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Wayne County, Ohio facts for kids

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Wayne County
Wayne County
The Wayne County Courthouse in September 2004
The Wayne County Courthouse in September 2004
Flag of Wayne County
Flag
Official seal of Wayne County
Seal
Map of Ohio highlighting Wayne County
Location within the U.S. state of Ohio
Map of the United States highlighting Ohio
Ohio's location within the U.S.
Country  United States
State  Ohio
Founded January 4, 1812 (date organized; formed 1808)
Named for General Anthony Wayne
Seat Wooster
Largest city Wooster
Area
 • Total 557 sq mi (1,440 km2)
 • Land 555 sq mi (1,440 km2)
 • Water 1.9 sq mi (5 km2)  0.3%%
Population
 (2020)
 • Total 116,894
 • Density 209.86/sq mi (81.03/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district 16th

Wayne County is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 116,894. Its county seat is Wooster. The county is named for General "Mad" Anthony Wayne. Wayne County comprises the Wooster, OH Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 557 square miles (1,440 km2), of which 555 square miles (1,440 km2) is land and 1.9 square miles (4.9 km2) (0.3%) is water.

Adjacent counties

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1820 11,933
1830 23,333 95.5%
1840 35,808 53.5%
1850 32,981 −7.9%
1860 32,483 −1.5%
1870 35,116 8.1%
1880 40,076 14.1%
1890 39,005 −2.7%
1900 37,870 −2.9%
1910 38,058 0.5%
1920 41,346 8.6%
1930 47,024 13.7%
1940 50,520 7.4%
1950 58,716 16.2%
1960 75,497 28.6%
1970 87,123 15.4%
1980 97,408 11.8%
1990 101,461 4.2%
2000 111,564 10.0%
2010 114,520 2.6%
2020 116,894 2.1%
U.S. Decennial Census
1790-1960 1900-1990
1990-2000 2020

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 114,520 people, 42,638 households, and 30,070 families living in the county. The population density was 206.4 inhabitants per square mile (79.7/km2). There were 45,847 housing units at an average density of 82.6 per square mile (31.9/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 95.7% white, 1.5% black or African American, 0.8% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.5% from other races, and 1.4% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.6% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 34.1% were German, 13.3% were American, 12.9% were Irish, and 9.0% were English.

Of the 42,638 households, 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.1% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.5% were non-families, and 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.13. The median age was 38.3 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $48,375 and the median income for a family was $59,692. Males had a median income of $42,082 versus $29,623 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,645. About 7.8% of families and 9.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.9% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

Ancestry

There were several large waves of migration into what it is today Wayne County, Ohio. The first wave was groups of families from New England, migrating westward into what was then the Northwest Territory and then early statehood era Ohio between the 1790s and the 1820s. Most of the settlers who arrived in what would become Wayne County at that time were from New England. They were overwhelmingly Congregationalists, however, in the 1810s several arrived who had become Methodists, Baptists and Presbyterians during the Second Great Awakening. These groups were of English ancestry, being descended from the English Puritans who arrived in colonial New England during the 1620s and 1630s. The English-descended "Yankee" New Englanders established the county in 1812. The second large migration was German immigrants, the Germans settled in Wayne County in large numbers between the 1820s and the 1880s, forming a steady stream of migration into the county during that time. These immigrants were almost exclusively Lutheran. Lastly in the early 1850s a large group of Irish immigrants arrived in the county as part of a large wave of migration entering the United States at that time. This group was overwhelmingly Catholic. Many families currently in Wayne County go back to the early 19th century settlement of the county by New Englanders. Today, many of these same people who cite that they are of "American" ancestry are actually of English descent, however, they have families that have been in the state so long, in many cases since the colonial period, that they choose to identify simply as having "American" ancestry or do not, in fact, know their own ancestry. Their ancestry primarily goes back to the original Thirteen Colonies and for this reason many of them today simply claim "American" ancestry, though they are of predominantly English ancestry. There are also many Irish-Americans in the county. German-Americans have formed the largest single group in Wayne County since the late 1800s.

Communities

Map of Wayne County Ohio With Municipal and Township Labels
Map of Wayne County, Ohio with municipal and township labels

Cities

Villages

Townships

  • Baughman
  • Canaan
  • Chester
  • Chippewa
  • Clinton
  • Congress
  • East Union
  • Franklin
  • Green
  • Milton
  • Paint
  • Plain
  • Salt Creek
  • Sugar Creek
  • Wayne
  • Wooster

Census-designated places

Unincorporated communities

Education

  • Central Christian High School
  • Chippewa High School
  • Dalton High School
  • Kingsway Christian School
  • Northwestern High School
  • Norwayne High School
  • Orrville High School
  • Rittman High School
  • Smithville High School
  • Triway High School
  • Waynedale High School
  • Wooster High School

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Condado de Wayne (Ohio) para niños

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