Columbus, Ohio

Columbus, Ohio

History

Evidence of ancient mound-building societies abounds in the region near the confluence of the Scioto and Olentangy rivers. Mound Street, located in downtown Columbus, was so named because of its proximity to a large Native American burial mound. Those ancient civilizations had long since faded into history when European explorers began moving into the region south of Lake Erie. Rather than an empty frontier, however, they encountered people of the Miami, Delaware, Wyandot, Shawnee, and Mingo nations. These tribes resisted expansion by the fledgling United States, resulting in years of bitter conflict. A decisive battle at Fallen Timbers resulted in the Treaty of Greenville, which finally opened the way for new settlements. By 1797, a young surveyor from Virginia named Lucas Sullivant had founded a permanent settlement on the west bank of the forks of the Scioto River. A great admirer of Benjamin Franklin, Sullivant chose to name his new frontier village "Franklinton."

Related Topics:
Mound-building - Scioto - Olentangy - Lake Erie - Frontier - Miami - Delaware - Wyandot - Shawnee - Mingo - Fallen Timbers - Treaty of Greenville - 1797 - Surveyor - Virginia - Benjamin Franklin

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After achieving statehood in 1803, political infighting among Ohio's more prominent leaders resulted in the state capital moving from Chillicothe to Zanesville and back again. The state legislature eventually decided that a new capital city, located in the center of the state, was a necessary compromise. Several of Ohio's small towns and villages petitioned the legislature for the honor of becoming the state capital, but ultimately a coalition of land speculators, with Sullivant's support, made the most attractive offer to the Ohio General Assembly. Named in honor of Christopher Columbus, the capital city was founded in February, 1812, on the "High Banks opposite Franklinton at the Forks of the Scioto known as Wolf's Ridge."

Related Topics:
1803 - Capital - Chillicothe - Zanesville - Ohio General Assembly - Christopher Columbus - 1812

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The National Road reached Columbus from Baltimore in 1831, which complemented the city's new link to the Ohio and Erie Canal and facilitated a population boom. A wave of immigrants from Europe resulted in the establishment of two ethnic enclaves on the outskirts of the city. A significant Irish population settled in the north along Naghten Street (presently Nationwide Boulevard), while the Germans took advantage of the cheap land to the south, creating a community that came to be known as Die Alte Sud Ende (The Old South End). Columbus' German population is responsible for constructing numerous breweries, the Lutheran Theological Seminary, Capital University, and instituting the first kindergarten in the United States.

Related Topics:
National Road - Baltimore - 1831 - Ohio and Erie Canal - Enclaves - Irish - Germans - ''Die Alte Sud Ende'' - Seminary - Capital University - Kindergarten

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On January 7, 1857, the Ohio Statehouse was finally opened to the public after eighteen years of construction. During the Civil War, Columbus was the home of Camp Chase, a major base for the Union Army that housed 26,000 troops and held up to 9,000 Confederate prisoners of war. Over 2,000 Confederate soldiers remain buried at the site, making it one of the largest Confederate cemeteries in the North. By virtue of the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act, the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College was founded in 1870 on the former estate of William and Hannah Neil.

Related Topics:
1857 - Ohio Statehouse - Civil War - Union Army - Confederate - Prisoners of war - Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act - Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College - 1870

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By the end of the 19th century, Columbus saw the rise of several major manufacturing businesses. The city became known as the "Buggy Capital of the World," thanks to the presence of some two dozen buggy factories, notably the Columbus Buggy Company, which was founded in 1875 by Harvey Firestone. The Columbus Consolidated Brewing Company also rose to prominence during this time, and it may have achieved even greater success were it not for the influence of the Anti-Saloon League, based in neighboring Westerville. In the steel industry, a forward-thinking man named Samuel P. Bush presided over the Buckeye Steel Castings Company. Columbus also served as a popular location for the organization of labor. In 1886 Samuel Gompers founded the American Federation of Labor in Druid's Hall on S. Fourth Street, and in 1890 the United Mine Workers of America was founded at old City Hall.

Related Topics:
Manufacturing - Buggy - 1875 - Harvey Firestone - Anti-Saloon League - Westerville - Samuel P. Bush - 1886 - Samuel Gompers - American Federation of Labor - 1890 - United Mine Workers of America

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Columbus earned its reputation as "The Arch City" because of the dozens of metal (formerly wooden) arches that spanned High Street at the turn of the 20th Century. The arches illuminated the thoroughfare and eventually became the means by which electric power was provided to the new streetcars. Then, on March 25, 1913, a catastrophic flood devastated the neighborhood of Franklinton, leaving ninety-six people dead and thousands of West Side residents homeless. To prevent future flooding, the Army Corps of Engineers recommended widening the Scioto River through downtown, constructing new bridges, and building a retaining wall along its banks. With the strength of the post-WWI economy, a construction boom occurred in the 1920s, resulting in a new Civic Center, the Ohio Theatre, the American Insurance Union Citadel, and to the north, a massive new Ohio Stadium.

Related Topics:
Streetcars - 1913 - Army Corps of Engineers - WWI - Ohio Theatre - American Insurance Union Citadel - Ohio Stadium

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The effects of the Great Depression were somewhat less severe in Columbus, as the city's diversified economy helped it fare marginally better than its Rust Belt neighbors. World War II brought a tremendous number of new jobs to the city, and with it another population surge. This time, the majority of new arrivals were migrants from the extremely depressed rural parts of Appalachia, who would soon account for more than a third of Columbus' rising population. In 1948, the Town and Country Shopping Center opened in suburban Whitehall, and it is now regarded as one of the first modern shopping centers in the United States. Along with the construction of the interstate highway, it signaled the arrival of rapid suburban development in central Ohio. In order to protect the city's tax base from this suburbanization, Columbus adopted a policy of linking sewer and water hookups to annexation to the city. By the early 1990s, Columbus had grown to become Ohio's largest city in both land area and in population.

Related Topics:
Great Depression - Rust Belt - World War II - Appalachia - 1948 - Whitehall - Shopping centers - Interstate highway - Suburban - Suburbanization - Annexation

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Efforts to revitalize downtown Columbus have met with mixed results in recent years. Old landmarks such as Union Station and the Neil House Hotel were razed to construct new retail and office spaces, which have struggled to compete against suburban developments at Tuttle Crossing, Easton, and Polaris. Still, with the construction of the Nationwide Arena District, the acquisition of the Blue Jackets, the preservation of historical theatres, and the addition of hundreds of new residential units to the downtown landscape, Columbus looks to ensure a successful future by bolstering the strength of its core.

Related Topics:
Downtown - Tuttle Crossing - Easton - Polaris - Blue Jackets

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