Delaware is a city in
Delaware County, Ohio, United States, and its
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 ...
.
It is located near the center of Ohio, about north of
Columbus as part of the
Columbus metropolitan area. The
population
Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...
was 41,302 at the
2020 census. Delaware was founded in 1808 and was incorporated in 1816.
History
While the city and county of Delaware are named for the
Delaware tribe, the city of Delaware itself was founded on a
Mingo village called
Pluggy's Town. The first recorded settler was Joseph Barber in 1807. Shortly afterward, other men started settling in the area (according to the Delaware Historical Society); namely: Moses Byxbe, William Little, Solomon Smith, Elder Jacob Drake, Thomas Butler, and Ira Carpenter. In 1808, Moses Byxbe built the first framed house on William Street. Born in Delaware County in 1808,
Charles Sweetser went on to become a member of the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
from 1849 to 1853. On March 11, 1808, a plan of the city was filed, marking the official founding of the town. Byxbe and the others planned the city to be originally on the east bank of the river, but it was switched to the west bank only a few days after the first plan was filed.
Even though Delaware was still a small community, in 1812, when the capital of Ohio was moved from
Chillicothe, Delaware and
Columbus were both in the running and Delaware lost by a single vote to Columbus. However, following 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 ...
, settlers began arriving in Delaware in greater numbers. Among some of the earliest settlers were the parents of
Rutherford B. Hayes, the 19th President of the United States. The Hayes home no longer stands, but a historical marker in front of a
BP station marks the location. In 2018, the Rutherford B. Hayes Comes Home committee announced plans to raise $125,000 to get a statue of Hayes placed at the corners of William and Sandusky streets and a bust of Hayes to be placed at
Rutherford B. Hayes High School. Committee Chairman Bill Rietz said that the committee would like to raise the money by October 4, 2019, Hayes' 197th birthday. The statue was successfully erected on October 4, 2019. It is a 125% scale depiction of the president, which stands at about 10 feet including its pedestal.

In the early days of the town, a
sulfur spring was discovered northwest of Joseph Barber's cabin. By 1833, a hotel was built as a health spa near the spring. However, the Mansion House Hotel was a failure, and by 1841, citizens began raising funds to purchase the hotel property with the intent of giving it to the Ohio and North Ohio Methodist Episcopal Conference of the
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...
Church for the purpose of a Methodist college. With that effort,
Ohio Wesleyan University was founded in 1844.
Railroads came to the area in April, 1851 as Delaware served as a stop on the
Cleveland Columbus and Cincinnati Railroad. Additional rail lines were added to serve Delaware providing access to major cities and markets throughout the country by the late 1890s. At the turn of the century, Delaware could boast of its own electric street railway system. In the early 1930s, electric
inter-urban service was provided by the
Columbus, Delaware and Marion system.
During the Civil War
During the
Civil War
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
, Delaware was the home to two
Union training camps. The first on the west side of the Olentangy River for white recruits of the
96th and
121st Ohio Volunteer Infantry were mustered into service. The second, on the east side of the Olentangy River was for African-Americans joining the army in Ohio in the
127th Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry - later renamed the
5th Regiment
United States Colored Troops.
Geography
The city is located approximately 24 miles north of Ohio's capital city,
Columbus, due north along
U.S. Route 23. The
Olentangy River runs through the city.
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 are land and is water.
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 34,753 people, 13,253 households, and 8,579 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 14,192 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 90.6%
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 ...
, 4.5%
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 ...
, 0.2%
Native American, 1.4%
Asian, 0.8% from
other races, and 2.5% 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 2.5% of the population.
There were 13,253 households, of which 35.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.7% 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, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 35.3% were non-families. 28.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.04.
The median age in the city was 33.2 years. 25.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 11.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 30.5% were from 25 to 44; 21.1% were from 45 to 64; and 11.1% 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 25,243 people, 9,520 households, and 6,359 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 10,208 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 92.8%
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 ...
, 3.8%
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 ...
, 0.19%
Native American, 0.84%
Asian, 0.10%
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 ...
, 0.55% from
other races, and 1.66% 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 1.2% of the population.
There were 9,520 households, out of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.1% 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, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.2% were non-families. 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the city the population was spread out, with 24.7% under the age of 18, 14.5% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 18.9% from 45 to 64, and 10.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.5 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $46,030, and the median income for a family was $54,463. Males had a median income of $33,308 versus $23,668 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year.
In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $20,633. About 6.8% of families and 9.3% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 10.9% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over.
Government

The City of Delaware operates under a council–manager form of government. Council, as the legislative body, represents the entire community and is empowered by the city charter to formulate policy. City council has seven members: three elected at-large by all city residents, and four representing the four city wards and elected only by those ward residents. All council members serve four-year terms. The mayor and vice mayor are selected by council from among the at-large members and serve two-year terms.
The city manager handles the day-to-day administration of the city and is appointed by the city council.
Mayors
*1954 to 1956: Paul Bale White
*1956 to 1957: Edward Flahive
*1958 to 1959: Paul B. White
*1959 to 1961: Henry Wolf
*1961 to 1963: Paul B. White
*1963 to 1965: Donald Mathews
*1965 to 1969: Robert Ray Newhouse
*1969 to 1971: Gilford E. Easterday
*1971 to 1973: John Jeisel III
*1973 to 1977: Gilford E. Easterday
*1978 to 1981: Donald Wuertz
*1982 to 1983: Donald Worly
*1984 to 1985: Michael Shade
*1986 to 1989: Donald Wuertz
*1990 to 1993: Michael Shade
*1994 to 1995: Dennis Davis
*1996 to 1999: Juliann Secrest
*2000 to 2002: Tommy W. Thompson
*2002 to 2009: Windell Wheeler
*2009 to 2014: Gary Milner
*2014 to present: Carolyn Kay Riggle
Culture
Historic Northwest District
The Historic Northwest Neighborhood houses more than 500 homes and carriage houses listed 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 ...
.
Sports
The Little Brown Jug, a harness race takes place annually at the Delaware City Fairgrounds during the Delaware County Fair. The race is part of the Triple Crown of harness racing for Pacers, and holds the record for the largest crowd to see a
harness race with 56,000 spectators.
The city also has its own minor-league soccer club, Delaware Rising F.C. The men's team competes in the Northern Ohio Soccer League (NOSL) across the state of Ohio with the majority of players from around the Delaware County area. Their home field is just outside of Downtown Delaware at Buckeye Valley High School's stadium.
Delaware schools also feature numerous sports teams. These include Ohio Wesleyan University competing in the NCAA, Delaware Hayes High School competing in the OHSAA, and Delaware Christian High School competing in the OHSAA, as well as some of the local middle and elementary, public and private schools competing in various central Ohio leagues.
Ohio Wesleyan's
Selby Field was once home to the
Ohio Machine, men's professional lacrosse team from 2012 to 2015.
Transportation
U.S. Route 23,
U.S. Route 36 and
U.S. Route 42 pass through Delaware.
Ohio Route 37 also passes east–west through Delaware.
The
Delaware Municipal Airport, a public general aviation airport is at the southwest part of the city.
The
Chesapeake and Ohio Railway,
New York Central Railroad
The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected New York metropolitan area, gr ...
and the
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name as the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, also known as the "Pennsy," was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At its ...
operated passenger trains through separate stations in Delaware. The Pennsylvania Railroad ended its Columbus-Sandusky passenger trains by the early 1930s. The New York Central's ''Night Special'' (Cincinnati-Columbus-Cleveland) operated through
its passenger station until 1965. The Chesapeake and Ohio's final train, a Detroit-Ashland, Kentucky train segment that met in Ashland with the main part of the ''
George Washington
George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...
,'' ran until April 30, 1971, on the eve of Amtrak.
Education
Ohio Wesleyan University

Ohio Wesleyan is a private independent liberal arts college located in the heart of Delaware. Ohio Wesleyan University enrolls approximately 1,950 students from 40 states and more than 50 countries. Due to high enrollment of minority and international students at the university, it has influenced the international, ethnic and religious diversity of Delaware.
The Methodist Theological School in Ohio
The Methodist Theological School in Ohio is a graduate school seminary located between Delaware and
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...
.
Delaware City School District
The
Delaware City School District, which encompasses Delaware and the surrounding area, enrolls about 5,700 PreK-12 students. Frank B. Willis Education Center (formerly the Intermediate School and High School) is home to the administrative offices of the district.
High schools
*
Rutherford B. Hayes High School (Delaware, Ohio)
Middle school
* John C. Dempsey Middle School
Elementary schools
* Ervin Carlisle Elementary
* James A. Conger Elementary
* Robert F. Schultz Elementary
* David Smith Elementary
* Laura Woodward Elementary
Private schools
K-8
* St. Mary School
K-12
* Delaware Christian School
Media
The dominant local newspaper in Delaware is a morning daily, ''
The Delaware Gazette'', founded in 1818. The paper is owned by
Ohio Community Media. Other local print publications include ThisWeek Delaware News, owned by the ''
Columbus Dispatch'' and the ''Transcript'', the student paper at Ohio Wesleyan University.
Notable people
*
Horace Newton Allen, U.S. diplomat
*
Alexander Borteh, professional poker player
*
Tyler Christopher, actor on
General Hospital
''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera created by Frank and Doris Hursley which has been broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC since April 1, 1963. Originally a half-hour seria ...
*
Cody Coughlin,
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
driver
*
Cliff Curtis, baseball player
*
Amos Dolbear
Amos Emerson Dolbear (; November 10, 1837 – February 23, 1910) was an American physicist and inventor. Dolbear researched electrical spark conversion into sound waves and electrical impulses. He was a professor at University of Kentucky in Lex ...
, American physicist and inventor
*
Francis Thomas Evans, Sr., pioneer aviator
*
Charles W. Fairbanks, the 26th Vice President of the United States
*
Arthur Flemming, former United States
Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare
*
Lloyd Gardner, diplomatic historian
*
Todd Goebbel, NCAA football coach and former player
*
Lucy Webb Hayes,
First Lady
*
Rutherford B. Hayes, the 19th President of the United States (1877–1881)
*
Todd M. Hughes, Circuit Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
*
Clare Kramer, Actress known for playing Glory, of the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer
*
Vincente Minnelli
Vincente Minnelli (; born Lester Anthony Minnelli; February 28, 1903 – July 25, 1986) was an American Theatre director, stage director and film director. From a career spanning over half a century, he is best known for his sophisticated innovat ...
, motion picture
director
*
Frank L. Packard, Columbus architect
*
Branch Rickey,
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
executive
*
Buck Rodgers, professional baseball player
*
Friedrich Ferdinand Schnitzer, architect who designed and constructed Delaware City Hall.
*
Frank Sherwood Rowland, a chemistry
Nobel laureate
*
Ezra Vogel, professor of Social Sciences at Harvard University
*
Sam Sulek, professional bodybuilder and media personality.
Sister cities
A sister city partnership was signed May 13, 2011, by the Cities of Delaware and
Baumholder
Baumholder () is a town in the Birkenfeld (district), Birkenfeld Districts of Germany, district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, in the Westrich, an historic region that encompasses areas in both Germany and France. The town of Baumholder is the a ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, highlighting a four-day stay in Delaware by a Baumholder delegation, in which the guests established relationships with local government, business and educational leaders. The mayors signed a joint resolution, "holding the firm belief that this agreement will contribute toward the peace and prosperity of the world, and do hereby pledge to cooperate with each other as twin/sister cities." The two cities have had a relationship since the early 1990s as the
Ohio Wesleyan University men's soccer team travels to Baumholder for a series of summer friendly games.
A sister city partnership was signed April 19, 2017, by the Cities of Delaware and
Sakata, Japan. Delaware and Sakata have had close relations for years before this agreement, exemplified by Dempsey Middle School's Sakata exchange program where Sakata students come to live with Delaware host families once a year. This has gone on for the past 21 years, as of the 2018–2019 school year.
References
External links
Official site of the City of Delaware.''(Note: To expand the page's Contents, click on the yellow-folder icon.)''Delaware County Memory- Digital archive of historical documents and artifacts from Delaware County
*
{{authority control
Cities in Ohio
Cities in Delaware County, Ohio
Ohio Wesleyan University
Populated places established in 1808
1808 establishments in Ohio
County seats in Ohio