Lake County | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 41°49′N81°14′W / 41.82°N 81.24°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Ohio |
Founded | March 6, 1840 [1] |
Named for | Lake Erie |
Seat | Painesville |
Largest city | Mentor |
Area | |
• Total | 979 sq mi (2,540 km2) |
• Land | 227 sq mi (590 km2) |
• Water | 752 sq mi (1,950 km2) 77% |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 232,603 |
• Estimate (2023) | 231,640 |
• Density | 240/sq mi (92/km2) |
Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
Congressional district | 14th |
Website | www |
Lake County is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 232,603. [2] Its county seat is Painesville, and its largest city is Mentor.
The county was established on March 6, 1840, from land given by Cuyahoga and Geauga counties. Its name is derived from its location on the southern shore of Lake Erie and the fact that the majority of the county’s land lies beneath Lake Erie. [3] [4] Lake County is part of the Cleveland, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The land that became Lake County was home to the indigenous Erie people prior to the arrival of the French in the region during the early 1600s and was considered by the French to be part of their Colony of New France. After France's defeat in the Seven Years' War in 1763, France ceded the area to Great Britain, and the area became part of the Province of Quebec through the Quebec Act of 1774. Following the American Revolutionary War, it became part of the Connecticut Western Reserve in the Northwest Territory, then was purchased by the Connecticut Land Company in 1795. It was separated out of Geauga County in March 1840.
Although today the county is mostly suburban, Lake County was once known as a rural country retreat for wealthy Cleveland residents. During the early 1900s, many wealthy families in Cleveland maintained large estates in the county for use as their summer homes. [5] [6] [7]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has an area of 979 square miles (2,540 km2), of which 227 square miles (590 km2) is land and 752 square miles (1,950 km2) (77%) is water. [8] It is Ohio's smallest county by land area but the third-largest by total area, with said area owing to land beneath the lake (which is owned by the county).
The county’s coast line along Lake Erie spans 31 miles. Additionally, Lake County has an international border with Ontario (across Lake Erie).
Ridges on the Lake Plain physiographic region, and on which some roads are laid, are beaches formed by the various glacial lakes which occurred as the glaciers receded. [9] Lake Maumee was the highest glacial lake at about 760 feet, and left Maumee II beach. Whittlesey beach, formed by Lake Whittlesey at 740 feet, is known as South Ridge. Arkona beach (Lake Arkona) is Middle Ridge, and occurs at about 690 feet. North Ridge is the remnant of Warren beach (Lake Warren), at an elevation of 685 feet. Elkton beach is the northernmost ridge, at 625 feet, an occurred at the time of Lake Elkton. Lake Shore Boulevard follows Elkton beach in Mentor Township.
Mentor Marsh, an abandoned channel of the Grand River, is an Ohio State Nature Preserve. [10]
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1840 | 13,719 | — | |
1850 | 14,654 | 6.8% | |
1860 | 15,576 | 6.3% | |
1870 | 15,935 | 2.3% | |
1880 | 16,326 | 2.5% | |
1890 | 18,235 | 11.7% | |
1900 | 21,680 | 18.9% | |
1910 | 22,927 | 5.8% | |
1920 | 28,667 | 25.0% | |
1930 | 41,674 | 45.4% | |
1940 | 50,020 | 20.0% | |
1950 | 75,979 | 51.9% | |
1960 | 148,700 | 95.7% | |
1970 | 197,200 | 32.6% | |
1980 | 212,801 | 7.9% | |
1990 | 215,499 | 1.3% | |
2000 | 227,511 | 5.6% | |
2010 | 230,041 | 1.1% | |
2020 | 232,603 | 1.1% | |
2023 (est.) | 231,640 | [11] | −0.4% |
U.S. Decennial Census [12] 1790-1960 [13] 1900-1990 [14] 1990-2000 [15] 2010-2020 [2] |
As of the 2020 census, Lake County had 232,603 people living in 105,315 households. The racial makeup of the county was 84.7% white (not Hispanic or Latino), 4.7% black or African American, 1.4% Asian, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.4% from other races, and 5.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 5.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 23.0% were German, 18.0% were Irish, 15.3% were Italian, 9.8% were English, and 6.8% were Polish.
33.0% of the adult population has a Bachelor's Degree or higher, slightly above the 32.0% rate for Ohio as a whole. [16]
As of the 2010 census, there were 230,041 people, 94,156 households, and 62,384 families residing in the county. [17] The population density was 1,011.2 inhabitants per square mile (390.4/km2). There were 101,202 housing units at an average density of 444.9 units per square mile (171.8 units/km2). [18] The racial makeup of the county was 92.5% white, 3.2% black or African American, 1.1% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 1.6% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.4% of the population. [17] In terms of ancestry, 26.4% were German, 18.9% were Irish, 16.4% were Italian, 11.5% were English, 7.6% were Polish, 5.4% were Hungarian, and 3.9% were American. [19]
Of the 94,156 households, 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.5% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.7% were non-families, and 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.97. The median age was 42.3 years. [17]
The median income for a household in the county was $54,896 and the median income for a family was $67,206. Males had a median income of $49,240 versus $36,906 for females. The per capita income for the county was $28,221. About 6.0% of families and 8.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.0% of those under age 18 and 4.4% of those age 65 or over. [20]
In 2010, 92.4% spoke English, 2.7% Spanish, and 1.4% Croatian. [21]
Scorecard’s 2002 [22] report ranks Lake County among the worst 10% of counties in the U.S. in terms of cancer risk, developmental and reproductive toxicants, and other categories as well. This rating is comparable with most major cities and densely populated areas. In 2004, Scorecard [22] ranked the county among the cleanest or best 10% of all counties in the U.S. in terms of the number of designated Superfund sites.
Lake County has a large public park system, including Lake Metroparks Farmpark. Kirtland is home to the Holden Arboretum and Gildersleeve Mountain. Headlands Beach State Park is in Mentor. The Grand River is a state wild and scenic river, and the Chagrin River is a state scenic river.
Laketran is the transit agency that serves Lake County, providing bus service throughout the county and to downtown Cleveland. It is the third-largest transit system in Northeast Ohio. [23] In 2023, the system had a ridership of 629,500, or about 2,300 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2024.
Lake County Executive Airport, formerly known as Lost Nation Airport, is a public use airport located in Willoughby.
Interstate 90 runs northeast–southwest through Lake County, roughly parallel to State Route 2; along with the north–south State Route 44 connects the two together. These freeways make up the major traffic arteries in the county.
Lake County does not have passenger rail service, though Amtrak's New York City-Chicago Lake Shore Limited service schedules an eastbound and westbound train through Lake County nightly with stops at Cleveland and Erie. CSX and Norfolk Southern provide railroad main line through-freight service. The recently formed Grand River Railroad, operating on former Baltimore & Ohio track, serves the Fairport Harbor area linking the Morton Salt plant with CSX at Painesville.
The following public school districts are located in Lake County: [24]
The following libraries serve Lake County:
Additionally, as of 2019, all Lake County libraries are all CLEVNET members.
Lake County is part of the Cleveland-area media and television market.
The News-Herald , a Lake County newspaper, has been headquartered in Willoughby since its inception.
Lake County leans strongly Republican in local elections. As of 2024, all but one county-wide elected officials are Republicans. [25]
Position | Name | Party |
---|---|---|
Commissioner | John Plecnik | Republican |
Commissioner | Richard Regovich | Republican |
Commissioner | John Hamercheck | Republican |
Auditor | Christopher Galloway | Republican |
Prosecuting Attorney | Charles Coulson | Republican |
Clerk of Courts | Faith Andrews | Republican |
Sheriff | Frank Leonbruno | Republican |
Recorder | Becky Lynch | Republican |
Treasurer | Michael Zuren | Republican |
Engineer | James Gills | Republican |
Coroner | David Keep | Republican |
Position | Name | Party |
---|---|---|
Common Pleas - General | Patrick Condon | Republican |
Common Pleas - General | Vincent Culotta | Republican |
Common Pleas - General | Jeffrey Ruple | Republican |
Common Pleas - General | John O'Donnell | Republican |
Domestic Relations Division | Colleen Falkowski | Democrat |
Juvenile Division | Michael DeLeone | Republican |
Probate Division | Mark Bartolotta | Republican |
Lake County has traditionally been known as a "purple" or "swing" county within the state. A 2008 analysis of Ohio presidential election results from 1960 to 2004 found no other county more closely followed Ohio's statewide voting pattern. [26] Although it did not always vote with the winner, it had consistently been closer to the winner's Ohio vote percentage than any other Ohio county. More recently, however, the county has trended more strongly Republican than the state as a whole. For example, in 2020 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump won the county by nearly a fourteen point margin while winning the state as a whole by only eight points.
Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
2024 | 71,622 | 56.43% | 53,586 | 42.22% | 1,724 | 1.36% |
2020 | 73,278 | 56.03% | 55,514 | 42.45% | 1,990 | 1.52% |
2016 | 64,255 | 54.83% | 46,397 | 39.59% | 6,538 | 5.58% |
2012 | 58,744 | 49.50% | 57,680 | 48.61% | 2,241 | 1.89% |
2008 | 59,142 | 48.62% | 60,155 | 49.45% | 2,345 | 1.93% |
2004 | 62,193 | 51.05% | 59,049 | 48.47% | 581 | 0.48% |
2000 | 51,747 | 50.45% | 46,497 | 45.33% | 4,320 | 4.21% |
1996 | 40,974 | 41.92% | 43,186 | 44.19% | 13,576 | 13.89% |
1992 | 40,766 | 38.46% | 37,682 | 35.55% | 27,542 | 25.99% |
1988 | 52,963 | 56.63% | 39,667 | 42.41% | 894 | 0.96% |
1984 | 54,587 | 59.12% | 36,711 | 39.76% | 1,027 | 1.11% |
1980 | 43,485 | 50.31% | 35,246 | 40.78% | 7,697 | 8.91% |
1976 | 36,390 | 45.83% | 40,734 | 51.30% | 2,284 | 2.88% |
1972 | 42,488 | 58.90% | 27,523 | 38.15% | 2,130 | 2.95% |
1968 | 28,450 | 43.40% | 27,932 | 42.61% | 9,177 | 14.00% |
1964 | 23,282 | 37.65% | 38,552 | 62.35% | 0 | 0.00% |
1960 | 32,038 | 48.94% | 33,425 | 51.06% | 0 | 0.00% |
1956 | 31,017 | 61.14% | 19,718 | 38.86% | 0 | 0.00% |
1952 | 23,483 | 60.48% | 15,346 | 39.52% | 0 | 0.00% |
1948 | 12,973 | 53.81% | 10,844 | 44.98% | 291 | 1.21% |
1944 | 13,697 | 51.86% | 12,713 | 48.14% | 0 | 0.00% |
1940 | 13,464 | 52.04% | 12,408 | 47.96% | 0 | 0.00% |
1936 | 9,386 | 43.24% | 11,213 | 51.66% | 1,108 | 5.10% |
1932 | 11,792 | 61.43% | 6,801 | 35.43% | 603 | 3.14% |
1928 | 11,823 | 74.24% | 4,024 | 25.27% | 79 | 0.50% |
1924 | 7,727 | 70.71% | 974 | 8.91% | 2,226 | 20.37% |
1920 | 7,465 | 72.31% | 2,711 | 26.26% | 147 | 1.42% |
1916 | 2,887 | 51.39% | 2,596 | 46.21% | 135 | 2.40% |
1912 | 1,155 | 22.91% | 1,429 | 28.34% | 2,458 | 48.75% |
1908 | 3,635 | 66.97% | 1,605 | 29.57% | 188 | 3.46% |
1904 | 3,824 | 76.42% | 871 | 17.41% | 309 | 6.18% |
1900 | 3,929 | 68.41% | 1,733 | 30.18% | 81 | 1.41% |
1896 | 3,745 | 68.40% | 1,682 | 30.72% | 48 | 0.88% |
1892 | 2,846 | 67.46% | 1,158 | 27.45% | 215 | 5.10% |
1888 | 2,987 | 68.37% | 1,157 | 26.48% | 225 | 5.15% |
1884 | 2,925 | 69.64% | 1,120 | 26.67% | 155 | 3.69% |
1880 | 2,978 | 71.06% | 1,104 | 26.34% | 109 | 2.60% |
1876 | 2,941 | 71.28% | 1,141 | 27.65% | 44 | 1.07% |
1872 | 2,751 | 73.56% | 979 | 26.18% | 10 | 0.27% |
1868 | 2,909 | 76.59% | 889 | 23.41% | 0 | 0.00% |
1864 | 2,787 | 82.63% | 586 | 17.37% | 0 | 0.00% |
1860 | 2,521 | 77.74% | 622 | 19.18% | 100 | 3.08% |
1856 | 2,371 | 78.04% | 628 | 20.67% | 39 | 1.28% |
Holden Arboretum, one of the largest arboreta and botanical gardens in the United States, is located in Kirtland.
The James A. Garfield National Historic Site is located in Mentor. The site preserves the Lawnfield estate and surrounding property of James A. Garfield, the 20th president of the United States, and includes the first presidential library established in the United States.
Kirtland Temple, the first temple built by adherents of the Latter Day Saint movement, is located in Kirtland. Kirtland, which served as the headquarters for the Latter Day Saint movement during most of the 1830s, [28] also hosts the nearby Historic Kirtland Village, which is owned and operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and is made up of historic buildings and sites important to the early Latter Day Saint movement.
Several other historic churches are located in the county, including the Methodist Episcopal Church of Painesville, Old South Church in Kirtland, St. James Episcopal Church in Painesville, and the South LeRoy Meetinghouse in Leroy Township.
A portion of the Grand River Valley American Viticultural Area is located in the eastern half of the county.
Squire's Castle is located within the North Chagrin Reservation of the Cleveland Metroparks in Willoughby Hills.
Classic Park, the home field of the Lake County Captains, a Class A minor league baseball team affiliated with the Cleveland Guardians, is located in Eastlake.
Eastlake is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States. It takes its name from its location northeast of Cleveland, following along the shore of Lake Erie. The population was 17,670 at the 2020 census. The 2003 North America blackout stemmed from an Eastlake generating station going offline.
Painesville is a city in and the county seat of Lake County, Ohio, United States, located along the Grand River. It is a northeast suburb of Cleveland. Its population was 20,312 at the 2020 census. Painesville is included in the Greater Cleveland metropolitan area.
Willoughby is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States, along the Chagrin River. The population was 23,959 at the time of the 2020 census. A suburb of Cleveland, it is part of the Cleveland metropolitan area.
Willoughby Hills is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States, along the Chagrin River. The population was 10,019 at the 2020 census. A suburb of Cleveland, it is part of the Cleveland metropolitan area.
Willowick is a city in Lake County, Ohio, United States, on Lake Erie. The population was 14,204 at the 2020 census. A suburb of Cleveland, Willowick is served by a branch of the Willoughby-Eastlake Public Library. The city's name is a portmanteau of two adjacent cities, Willoughby and Wickliffe. As of 2022, the mayor of Willowick is Michael Vanni.
The Cleveland metropolitan area, or Greater Cleveland as it is more commonly known, is the metropolitan area surrounding the city of Cleveland in Northeast Ohio, United States. According to the 2020 census results, the six-county Cleveland, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) consists of Cuyahoga County, Ashtabula County, Geauga County, Lake County, Lorain County, and Medina County, and has a population of 2,185,825, making it the 33rd-most populous metropolitan area in the United States and the third largest metropolitan area in Ohio. The metro area is also part of the larger Cleveland–Akron–Canton Combined Statistical Area with a population of over 3.7 million people, the most populous statistical area in Ohio and the 17th most populous in the United States.
Northeast Ohio is a geographic and cultural region that comprises the northeastern counties of the U.S. state of Ohio. Definitions of the region consist of 16 to 23 counties between the southern shore of Lake Erie and the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, home to over 4.5 million people. It is anchored by the metropolitan area of Cleveland, the most populous city in the region with over 372,000 residents in 2020. Other metropolitan centers include Akron, Canton, Mansfield, Sandusky, and Youngstown. Northeast Ohio includes most of the area known historically as the Connecticut Western Reserve.
Laketran is the transit agency that serves Lake County, Ohio, the county northeast of Cleveland. It is the third-largest transit system in Northeast Ohio, serving Mentor, Painesville, Willoughby, Wickliffe. Eastlake, Fairport Harbor, Madison and other Lake County destinations. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 629,500, or about 2,300 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2024.
Headlands Beach State Park is a public beach in Mentor and Painesville Township, Ohio, United States. It is the longest natural beach in Ohio and attracts two million visitors annually. The breakwall at the eastern end of the park, frequented by fishermen, is surmounted by the Fairport Harbor West Breakwater Light. The park features a 35-acre beach for sunbathing, swimming, and beach glass hunting along with picnicking facilities and seasonal concessionaire.
Concord Township is one of the five townships of Lake County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,254. Lake County is part of the Cleveland-Elyria, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Painesville Township is one of the five townships of Lake County, Ohio, United States. The population was 20,453 at the 2020 census. It is a part of Greater Cleveland in the Northeast Ohio Region, and is included in the Cleveland-Akron-Canton, Ohio combined statistical area in the United States.
Perry Township is one of the five townships of Lake County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2020 census the population was 8,862.
The Lakeland Freeway is a limited-access freeway in the northeastern suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio. It runs with and parallel to Interstate 90, and follows the shore of Lake Erie, linking the suburban areas of Lake County to Cleveland and Cuyahoga County.
Jamie Callender is an American lawyer and college professor who has served as a member of the Ohio House of Representatives since 2019. He represents the 57th district which includes the Lake County communities of Concord Township, Kirtland, Kirtland Hills, LeRoy Township, Madison, Madison Township, North Perry, Perry, Perry Township, Waite Hill, Willoughby Hills, as well as most of both Mentor and Painesville Township. He currently is Chairman of Public Utilities and Finance, as well as serving on Civil Justice, Joint Education Oversight Committee, Rules and Reference Ohio House Committees.
Kenny Yuko is an American politician and union activist who served as a member of the Ohio Senate, representing the 25th District. Previously, he was a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, representing the 7th District from 2005 to 2012. Yuko was a political and union activist for more than two decades.
U.S. Route 20 (US 20) is a United States Numbered Highway that runs from Newport, Oregon, to Boston, Massachusetts. Within the state of Ohio, the route runs from the Indiana border near Edon to the Pennsylvania border at Conneaut. The route passes through rural areas west of Toledo and passes through Public Square in Cleveland. It is one of nine other routes to enter Downtown Cleveland at Public Square, and it serves some of Cleveland's northeastern suburbs.
The Lake Academy Alternative School was a public alternative high school located in Willoughby, Ohio in Lake County. It was founded in 1997.
John M. Rogers is a former Democratic member of the Ohio House of Representatives, representing the 60th District which includes the Lake County communities of Eastlake, Fairport Harbor, Grand River, Lakeline, Mentor-on-the-Lake, Painesville, Timberlake, Wickliffe, Willoughby, Willowick, as well as parts of both Mentor and Painesville Township. He was first elected in 2012.
This is a list of high school athletic conferences in the Northeast Region of Ohio, as defined by the OHSAA. Because the names of localities and their corresponding high schools do not always match and because there is often a possibility of ambiguity with respect to either the name of a locality or the name of a high school, the following table gives both in every case, with the locality name first, in plain type, and the high school name second in boldface type. The school's team nickname is given last.
The Western Reserve Conference is an OHSAA athletics conference that began with the 2015-16 school year. The name is resurrected from three previous incarnations that most recently folded in 2007 when the Northeast Ohio Conference was created.
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