Sycamore

How Sycamore began

Sycamore was laid out in 1842, while the township was still part of Crawford County, on Sycamore Creek between Sections 17 and 18, and takes its name from the creek. George Harper built the first building, a log store, in 1836; Sycamore grew slowly as 'Old Sycamore,' with additions platted beside it, to a village of over 300 by 1884. The Ohio Central Railroad and later the Northern Ohio brought it trade, and in 1913 it was a village of about 1,000 with two railroads and a newspaper. The census counted 1,096 in 1970 and 793 in 2020.

Settled 1836, platted 1842 (1913 history says 1843), by George Harper built the first structure, a log store, in 1836; the plat was laid out in 1842.

Where the name comes from

Named for Sycamore Creek, which the 1884 county history says took its name from the 'so-called' sycamore trees along it, in fact plane trees or buttonwoods. Wikipedia likewise says the village is named for the creek.

Before the town

No Native village, trail or burial is recorded at Sycamore. The southwest corner of Sycamore Township touched the Wyandot Reservation line, but the village itself lies on Sycamore Creek in the northeast, outside it. The first religious services in the township, in 1822, were led by the Black Methodist missionary John Stewart and James B. Finley of the Upper Sandusky Wyandot mission, at the widow Harper's house nearby.

Nations recorded here: Wyandot.

Timeline

1. 1822 — In summer John Stewart and James B. Finley preach at the widow Harper's house in the township, the first religious services near the future village.
2. 1836 — George Harper builds an 18 by 30 foot log store on the future site and runs it for two years before selling to William Combs; Combs sells later to Gustus Saffel.
3. 1842 — The village of Sycamore is laid out on Sycamore Creek between Sections 17 and 18 while the township is part of Crawford County; the 1913 history says 1843.
4. 1849 — A. W. Brinkerhoff and J. B. Wilson open a store in the village, trading until 1856 when the firm dissolves and Brinkerhoff moves to Upper Sandusky.
5. 1851 — The United Brethren in Christ organize permanently with eleven members, after a first meeting in 1849; their frame church of 1853 (30 by 40 feet, $800) is replaced in 1873 by a brick church (44 by 60 feet, $4,300) in Saffell's Addition.
6. 1873 — The United Brethren dedicate their brick church; revivals follow in 1873, 1875 and 1877.
7. 1876 — Rubicon Lodge No. 645, I. O. O. F., gets its dispensation on July 20 with twelve original members.
8. 1880 — Gustus Saffel, who has been one of the village's leading merchants, leaves business; the census counts 272 residents.
9. 1882 — Jaqueth Post No. 196, G. A. R., is organized January 31 with twelve members under an inspector from Toledo.
10. 1884 — George Taylor builds a five-story brick flouring mill; the village has three dry goods stores, a sash and door factory and more than 300 inhabitants.
11. 1890 — The census counts 722 residents, up from 272 ten years before.
12. 1913 — The county history says the village has over a thousand people, a newspaper, two railroads (the Toledo and Ohio Central and the Northern Ohio) and a business street that is well built up.
13. 1970 — The population peaks at 1,096 and then declines to 793 in 2020.

Stories

From a log store to a village of a thousand

The 1884 county history calls 'Old Sycamore,' laid out in 1842 on the banks of Sycamore Creek, a village 'of slow growth' that 'never attained higher than an ordinary country hamlet.' Its first house was a log store, 18 by 30 feet, that George Harper built in 1836; he kept it two years and sold the stock to William Combs, who sold in turn to Gustus Saffel, a leading merchant until 1880. Instead of growing the old plat, newcomers laid out new additions, such as Saffel's, until the 1884 historian could call it a thriving village of over 300. In 1884 George Taylor built a five-story brick flouring mill. By 1913 the county historian counted over a thousand people, two railroads, a newspaper and lodges, and predicted the place would soon double.

The lodge and the veterans' post

Two organizations from the early 1880s show how the village saw itself. Rubicon Lodge No. 645 of the Odd Fellows got its dispensation on July 20, 1876, with twelve original members, I. B. Gibbs as first noble grand and George W. Biles as secretary; by 1884 it had 55 members and $450 on interest, and had lost only one member to death. Jaqueth Post No. 196 of the Grand Army of the Republic was organized January 31, 1882 by an inspector from Toledo with twelve members, among them B. Pontius, J. E. Goodrich and Edward Ingerson, and J. A. Boley as commander. The 1884 history does not say why the post bore the name Jaqueth; an Isaac Jaqueth had been a township trustee in 1845.

Local history sources: en.wikipedia.org · archive.org · archive.org

Mostly private wells The water here

• Sycamore Village100% of residentsGroundwater wells (3 wells)

Fire and EMS stations (1)

Bridges rated poor (1)

Public libraries (1)

Money issues on the ballot since 2017: 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.
• Financial Audit, 2023 to 2024, released 2026-02-12

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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