OHIO

constituent state of the United States of America. Lake Erie lies on the north, Pennsylvania on the east, West Virginia and Kentucky on the southeast and south, and Michigan on the northwest. Its area of 41,330 square miles (107,044 square kilometres), excluding 3,457 square miles in Lake Erie, ranks only 35th in size among the states, and it is one of the smallest states west of the Appalachian Mountains. The state ranks near the top, however, in population. Ohio's capital, after being located in Chillicothe and Zanesville during the early years of statehood, was finally established in newly founded and centrally located Columbus in 1816. The state takes its name from that of the river, an Iroquoian word meaning great water. The first state to be carved from the Northwest Territory when it became the 17th member of the Union on March 1, 1803, Ohio has come to reflect the urbanized, industrialized, and ethnically mixed United States that developed from an earlier agrarian period. The pattern of its life is so representative of the nation as a whole that it is often used to test attitudes, ideas, and programs in education, politics, and industry. Significantly, Ohio has supplied by birth or residence eight U.S. presidentsWilliam H. Harrison, Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley, William H. Taft, and Warren G. Harding. The state's accessibility has been perhaps the key factor in its growth. Its location between the Eastern Seaboard and the growing Midwest and its lack of natural barriers to movement made it a corridor for eastwest travel. In addition, the state lies in the heart of the nation's old industrial belt, close to major resources of raw material and labour and to the markets of the East, Midwest, and South. The Midwest. constituent state of the United States of America, located in the Middle West, bounded on the north by Michigan and Lake Erie, on the east by Pennsylvania and West Virginia, on the south by Kentucky, and on the west by Indiana. The capital is Columbus. Ohio was originally inhabited by the Hopewell mound builders, who disappeared about AD 400. The earliest European explorers found the area occupied largely by Miami, Shawnee, Wyandot, and Delaware Indians. Marietta, at the confluence of the Ohio and Muskingum rivers, was established in 1788 by New England Revolutionary War veterans and was the first permanent white settlement. Ohio was the first state to be carved out of the Northwest Territory. It was admitted to the Union in 1803 as the 17th state; by 1850 Ohio was the third most populous state in the nation. The American Civil War hastened its industrialization. Running practically through the centre of Ohio is the dividing line between two major physiographic subregions of the U.S. Interior Lowlands. The Appalachian Plateau in the east was only partly glaciated. It is dissected by rivers winding among steep hills whose elevations reach 1,300 feet (395 m) above sea level. The Central Lowlands in the west contain the level to slightly rolling lands of the Lake Plains, which were once underwater, and the Central, or Till, Plains of western and southwestern Ohio. The Central Plains are known for their deep, fertile soil and also contain Ohio's highest and lowest points. About 20 percent of Ohio drains into Lake Erie, the remainder into the OhioMississippi river system. Ohio's climate is influenced by cold, dry fronts from Canada and warm, moist fronts from the Gulf of Mexico. The frequent meeting of such fronts causes much of Ohio's precipitation, which totals about 38 in. (965 mm) annually. The normal average temperature for the state ranges from 56 F (13 C) at Portsmouth in the south to 47 F (8 C) at Dorset in the northeast. Ohio attracted immigrants early in the 19th century. The Germans were the largest group, but there were also large numbers of Swiss, Irish, and Welsh. Later waves of immigrants from eastern and southeastern Europe were attracted to Ohio's large cities, as were blacks from the U.S. South. In 1980 blacks made up 10 percent of the state's population, but 44 percent of the city of Cleveland. Ohio's growth rate in the late 20th century was well below the national average. A good physical location, a rich store of natural resources, productive soils, and ample transportation facilities made Ohio one of the first great industrial states. Much of the raw materials processed in Ohio factories come from its own mineral, agricultural, and forest resources. Nearly two-thirds of the state is still farmland. It produces corn (maize), wheat, oats, and hay, and it maintains large marketing inventories of fruit, feed, and vegetables, as well as livestock and poultry. Ohio is rich in natural resources. Coal, petroleum, and natural gas are the most important mineral fuels. Other minerals include limestone, sandstone, clays, shales, gypsum, peat, and salt. Manufacturing is the most important economic activity and represents the largest single segment of the state's employment. Ohio is active in all industrial classes, particularly in rubber products and porcelain, electrical machinery and apparatus, and pumps and plumbing equipment. Ohio has long been a national transportation hub. The shipping to and from its Lake Erie ports is worldwide, and the Ohio River carries significantly more tonnage than the Panama Canal. The state's railroad mileage is one of the nation's largest, and the road and highway system is extensive. Ohio's cultural contributions to the country have been significant. Eight U.S. presidents have called Ohio home, as have such writers as William Dean Howells, Ambrose Bierce, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Sherwood Anderson, and James Thurber. Cleveland and Cincinnati boast excellent orchestras and theatrical organizations. Statewide, there are more than 200 museums of art, science, and history. Ethnic and regional festivals are many and include the Apple Festival in Jackson and the Ohio Hills Folk Festival in Quaker City. In the field of education, Ohio had two state-supported universities by 1809. Among many outstanding institutions of higher education are Ohio State and Ohio Wesleyan universities and Oberlin and Antioch colleges. Area 41,330 square miles (107,044 square km). Pop. (1990) 10,847,115. Additional reading Introductions to the state may be found in Allen G. Noble and Albert J. Korsok, Ohio (1975); and Writers' Program, The Ohio Guide (1940, reprinted 1979), still a useful overview. Ohio Magazine (monthly) includes articles on the state's people, politics, agriculture, social issues, and history. Charles W. Collins, Ohio: An Atlas (1974); and DeLorme Mapping Company, Ohio Atlas & Gazeteer, 5th ed. (1999), provide thematic and topographic maps. Michael B. Lafferty (ed.), Ohio's Natural Heritage (1979), describes the state's natural history. Sources on the people, economy, and government include Raymond Boryczka and Lorin Lee Cary, No Strength Without Union: An Illustrated History of Ohio Workers, 18031980 (1982); and Andrew R.L. Cayton, The Frontier Republic: Ideology and Politics in the Ohio Country, 17801825 (1986). Ohio's history is detailed in Carl Wittke (ed.), The History of the State of Ohio, 6 vol. (194144, reprinted 1968); Eugene H. Roseboom and Francis P. Weisenburger, A History of Ohio, 2nd ed. (1967, reissued 1986); and Walter Havighurst, Ohio: A Bicentennial History (1976). Highly readable accounts of various aspects of Ohio history may be found in Harlan Hatcher, The Buckeye Country: A Pageant of Ohio, rev. ed. (1947), and The Western Reserve: The Story of New Connecticut in Ohio, rev. ed. (1966); George W. Knepper, An Ohio Portrait (1976); and David A. Gerber, Black Ohio and the Color Line, 18601915 (1976). Ohio History (semiannual), presents articles on a variety of historical subjects. George W. Knepper The Editors of the Encyclopdia Britannica