| Bowling Green, Ohio | |||
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| — City — | |||
| South Main Street, as seen from the intersection of Main and Wooster in Bowling Green. | |||
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| Nickname(s): BG | |||
| Location in Ohio | |||
| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | United States | ||
| State | Ohio | ||
| County | Wood | ||
| incorporated | 1901[1] | ||
| Government | |||
| • Type | "Mayor-Administrator"[2] | ||
| • Mayor | John Quinn [2] | ||
| • Municipal Administrator | John Fawcett[3] | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 10.2 sq mi (26.4 km2) | ||
| • Land | 10.1 sq mi (26.3 km2) | ||
| • Water | 0.04 sq mi (0.1 km2) 0.29% | ||
| Elevation | 696 ft (212 m) | ||
| Population (2010) | |||
| • Total | 30,028 | ||
| • Density | 2,919.0/sq mi (1,127.3/km2) | ||
| census | |||
| Time zone | EST (UTC-4) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) | ||
| Zip code | 43402 | ||
| Area code(s) | 419 | ||
| FIPS code | 39-07972[4] | ||
| GNIS feature ID | 1048538[5] | ||
| Website | http://www.bgohio.org | ||
Bowling Green is the county seat of Wood County[6] in the U.S. state of Ohio. At the time of the 2010 census, the population of Bowling Green was 30,028. It is part of the Toledo, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area. Bowling Green is the home of Bowling Green State University. A CSX line runs through town.
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Bowling Green was first settled in 1832, was incorporated as a town in 1855, and became a city in 1901. Bowling Green was settled by the families of Martindale, Maule, Thurstin, Moore, Hollington, Shively, Walker, Stauffer, Richards, Tracy, Hartman, Booth, Mackie, Manville, and St Johns. In the late 19th and early 20th century, Bowling Green experienced a boom with the discovery of oil. The wealth can be seen in the downtown store fronts and along Wooster Street where many of the oldest and largest homes were built.[7] This was followed by an expansion of the automobile industry; in late 1922 or early 1923, Coats Steam Car moved to the area, but eventually went out of business. According to the BGSU library and an exhaustive study by a History Teaching Fellow, the 1920s brought a chapter of the Ku Klux Klan to the city that flourished until the mid 1930s.
The DVD Bowling Green This is Your City was made in 1959 and tells a part of the history of Bowling Green as well as shows around town.[8]
According to the United States Census Bureau, Bowling Green has a total area of 10.2 square miles (26 km2), of which, 10.1 square miles (26 km2) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km2) of it (0.29%) is water.
Bowling Green is home to Ohio’s first utility-sized wind farm.[9] In total, Bowling Green is home to four turbines that are each 391 feet tall. These turbines generate up to 7.2 megawatts of power—enough to supply electricity for some 3,000 residents. Located about six miles from the city, the turbines can be seen for miles and have become a local attraction.[10] At the site of the turbines, a solar-powered kiosk provides information for visitors, including current information on wind speeds and the amount of energy being produced by the turbines.
Through the city's Municipal Utilities office, residents can request that their power come from green energy. The current power cost adjustment is $.009 per KWH.
However, Bowling Green's green credentials were damaged when, in 2008, the city signed a power contract with AMP-Ohio to help build a 960-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Meigs County, Ohio. Several large environmental groups, including Sierra Club, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Ohio Environmental Council, opposed the building of a coal-fired power plant due to the pollution it would cause. Other Ohio groups, including Ohio Citizen Action and the Ohio Student Environmental Coalition, worked actively to convince municipalities, such as Bowling Green, to live up to their green rhetoric and cancel their participation in the plant.[11] In late 2009, AMP canceled the project, citing an estimated 37% increase in cost to more than $3 billion.[12]
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1870 | 906 |
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| 1880 | 1,539 | 69.9% | |
| 1890 | 3,467 | 125.3% | |
| 1900 | 5,067 | 46.1% | |
| 1910 | 5,222 | 3.1% | |
| 1920 | 5,788 | 10.8% | |
| 1930 | 6,688 | 15.5% | |
| 1940 | 7,190 | 7.5% | |
| 1950 | 12,005 | 67.0% | |
| 1960 | 13,574 | 13.1% | |
| 1970 | 21,760 | 60.3% | |
| 1980 | 25,745 | 18.3% | |
| 1990 | 28,176 | 9.4% | |
| 2000 | 29,636 | 5.2% | |
| 2010 | 30,028 | 1.3% | |
As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 29,636 people, 10,266 households, and 4,434 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,919.0 people per square mile (1,127.3/km²). There were 10,667 housing units at an average density of 1,050.6 per square mile (405.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.84% White, 2.82% African American, 0.21% Native American, 1.83% Asian, 0.02% Pen Islander, 1.81% from other races, and 1.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.48% of the population.
There were 10,266 households out of which 20.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 33.2% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 56.8% were non-families. 34.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.84.
In the city the population was spread out with 13.1% under the age of 18, 46.6% from 18 to 24, 19.5% from 25 to 44, 13.2% from 45 to 64, and 7.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females there were 87.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $30,599, and the median income for a family was $51,804. Males had a median income of $33,619 versus $25,364 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,032. About 8.0% of families and 25.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.8% of those under age 18 and 4.8% of those age 65 or over.
Bowling Green is a college town, with 46.6% of the population being between the age of 18 to 24.
Every September the Black Swamp Arts Festival takes place in Bowling Green. Started in 1993, it ranked a 78 out of 100 in contemporary craft festivals by Sunshine Artists Magazine.
Kelli Kling, marketing and public relations chair for the Festival since 1999, said that the name Black Swamp was chosen for the festival because it is a common regional term for this area of the state. The Great Black Swamp, which was drained near the end of the 1800s to make farming possible, extended from Lake Erie to Indiana. It was the last area of Ohio to be settled. Bowling Green is the largest city to exist in the remnants of this vast wetland.
In the last few years, the festival itself has grown to include 100 juried artists, 42 local/invitational artists, 4 musical stages, youth arts, acts of art, and concessions. All types of music, including blues, jazz, and rock, could be heard from the main stage, which featured 18 different musical acts. Howard’s Club H no longer assists the planning committee in attracting many of the local and national musicians. The historic Cla-Zel Theatre also participates in the Festival by showing independent and art-related films throughout the weekend.
Main Street is closed to traffic, and artists from around the country display and sell a variety of artwork. There are also musical performances, children's activities, and food
Bowling Green has hosted the National Tractor Pulling Championships since 1967. This annual event, one of the largest in the nation, is held at the Wood County Fairgrounds and draws an estimated 60,000 people. The Fairgrounds is located along Poe Road between Haskins Road (State Route 64) and Brim Road.
Every year Bowling Green hosts the Wood Country Fair. It happens at the end of July and/or beginning of August and lasts a week. The fairgrounds are located off Poe Road in between Haskins and Brim. Main Events include: Tractor Pull, Altered Farm stock Trackor Pull, Antique Tractor Pull, Mule Pull, Semi-Truck Pull, Youth Parade, Demolition/Combine Derby, Catch-a-pig, Cheerleading Competition, Harness Racing and the annual Country Music Concert. Another special event is quilt day. Special Days like Senior Citizen day, or DARE day allow discounted tickets.
Country singers who have performed at the Wood Country fair:
Phil Vassar and Miranda Lambert (2006)
Tracy Lawrence and Josh Turner (2007)
Jason Michael Carroll and Billy Currington (2008)
Little Big Town (2009)
Kenny Rogers (2010)
Bowling Green hosts an annual event for three days in February similar to other winter cities to celebrate winter, snow, and cold weather activities. Winterfest in Bowling Green centers around the rich ice skating and ice hockey traditions of the town.[13] Winterfest events are held all over Bowling Green, and on and off campus of Bowling Green State University. Notable events include curling, carriage rides, ice sculptures, and live entertainment and BGSU Athletic events such as hockey and basketball games and figure skating exhibition with local stars such as Scott Hamilton.[14]
Primary Education
Public elementary schools of the Bowling Green Area School District include Kenwood Elementary, Conneaut Elementary, Ridge Elementary, Crim Elementary and Milton Elementary. Two private primary schools, Bowling Green Christian Academy and the Montessori School of Bowling Green and one parochial, St. Aloysius, also call Bowling Green home.
Secondary Education
Post-Secondary Education
Bowling Green has a Sister City relationship with the City of St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada.
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