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Archaeologists believe that this prehistoric mound, part of a complex of earthworks, was used for rituals by the Hopewell people and was probably built between 100 BC and 400 AD. Note the painted post tops marking the Hopewell pole house footprint. The mound is recorded on the National Register of Historic Places and was given to the Worthington Historical Society in 1974 in memory of Herman Plesenton Jeffers.
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Educational standards for rural children did not exist during the early 1800s, but by the 1870s most states had enacted compulsory education laws. In rural areas, township school districts built schools like this one and assessed local citizens for upkeep and teacher’s salaries. Teachers passed a county examination for certification. Besides instruction duties, they kept records, cleaned the schoolhouse, and kept it heated during the cold months. In 1879, Allen and Mary Orders deeded one acre of land to the Jackson Township Board of Education to build Schoolhouse No. 10, known locally as Orders Road School. Three generations of Jackson Township students between ages five and sixteen received their primary education here. Following consolidation, the school district deeded this building to the farm’s owners in 1928. It was restored in 2000-2002.
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Built in 1910, the old Ohio Union was the first student union building constructed on a public university campus and the fourth to be built in the United States. Made possible by a direct appropriation from the 77th Ohio General Assembly and private funds raised by students, the building officially opened on January 11, 1911 with considerable fanfare. By erecting a student union building, the university gave official sanction to extracurricular activities. Although there have been seven additions, this Jacobethan Revival style building retains its original exterior form and character. The “Old Ohio Union” was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
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The Scioto Company, led by James Kilbourn (Kilbourne) of Granby and Berlin, Connecticut, founded Worthington in 1803, the year that Ohio became a state. The Scioto Company was organized as a land company in 1802 with 38 original proprietors from Connecticut and Massachusetts. They purchased 16,000 acres of land along the Olentangy River for $1.25 per acre. The name Worthington was adopted in honor of Thomas Worthington, Territorial Land Commissioner, United States Senator, and future Ohio governor. He advised Kilbourn on the location for the settlement and his name provided recognition for the community.
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The Ohio and Erie Canal was Ohio’s solution to the lack of a reliable and fast transportation system to move goods to outside markets. The canal opened in the then unplatted village of Groveport on September 25, 1831 and contributed directly to Groveport’s success as a center of commerce. W.H. Richardson built lock 22, the only lock in Groveport, as part of his bid to build section 52 of the canal. Lock 22, the last lock before a series of locks in Lockbourne, Ohio that lower the canal to the level of Big Walnut Creek, is 90 feet long with a 15 foot wide lock channel. A variety of businesses clustered along the banks of the canal. In the mid-nineteenth century, a canal boatyard and dry dock was operated in what is now Blacklick Park. Canal boats were built and repaired in this facility that was considered the first notable such operation on the canal below Baltimore, Ohio.
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Landscape architect Howard Daniels designed the original portion of Green Lawn Cemetery in 1848. Noted Columbus architect Frank Packard designed Green Lawn’s Chapel mausoleum, the Hayden family mausoleum, and the Packard mausoleum. Spanning over 360 acres, the cemetery’s wooded setting provides a habitat for a variety of birds and other wildlife. The Chapel contains stunning stained glass windows and mosaic artwork by Tiffany & Company of New York. The monuments, obelisks, and memorials throughout the cemetery represent a wealth of artwork and a history of Columbus. As one of the oldest and largest cemeteries in Ohio, Green Lawn is the resting-place of many noted individuals who have made significant contributions to Columbus, Franklin County and the nation.
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Thousands of Irish immigrants came to Columbus to seek personal and religious freedom. With the “Great Hunger” in Ireland and the completion of the Ohio and Erie Canal and the National Road, immigration to Columbus increased in the mid nineteenth century. They initially settled in the north side of the city in the swamp flats, where inexpensive land was available and work could be had on the railroads. Settlement spread to Franklinton, on Naghten Street, later known as “Irish Broadway”- part of which is now Nationwide Boulevard, and to nearby Flytown. The immigrants became domestic workers, civil servants, entrepreneurs, and served the city in police and fire departments. Others were leaders in government, law, medicine, and education. Their legacy continues today in the Irish-American population of Columbus, Ohio.
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After the Revolutionary War, our first President, George Washington, advocated the construction of a road linking cities in the United States from east to west. In 1806, President Thomas Jefferson signed legislation authorizing the road. The National Road was the nation’s first federally funded highway and was intended to link Cumberland, Maryland to St. Louis, Missouri. The Enabling Act of 1802, which led to the creation of the state of Ohio, contained a provision that allowed for some money from the sale of federal lands to be used for construction of the road to Wheeling on the Ohio River. Contracts were given in 1811 and the National Road was completed through Columbus by 1833. Construction stopped in Vandalia, Illinois due to the popularity of canals, increased railroad usage, and lack of funds. The 591-mile corridor passes through six states: Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois.
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