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Ohio history

How Ohio came to be what it is

Ohio's towns, roads, lakes, wars and people, told from the old maps, photographs and records themselves and held to the same standard as everything else on this site: a source on every fact, and the disputes stated where the records disagree. Every history page links to the ZIP codes, towns and counties it is about, and those pages link back.

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Notable Ohioans

453 people with Ohio roots, from presidents and inventors to astronauts, athletes and abolitionists, each tied to the towns and counties where they were born, lived, worked and are buried.

Inventions and firsts

153 things Ohioans invented, did first or built into companies, from the airplane to the cash register, with the disputes stated where the records disagree.

Landmarks, places and lost places

Long reads on single Ohio places: who built them, what happened there and what is left. Every one is also on the deep dives page.

More long reads

Ohio from deep time to statehood, its wars and turning points, and the stories still unfolding, each with a short question-and-answer section. Every one is also on the deep dives page.

The lakes and the valleys under them

34 of Ohio’s major lakes and reservoirs: the valley before the water, who built the dam and why, and the families and towns bought out. All of them are on the lakes page.

Old maps and aerial photographs

Sanborn fire-insurance maps, 1870s county atlases, old aerial photographs and the National Register of Historic Places, laid over today’s streets on the map. The full list is on the overlays page.

How each county has voted for president

Every presidential election since 1852, county by county: how often each county has gone each way, the years it changed sides and its closest results. Statewide: Ohio and the presidency.

Films

Short films and documentaries on Ohio’s past, each with its sources, are on the videos page.

Cite this page as:

Cracked Buckeye, "Ohio history", https://crackedbuckeye.com/history/, built 2026-10-19, accessed [date].

How to cite · Report a correction · Built 2026-10-19