Mercer County, Ohio

Mercer County, Ohio
Mercer County courthouse
Seal
Location in the state of Ohio
Ohio's location in the U.S.
Founded	January 2, 1824
Named for	Hugh Mercer
Seat	Celina
Largest city	Celina
Area
• Total	473 sq mi (1,225 km2)
• Land	462 sq mi (1,197 km2)
• Water	11 sq mi (28 km2), 2.3%
Population
• (2010)	40,814
• Density	88/sq mi (34/km²)
Congressional districts	4th, 5th, 8th
Time zone	Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Website	www.mercercountyohio.org

Grand Lake St. Marys State Park

Graftonoceras fossil nautiloid, found near Coldwater, southern Mercer County.

Mercer County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 40,814.^[1] Its county seat is Celina.^[2] The county was created in 1820 and later organized in 1824.^[3] It is named for Hugh Mercer, an officer in the American Revolutionary War.^[4]

Mercer County comprises the Celina, OH Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Lima-Van Wert-Celina, OH Combined Statistical Area.

History

Mercer County was founded in 1820 which set it apart from Darke County. Land south of the Greenville Treaty Line was still part of Darke County. An act establishing Mercer County took place on January 2, 1824. In 1837 Van Wert County was detached and the county line established is the current northern border of Mercer County. In 1839 Celina was established as the capital of Mercer County, St. Marys, Ohio was the previous capital. In 1848 the area south of the Greenville Treaty Line to the current southern county line, was attached. When Auglaize County, Ohio was formed, Mercer County's eastern border was moved 6 miles west with the exception of the area south of the Greenville Treaty line. This created the sharp point at Mercer County's south-east corner and was the last county line modification.

In the mid to late 1800s Mercer county was the new home to many German immigrants. Most immigrants became farmers in the new world. some of these descendants still live in Mercer County Ohio. A lot of these German immigrants can be traced to North Western Germany. at that time they could have also been Prussian.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 473 square miles (1,230 km²), of which 462 square miles (1,200 km²) is land and 11 square miles (28 km²) (2.3%) is water.^[5] The entire county has an elevation difference of less than 300 feet. The highest point is on the southern county line at 1071 feet above sea level. This is in proximity to the head waters for the Wabash River. The lowest point in the county is 780 feet above sea level. This point is located on the northern county line where the St. Marys River crosses over.

Drainage basins

Mercer County has two rivers running through it; the Wabash and the St. Marys. The Wabash watershed is part of the Gulf of Mexico's watershed. The St. Marys watershed is part of Lake Erie's watershed. Creeks between these two watersheds are within a mile of each other at some places in Mercer County. This area/line that divides the drainage basins is known as the St. Lawrence Continental Divide

Beaver Creek

Beaver Creek is the longest and largest creek in Mercer County. It stretches 19.7 miles and has two sections. The first section begins in southern farmland in the county and flows through the town of Montezuma, Ohio and into Grand Lake St. Marys. The other section of the creek begins as a spillway and empties into the Wabash River. Beaver Creek was originally one piece, but was split into two sections after the construction of Grand Lake. The creeks' spillway, and last section, has been the subject of controversy and multimillion dollar lawsuits. Farmers along Beaver Creek claim their land floods because of the spillway that was put up in 1997, replacing the previous spillway, built in 1913.^[6]

Government

Mercer County has a 3 member Board of County Commissioners that oversee the various County departments, similar to all but 2 of the 88 Ohio counties. Mercer County's elected commissioners are: Jerry Laffin, Rick Muhlenkamp, and Greg Homan.^[7]

Adjacent counties

• Van Wert County (north)
• Auglaize County (east)
• Shelby County (southeast)
• Darke County (south)
• Jay County, Indiana (southwest)
• Adams County, Indiana (northwest)

Demographics

2000 census

As of the census^[13] of 2010, there were 40,814 people, 14,756 households, and 11,022 families residing in the county. The population density was 88 people per square mile (34/km²). There were 15,875 housing units at an average density of 34 per square mile (13/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.44% White, 0.10% Black or African American, 0.26% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.34% from other races, and 0.56% from two or more races. 1.15% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 14,756 households out of which 37.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.10% were married couples living together, 7.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.30% were non-families. 22.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.24.

In the county, the population was spread out with 29.60% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 26.70% from 25 to 44, 21.20% from 45 to 64, and 14.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 99.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $42,742, and the median income for a family was $50,157. Males had a median income of $35,508 versus $22,857 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,531. About 4.60% of families and 6.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.90% of those under age 18 and 7.80% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 40,814 people, 15,532 households, and 11,172 families residing in the county.^[14] The population density was 88.3 inhabitants per square mile (34.1/km²). There were 17,633 housing units at an average density of 38.1 per square mile (14.7/km²).^[15] The racial makeup of the county was 97.4% white, 0.4% Asian, 0.2% Pacific islander, 0.2% American Indian, 0.2% black or African American, 0.6% from other races, and 0.9% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.5% of the population.^[14] In terms of ancestry, 58.7% were German, 8.8% were American, 8.3% were Irish, and 6.2% were English.^[16]

Of the 15,532 households, 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.1% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 28.1% were non-families, and 24.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.11. The median age was 39.4 years.^[14]

The median income for a household in the county was $49,719 and the median income for a family was $60,215. Males had a median income of $42,441 versus $31,069 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,348. About 6.3% of families and 8.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.9% of those under age 18 and 7.7% of those age 65 or over.^[17]

Communities

City

• Celina (county seat)

Villages

Townships

Unincorporated communities

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Mercer County, Ohio

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mercer County, Ohio.

• County website

	Adams County, Indiana	Van Wert County
			Auglaize County
		Mercer County, Ohio
	Jay County, Indiana	Darke County	Shelby County

Municipalities and communities of Mercer County, Ohio, United States County seat: Celina City Celina Villages Burkettsville‡ Chickasaw Coldwater Ft. Recovery Mendon Montezuma Rockford St. Henry Townships Black Creek Butler Center Dublin Franklin Gibson Granville Hopewell Jefferson Liberty Marion Recovery Union Washington Unincorporated communities Carthagena Cassella Chattanooga Cranberry Prairie Erastus Macedon Maria Stein Mercer Monterey Neptune Padua Philothea Saint Joseph Saint Rosa Sebastian Sharpsburg Wabash Wendelin Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

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Coordinates: 40°32′N 84°38′W / 40.54°N 84.63°W / 40.54; -84.63