Norwalk

Norwalk, Ohio
—  City  —
Downtown Norwalk, Ohio on West Main Street
Nickname(s): The Maple City
Location of Norwalk, Ohio
Coordinates: 41°14′35″N 82°36′41″W / 41.24306°N 82.61139°W / 41.24306; -82.61139
Country	United States
State	Ohio
County	Huron
Founded	1817
Government
- Mayor	Susan Smith Lesch (D)
Area
- Total	8.6 sq mi (22.2 km2)
- Land	8.3 sq mi (21.6 km2)
- Water	0.2 sq mi (0.6 km2)
Elevation [1]	719 ft (219 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	16,238
- Density	1,950.3/sq mi (753.0/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	44857
Area code(s)	419, 567
FIPS code	39-57302[2]
GNIS feature ID	1044003[1]
Website	http://www.norwalkoh.com/

Huron County Courthouse in downtown Norwalk, Ohio

Norwalk Public Library in downtown Norwalk, Ohio.

Norwalk is a city in Huron County, Ohio, United States. The population was 16,238 at the 2000 census. The 2007 population estimate puts Norwalk at 16,596.^[3] It is the county seat of Huron County^[4].

History

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Norwalk is at the center of a subregion in Ohio's Western Reserve commonly known as the Firelands. The sub-region's name recalls the founding of the area as one for settlers from cities in Connecticut that were burned during the Revolutionary War. Several locations in the Firelands area were named in honor of those cities (e.g. Greenwich, Groton, New London, Norwalk, Norwich, Ridgefield, etc.) as well as the names of settlers (e.g. Clarksfield, Perkins, Sherman, etc.).

Geography

Norwalk is located at 41°14′35″N 82°36′41″W / 41.24306°N 82.61139°W / 41.24306; -82.61139 (41.243024, -82.611371)^[5].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 8.6 square miles (22.2 km²), of which, 8.3 square miles (21.6 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.6 km²) of it (2.92%) is water. The city of Norwalk is bound by Norwalk Township in each direction and a small portion of the west side is bound by Ridgefield Township. The city is located approximately 11 miles south of Lake Erie.

Demographics

At the 2000 census^[2], there were 16,238 people, 6,377 households and 4,234 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,950.3 per square mile (752.6/km²). There were 6,687 housing units at an average density of 803.1/sq mi (309.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.53% White, 1.95% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.32% Asian, 1.86% from other races, and 1.13% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.82% of the population.

There were 6,377 households of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.9% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.6% were non-families. 28.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.06.

Age distribution was 27.9% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 19.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.1 males.

The median household income was $37,778, and the median family income was $45,789. Males had a median income of $36,582 versus $22,165 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,519. About 6.8% of families and 8.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.1% of those under age 18 and 6.0% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

The U.S. interstate highway system is easily accessible from Norwalk. Interstate 80 and Interstate 90 , also known as the Ohio Turnpike is approximately 3.5 miles north of Norwalk's city limits with an interchange on U.S. Route 250. Furthermore, the interstate-standard highway, State Route 2 , is also accessible to Norwalk.

The U.S. federal highways that run through Norwalk include Route 20 (part of the Norwalk bypass on the south side of town), which connects Fremont (via Bellevue) from the west and Elyria from the east; and Route 250 (known locally as Milan Avenue, East League Street, Whittlesey Avenue, and Benedict Avenue), which connects Sandusky from the north (west) and Ashland from the south (east).

The state highways that run through Norwalk include Route 13 (multiplexed with Route 250), which connects Huron from the north and Mansfield from the south; Route 18 (multiplexed with Route 20 on the bypass), which connects Bellevue from the west and Medina (via Wellington) from the east; and Route 61 (known locally as Main Street), which connects Shelby from the south and Berlin Heights as well as Lake Erie from the northeast.

Furthermore, State Route 601 is an alternate two-lane highway that bypasses Norwalk and U.S. Route 250 to the east, running from State Route 113 in Milan to State Route 18 a few miles east of Norwalk, next to Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park. Rumors exist which have State Route 601 being extended from State Route 18 south to U.S. Route 250 in Olena along Huron County's Greenwich-Milan Townline Road.

One active railroad line runs through the western, central, and southeastern parts of town, the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railroad.

Education

Due to city annexations and previously determined school district boundaries, Norwalk is served by four public school districts. The majority of the city is served by the Norwalk City School District. Northern portions of the city, including areas north of Gallup Avenue, are located within the Berlin-Milan Local School District. Extreme western portions of the city, beyond the Sycamore Hills neighborhood, are located within the Monroeville Local School District. Also, extreme eastern portions of the city are within the boundaries of the Western Reserve Local School District. Residents of Norwalk who live in school districts other than the Norwalk City School District have the option to send their children to Norwalk City Schools because of open enrollment. Furthermore, Norwalk Catholic Schools and Saint Paul High School add to the educational options in Norwalk.

Notable facts

Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (January 2008)

• Norwalk is the birthplace of Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Paul Brown and American League Baseball's first president, Ban Johnson.
• In 1968 an intestinal virus outbreak at a primary school led to the discovery of a new virus type, known as the Norovirus, originally called the "Norwalk virus".
• The International Hot Rod Association, a drag racing sanctioning body, is headquartered in Norwalk.
• Norwalk is home to Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park, an NHRA-sanctioned drag racing strip.
• The Norwalk Furniture Company was founded and is headquartered in Norwalk. Norwalk Furniture closed its Norwalk plant in 2008.
• Norwalk is affectionately referred to as the "Maple City." Large historic maples grace many streets and can be found in city parks.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
3. ^ U.S. Census Bureau. "Annual Estimates of the Population for Incorporated Places in Ohio, Listed Alphabetically: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2006". http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/tables/SUB-EST2006-04-39.csv. Retrieved 2007-06-28. 
4. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. http://www.naco.org/Template.cfm?Section=Find_a_County&Template=/cffiles/counties/usamap.cfm. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
5. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2005-05-03. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Norwalk, Ohio

• City website

• Norwalk, Ohio is at coordinates 41°14′35″N 82°36′41″W / 41.243024°N 82.611371°W / 41.243024; -82.611371 (Norwalk, Ohio)Coordinates: 41°14′35″N 82°36′41″W / 41.243024°N 82.611371°W / 41.243024; -82.611371 (Norwalk, Ohio)

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Huron County, Ohio County seat: Norwalk Cities Bellevue‡ | Norwalk | Willard Villages Greenwich | Milan‡ | Monroeville | New London | North Fairfield | Plymouth‡ | Wakeman Townships Bronson | Clarksfield | Fairfield | Fitchville | Greenfield | Greenwich | Hartland | Lyme | New Haven | New London | Norwalk | Norwich | Peru | Richmond | Ridgefield | Ripley | Sherman | Townsend | Wakeman Unincorporated communities Celeryville | Clarksfield | Collins | Hunts Corners | New Haven | Steuben Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties