Baltic

How Baltic began

Baltic sits across the Coshocton, Holmes and Tuscarawas county lines at the crossing of two old travelways. Colonel Henry Bouquet's army deployed here in October 1764 on its march into the Ohio country, and in 1832 the Port Washington Road, Ohio's first state road built to state specifications, made the village the halfway stop between Millersburg and the Ohio & Erie Canal. It was platted as Rowville on August 14, 1848, lost its road trade when the Connotton Railroad came in 1881, and was known as Rowville until 1883, when it became Baltic. The preserved Baltic Mill now houses a winery. The village had 851 people in 2020, in the Holmes County Amish settlement that the Young Center puts at 38,775 people.

Platted August 14, 1848 (as Rowville).

Where the name comes from

Platted as Rowville in 1848; the state marker says it was known as Rowville until 1883, when it became Baltic. The reason for the name Baltic is not recorded in the sources. The Baltic Mill Winery's Rowville Red wine keeps the old name.

Before the town

Baltic lies on the line that Colonel Henry Bouquet's army took in October 1764. After Pontiac's confederacy attacked British forts in 1763, Bouquet led about 1,500 men from Fort Pitt to demand the release of captives held by several Native nations; warned of a possible attack, he left the Tuscarawas River valley route here and deployed his men in three lines, with scouts on each ridge and the main force along present Route 93. Artillery emplacements and infantry breastworks were said to remain visible for many years. The Port Washington Road (Route 651) follows a trail long used by buffalo and Native Americans. The marker names no nation by name, and no Native village in the Baltic area is documented in the sources consulted.

• Bouquet's Trail deployment, 1764 (trail) — At Baltic along present Ohio Route 93, with scouts on the ridges, October 1764 (hmdb.org)
• Port Washington Road (old buffalo and Native trail) (trail) — Route 651 east of Baltic toward Port Washington, before 1832 (hmdb.org)

Timeline

1. 1764 — Colonel Henry Bouquet, leading 1,500 men from Fort Pitt to free captives, leaves the Tuscarawas valley route and deploys his army in three lines here along present Route 93.
2. 1832 — The Port Washington Road, from Millersburg to the Ohio & Erie Canal, is designated State Road No. 20, the first such road in Ohio to meet state specifications; Rowville is the halfway point of the two-day trip and has several inns.
3. 1848 — The village is platted under the name Rowville.
4. 1881 — The Connotton Railroad arrives and the village's importance as a stop on the Port Washington Road declines.
5. 1883 — The village, known as Rowville until now, is renamed Baltic.
6. 1910 — The census counts 377 residents, the first count for the village.
7. 1930 — The census counts 545 residents, up 34 percent in ten years.
8. 1982 — Baltic is recognized as a Tree City USA.
9. 2001 — The Baltic Area Historical Society and the Ohio Historical Society erect the marker on the Bouquet expedition and the Port Washington Road.
10. 2014 — The Baltic Mill Winery opens in the preserved mill building, with the flour mill's machinery and steam engine kept in place.
11. 2020 — The census counts 851 residents.
12. 2026 — The Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies estimates the Holmes County area Amish settlement, in which Baltic lies, at 332 church districts and 38,775 people.

Stories

From Rowville to Baltic

The village was platted on August 14, 1848, as Rowville. The state marker on the Port Washington Road says it was known as Rowville until 1883, when it became Baltic; the Connotton Railroad had reached it in 1881. The old mill building in the village was a flour mill whose steam engine still rests in the cellar, and flour milled there was sold under the Little Daisy brand. After years as a bulk food and gift shop, the building reopened in 2014 as the Baltic Mill Winery, whose wines include Rowville Red, named for the village's former name.

Where Bouquet's army met the road to the canal

Two roads cross at Baltic. In October 1764 Colonel Henry Bouquet marched about 1,500 men out of Fort Pitt after Pontiac's war to compel the release of captives held by several Native nations. Warned of a possible attack, he turned his army off the Tuscarawas River route and drew it up at this spot in three lines, scouts on each ridge and the main body along what is now Route 93; breastworks and gun emplacements were still visible for many years. The other road follows a trail long used by buffalo and Native travellers. In 1832 the Ohio legislature made it State Road No. 20, the first state road in Ohio built to state specifications, to carry Holmes County farmers' grain to the Ohio & Erie Canal at Port Washington. The trip from Millersburg took two days, Rowville was the halfway stop, and its inns fed and bedded the teamsters. The Connotton Railroad reached the village in 1881 and ended that traffic, and two years later Rowville took the name Baltic.

Local history sources: en.wikipedia.org · holmescountychamber.com · hmdb.org · hmdb.org · groups.etown.edu

Mostly private wells The water here

• Tcmsd-baltic100% of residentsGroundwater wells (2 wells)

Nursing homes (1)

Fire and EMS stations (1)

Public schools (1)

Museums, historical societies, gardens and zoos (1)

Facilities reporting toxic releases (2)

Spills reported since 2021 (2)

Money issues on the ballot since 2022: 1 of 1 passed; of those asking for new or higher taxes, 1 of 1.

Ballot issues

Elections for office

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 Audit, 2022 to 2023, released 2024-12-26

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.

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