Canfield is a city in central
Mahoning County, Ohio, United States. The population was 7,699 as of the
2020 census.
It is a
suburb
A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...
surrounded by
Canfield Township located at the intersection of
U.S. Routes 62 and
224. It is part of the
Youngstown–Warren metropolitan area.
History
Canfield Township was established in 1798 as township number 1 in range 3 by purchase from the
Connecticut Land Company in the
Connecticut Western Reserve.
It was purchased by six men, although the majority was owned by
Judson Canfield, a land agent. The township took his name in 1800. Canfield's first settlers arrived shortly after surveying was initiated in 1798, primarily from
Connecticut
Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
, although waves of
German immigrants around 1805 and
Irish around 1852 would occur.
Goods were transported initially by horse and wagon about 55 miles (91 km) from
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
; later, the Beaver Canal served as the primary method for commerce. By 1805, Canfield had approximately 17 homes, a store and a school; it became a trade center for the region.
Canfield was part of
Trumbull County until 1846, when the counties in the area were redefined and Mahoning County emerged as a new county. Canfield was made the
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
in 1846 and incorporated in 1849, igniting a three decade-long feud with larger
Youngstown on which should be the seat. The
Ohio State Legislature voted to move the seat to Youngstown in 1874.
After the removal of the seat of government, Canfield became the center of the farming community in central Mahoning County.
It is home to many examples of
classic revival architecture, such as the mid-19th century Charles Ruggles House and Judge Eben Newton House on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
.
Geography
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.
It is surrounded by
Canfield Township.
Demographics
2010 census
As of the
census
A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2010, there were 7,515 people, 3,073 households, and 2,196 families residing in the city. The
population density
Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
was . There were 3,306 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 96.4%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.4%
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.1%
Native American, 1.8%
Asian, 0.5% from
other races, and 0.7% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or
Latino of any race were 1.5% of the population.
There were 3,073 households, of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.7% were
married couples
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.0% had a male householder with no wife present, and 28.5% were non-families. 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.96.
The median age in the city was 45.8 years. 23.6% of residents were under the age of 18; 5.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 19.4% were from 25 to 44; 32.1% were from 45 to 64; and 19% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.0% male and 52.0% female.
2000 census
As of the
census
A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 7,374 people, 2,917 households, and 2,143 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 3,043 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 97.27%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 1.29%
Asian, 0.45%
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.04%
Native American, 0.04%
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.33% from
other races, and 0.58% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or
Latino of any race were 0.84% of the population.
There were 2,917 households, out of which 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.0% were
married couples
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.5% were non-families. 24.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.03.
In the city the population was spread out, with 25.6% under the age of 18, 5.2% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 27.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.3 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $59,434 and the median income for a family was $71,484. Males had a median income of $35,346 versus $20,493 for females. The per capita income for the city is $31,756. About 2.1% of the families and 3.2% of the population live below the poverty line. Including 3.0% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those 65 years of age or older.
Government
Canfield operates under a chartered
council–manager government
The council–manager government is a form of local government commonly used for municipalities and counties in the United States and Ireland, in New Zealand regional councils, and in Canadian municipalities. In the council-manager government, ...
, where there are four council members elected as a legislature for 4-year terms in addition to a mayor, who serves as an executive.
The council employs a city manager for administration. The current mayor is Don Dragish.
In the
Ohio General Assembly, Canfield is located in the 33rd Senate District, represented by
Michael Rulli (
R), and in the 59th State Representative District, represented by
Alessandro Cutrona (
R). Federally, Canfield is located in
Ohio's 6th congressional district, which has a
Cook PVI of R+16 and has been represented by
Bill Johnson (
R) since 2011.
Arts and culture

Canfield is best known as the site of the
Canfield Fairgrounds, which host one of the largest fairs in Ohio, the Canfield Fair. The fair has an average attendance of 350,000 over
Labor Day weekend. Beginning with
The Lennon Sisters kicking off the entertainment in 1956, many top music acts have made their way to the since 1968, including
Bob Hope
Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was an American comedian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared ...
,
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country music, country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album ...
,
Rascal Flatts
Rascal Flatts is an American Country music, country music band formed in 1999 in Nashville, Tennessee. The band consists of Gary LeVox (lead vocals), Jay DeMarcus (bass guitar, background vocals), and Joe Don Rooney (lead guitar, background voc ...
,
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian Wilson, Brian, Dennis Wilson, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and their f ...
,
The Monkees
The Monkees were an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. The band consisted of Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones (musician), Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork. Spurred by the success of ''The Monkees (TV series), Th ...
,
"Weird Al" Yankovic
Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American comedy musician, writer, and actor. He is best known for writing and performing Comedy music, comedy songs that often Parody music, parody specific songs by contempo ...
,
Brad Paisley
Brad Douglas Paisley (born October 28, 1972) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and guitarist. His first success came in 1997 as the writer of David Kersh's "Another You (David Kersh song), Another You". After this, he signed with ...
,
The Goo Goo Dolls,
The Band Perry, and
Pentatonix. Canfield is also home to the War Vet Museum, located in the city's the oldest structure on its original site and home to artifacts from each American war, as well as Loghurst, a farm museum housed in the oldest remaining log cabin in the
Connecticut Western Reserve.
Education
Children in Canfield are served by the public Canfield Local School District, which includes two elementary schools, one middle school, and
Canfield High School. A branch of the
Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County is located in Canfield.
Notable people
*
Frederick William Chapman, minister and genealogist
*
Alessandro Cutrona, member of the
Ohio House of Representatives
The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate.
The House of Representatives first met in ...
from the 59th district
*
Bob Dove,
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
player and coach
*
JD Eicher, singer-songwriter
*
Columbia Lancaster, first delegate to the
U.S. House of Representatives from the
Territory of Washington
*
Eben Newton, U.S. Representative from
Ohio's 19th District
*
Ryan Sachire, professional tennis player and tennis coach for the
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...
*
Craig Snyder, professional boxer
*
A. William Sweeney,
Ohio Supreme Court justice
*
Myron E. Ullman, former CEO of
J.C. Penney and Chairman of
Starbucks Corporation
*
Elijah Wadsworth,
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
captain and major general in the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...
*
Frederick Wadsworth, Ohio militia officer, businessman, and Mayor of
Akron
*
Elisha Whittlesey, U.S. Representative from
Ohio's 13th District
*
William A. Whittlesey, U.S. Representative from
Ohio's 13th District
*
Denise DeBartolo York, billionaire businesswoman of
The DeBartolo Corporation and owner of the
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
References
External links
City website
{{authority control
Cities in Mahoning County, Ohio
Populated places established in 1798
1798 establishments in the Northwest Territory
Cities in Ohio