lehner (REP) 15,132, 66.9%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (DEM primary)	Beth Neal 64, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (DEM primary)	Velma Kell 43, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (DEM primary)	Stephen A. Madru 41, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (DEM primary)	Elizabeth Gibbons-Camp 29, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (DEM primary)	Mike Warren 41, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (DEM primary)	David F. Lanning 53, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (DEM primary)	Gayle Mahaffey 25, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (DEM primary)	Rick Marriott 29, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (DEM primary)	Martha Gerber Rittinger 19, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (DEM primary)	Ralph Gerald Park 39, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (REP primary)	Julie Lambert 134, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Member of County Central Committee (REP primary)	Deborah Russell 98, 100.0%

Winners in bold. Results from the county board of elections' official canvass unless marked.

Auditor of State record

No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
Financial Health Indicators (the Auditor of State's 17 measures; critical / cautionary / positive): 2020 0 / 1 / 16; 2021 0 / 2 / 15; 2022 0 / 2 / 15; 2023 0 / 1 / 16; 2024 1 / 3 / 13; 2025 1 / 5 / 10.
Financial Audit, 2024, released 2025-12-02
Financial Audit, 2023, released 2024-09-03

Townships and villages without a page of their own

Buckskin Township

Auditor of State record

No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
Financial Audit, 2022 to 2023, released 2024-07-30

School districts

Adena Local School District

Ballot issues

Date	Issue	For	Against	Result
2022-05-03	Issue: Adena Local School District	555	711	Failed (43.84% for)

Auditor of State record

No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
Financial Audit, 2024 to 2025, released 2026-05-19
Financial Audit, 2023 to 2024, released 2025-02-18

Chillicothe City School District

Auditor of State record

No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
Financial Audit, 2024 to 2025, released 2026-06-16
Financial Audit, 2023 to 2024, released 2025-05-29

Huntington Local School District

Auditor of State record

No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
Financial Audit, 2023 to 2024, released 2025-12-30

Miami Trace Local School District

Ballot issues

Date	Issue	For	Against	Result
2022-05-03	Issue: Miami Trace Local School District	1	0	Passed (100.0% for)

Paint Valley Local School District

Auditor of State record

No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
Financial Audit, 2024 to 2025, released 2026-07-21
Financial Audit, 2023 to 2024, released 2026-01-08

Ross County School Employees Insurance Consortium

Auditor of State record

No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
Financial Audit, 2024 to 2025, released 2026-03-05
Financial Audit, 2023 to 2024, released 2025-02-20

Southeastern Local School District

Auditor of State record

No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
Financial Audit, 2024 to 2025, released 2026-05-21
Financial Audit, 2023 to 2024, released 2025-05-15

Union-Scioto Local School District: 1 of 1 money issues passed since 2024

Money issues on the ballot since 2024: 1 of 1 passed.

Ballot issues

Date	Issue	For	Against	Result
2024-03-19	Issue: Proposed Income Tax Union-Scioto Local School District	1,138	882	Passed (56.34% for), unofficial
2019-05-07	Issue: Union-Scioto Local School District	874	341	Passed (71.93% for)

Auditor of State record

No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
Financial Audit, 2024 to 2025, released 2026-04-21
Financial Audit, 2023 to 2024, released 2025-04-08
STRS Examination, 2023 to 2024, released 2024-11-07
SERS Examination, 2023 to 2024, released 2024-10-03

Zane Trace Local School District

Ballot issues

Date	Issue	For	Against	Result
2022-11-08	Issue: Zane Trace Local School District	1,812	1,661	Passed (52.17% for)

Auditor of State record

No fiscal caution, watch or emergency on the Auditor of State's lists.
Financial Audit, 2024 to 2025, released 2026-06-09
Financial Audit, 2023 to 2024, released 2025-06-17

Courts, districts and other bodies

Chillicothe and Ross County Public Library: 1 of 1 money issues passed since 2020

Money issues on the ballot since 2020: 1 of 1 passed.

Ballot issues

Date	Issue	For	Against	Result
2020-03-17	Issue: Chillicothe and Ross County Public Library	5,683	2,439	Passed (69.97% for)

Fourth District Court of Appeals

Elections for office

Date	Office	Candidates and votes
2024-03-19	Judge of the Court of Appeals (REP primary) (this county's part) (unofficial count)	Jason P. Smith 6,095, 100.0%
2024-03-19	Judge of the Court of Appeals (REP primary) (this county's part) (unofficial count)	Mike Hess 6,122, 100.0%
2022-11-08	Judge of the Court of Appeals (this county's part)	Kristy Wilkin (REP) 17,613, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Judge of the Court of Appeals (REP primary) (this county's part)	Kristy Wilkin 5,269, 100.0%
2020-03-17	Judge of the Court of Appeals (REP primary) (this county's part)	Peter B. Abele 3,213, 100.0%

Winners in bold. Results from the county board of elections' official canvass unless marked.

Paint Creek EMS/Fire District

Ballot issues

Date	Issue	For	Against	Result
2022-11-08	Issue: Paint Creek EMS/Fire District	611	395	Passed (60.74% for)

Ross County Common Pleas Court

Who holds office

Office	Name	Contact
Judge, Probate-Juvenile Division	J. Jeffrey Benson	740-774-1179 \| 740-774-1177 2 North Paint Street, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
Judge, General Division	Michael Ater	740-702-3032 2 North Paint Street, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website
Judge, General Division	Matthew S. Schmidt	740-702-3038 2 North Paint Street, Chillicothe, OH 45601 · website

Roster as of 2026-09-19: county board of elections.

Elections for office

Date	Office	Candidates and votes
2024-03-19	Judge of Common Pleas Court (REP primary) (unofficial count)	Matthew S. Schmidt 6,291, 100.0%
2022-11-08	Judge of Common Pleas Court	Michael M. Ater 18,274, 100.0%
2022-05-03	Judge of Common Pleas Court (REP primary)	Michael M. Ater 5,558, 100.0%
2020-03-17	Judge of Common Pleas Court, Probate/Juvenile Division (REP primary)	Jeffrey Benson 3,445, 100.0%

Winners in bold. Results from the county board of elections' official canvass unless marked.

Rural Scioto Fire District

Ballot issues

Date	Issue	For	Against	Result
2022-11-08	Issue: Rural Scioto Fire District	975	543	Passed (64.23% for)

How Ross County began

Ross County was proclaimed by Governor Arthur St. Clair on August 20, 1798, and named for the governor's friend James Ross, a Federalist U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania. Its seat, Chillicothe, had been laid out two years earlier, in August 1796, by the Virginia surveyor and land speculator Nathaniel Massie on ground between the Scioto River and Paint Creek that had been, for most of a generation before that, the largest Shawnee town in Ohio; Massie took the name from the Shawnee word for a principal town or council seat, and it was already the third or fourth Ohio place to carry that name. Chillicothe hosted the 1802 constitutional convention and then served, remarkably, as Ohio's first state capital twice over -- 1803 to 1810, and again 1812 to 1816, with Zanesville holding the seat of government between -- before Columbus took the honor for its central location in 1816. The county sits at the heart of the Hopewell culture's world: the archaeological tradition itself takes its name from the Hopewell Mound Group on a Ross County farm, and the National Park Service's Hopewell Culture National Historical Park protects six units of the greatest concentration of Hopewell ceremonial earthworks anywhere, a complex UNESCO named a World Heritage Site in September 2023. The county's farmland, paper mills and, since the First World War, its state prisons and VA hospital have anchored it ever since, alongside a downtown that still runs streets first laid out by Massie's surveying chain.

Chillicothe has been the Ross County seat since the county's creation in 1798, but its larger distinction is that it was Ohio's first state capital. The town hosted the November-December 1802 convention that wrote Ohio's first constitution, and when Ohio became a state in 1803 the new legislature met at Chillicothe, which served as capital from 1803 to 1810; the seat of government then moved briefly to Zanesville (1810-1812) before returning to Chillicothe from 1812 to 1816, after which it moved a final time to the newly platted, more central town of Columbus in 1816. Ohio's first state capitol building stood in Chillicothe through both periods; Mount Logan, the hill overlooking the town, is pictured behind the sheaf of wheat on the Great Seal of the State of Ohio as a reminder of the capital's original home.

Researched 2026-09-19 · en.wikipedia.org · en.wikipedia.org · en.wikipedia.org · en.wikipedia.org. The full history, with photographs, is on the pages of the county's places.

Politics

How Ross County has voted for president since 1852, turnout since 1996, and what is on its 2026 ballot.

Presidential election results by margin, RossRoss's presidential margin has run from 1852 to 2024; bar height is the winning margin, color the winning party.Source: Wikipedia · as of 2026-09-18 · Download this chart

The numbers behind this figure, as a table

Presidential election results by margin, Ross
Year	Winner	Party	Margin	Matched Ohio's winner	Matched the nation
1852	Winfield Scott	W	10.9 points	missed	missed
1856	James Buchanan	D	4.3 points	missed	matched
1860	Abraham Lincoln	R	3.7 points	matched	matched
1864	Abraham Lincoln	NU	2.7 points	matched	matched
1868	Horatio Seymour	D	6.0 points	missed	missed
1872	Horace Greeley	LR	0.8 points	missed	missed
1876	Samuel J. Tilden	D	2.9 points	missed	missed
1880	James A. Garfield	R	2.0 points	matched	matched
1884	James G. Blaine	R	1.1 points	matched	missed
1888	Benjamin Harrison	R	3.7 points	matched	matched
1892	Benjamin Harrison	R	1.5 points	matched	missed
1896	William McKinley	R	5.6 points	matched	matched
1900	William McKinley	R	4.0 points	matched	matched
1904	Theodore Roosevelt	R	10.8 points	matched	matched
1908	William Howard Taft	R	1.0 points	matched	matched
1912	Woodrow Wilson	D	9.1 points	matched	matched
1916	Woodrow Wilson	D	2.9 points	matched	matched
1920	Warren G. Harding	R	13.7 points	matched	matched
1924	Calvin Coolidge	R	15.4 points	matched	matched
1928	Herbert Hoover	R	29.6 points	matched	matched
1932	Franklin D. Roosevelt	D	4.8 points	matched	matched
1936	Franklin D. Roosevelt	D	12.0 points	matched	matched
1940	Franklin D. Roosevelt	D	2.8 points	matched	matched
1944	Thomas E. Dewey	R	7.0 points	matched	missed
1948	Thomas E. Dewey	R	4.4 points	missed	missed
1952	Dwight D. Eisenhower	R	22.0 points	matched	matched
1956	Dwight D. Eisenhower	R	27.5 points	matched	matched
1960	Richard Nixon	R	21.8 points	matched	missed
1964	Lyndon B. Johnson	D	13.8 points	matched	matched
1968	Richard Nixon	R	19.8 points	matched	matched
1972	Richard Nixon	R	44.3 points	matched	matched
1976	Gerald Ford	R	3.2 points	missed	missed
1980	Ronald Reagan	R	16.3 points	matched	matched
1984	Ronald Reagan	R	35.2 points	matched	matched
1988	George H.W. Bush	R	21.9 points	matched	matched
1992	George H.W. Bush	R	1.4 points	missed	missed
1996	Bill Clinton	D	9.2 points	matched	matched
2000	George W. Bush	R	7.9 points	matched	matched
2004	George W. Bush	R	10.3 points	matched	matched
2008	John McCain	R	7.2 points	missed	missed
2012	Mitt Romney	R	1.5 points	missed	missed
2016	Donald Trump	R	27.3 points	matched	matched
2020	Donald J Trump	R	35.2 points	matched	missed
2024	Donald J Trump	R	39.3 points	matched	matched

Every presidential election in Ross County, year by year: its record with Ohio and the nation, closest and widest results, biggest swings, and where it has ranked among the 88.

Voter turnout in Ross County, 1996-2024
Year	Registered	Ballots cast	Turnout
1996	37,953	26,290	69.27%
2000	39,400	26,348	66.87%
2004	43,463	31,979	73.58%
2008	44,330	32,426	73.15%
2012	46,750	30,474	65.19%
2016	44,003	30,935	70.3%
2020	46,037	33,558	72.89%
2024	46,386	33,296	71.78%

On the 2026 ballot in Ross County:

Local questions and issues on Ross County's November 2026 ballot
Jurisdiction	Type	Question	Millage or amount	Length
Chillicothe City School District	Income Tax (Additional)	Authorizes an additional 0.75% income tax for the current expenses of Chillicothe City School District for 5 years, beginning January 1, 2027.	—	5 years
Huntington Township	Tax Levy (Renewal)	Renews a 1-mill property tax levy for the fire protection & EMS of Huntington Township for 5 years, beginning in 2027.	1 mills	5 years
Ross County Health District	Tax Levy (Renewal)	Renews a 1-mill property tax levy to maintain & operate health program of Ross County Health District for 5 years, beginning in 2027.	1 mills	5 years
Chillicothe City	Income Tax (Additional)	Authorizes an additional 0.2% income tax for the streets of Chillicothe City, beginning January 1, 2027.	—	—
Paint Valley Local School District	Tax Levy (Renewal)	Renews a 2.5-mill property tax levy for the general permanent improvements of Paint Valley Local School District for 5 years, beginning in 2026.	2.5 mills	5 years
Huntington Township	Miscellaneous	Miscellaneous, for Electric aggregation.	—	—
Bainbridge Village	Tax Levy (Renewal)	Renews a 2-mill property tax levy for the general operating fund of Bainbridge Village for 5 years, beginning in 2026.	2 mills	5 years
Bainbridge Village	Tax Levy (Renewal)	Renews a 2.9-mill property tax levy for the general operating fund of Bainbridge Village for 5 years, beginning in 2026.	2.9 mills	5 years

What's on my ballot · Election 2026

Sources for the presidential results and turnout above

Data from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0:

Ohio Secretary of State: oh_1984_general_president_county.xlsx -- Ohio Secretary of State Past Election Results portal
MIT Election Data and Science Lab (MEDSL), Harvard Dataverse: County Presidential Election Returns 2000-2024 (V20)

All 44 presidential elections 1852-2024 present. Turnout 1996-2024 per the ruling's storage section (county-level turnout before 1996 is confirmed absent from the OH SOS portal per A/sources/CITATIONS.md; not this task's scope to invent from elsewhere).

Where Ross County sits

Three measures this atlas holds, set against how all 88 counties voted for president. Ross County is the marked dot on each.

This is a pattern across counties, not a fact about any voter.

White-alone share and the presidential voteAcross Ohio's 88 counties the 2024 Republican presidential margin runs higher where a larger share of residents is white alone (Spearman rho 0.82; partial rho 0.56 with log population held fixed; 0.81 without Cuyahoga and Franklin; n = 88).Source: U.S. Census Bureau · as of 2026-09 · Download this chart

The numbers behind this figure, as a table

White-alone share and the presidential vote
County	Share white alone, 2024	Presidential margin, 2024 (R minus D, points)
Adams	96.4%	R+66.1
Allen	80.0%	R+44.5
Ashland	94.7%	R+50.4
Ashtabula	88.6%	R+28.6
Athens	89.7%	D+10.8
Auglaize	94.6%	R+65.1
Belmont	90.9%	R+47.6
Brown	95.2%	R+61.8
Butler	75.8%	R+26.5
Carroll	94.6%	R+55.2
Champaign	92.0%	R+51.2
Clark	82.4%	R+29.8
Clermont	91.6%	R+36.1
Clinton	92.1%	R+55.1
Columbiana	92.6%	R+49.4
Coshocton	94.7%	R+52.6
Crawford	95.1%	R+53.4
Cuyahoga	57.7%	D+31.7
Darke	95.1%	R+65.8
Defiance	86.7%	R+40.2
Delaware	79.9%	R+6.7
Erie	80.8%	R+14.3
Fairfield	81.5%	R+24.3
Fayette	91.2%	R+55.6
Franklin	59.0%	D+28.7
Fulton	89.2%	R+42.8
Gallia	92.9%	R+59.8
Geauga	93.2%	R+24.3
Greene	82.0%	R+20.0
Guernsey	93.8%	R+52.4
Hamilton	63.2%	D+15.0
Hancock	88.7%	R+38.9
Hardin	93.0%	R+55.2
Harrison	94.3%	R+55.7
Henry	90.4%	R+47.1
Highland	95.2%	R+63.7
Hocking	94.9%	R+44.6
Holmes	97.9%	R+69.7
Huron	91.7%	R+44.4
Jackson	95.7%	R+58.4
Jefferson	89.4%	R+44.4
Knox	93.6%	R+45.3
Lake	85.5%	R+14.5
Lawrence	94.0%	R+50.9
Licking	85.7%	R+30.3
Logan	91.9%	R+56.7
Lorain	78.0%	R+5.8
Lucas	68.2%	D+12.7
Madison	86.7%	R+44.1
Mahoning	74.9%	R+9.5
Marion	87.0%	R+41.7
Medina	92.0%	R+25.0
Meigs	96.2%	R+57.4
Mercer	94.9%	R+67.2
Miami	90.4%	R+45.5
Monroe	95.3%	R+60.3
Montgomery	68.4%	D+0.5
Morgan	90.5%	R+53.6
Morrow	94.0%	R+56.2
Muskingum	90.8%	R+44.3
Noble	92.2%	R+65.1
Ottawa	92.0%	R+25.3
Paulding	90.8%	R+56.8
Perry	95.8%	R+54.9
Pickaway	91.1%	R+49.0
Pike	94.9%	R+54.0
Portage	86.5%	R+15.7
Preble	95.5%	R+59.6
Putnam	92.1%	R+69.4
Richland	84.6%	R+42.7
Ross	88.7%	R+39.7
Sandusky	84.4%	R+31.1
Scioto	92.9%	R+48.2
Seneca	89.6%	R+37.9
Shelby	92.0%	R+65.3
Stark	84.5%	R+22.1
Summit	74.0%	D+7.0
Trumbull	85.2%	R+16.9
Tuscarawas	93.5%	R+43.6
Union	85.2%	R+29.9
Van Wert	93.0%	R+59.0
Vinton	96.0%	R+59.0
Warren	82.7%	R+31.8
Washington	93.9%	R+44.1
Wayne	93.3%	R+39.6
Williams	91.7%	R+48.7
Wood	87.1%	R+10.3
Wyandot	94.6%	R+51.6

Ross County sits higher than 29 of the 88 counties measured on share white alone. White-alone share and the presidential vote

Bachelor's-degree share and the presidential voteAcross Ohio's 88 counties the 2024 Republican presidential margin runs lower where a larger share of adults holds a bachelor's degree (Spearman rho -0.72; partial rho -0.29 with log population held fixed; -0.70 without Cuyahoga and Franklin; n = 88).Source: U.S. Census Bureau · as of 2026-09 · Download this chart

The numbers behind this figure, as a table

Bachelor's-degree share and the presidential vote
County	Share 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher, 2024	Presidential margin, 2024 (R minus D, points)
Adams	14.9%	R+66.1
Allen	20.1%	R+44.5
Ashland	22.6%	R+50.4
Ashtabula	16.1%	R+28.6
Athens	34.9%	D+10.8
Auglaize	21.6%	R+65.1
Belmont	18.9%	R+47.6
Brown	15.7%	R+61.8
Butler	32.8%	R+26.5
Carroll	16.1%	R+55.2
Champaign	19.0%	R+51.2
Clark	20.2%	R+29.8
Clermont	31.6%	R+36.1
Clinton	19.3%	R+55.1
Columbiana	17.1%	R+49.4
Coshocton	16.7%	R+52.6
Crawford	17.2%	R+53.4
Cuyahoga	36.5%	D+31.7
Darke	16.5%	R+65.8
Defiance	19.0%	R+40.2
Delaware	59.4%	R+6.7
Erie	29.0%	R+14.3
Fairfield	32.3%	R+24.3
Fayette	14.4%	R+55.6
Franklin	42.1%	D+28.7
Fulton	20.2%	R+42.8
Gallia	20.5%	R+59.8
Geauga	40.9%	R+24.3
Greene	41.7%	R+20.0
Guernsey	15.6%	R+52.4
Hamilton	41.8%	D+15.0
Hancock	30.3%	R+38.9
Hardin	19.5%	R+55.2
Harrison	11.5%	R+55.7
Henry	19.5%	R+47.1
Highland	16.3%	R+63.7
Hocking	13.5%	R+44.6
Holmes	11.1%	R+69.7
Huron	16.7%	R+44.4
Jackson	15.9%	R+58.4
Jefferson	20.3%	R+44.4
Knox	24.7%	R+45.3
Lake	31.6%	R+14.5
Lawrence	18.5%	R+50.9
Licking	29.3%	R+30.3
Logan	18.7%	R+56.7
Lorain	28.5%	R+5.8
Lucas	29.4%	D+12.7
Madison	24.2%	R+44.1
Mahoning	27.0%	R+9.5
Marion	14.7%	R+41.7
Medina	36.2%	R+25.0
Meigs	12.2%	R+57.4
Mercer	21.9%	R+67.2
Miami	26.8%	R+45.5
Monroe	12.1%	R+60.3
Montgomery	31.3%	D+0.5
Morgan	14.4%	R+53.6
Morrow	19.4%	R+56.2
Muskingum	20.6%	R+44.3
Noble	15.7%	R+65.1
Ottawa	29.5%	R+25.3
Paulding	16.9%	R+56.8
Perry	16.2%	R+54.9
Pickaway	21.7%	R+49.0
Pike	16.3%	R+54.0
Portage	32.5%	R+15.7
Preble	18.5%	R+59.6
Putnam	26.4%	R+69.4
Richland	17.9%	R+42.7
Ross	17.4%	R+39.7
Sandusky	18.4%	R+31.1
Scioto	18.2%	R+48.2
Seneca	20.6%	R+37.9
Shelby	21.4%	R+65.3
Stark	25.9%	R+22.1
Summit	35.8%	D+7.0
Trumbull	20.9%	R+16.9
Tuscarawas	19.8%	R+43.6
Union	39.2%	R+29.9
Van Wert	17.1%	R+59.0
Vinton	13.4%	R+59.0
Warren	45.6%	R+31.8
Washington	21.9%	R+44.1
Wayne	25.1%	R+39.6
Williams	13.7%	R+48.7
Wood	36.5%	R+10.3
Wyandot	19.6%	R+51.6

Ross County sits higher than 27 of the 88 counties measured on share 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher. Bachelor's-degree share and the presidential vote

Adult smoking and the presidential voteAcross Ohio's 88 counties the 2024 Republican presidential margin runs higher where a larger share of adults smokes (Spearman rho 0.56; partial rho 0.22 with log population held fixed; 0.54 without Cuyahoga and Franklin; n = 88).Source: University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute / RWJF · as of 2026-09 · Download this chart

The numbers behind this figure, as a table

Adult smoking and the presidential vote
County	Adult smoking (County Health Rankings, 2024)	Presidential margin, 2024 (R minus D, points)
Adams	24.8%	R+66.1
Allen	21.9%	R+44.5
Ashland	21.1%	R+50.4
Ashtabula	26.8%	R+28.6
Athens	21.0%	D+10.8
Auglaize	18.8%	R+65.1
Belmont	22.2%	R+47.6
Brown	24.3%	R+61.8
Butler	18.1%	R+26.5
Carroll	22.5%	R+55.2
Champaign	21.3%	R+51.2
Clark	21.9%	R+29.8
Clermont	19.7%	R+36.1
Clinton	21.9%	R+55.1
Columbiana	22.5%	R+49.4
Coshocton	25.1%	R+52.6
Crawford	23.1%	R+53.4
Cuyahoga	18.7%	D+31.7
Darke	21.6%	R+65.8
Defiance	19.4%	R+40.2
Delaware	11.1%	R+6.7
Erie	20.1%	R+14.3
Fairfield	18.1%	R+24.3
Fayette	24.4%	R+55.6
Franklin	17.0%	D+28.7
Fulton	19.3%	R+42.8
Gallia	23.1%	R+59.8
Geauga	16.4%	R+24.3
Greene	15.9%	R+20.0
Guernsey	23.9%	R+52.4
Hamilton	17.2%	D+15.0
Hancock	19.2%	R+38.9
Hardin	23.1%	R+55.2
Harrison	23.2%	R+55.7
Henry	19.8%	R+47.1
Highland	24.7%	R+63.7
Hocking	24.4%	R+44.6
Holmes	26.8%	R+69.7
Huron	21.6%	R+44.4
Jackson	24.6%	R+58.4
Jefferson	24.1%	R+44.4
Knox	20.5%	R+45.3
Lake	17.2%	R+14.5
Lawrence	24.1%	R+50.9
Licking	17.8%	R+30.3
Logan	21.1%	R+56.7
Lorain	19.4%	R+5.8
Lucas	19.7%	D+12.7
Madison	20.8%	R+44.1
Mahoning	21.4%	R+9.5
Marion	24.1%	R+41.7
Medina	16.1%	R+25.0
Meigs	27.4%	R+57.4
Mercer	18.9%	R+67.2
Miami	18.3%	R+45.5
Monroe	23.6%	R+60.3
Montgomery	18.7%	D+0.5
Morgan	26.4%	R+53.6
Morrow	21.5%	R+56.2
Muskingum	21.5%	R+44.3
Noble	24.5%	R+65.1
Ottawa	18.9%	R+25.3
Paulding	21.8%	R+56.8
Perry	24.5%	R+54.9
Pickaway	21.2%	R+49.0
Pike	27.2%	R+54.0
Portage	19.0%	R+15.7
Preble	20.6%	R+59.6
Putnam	17.3%	R+69.4
Richland	23.5%	R+42.7
Ross	23.1%	R+39.7
Sandusky	20.8%	R+31.1
Scioto	27.4%	R+48.2
Seneca	21.6%	R+37.9
Shelby	21.4%	R+65.3
Stark	21.3%	R+22.1
Summit	19.3%	D+7.0
Trumbull	22.6%	R+16.9
Tuscarawas	22.5%	R+43.6
Union	15.0%	R+29.9
Van Wert	21.0%	R+59.0
Vinton	27.7%	R+59.0
Warren	14.4%	R+31.8
Washington	23.2%	R+44.1
Wayne	20.9%	R+39.6
Williams	21.2%	R+48.7
Wood	16.6%	R+10.3
Wyandot	19.8%	R+51.6

Ross County sits higher than 60 of the 88 counties measured on adult smoking (County Health Rankings). Adult smoking and the presidential vote

Every published insight

Rain and snow

How much has actually fallen on Ross County, day by day, from 1893 to now. Daily totals, not averages.

rain, last 30 days: 0.63 in; 2026-09-30 to 2026-10-29

rain so far in 2026: 39.4 in; 4.5 in above normal for the date

snow so far in 2026: 12.2 in; a normal year brings 15.5 in

a normal year: 41.5 in; average of 30 years, 1991-2020

The last twelve months
Month	Rain (in)	Snow (in)	Days counted
October 2026	0.63	—	29
September 2026	7.51	—	30
August 2026	5.09	—	31
July 2026	3.90	—	31
June 2026	4.66	—	30
May 2026	4.34	—	31
April 2026	3.85	—	30
March 2026	7.12	0.2	31
February 2026	1.00	2.4	28
January 2026	1.34	9.6	31
December 2025	2.14	10.1	31
November 2025	3.32	2.1	30

On the record, 1893–2026
Wettest year	2011 — 55.5 in
Driest year	1930 — 23.5 in
Snowiest year	1910 — 47.7 in
Wettest day on record	10 March 1964 — 4.43 in
Heaviest snowfall in a day	13 February 1940 — 10.51 in
Deepest snow on the ground	14 April 1916 — 30.00 in

Almost every day here is a measurement: 97% of them come from a rain gauge standing inside Ross County itself.

48,876 days of records, 1893-01-01 to 2026-10-29. Source: NOAA NCEI GHCN-Daily, 3,240 gauges in and around Ohio. A day is "gauged" when a gauge standing inside the boundary reported it, and the value is the mean of those gauges. Otherwise it is interpolated by inverse distance from every gauge reporting within 50 miles. Nothing is carried forward, back-filled or smoothed. Against NOAA nClimDiv county monthly precipitation over 136,848 complete county-months (checked 2026-10-31): correlation 0.9515, median absolute difference 0.217 in a month. Built 2026-10-31 from the Cracked Buckeye precipitation archive. Snow is the softer number — snowfall is measured by hand with a ruler, no agency publishes a gridded county snowfall series, and blowing snow defeats every observer.

Environmental permits and filings

What Ohio EPA has on file for Ross County: permits, inspections, violations, cleanups and the state loans behind sewer and water work. Every line links to the agency's own document.

facilities and sites on file: 1,157; everything Ohio EPA files under this county

private households: 302; counted, not named: permits filed under a person's name

Data centers, power and big tech here. Ohio EPA files that name a data-center company, a power plant or substation, or a large technology firm:

SLATE MILLS SUBSTATION (wastewater and stormwater discharge, latest Oct 23, 2024)
SCP PAINT CREEK SUBSTATION (wastewater and stormwater discharge, latest Jun 6, 2023)

What kind of permits
Program	Facilities and sites
Sewer and water-line construction	474
Wastewater and stormwater discharge	267
Hazardous waste	128
Air pollution	43
Public drinking water	43
Spills and emergencies	33
Contaminated-site cleanup	25
Wetland and stream fill	23
State sewer loans	17
Landfills	15
Scrap tires	14
Voluntary cleanup	13
18 smaller programs

The latest filings
Date	Facility or site	What
Oct 9, 2026	WEAREVER ALUMINUM CO, CHILLICOTHE	Contaminated-site cleanup cleanup response
Oct 9, 2026	TOW PATH MATERIALS INC	Wastewater and stormwater discharge inspection
Oct 2, 2026	US PAPER MILL LLC	Sewer and water-line construction permit
Oct 2, 2026	ROB AND TAMMY ADAMS (ADAMS PROPERTIES LLC)	Wastewater and stormwater discharge permit
Oct 1, 2026	ROSS CORRECTIONAL INST OHIO PENAL IND	Air pollution report
Sep 30, 2026	TOW PATH MATERIALS INC	Sewer and water-line construction letter
Sep 30, 2026	CLARKSBURG VILLAGE PWS	Public drinking water violation resolved
Sep 30, 2026	ROSS COUNTY WATER CO INC PWS	Public drinking water plan
Sep 29, 2026	TRIANGLE LANDFILL INC *	Landfills report
Sep 25, 2026	MEAD INDUSTRIAL LANDFILL (PAINT STREET)	Landfills inspection
Sep 24, 2026	OHIO BASIC MINERALS INC - BARBEE	Wastewater and stormwater discharge permit
Sep 24, 2026	CHILLICOTHE WWTP-EASTERLY	Wastewater and stormwater discharge report
Sep 23, 2026	WASTE MANAGEMENT OF OHIO - CHILLICOTHE	Municipal Solid Waste Transfer Facilities inspection
Sep 23, 2026	KINGSTON VILLAGE PWS	Public drinking water notice of violation
Sep 23, 2026	CLARKSBURG VILLAGE PWS	Public drinking water notice of violation
Sep 16, 2026	CHILLICOTHE WWTP-EASTERLY	Brownfield assessment
Sep 16, 2026	MEAD INDUSTRIAL LANDFILL (PAINT STREET)	Landfills report
Sep 15, 2026	KINGSTON WWTP	Wastewater and stormwater discharge report
Sep 14, 2026	MWV CUSTOM PAPERS LLC	Landfills inspection
Sep 14, 2026	VA MEDICAL CENTER	Medical waste registration
Sep 12, 2026	WEAREVER ALUMINUM CO, CHILLICOTHE	Contaminated-site cleanup cleanup response
Sep 11, 2026	OHIO BASIC MINERALS INC - BARBEE	Wastewater and stormwater discharge permit
Sep 10, 2026	HUNTSMEN MARKET	Wastewater and stormwater discharge inspection
Sep 10, 2026	US PAPER MILL LLC	Wastewater and stormwater discharge notice of violation
Sep 8, 2026	MEAD INDUSTRIAL LANDFILL (PAINT STREET)	Landfills plan

Source: Ohio EPA eDocument portal (edocpub.epa.ohio.gov), indexed 2026-10-14. Facilities are placed on the map from Ohio EPA's own map layers, EPA's Facility Registry, coordinates written in the filings, or a geocoded street address. A permit filed under a private person's name (most are household septic systems) is counted but never named, placed or linked; licenses for individual workers and open-burning notices are left out entirely.

Quick answers

What is the county seat of Ross County, Ohio?

Chillicothe is the county seat of Ross County, Ohio. Chillicothe has been the Ross County seat since the county's creation in 1798, but its larger distinction is that it was Ohio's first state capital. Source

When was Ross County, Ohio established?

Ross County was established on August 20, 1798. Source

What is the population of Ross County, Ohio?

Ross County had 76,429 residents (July 2025 estimate).

How did Ross County, Ohio vote in the 2024 presidential election?

In the November 5, 2024 presidential election, Ross County voters cast 32,932 votes for president: Kamala D Harris (D) 29.9%, Chase Oliver (L) 0.4%, Donald J Trump (R) 69.2%. Donald J Trump carried the county. Source

How did Ross County get its name?

Ross County was named by Governor Arthur St. Source

How many cities, villages and townships are in Ross County, Ohio?

Ross County has 25 cities, villages and townships, and 10 ZIP codes reach into it.

Notable people from Ross County

Ohioans tied to this place, each with a sourced profile. All notable Ohioans

History from Ross County

People and inventions tied to this place, each with its sources. All people · All inventions

Cite and data

Cite this page as:

Cracked Buckeye, "Ross County", https://crackedbuckeye.com/county/ross/, built 2026-10-31, accessed [date].

How to cite · Report a correction · Built 2026-10-31

Ross County, Ohio

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Downtown Trick or Treat

Early Voting in Ohio

PARTNER EVENT - Central Center Halloween Bash

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Cities 1

Villages 6

Townships 18

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Quick answers

What is the county seat of Ross County, Ohio?

When was Ross County, Ohio established?

What is the population of Ross County, Ohio?

How did Ross County, Ohio vote in the 2024 presidential election?

How did Ross County get its name?

How many cities, villages and townships are in Ross County, Ohio?

Notable people from Ross County

History from Ross County