Darke County, Ohio
Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox U.S. county
Darke County is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 51,881.<ref name="2020 census">2020 census</ref> Its county seat and largest city is Greenville.<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref> The county was created in 1809 and later organized in 1817.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It is named for William Darke, an officer in the American Revolutionary War.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> Darke County comprises the Greenville, OH Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Dayton-Springfield-Sidney, OH Combined Statistical Area.
History
Early history
Human activity in Darke County is believed to have emerged under the Adena culture during the Woodland period, roughly in the 500 BC to 100 AD range. The Adena were later replaced by a series of Native American trading cultures known as the Ohio Hopewell, which had been replaced by the Fort Ancient culture by 1000 AD. Although Darke County was in the sphere of influence of these various cultures, no major archaeological sites remain in the area. By the 1600s, the Miami people had settled the region, establishing their principle village at what is now Piqua in neighboring Miami County.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Europeans nominally owned the Louisiana Territory for centuries, ceding it between several different European countries over the years. Despite this, even as major settlements such as Detroit and St. Louis were established across the region, Darke County remained unsettled for most that time.
The first major settlement was established at Fort Jefferson in 1791, and the base was used as a staging ground during the Northwest Indian War, although it never saw any action. Another camp was established in 1793 at Fort Greenville, where the historic Treaty of Greenville was signed in 1795, ceding control of Southern Ohio from the Native American tribes to the United States.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref>
Settlement and 19th century
In 1807, the first American settlers began arriving in Darke County (then part of Miami). By 1808, initial plans for a settlement at the abandoned Fort Greenville were established, eventually becoming the modern city of Greenville. Darke County was split off from Miami County in 1809, and settlement continued to grow slowly throughout the early 19th century, with major settlement outside of Greenville proper being hampered by unfavorable swampland.<ref name=":0" /> By midcentury, the county had roughly 15,000 people.
The railroad arrived in Darke County in 1850, and soon Darke County was a major intersection for three different railroads, drastically spurring its economy.<ref name=":0" /> Despite its small size, Darke County at this time had developed a vibrant civil society and had many churches and banking institutions, as well as two newspapers. The county saw a large influx of German immigrants at this time, which further contributed to the social engagement of the community.
During the American Civil War, Darke County was a staunchly Unionist county, and despite its small population it soon raised three full companies of volunteers for the Union Army.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite book</ref> While the county was never on the Underground Railroad itself, local volunteers would frequently assist escaped slaves in moving to other free states.<ref name=":0" /> It was during this time that famed sharpshooter Annie Oakley was born here, and she remains one of the county's most famous people.<ref name=":3">Template:Cite web</ref>
20th century and modern day
Darke County's growth slowed throughout the 20th century, with its economy shifting towards manufacturing and light industry instead of just agriculture. Darke County benefitted from the growth of the Dayton metropolitan area towards the end of the century, but began to see its population decline during the late 20th century as manufacturing as a whole slowed across the country and Dayton began losing people.
Today, Darke County's economy has rebounded, and its population has remained steady, with massive agricultural and industrial investments making it one of the best performing micropolitan areas in the country and a substantial amount of the working population still commuting to Dayton.<ref name=":4">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=":2">Template:Cite web</ref> As home to the Eldora Speedway, constructed in 1952, the county also hosts one of the largest tourist events in the Dayton metropolitan area.<ref name=":5">Template:Cite web</ref>
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (0.3%) is water.<ref name="GR1">Template:Cite web</ref>
Adjacent counties
- Auglaize County (northeast)
- Mercer County (north)
- Shelby County (east)
- Miami County (east)
- Montgomery County (southeast)
- Preble County (south)
- Wayne County, Indiana (southwest)
- Randolph County, Indiana (west)
- Jay County, Indiana (northwest)
Demographics
2020 census
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1980<ref name=1980Census>Template:Cite web</ref> | Pop 1990<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | Pop 2000<ref name=2000CensusP004>Template:Cite web</ref> | Pop 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref> | Pop 2020<ref name=2020CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref> | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 54,372 | 52,874 | 52,046 | 51,365 | 48,994 | 98.69% | 98.61% | 97.63% | 96.99% | 94.44% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 167 | 183 | 204 | 233 | 302 | 0.30% | 0.34% | 0.38% | 0.44% | 0.58% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 64 | 90 | 81 | 71 | 92 | 0.12% | 0.17% | 0.15% | 0.13% | 0.18% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 69 | 109 | 132 | 159 | 181 | 0.13% | 0.20% | 0.25% | 0.30% | 0.35% |
| Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH) | x <ref>included in the Asian category in the 1980 Census</ref> | x <ref>included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census</ref> | 12 | 4 | 26 | x | x | 0.02% | 0.01% | 0.05% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 45 | 20 | 24 | 28 | 122 | 0.08% | 0.04% | 0.05% | 0.05% | 0.24% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | x <ref>not an option in the 1980 Census</ref> | x <ref>not an option in the 1990 Census</ref> | 353 | 453 | 1,305 | x | x | 0.66% | 0.86% | 2.52% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 379 | 343 | 457 | 646 | 859 | 0.69% | 0.64% | 0.86% | 1.22% | 1.66% |
| Total | 55,096 | 53,619 | 53,309 | 52,959 | 51,881 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
2010 census
As of the 2010 United States census, there were 52,959 people, 20,929 households, and 14,673 families living in the county.<ref name="census-dp1">Template:Cite web</ref> The population density was Template:Convert. There were 22,730 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert.<ref name="census-density">Template:Cite web</ref> The racial makeup of the county was 97.8% white, 0.4% black or African American, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.4% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.2% of the population.<ref name="census-dp1"/> In terms of ancestry, 38.9% were German, 11.5% were American, 10.6% were Irish, and 9.0% were English.<ref name="census-dp2">Template:Cite web</ref>
Of the 20,929 households, 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.7% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.9% were non-families, and 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.50, and the average family size was 3.00. The median age was 40.8 years.<ref name="census-dp1"/>
The median income for a household in the county was $44,280, and the median income for a family was $53,454. Males had a median income of $40,402 versus $28,310 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,483. About 7.5% of families and 10.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.5% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.<ref name="census-dp3">Template:Cite web</ref>
2000 census
As of the census<ref name="GR2">Template:Cite web</ref> of 2000, there were 53,309 people, 20,419 households, and 14,905 families living in the county. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 21,583 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the county was 98.09% White, 0.39% Black or African American, 0.17% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.34% from other races, and 0.74% from two or more races. 0.86% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 43.1% were of German, 20.1% American, 8.1% English, 6.8% Irish and 5.8% French ancestry according to Census 2000.
There were 20,419 households, out of which 33.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.00% were married couples living together, 8.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.00% were non-families. 23.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56, and the average family size was 3.03.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.30% under the age of 18, 7.80% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 15.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $39,307, and the median income for a family was $45,735. Males had a median income of $32,933 versus $23,339 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,670. About 6.00% of families and 8.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.10% of those under age 18 and 9.20% of those age 65 or over.
Economy
At founding, Darke County's economy was primarily agricultural, although it never took off to the extent of the rest of the Midwest due to unfavorable soil.<ref name=":1" /> The arrival of the railroad heavily boosted the county's economy, which was at the junction of three different railroads and thus was briefly an important hub for the rail industry.<ref name=":0" /> As neighboring Dayton grew during the manufacturing boom of the early 20th century, Darke County was able to diversify its economy, gaining both light manufacturing of its own and to a lesser extent becoming a suburb of Dayton. As Dayton became part of the Rust Belt and manufacturing decline nationally, Darke County was also affected, entering a prolonged downturn. Today, large investments from manufacturing companies have rebounded the county's economy, and Darke County has become the second most successful micropolitan area in the state.<ref name=":2" />
| Industry name | Percent annual employment |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 26.6% |
| Healthcare and Social Services | 14.1% |
| Retail | 9.5% |
| Educational Services | 7.8% |
| Transportation and Logistics | 6.9% |
| Wholesale Trade | 5.5% |
| Construction | 5.2% |
| Accomodation and Food Services | 4.7% |
| Agriculture | 3.4% |
| Finance | 3.4% |
| Other | 3.0% |
| Public Administration | 2.5% |
| Professional Services | 2.5% |
| Administrative Services | 2.1% |
| Arts and Entertainment | 1% |
Culture and media
Culture
Despite Darke County's small size, it has a series of events centers and cultural events.
- The Eldora Speedway is the largest entertainment venue in the Dayton metro area,<ref name=":5" /> and hosts prestigious dirt late model racing events such as the Kings Royal (since 1984) and World 100 (since 1954).
- Poultry Days is a major poultry-oriented event hosted in Versailles that tends to attract crowds as high as 50,000 and has been celebrated annually since 1952. The event also hosts one of the largest Ultimate frisbee competitions in the world.
- The Annie Oakley Festival, hosted yearly in Greenville, celebrates the life of Annie Oakley, a Greenville native and one of the most famous female sharpshooters in history.<ref name=":3" />
Media
Newspapers
- The Daily Advocate is the newspaper of record for Greenville and surrounding Darke County, having been published since 1883.
Television
- WDTN operates as the NBC local affiliate for the Miami Valley.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- WPTD and WPTO operate as the PBS local affiliates for the Miami Valley.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- WHIO-TV operates as the CBS local affiliate for the Miami Valley.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- WKEF operates as the ABC, FOX, and MyNetworkTV local affiliate for the Miami Valley.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Government and politics
Government
At the federal level, Ohio is represented in the United States Senate by Bernie Moreno and Jon Husted, both Republicans. It is represented in the United States House of Representatives as part of Ohio's 8th congressional district by Republican Warren Davidson. At the state level, Darke County is in Ohio's 5th senatorial district, represented by Republican Steve Huffman. It is in the Ohio House of Representatives' 80th and 84th district, represented by Republicans Johnathan Newman and Angela King, respectively. Judicially, Darke County is in Ohio's 2nd courts of appeals district.
Like most Ohio counties, Darke County has a three-member Board of County Commissioners elected at-large who oversee the various county departments. It also has several elected county officials.
Template:PresHead Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow Template:PresRow |}
County commissioners
| Office | Name | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commissioner | Matthew Aultman | Republican | |
| Commissioner | Marshall Combs | Republican | |
| Commissioner | Aaron Flatter | Republican | |
County officials
| Office | Name | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prosecutor | James Bennett | Republican | |
| Auditor | Carol Ginn | Republican | |
| Clerk of Courts | Cindy Pike | Republican | |
| Sheriff | Mark Whittaker | Republican | |
| Recorder | Hillary Holzapfel | Republican | |
| Treasurer | Scott Zumbrink | Democratic | |
| Coroner | Susan Brown | Republican | |
| Engineer | Jim Surber | Democratic | |
Politics
Despite its Unionist sympathies, Darke County originally was a Democratic-leaning swing county for most of the 19th century. Primarily agricultural, the county was frequently more sympathetic to the Democratic Party, and the heavily German American population was at the time predominantly Democratic, splitting to vote for Republicans only twice between 1860 and 1916 (although the Democratic margin of victory was never especially large). Darke County became one of the first counties in the region to shift towards Republicans in 1940, and has continued to deliver Republicans massive margins since then (aside from Lyndon B. Johnson's 1964 landslide). Since the beginning of the 21st century, the political realignment of rural voters has proved especially powerful in Darke County, where a large majority of voters cite the national Democratic Party's shift to the left socially on issues such as abortion and gun control as the impetus for their shift to Republicans.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Darke County has voted decisively against liberal causes on nearly every issue, including legalizing same-sex marriage, easing abortion restrictions, and marijuana legalization. Republicans have set a new statewide record in every single election since 2008, breaking 70% in 2012 and 80% in 2020. While Darke County does have Democrats elected at the local level, the rightward shift of the county is so strong that it has not voted for a Democrat for any state office since 1986, even during Democratic landslides.
Transportation
Airports
The county contains one airport, Darke County Airport. The primary use is civilian, although there is an air taxi service based at the airport as well.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Roads
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
- Template:Jct
Education
Community colleges
A branch of Edison State Community College is located in Greenville.
Public school districts
School districts (this includes any school district with portions of the county, no matter how slight, even if the schools and/or administrative offices are in another county)<ref>Template:Cite web - list</ref>
- Ansonia Local Schools
- Ansonia High School, Ansonia (the Tigers)
- Arcanum-Butler Local School District
- Arcanum High School, Arcanum (the Trojans)
- Bradford Exempted Village School District
- Fort Loramie Local School District
- Fort Recovery Local School District
- Franklin Monroe Schools
- Franklin Monroe Middle School/High School, Pitsburg (the Jets)
- Greenville City School District
- Greenville Senior High School, Greenville (the Green Wave)
- Marion Local School District
- Minster Local School District
- Mississinawa Valley Local School District
- Mississinawa Valley Junior/Senior High School, Union City (the Blackhawks)
- National Trail Local School District
- Newton Local School District
- Northmont City School District
- Russia Local School District
- St. Henry Consolidated Local School District
- Tri-County North Local School District
- Tri-Village Local School District
- Tri-Village High School, New Madison (the Patriots)
- Versailles Exempted Village Schools
- Versailles High School, Versailles (the Tigers)
Communities
City
- Greenville (county seat)
Villages
- Ansonia
- Arcanum
- Bradford
- Burkettsville
- Castine
- Gettysburg
- Gordon
- Hollansburg
- Ithaca
- New Madison
- New Weston
- North Star
- Osgood
- Palestine
- Pitsburg
- Rossburg
- Union City
- Versailles
- Wayne Lakes
- Yorkshire
Townships
<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Div col
- Adams
- Allen
- Brown
- Butler
- Franklin
- Greenville
- Harrison
- Jackson
- Liberty
- Mississinawa
- Monroe
- Neave
- Patterson
- Richland
- Twin
- Van Buren
- Wabash
- Washington
- Wayne
- York
Unincorporated communities
- Abbottsville
- Beamsville
- Braffetsville
- Brock
- Coletown
- Dawn
- Delisle
- Fort Jefferson
- Frenchtown
- Hill Grove
- Horatio
- Jaysville
- Lightsville
- Nashville
- New Harrison
- Otterbein
- Painter Creek
- Pikeville
- Poplar Ridge
- Rose Hill
- Savona
- Stelvideo
- Tampico
- Weavers
- Webster
- Willowdell
- Woodington
- Yankeetown
Historic places
Darke County has 25 places listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Darke County Courthouse, Sheriff's House, and Jail, and the Versailles Town Hall and Wayne Township House.
Darke County is home to the Eldora Speedway located near New Weston, which hosts many big events throughout the year.
Notable residents
- Joseph Lowery Johnson, U.S. ambassador to Liberia
- Kathryn Magnolia Johnson, American political activist
- Matt Light, NFL football player
- Lucullus Virgil McWhorter, farmer and frontiersman
- Annie Oakley, famed 19th-century markswoman
- Lowell Thomas, travel author and broadcaster
See also
Footnotes
Further reading
- Frazer E. Wilson, History of Darke County, Ohio from Its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time: Also Biographical Sketches of Many Representative Citizens of the County. In Two Volumes. Milford, OH: Hobart Publishing Co., 1914. Volume 1 | Volume 2
- A Biographical History of Darke County, Ohio: Compendium of National Biography. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1900.
- The History of Darke County, Ohio Containing a History of the County; Its Cities, Towns, etc.; General and Local Statistics; Portraits of Early Settlers and Prominent Men; History of the Northwest Territory; History of Ohio; Map of Darke County; Constitution of the United States, Miscellaneous Matters, etc., etc. Chicago: W.H. Beers and Co., 1880.
External links
Template:Darke County, Ohio Template:US state navigation box Template:Authority control Template:Coord