Highland County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located in the U.S. state of

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 43,317. 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 ...

is Hillsboro. The county is named for the topography which is hilly and divides the watersheds of the Little Miami and Scioto Rivers. Highland County was created on May 1, 1805, from land taken from Ross, Adams, and Clermont counties.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.8%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Fayette County (north) * Ross County (northeast) * Pike County (east) * Adams County (southeast) * Brown County (southwest) * Clinton County (northwest)

Major highways

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Demographics

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 2010, there were 43,589 people living in Highland County. 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 ...

is 78.8 people per square mile. The county is made up of 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 ...

, 1.5%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 0.3% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 1.5% from two or more races, and 0.8%

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. This county is also made up of 6.2% of people under the age of 5, 24.7% of people under the age of 18, and 16.5% of people over the age of 65. The median age is 39.2. The county is also 51% female. There are 16,963 households in Highland County as of the 2010 census. The average household size is 2.58 persons, while the average family size is 3.04 persons. According to the 2010 census, 41.9% of the houses in Highland County had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.07% of the houses were married couples living together, 11.09% of the houses had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.91% of the houses were non-families. Individuals made up 24.33% of all households, and 11.02% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. According to the census, 81.5% of people over the age of 25 is at least a high school graduate and 11.1% of people over the age of 25 have earned at least a bachelor's degree. The median household income is $39,641 and 17.6% of people live 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 ...

. 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 ...

of Highland County is $19,557.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 43,589 people, 16,693 households, and 11,819 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 19,380 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 96.5% white, 1.4% black or African American, 0.3% American Indian, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.7% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 23.8% were German, 14.9% were Irish, 14.3% were American, and 10.7% were English. Of the 16,693 households, 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.1% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.2% were non-families, and 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.04. The median age was 39.2 years. The median income for a household in the county was $39,844 and the median income for a family was $48,604. Males had a median income of $38,892 versus $29,167 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,966. About 12.4% of families and 16.2% of the population were below the

, including 22.2% of those under age 18 and 12.7% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Highland County is a Republican stronghold county in presidential elections. The last time it voted for the Democratic presidential candidate was for

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

in 1964.

Education

School districts

Highland County is home to five school districts: Greenfield Exempted Village Schools in Greenfield, Hillsboro City Schools in Hillsboro, Fairfield Local School District in Leesburg, Bright Local School District in Mowrystown, and Lynchburg-Clay Local School District in Lynchburg. Additionally, these districts have territory in the county: Eastern Local School District, East Clinton Local School District, and Adams County/Ohio Valley Local School District.

Libraries

The Highland County District Library is the public library system serving Highland County, Ohio. The main library is in Hillsboro, with four branches located in Greenfield, Leesburg, Lynchburg, and Rocky Fork. The library is a member of the SEO Consortium which allows patrons access to over 6.9 million items owned by member libraries. File:HillsboroLibrary.JPG, Hillsboro Library File:Greenfield, Ohio Library.JPG, Greenfield Library File:LeesburgOhioLibrary.JPG, Leesburg Library File:LynchburgOhioLibrary.JPG, Lynchburg Library

Recreation

There are currently several recreational areas in Highland County. There is Rocky Fork State Park which is located 5 miles east of Hillsboro. It provides opportunities to go

camping Camping is a form of outdoor recreation or outdoor education involving overnight stays with a basic temporary shelter such as a tent. Camping can also include a recreational vehicle, sheltered cabins, a permanent tent, a shelter such as a Bivy bag ...

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

boating Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels (such as rowing and paddle boats), focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, suc ...

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, such as saltwater or freshwater environments, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Swimmers achieve locomotion by coordinating limb and body movements to achieve hydrody ...

hunting Hunting is the Human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products (fur/hide (sk ...

, putt-putt, and disc golf amongst other activities. There is also Paint Creek State Park located 13 miles east of Hillsboro. Paint Creek offers many of the same activities as Rocky Fork but also offers

horse riding Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding ( Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...

mountain biking Mountain biking (MTB) is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability ...

, and winter recreational activities. Fort Hill State Memorial is a memorial built by the Hopewell people that is located 10 miles southeast of Hillsboro and is believed to be around 2000 years old. Fallsville Wildlife Area is located 4 miles north of Hillsboro. It offers

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

, and wildlife watching.

Non-profits

Habitat for Humanity of Highland CountyHighland County, Ohio
/ref> was established in 2000, and has since built three homes: one on Johnson St. in Hillsboro and two on 2nd St. in Greenfield. Highland County Habitat is a locally run affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International, a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian housing organization. Habitat for Humanity works in partnership with people in need to build and renovate decent, affordable housing. The houses then are sold to those in need at no profit and with no interest charged. Highlands Sanctuary is a chain of nature preserves centered in Highland County and owned by an organization of the same name.

Communities

City

* Hillsboro (county seat)

Villages

* Greenfield *

Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally, ''upland'' refers to a range of hills, typically from up to , while ''highland'' is usually reserved for range ...

* Leesburg * Lynchburg * Mowrystown *

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...

* Sinking Spring

Townships

* Brushcreek *

Clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...

* Concord * Dodson * Fairfield * Hamer * Jackson *

Liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...

* Madison * Marshall * New Market *

Paint Paint is a material or mixture that, when applied to a solid material and allowed to dry, adds a film-like layer. As art, this is used to create an image or images known as a painting. Paint can be made in many colors and types. Most paints are ...

* Penn * Salem * Union * Washington * Whiteoak

Census-designated places

* Buford * Highland Holiday * Rocky Fork Point

Unincorporated communities

* Allensburg *

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

* Berrysville *

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Bridges A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somet ...

* Carmel * Dodsonville * East Danville * Elmville * Fairfax * Folsom * Hoagland * Hollowtown * Marshall * New Market * New Petersburg * Pricetown * Rainsboro * Samantha * Sugar Tree Ridge * Taylorsville

References

{{authority control Appalachian Ohio 1805 establishments in Ohio Populated places established in 1805