Perrysburg is a city located in

Wood County, Ohio Wood County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 132,248. Its county seat is Bowling Green. The county was named for Captain Eleazer D. Wood, the engineer for General William Henry Harriso ...

, United States, along the south side of the

Maumee River The Maumee River (pronounced ) (; ) is a river running in the Midwestern United States from northeastern Indiana into northwestern Ohio and Lake Erie. It is formed at the confluence of the St. Joseph River (Maumee River), St. Joseph and St. Mar ...

. The population was 25,041 at the 2020 census. Part of the

Toledo metropolitan area The Toledo Metropolitan Area, or Greater Toledo, or Northwest Ohio is a metropolitan area centered on the American city of Toledo, Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the three-county Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) had a population of 646,604. ...

, the city is southwest of

Toledo Toledo most commonly refers to: * Toledo, Spain, a city in Spain * Province of Toledo, Spain * Toledo, Ohio, a city in the United States Toledo may also refer to: Places Belize * Toledo District * Toledo Settlement Bolivia * Toledo, Or ...

. Perrysburg served as the county seat from 1822 to 1868. Perrysburg was surveyed and platted by a federal survey team in summer 1816. A local legend has held that it was designed by noted architect Charles Pierre L'Enfant, after he planned Washington, DC, but this has not been supported by fact.

History

Early history

Perrysburg lies near the center of the Twelve Mile Square Reservation, a tract of land ceded in 1795 to the United States by the

Odawa people The Odawa (also Ottawa or Odaawaa ) are an Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous North American people who primarily inhabit land in the Indigenous peoples of the Eastern Woodlands, Eastern Woodlands region, now in jurisdictions of th ...

following their defeat in the

Northwest Indian Wars The Northwest Indian War (1785–1795), also known by other names, was an armed conflict for control of the Northwest Territory fought between the United States and a united group of Native Americans in the United States, Native American na ...

. They had occupied this territory since the turn of the 18th century, after having settled in the region of the French trading post at

Fort Detroit A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Lati ...

. Also known as the Ottawa, they had controlled much of the territory along the Maumee River in present-day northwestern Ohio. In 1810, early European-American settlers here were Major Amos Spafford (1753–1818), his wife Olive (1756–1823), and their four children. In 1796, Spafford, a native of

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. ...

, was a surveyor for the

Connecticut Land Company The Connecticut Company or Connecticut Land Company (est. 1795) was a post-colonial land speculation company formed in the late eighteenth century to survey and encourage settlement in the eastern parts of the newly chartered Connecticut Western ...

. He drew the first map laying out

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

and named the city. He left there in 1810 following appointment as US Customs Collector and

postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

for the new port at the Foot of the Rapids of the Miami of the Lake

. Two years later, 67 families lived in the area, but most fled at the outbreak of the War of 1812. After the war and the 1817

Treaty of Fort Meigs The Treaty of Fort Meigs, also called the Treaty of the Maumee Rapids, formally titled, "Treaty with the Wyandots, etc., 1817", was the most significant Indian treaty by the United States in Ohio since the Treaty of Greenville in 1795. It result ...

, which extinguished the Ottawa claim to this area, Spafford returned to the area. He settled on a 160-acre land grant, signed by President

James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. He was the last Founding Father to serve as presiden ...

, on River Tract #64 in Waynesfield Township. Other veterans who received land grants for their service during that war also settled in this area.

War of 1812

When the War of 1812 progressed toward Northwest Ohio, General William Henry Harrison ordered the construction of the fort, beginning in February 1813. Harrison was General

Anthony Wayne Anthony Wayne (January 1, 1745 – December 15, 1796) was an American soldier, officer, statesman, and a Founding Father of the United States. He adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his military expl ...

's former aide-de-camp. Later he was elected as the country's ninth president. The installation was named

Fort Meigs Fort Meigs was a United States fortification along the Maumee River in what is now Perrysburg, Ohio during the War of 1812. The British Army, supported by Tecumseh's Confederacy, failed to capture the fort during the siege of Fort Meigs. It is ...

in honor of Ohio's fourth governor, Return Jonathan Meigs. Fort Meigs was constructed on a bluff above the

, and built from a design by army engineer Captain

Eleazer D. Wood Eleazer Derby Wood (December 1783 – September 17, 1814) was a Colonel and United States Army, American Army officer in the War of 1812. Fort Wood (New York), Fort Wood, which became the base of the Statue of Liberty, was named in his honor. ...

, for whom the county would be named. Two critical battles with the British were fought at the fort during 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 ...

. Early settlers in the area fled to Huron during the War of 1812. They returned to settle in the floodplain below Fort Meigs, calling the settlement Orleans. They moved to higher ground after being flooded out. Alexander Bourne led a surveying team to plan and plat Perrysburg. He was appointed to that position by Edward Tiffin, Surveyor General of the United States. This survey was performed in late June and early July 1816, by surveyors Joseph Wampler and William Brookfield under the auspices of Bourne and

Josiah Meigs Josiah Meigs (August 21, 1757 – September 4, 1822) was an American academic, journalist, and government official. He was the first acting president of the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, Athens, where he implemented the university's f ...

, Surveyor General of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri. Some postings on the Internet have claimed that Charles Pierre L'Enfant, noted designer of Washington, DC, had also surveyed and platted Perrysburg, Ohio. Prior to the city's 200th anniversary celebration, the Historical Society hired former engineers to assess this claim. The researchers studied local, state and federal archives, but found no support for this position.

Growth of Perrysburg

The town soon became a center for shipbuilding and commerce on Lake Erie. It was named after

Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (India), in India ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ' ...

Oliver Hazard Perry Oliver Hazard Perry (August 23, 1785 – August 23, 1819) was a United States Navy officer from South Kingstown, Rhode Island. A prominent member of the Perry family naval dynasty, he was the son of Sarah Wallace Alexander and Captain Christo ...

, naval commander during the

and hero of the

Battle of Lake Erie The Battle of Lake Erie, also known as the Battle of Put-in-Bay, was fought on 10 September 1813, on Lake Erie off the shores of Ohio during the War of 1812. Nine vessels of the United States Navy defeated and captured six vessels of the British ...

. From 1822 to 1868 Perrysburg served as the county seat. In 1833, Perrysburg contained a courthouse, jail, schoolhouse, two stores, two taverns, two physicians, two lawyers, about 60 houses, and 250 inhabitants.

Henry Bibb Henry Walton Bibb (May 10, 1815– August 1, 1854), was an American author and abolitionist who was born into slavery. Bibb told his life story in his ''Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Henry Bibb, An American Slave'', which included many ...

spent the winter of 1837–38 in Perrysburg following his first escape from slavery. He was adopted by the free Black community, which included many

fugitive slaves In the United States, fugitive slaves or runaway slaves were terms used in the 18th and 19th centuries to describe people who fled slavery. The term also refers to the federal Fugitive Slave Acts of 1793 and 1850. Such people are also called fre ...

. Bibb was able to obtain gainful employment and managed to save $15 over the course of the winter, which he put towards his plan to rescue his wife and children from slavery. Bibb's knowledge of Perrysburg helped him in a subsequent escape attempt, when he was able to allay suspicions by claiming to be a free resident of Perrysburg and accurately answering questions about the town's residents. In 1854, an

epidemic An epidemic (from Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of hosts in a given population within a short period of time. For example, in meningococcal infection ...

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

devastated the population. It had spread with residents and travelers along the waterways because of the lack of adequate sanitation. Perryville closed down for two months in that summer, trying to contain the epidemic at a time when people did not understand how the disease was transmitted. More than 100 people died. Other towns along the Maumee River also suffered high losses from the epidemic.

Providence, Ohio Providence is a ghost town on the north side of the Maumee River in southern Providence Township, Lucas County, Ohio, United States, about 24 miles (39 km) southwest of Toledo. After suffering a destructive fire and a cholera epidemic in ...

was abandoned. It had suffered a disastrous fire less than a decade before. The railroad arrived in 1859 with the completion of the

Dayton and Michigan Railroad Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

, later part of the

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the oldest railroads in North America, oldest railroad in the United States and the first steam engine, steam-operated common carrier. Construction of the line began in 1828, and it operated as B&O from 1830 ...

. the line is part of the

Toledo Subdivision The Toledo Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. state of Ohio. The line runs from Hamilton, Ohio, Hamilton (north of Cincinnati, OH, Cincinnati) north to Perrysburg, OH, Perrysburg (near Toledo, O ...

of CSX, though it hosts no passenger service.

Modern Perrysburg

On October 12, 1984 President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...

made a

whistle stop In public transport, a request stop, flag stop, or whistle stop is a bus stop, stop or train station, station at which buses or trains, respectively, stop only on request; that is, only if there are passengers or freight to be picked up or drop ...

in Perrysburg while traveling in the historic ''Ferdinand Magellan'' railroad car. He drew a crowd of over 20,000.

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 , all land. Contrary to popular opinion and hundreds of historical articles, the 1816 survey of Perrysburg encompassed 1.786 square miles, NOT 1.000 square miles.

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 20,623 people, 8,246 households, and 5,504 families living 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 8,845 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 92.9%

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 ...

, 1.4%

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, 3.1% Asian, 0.8% from other races, and 1.6% 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 3.2% of the population. There were 8,246 households, of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% 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, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 2.9% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.3% were non-families. 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.10. The median age in the city was 38.4 years. 26.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 6.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 27.1% were from 25 to 44; 27.6% were from 45 to 64; and 12.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.4% male and 51.6% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 16,945 people, 6,592 households, and 4,561 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 6,964 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.34%

, 1.03%

, 0.10% Native American, 1.77% Asian, 0.02%

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 ...

, 0.90% from other races, and 0.84% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 2.05% of the population. There were 6,390 households, out of which 38.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.1% were

living together, 6.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.18. In the city the population was spread out, with 29.0% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 28.3% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $62,237 and the median income for a family was $75,651. Males had a median income of $56,496 versus $31,401 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 $29,652. About 1.5% of families and 2.8% 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 1.7% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Perrysburg is home to The Islamic School of Greater Toledo, Saint Rose School and Perrysburg Schools, which includes a preschool, four elementary schools, one intermediate school, one junior high school and

Perrysburg High School Perrysburg High School is a public high school in Perrysburg, Ohio, United States. It is the only high school in Perrysburg Exempted Village School District (Perrysburg Schools). History Perrysburg High School was established in 1849. The schoo ...

. In the year 2016, 51% of Perrysburg residents over the age of 25 had a bachelor's degree or a higher level of education, compared to 31.7% of Wood County residents, 23% of residents in the Toledo MSA, 26.7% of Ohioans, and 30.3% in the U.S.

Library

The Way Public Library serves Perrysburg area. In 2016, the library loaned 639,113 items and provided 726 programs to its 34,336 registered borrowers. Total holdings in 2016 were 93,416 print materials and 182 print subscriptions.

Notable people

Burke Badenhop Burke Heinrich Badenhop (born February 8, 1983) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida Marlins, Tampa Bay Rays, Milwaukee Brewers, Boston Red Sox and Cincinnati Reds. Badenhop ...

, professional baseball pitcher in

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 ...

Clara Blinn Clara Blinn (1847 – 1868) was an American settler who, with her two-year-old son Willie, was captured by Native Americans in October 1868 in Colorado Territory during an attack on the wagon train in which she and her family were traveling. She ...

, pioneer who died in the aftermath of the

Battle of Washita River The Battle of the Washita River (also called Battle of the Washita or the Washita Massacre) occurred on November 27, 1868, when Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer's 7th U.S. Cavalry attacked Black Kettle's Southern Cheyenne camp on the Washita ...

Douglas Brinkley Douglas Brinkley (born December 14, 1960) is an American author, Katherine Tsanoff Brown Chair in Humanities, and professor of history at Rice University. Brinkley is a history commentator for CNN, Presidential Historian for the New York Historica ...

, award-winning historian, lived in Perrysburg from 1968 to 1982 *

Bil Dwyer William Michael "Bil" Dwyer (born March 30, 1962) is an American stand-up comedian, game-show host, actor, and writer. He is perhaps most well known as the host or play-by-play announcer on series such as ''BattleBots,'' '' I've Got a Secret'', a ...

, cartoonist (''

Dumb Dora ''Dumb Dora'' is a comic strip published from 1924 to 1936 distributed by King Features Syndicate. The term "dumb Dora" was a 1920s American slang term for a foolish woman; the strip helped popularize the term. Publication history ''Dumb Dora'' ...

'') and humorist *

T. J. Fatinikun Ayokunle Olatunji "T. J." Fatinikun (born July 28, 1991) is a Nigerian-American former professional football defensive end who played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at the Universi ...

, professional football player in the

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 ...

(NFL) and

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 Arena Football League season, 1987 season, making it the third longest-runnin ...

Jerry Glanville Jerry Michael Glanville (born October 14, 1941) is an American football coach. He is the defensive coordinator for Northwestern Oklahoma State University, a position he has held since 2024. Prior to that, was most recently the head coach of the ...

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a 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 Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

and

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

head coach *

Jim Harbaugh James Joseph Harbaugh ( ; born December 23, 1963) is an American professional football coach and former quarterback who is the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the head coach at ...

, professional football player in the NFL and head coach in the NFL and college football *

John Harbaugh John William Harbaugh ( ; born September 23, 1962) is an American professional football coach who is the head coach for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). Previously, he coached the defensive backs for the Philadelphia ...

, head coach in the

(NFL) *

Sam Jaeger Samuel Heath Jaeger (born January 29, 1977) is an American actor and screenwriter. Life and career Jaeger was born on January 29, 1977, in Perrysburg, Ohio, the son of LeAnne (née Graening) and Charles Jaeger. He is the youngest of four childre ...

, actor and screenwriter * Ralph Wesley Judd, professional baseball player in Major League Baseball * Charles F. Kurfess, Ohio

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hung ...

Lance K. Landrum Lance Keith Landrum (born c. 1970) is a retired United States Air Force lieutenant general who served as the 23rd Deputy Chair of the NATO Military Committee from 2021 to 2023. He most recently served as a special assistant to the commander of ...

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

currently serving as the 23rd

Deputy Chair of the NATO Military Committee The Deputy Chair of the NATO Military Committee (DCMC) is the deputy head of the NATO Military Committee. Originally titled as the Deputy Chairman, the post was redesignated in 2021 to reflect the gender-neutrality of the post. The current Depu ...

Jim Leyland James Richard Leyland (born December 15, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player, coach and manager. He serves as a special assistant to the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Leyland led the Florida Marlins to t ...

, professional baseball player and manager in Major League Baseball * Chessy Rayner, socialite and interior designer *

Anna Tunnicliffe Anna Tunnicliffe Tobias (born October 17, 1982) is an American sailor and CrossFit competitor. In 2008 she won an Olympic gold medal in the Laser Radial single handed sailing class. In 2009 and 2011, she won the ISAF Sailing World Cup in Lase ...

, 2008 US Olympic Sailing Team gold medalist

Notable companies

* Burkett Restaurant Equipment, dealer in food service equipment *

Owens-Illinois O-I Glass, Inc. is an American company that specializes in container glass products. It is the largest manufacturer of glass containers in North America, South America, Asia-Pacific and Europe (after acquiring BSN Glasspack in 2004). Company ...

Inc., global glass container manufacturer * Universal Tube & Rollform Equipment, metalworking machinery dealer, specializing in tube mills, roll forming and coil processing equipment. * Fox Software, creator of

FoxPro FoxPro is a text-based (computing), text-based Procedural programming, procedurally oriented programming language and database management system (DBMS), and it is also an object-oriented programming language, originally published by Fox Softwar ...

(Defunct after being acquired by

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...

in 1992).

References

External links/ Further reading

* * Franks, Gary L. ''The Founding and Survey of Perrysburg, Ohio''; Collierville TN: InstantPublisher.com, 2018 {{authority control Perrysburg, Ohio 1816 establishments in Ohio Cities in Wood County, Ohio Populated places established in 1816 Cities in Ohio