Delaware County, located in the center of Ohio, was formed in 1808 from land taken from Franklin County. The settlement of Delaware was established as the county seat. Over the years Delaware County has produced numerous well known political figures, the most prominent being Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th President of the United States.
History of Delaware
Originally home to the Mound Builders, and later to Delaware and other Indian tribes. The city of Delaware got its start in 1808 when Moses Byxbe and other settlers from Massachusetts located near Joseph Barber's small trading post that had opened in earlier in 1805. For some years, Delaware remained just a country village along the Olentangy River. General William Henry Harrison used Delaware as his headquarters during the War of 1812. Today you can see a number of his soldiers graves in area cemeteries. After the Treaty of Greenville in 1814, settlers poured into the area.
Today, Delaware County has been designated as the fastest growing county in Ohio and the nation.
Birthplace of a President
A gas station now stands where the 19th President of the United States was born in 1822. The 2-story brick house was destroyed in the 1920s and today a gas station stands on the spot, but a marker designating where Rutherford Birchard Hayes was born to Sophia Hayes. His father and namesake died just 2 months before the future president was born on East William St. in downtown Delaware.