62 Interesting Facts About Ohio: The Buckeye State

Ohio has given us the NFL, the cash register, Wendy’s, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but that’s just the beginning. These interesting facts about Ohio reveal why the Buckeye State punches well above its weight in American history and culture. Also, check out our fun facts about Cleveland, one of Ohio’s standout cities.

Ohio Facts At-a-Glance

Location: Midwestern U.S., borders with Lake Erie, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Indiana, and Michigan.
Population: Nearly 11.8 million (7th most populous in the U.S.).
Capital: Columbus
Area: 44,826 square miles (34th largest U.S. state by area).
Languages: English (primary), with Spanish being the most common second language.
Religion: Predominantly Christian (64%): 19% Mainline Protestant, 17% Evangelical Protestant, 18% Catholic
Climate: Humid continental climate; hot, humid summers (mid-80s°F), cold winters (around 30°F); moderate precipitation year-round (40 inches annually).
Sources: DataOhio, Official State of Ohio site

Ohio Geography & Demographics Facts

1. Ohio is located in the Midwestern region of the US, as well as the Great Lakes region.
2. The state is bordered to the north by Lake Erie, to the east by Pennsylvania, southeast by West Virginia, southwest by Kentucky, west by Indiana, and northwest by Michigan.
3. Ohio has a total land area of 44,825 mi² (116,096 km²), which makes the state the 34th largest state by area.
4. Compared to a country, Ohio is slightly larger than Cuba, or twice as large as Croatia.
5. The state is about as wide as it is tall, roughly 200 mi (355 km) from side to side or top to bottom.
6. With a population of nearly 11.8 million, the state ranks 7th in the nation, between Illinois and Georgia in number of people.
7. Ohio’s capital and largest city is Columbus, at the center of the state. With 905,000 people (metro 2.2 million), it is the 14th largest city (and 32nd largest metropolitan center) in the US. It is the 2nd largest city in the Midwest, after Chicago.

8. The state has two other major metropolitan centers: Cleveland, on Lake Erie, and Cincinnati, in the state’s southwest. Both are roughly equivalent in size to Columbus, although Columbus city proper is by far the largest of the “Three Cs”.
9. Campbell Hill in Logan County is the highest point in Ohio, at 1550 ft (472 m). The Ohio River is the lowest, at 455 ft (138 m).

10. Gallipolis, southern Ohio recorded the hottest temperature in the state’s history: 113°F (45°C) on July 21, 1934. Milligan recorded the coldest: -39°F (-39°C) on February 10, 1899.

Facts About Ohio History

11. After the last ice age, the Erie Plain on the shore of Lake Erie was covered in bogs and small lakes.
12. As early as 13,000 years ago, Paleoindians hunted giant ground sloths in the area.

13. 1000-2000 years ago, indigenous people built earth mounds in the state, including Serpent Mound (the largest serpent effigy in the world) and those at Hopewell Culture National Historic Park.
14. In 1670, the Ohio region was first explored by Rene-Robert Cavelier, who claimed the land for France.
15. The Ohio Company of Virginia then claimed it for England in 1750, and the French surrendered the land in 1763. The company sent George Washington to “Ohio country” to survey the land, sparking the Indian Wars.
16. Ohio became part of Virginia and then the Northwest Territory of the United States, under Rufus Putnam, the “Father of Ohio”, in 1787. He founded the state’s first permanent settlement, Marietta, a year later.

17. The Indian Wars ended in Ohio by the Treaty of Greenville in 1795.
18. On March 1, 1803, Ohio became the 17th state to join the Union, and the first post-colonial free state to do so. Chillicothe was the capital.
19. In 1812, Columbus city was planned, and in 1816, it became the capital.
20. In 1817, The Philanthropist was first published in Mt. Pleasant. It was the first abolitionist newspaper.
21. Oberlin College was founded in Oberlin in 1833. It was the first interracial and coeducational college in the country.
22. In 1834, the Ohio Anti-Slavery Society was founded in Zanesville.
23. Ohio’s last Native American tribe, the Wyandottes, left the state in 1842.
24. In 1850, Salem held the second US Women’s Rights Convention.
25. Ohio became the first state to enact laws to protect working women in 1852.
26. In the early 1900s, Ohio became one of the first industrial powerhouses in the Midwest.
27. In 1903, the Wright Brothers of Ohio performed the first flight, over in North Carolina.
28. Ohio contributed nearly 10% of the US WWII armaments, and was also a major player in the Gulf, Afghanistan, and Iraq wars.
29. In 1978, the largest blizzard in Midwest history killed over 50 in Ohio.
30. In 1995, the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame opened in Cleveland.

Ohio Culture & People Facts

31. Residents of Ohio are called Ohioans and Buckeyes. The latter goes back to 1840, when Ohioan William Henry Harrison won the presidency, and his supporters made campaign souvenirs out of buckeye wood.
32. Ohio’s nicknames include “The Buckeye State”, “Mother of Presidents” (8 US presidents have hailed from there), and “Birthplace of Aviation”.
33. Some other famous Ohioans include director Stephen Spielberg, actors Dean Martin, Paul Newman, Clark Gable, Martin Sheen, Arsenio Hall, and Drew Carey, actresses Doris Day and Halle Berry, basketball players Lebron James and Stephen Curry, musician Marilyn Manson, and Nirvana/Foo Fighters member Dave Grohl.

34. The first African American woman to gain a bachelor’s degree was Mary Jane Patterson in 1862, from Oberlin College in Lorain County, Ohio. In fact, Oberlin College was the first university in the nation to admit women in 1833 and African American students in 1835.
35. The first African American athlete to win a gold medal in an individual event at the Olympics was DeHart Hubbard of Cincinnati, Ohio, for long jump at the 1924 Paris Olympic Games.
36. Ohio has 80,000 Amish people, second only to Pennsylvania.
37. The official state bird is the cardinal, which can be found in all of the state’s 88 counties. The cardinal is also the state bird for 6 other states.
38. The official state bug is the ladybug, while the state beverage is tomato juice.
39. Ohio has the only non-rectangular state flag – it is shaped like a triangular swallowtail. Its red, white, and blue stripes represent the states waterways, roads, and valleys. The O is for buckeye.

Ohio Inventions & Innovation Facts

40. The first city to be lighted electrically in the world was Cleveland in 1879. Charles Brush demonstrated arc lights on the street successfully.
41. The cash register was invented in Ohio by James Jacob Ritty, who initially named his invention the “mechanical money drawer”.
42. Wendy’s and Arby’s, two of America’s most successful fast-food chains, were founded in Ohio (in Columbus and Boardman, respectively).
43. Cleveland high school students created Superman in 1933. Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster initially invented the character as a villain with psychic powers.
44. Avon, Ohio is known as the “Duct Tape Capital of the World“, having given birth to the Duck® brand duct tape. The city also holds an annual duct tape festival.
45. The famous inventor Thomas Edison was born in Milan, Ohio but grew up in Michigan. When he returned to his birthhouse in 1923, at age 76, he was shocked to find it was still lit by candles.
46. The National Football League (NFL) was founded in Canton, Ohio in 1920.
47. Ohio is known for its aviation history. The Wright Brothers, who flew the first airplane, were from Ohio, as was Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon.
48. The personal aircrafts of Roosevelt, Truman, and Eisenhower are on display at the National Museum of the US Air Force near Dayton, Ohio.

49. John Glenn of Ohio became the oldest American to travel into space in 1998 at age 77.
50. X-rays were used for the first time in surgery by John Gilman in Marietta in 1896.
51. The first traffic light in the US was installed in Cleveland, Ohio at the intersection of Euclid Avenue and East 105th Street on August 5, 1914.

52. Harry M. Stevens, AKA the Hot Dog Man, has been credited for inventing the drinking straw, and the baseball scorecard, and hot dog while working at a stadium in Ohio.

Facts About Ohio Economy & Business

53. Ohio is known for its manufacturing industry, especially heating equipment, refrigeration, office machines, tires, jet engines, auto assembly, and machine tools.
54. Major companies that started or are headquartered in Ohio include Macy’s, Owens Corning, Eaton Corporation, Cardinal Health, Kroger, Procter & Gamble, Goodyear Tire and Rubber, Progressive Insurance, Cardinal Health, and American Electric Power.

Ohio Attractions & Recreation Facts

55. Ohio has eight National Park Service sites, two national trails, a heritage area and additional national sites. The Cuyahoga Valley National Park, which is relatively young (added in 2000), follows the old, abandoned Ohio and Erie Canal.

56. There are 75 state parks and other protected areas in Ohio. One of the most popular is Hocking Hills State Park, famous for its caves and waterfalls.
57. The former home of Charles Young, the first African American to rank as colonel in the US army, is the state’s only National Monument, called Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument.
58. Ohio also has 76 National Historic Sites and National Historic parks, encompassing ancient earth mounds, a gravity research facility, towboat, submarine, synagogue, forts, presidential tomb, and numerous other historic structures and homes.
59. The Cleveland Rock and Roll Hall of Fame recognizes the likes of Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, Buddy Holly, Dolly Parton, Whitney Houston, Kiss, Bon Jovi, Jay Z, and dozens more. It was designed by I. M. Pei, who also designed the Louvre Pyramid in Paris.

Other Fascinating Facts About Ohio

60. Some strange Ohio laws still in existence include ones banning throwing a snake at someone, honking your horn “excessively”, catching mice without a hunting license, and selling Corn Flakes on a Sunday. There’s probably no need for any Columbus criminal defense lawyer in Ohio to take on defendants who break these laws!
61. 17 major pro sports championships have been won by Ohio sports teams, including the Cavaliers (NBA), Rams (NFL), Guardians (MLB), Reds (MLB), and Browns (NFL).
62. Cedar Point is the second oldest continuously running amusement park in the US, after Lake Compounce, Connecticut. It first opened in 1870. It has no less than 16 different rollercoasters.