Painesville Township is one of the five townships of Lake County,

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, United States. The population was 20,399 at the 2010 census. It is part of Greater Cleveland in the Northeast Ohio Region, the 15th largest

combined statistical area Combined statistical area (CSA) is a United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) term for a combination of adjacent metropolitan (MSA) and micropolitan statistical areas (µSA) across the 50 US states and the territory of Puerto Ric ...

in the United States.

Name and history

Long occupied by various

indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

, the area was not settled by European Americans in any number until after the Revolutionary War. Early on, this land was considered part of the Connecticut Western Reserve. General Edward Paine (1746–1841), who had served as a captain in the Connecticut militia during the war, arrived in 1800 with a party of 66 settlers. General Paine later represented the region in the territorial legislature of the

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolutionary War. Established in 1 ...

. Lake County was established on March 6, 1840, from land given by Cuyahoga and

Geauga Geauga County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 95,397. The county seat is Chardon. The county is named for an Onondaga or Seneca language word meaning 'raccoon', originally the name of the ...

counties, and derived its name from its location on the southern shore of Lake Erie. The county seat,

Painesville Painesville is a city in and the county seat of Lake County, Ohio, Lake County, Ohio, United States, located along the Grand River (Ohio), Grand River northeast of Cleveland. Its population was 19,563 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 cens ...

, was named after General Paine, and the county was divided further with the creation of Perry, LeRoy, Painesville, Mentor, Kirtland, and Concord Townships. Edward Paine Statue in 2008

Geography

Painesville Township contains four major disjunct sections. Located in the northern part of the county along

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has t ...

, it borders the following townships and city: * Perry Township - east * LeRoy Township - southeast corner * Concord Township - south * Mentor - west Several municipalities are located in Painesville Township: *The village of

Fairport Harbor Fairport Harbor is a village in Lake County, Ohio, United States, along Lake Erie at the mouth of the Grand River. The population was 3,109 at the 2010 census. Fairport Harbor is home to two lighthouses: the Fairport Harbor West Breakwater Li ...

, in the northwest along the lakeshore *The village of Grand River, in the northwest *The

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

of Painesville-on-the-Lake, in the north center The township surrounds the city of

, but is separate from it. According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the township has a total area of , of which are land and , or 90.5%, are water. The township boundaries extend north to the center of

and the Canadian border.

Government

The township is governed by a three-member board of trustees, who are elected in November of odd-numbered years to a four-year term beginning on the following January 1. Two are elected in the year after the presidential election and one is elected in the year before it. There is also an elected township fiscal officer, who serves a four-year term beginning on April 1 of the year after the election, which is held in November of the year before the presidential election. Vacancies in the fiscal officership or on the board of trustees are filled by the remaining trustees. Painesville Township has voted on several occasions on whether or not to merge with Painesville City. The township has voted to stay independent of the city primarily to maintain its lower real estate tax structure and support its separate school system.

Transportation and economy

Major transportation routes in the township are U.S. Route 20 and State Routes 2, 84 and

Ohio State Route 44 State Route 44 (SR 44) is a north–south state highway in the northeastern portion of the U.S. state of Ohio. It runs from a southern terminus at State Route 43 in Waynesburg to a northern terminus at the entrance to Headlands Beach State ...

. Painesville Township is located just north of

Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...

and is easily accessed via Route 44. Two major railroads,

CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of track. ...

and Norfolk Southern, pass through the township and serve some of the township's industries. Additionally, Amtrak's '' Lake Shore Limited'' passes through on the CSX line. However, these trains do not stop in the township. The nearest Amtrak station is to the southwest in Cleveland. Painesville Township is from Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, Ohio's largest airport. Painesville Township is home to several industries, including a large Lubrizol facility, Avery Dennison, and Nova Chemicals.

Education

Painesville Township is home to the Riverside Local School District, formerly the Painesville Township Local Schools. Its schools include Riverside High School, John R. Williams Junior High School, Lamuth Middle School and four elementary schools. Painesville city and Fairport Harbor operate their own school districts, while Grand River village, Leroy and Concord township students attend Riverside's schools.

Recreation

Painesville Township is home to the Lake County Fair, which is held every August. Events such as

harness racing Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, or spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australi ...

and tractor pulling competitions, as well as concerts performed by big name country music bands, take place at the fair. Nearly 80% of Headlands Beach State Park is in Painesville Township; the remainder lies in the neighboring community of Mentor. The beach is the longest natural beach in Ohio. The US Coast Guard has a base in the township located just east of Headlands Beach.

Notable people

* Dan O'Shannon, writer and producer.

References

External links

*
Lake County website
{{authority control Townships in Lake County, Ohio Townships in Ohio Urban townships in Ohio Cleveland metropolitan area