Haviland

How Haviland began

Haviland, in the east of Blue Creek Township, Paulding County, grew up where the Cincinnati Northern and the Findlay, Fort Wayne & Western railroads crossed; the post office opened in 1892, the Cincinnati Northern depot was built in 1893, and the village was incorporated in 1896. It held 186 residents in 1900, rose to a peak of 270 in 1920, and has since settled back to about 160. The FFW&W was pulled up in 1919, a new school opened in 1922, and the Haviland and Scott schools merged in 1933.

Where the name comes from

Not documented in the sources checked.

Before the town

No Native American village, mound, or treaty site specific to Haviland is documented in the sources checked.

Timeline

1. 1892 — A post office named Haviland opens, and has operated since.
2. 1893 — The union depot at Haviland, shared by the Cincinnati Northern and the Findlay, Fort Wayne & Western, is built in 1893 according to Cincinnati Northern valuation records (the same survey also says the 1880s).
3. 1896 — The village of Haviland is incorporated.
4. 1900 — Haviland records 186 residents.
5. 1910 — Haviland records 233 residents.
6. 1919 — The rails of the Findlay, Fort Wayne & Western are removed from the southern part of Paulding County, including the route through Haviland.
7. 1920 — Population peaks at 270.
8. 1922 — Haviland's new school opens.
9. 1930 — The census counts 202 residents, down from the 1920 peak.
10. 1933 — The Haviland and Scott schools consolidate as the Haviland-Scott School District.
11. Late 1960s — The Haviland union depot, standing west of Harrison Street between Cedar and Main Streets, is torn down.
12. 2020 — The census records 160 residents.

Stories

Where Two Railroads Crossed

Haviland was a railroad village, and the west2k station survey describes why. The Cincinnati Northern ran through, and the Findlay, Fort Wayne & Western (the line built in 1888 as the New York, Mahoning & Western) crossed it, so the two roads shared a union depot between Cedar and Main Streets just south of the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton crossing; Cincinnati Northern valuation records date the depot to 1893, the year after the post office opened, though the same listing also says it was built in the 1880s. The village incorporated in 1896 and reached 270 residents by 1920. But the FFW&W went broke, and in 1919 its rails were taken out of the southern part of Paulding County, leaving Haviland with the Cincinnati Northern alone. The depot itself stood until the late 1960s.

Photographs

Local history sources: en.wikipedia.org · en.wikipedia.org · commons.wikimedia.org · archive.org · postalhistory.com · west2k.com · archive.org

Mostly private wells The water here

• Country Inn Enhanced Living Center100% of residentsGroundwater wells (1 wells)

Power plants (1)

Superfund sites (1)

Money issues on the ballot since 2019: 3 of 3 passed.

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.
• Basic Audit, 2023 to 2024, released 2025-07-08

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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