Van Wert

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Van Wert, Ohio
—  City  —
Downtown Van Wert.
Location of Van Wert, Ohio
Coordinates: 40°52′4″N 84°35′0″W / 40.86778°N 84.583333°W / 40.86778; -84.583333
Country	United States
State	Ohio
County	Van Wert
Government
- Mayor	Louis Ehmer
Area
- Total	6.1 sq mi (15.8 km2)
- Land	5.9 sq mi (15.3 km2)
- Water	0.2 sq mi (0.5 km2)
Elevation [1]	778 ft (237 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	10,690
- Density	1,803.8/sq mi (696.4/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	45891
Area code(s)	419
FIPS code	39-79562[2]
GNIS feature ID	1058096[1]
Website	www.vanwert.org

Van Wert is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Van Wert County. The municipality is located in northwestern Ohio with a population of 10,690 as of the 2000 U.S. census. It is the principal city of and is. included in the Van Wert Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Lima-Van Wert-Wapakoneta, Ohio Combined Statistical Area. Van Wert is named for Isaac Van Wart, one of the captors of Major John André in the American Revolutionary War. Van Wert is home to the first county library in the United States, the Brumback Library. It also has a thriving community art center the Wassenburg Art Center and the award-winning Van Wert Civic Theatre. Van Wert is the smallest city in the United States with both a YMCA and a YWCA.^{[citation needed]}

History

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The town is located in an area originally known as the Black Swamp. Early pioneers had to deal with swampy ground, mud, and malaria. They persevered, draining the swamp for agriculture and eventually reclaiming enough dry land to establish the town. Van Wert was the birthplace of aviation pioneer Nathan Profit .

At one point, Van Wert was the only place in the world producing Liederkranz cheese. This pungent dairy product was made at the now-closed Borden plant.

The people of Van Wert (400 of which called themselves "Cheesemakers") contributed to the town of Vimoutiers, Orne, Lower Normandy, France with help in the costs of reconstruction and reparation of the town after it was mistakenly bombed by the US airforce during the Second World War. They volunteered to pay for the replacement of Marie Harel's statue. This is recorded by a plaque in the market square of Vimoutiers. Vimoutiers is a centre for local making of Camembert, Livarot and Pont l'Eveque cheeses.

On November 10, 2002, an F4 tornado ripped through the town, killing two people.^[3] This was one of many tornado touchdowns during the Veterans Day Weekend Outbreak. Van Wert's emergency warning system is credited with saving many lives after several cars were thrown into a movie theatre that had been packed with people just minutes earlier.

Geography

Van Wert is located at 40°52′4″N 84°35′0″W / 40.86778°N 84.583333°W / 40.86778; -84.583333 (40.867863, -84.583461)^[4]. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.1 square miles (15.8 km²), of which, 5.9 square miles (15.4 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.5 km²) of it (2.95%) is water.

Van Wert County courthouse (built 1874-1876) is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 10,690 people, 4,556 households, and 2,947 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,803.8 people per square mile (696.0/km²). There were 4,927 housing units at an average density of 831.4/sq mi (320.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.07% White, 1.50% African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.35% Asian, 1.09% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.25% of the population.

There were 4,556 households out of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.1% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.3% were non-families. 31.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.88.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.1% under the age of 18, 9.3% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 17.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 88.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.1 males.

Municipal Building.

The median income for a household in the city was $33,205, and the median income for a family was $41,711. Males had a median income of $31,441 versus $23,143 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,413. About 5.0% of families and 7.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.4% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Van Wert City Schools enroll 2,027 students in public primary and secondary schools.^[5] The district operates 5 public schools including three elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school. Van Wert High School sports participate in theWestern Buckeye League, an athletic body sanctioned by the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA). Van Wert has recently built a new high school and middle school complex. Along with the new school complex, a new performing arts center has been built, The Niswonger Performing Arts Center of Northwest Ohio, thanks to the generous gift of Van Wert High School Alum, Scott Niswonger. In 2005, 2006, and, 2007 Van Wert Middle School received a "National Schools to Watch" award.

Notable natives

• Jim Heath, Broadcaster, Ohio News Network
• Larry "Coach" Smith, college football coach
• Andrew Crummey, NFL center
• Kory Lichtensteiger, NFL center
• Brent Mason, session guitarist
• Michael Frey, guitarist, vocals for country music's Jason Aldean
• Sarah Ann Evans, Miss Ohio 1988
• Joel Penton, former defensive tackle for the Ohio State Buckeyes, 2006 OSU Graduate, motivational speaker
• "Sonny Boy" Terry (Terry Jerome), Texas blues harmonica player/vocalist and recording artist
• Henry H-Bomb Weck, rock drummer for 70s bluesy rock and roll band Brownsville Station and platinum record producer (Blackfoot Strikes).

References

See also

• The Times Bulletin
• WERT

External links

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Van Wert.

• City of Van Wert
• The story of Marie Harel's 2nd statue offered by the cheesemakers of Van Wert
• Van Wert,Oh Internet Tv Station

• Van Wert, Ohio is at coordinates 40°52′04″N 84°35′00″W / 40.867863°N 84.583461°W / 40.867863; -84.583461 (Van Wert, Ohio)Coordinates: 40°52′04″N 84°35′00″W / 40.867863°N 84.583461°W / 40.867863; -84.583461 (Van Wert, Ohio)

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Van Wert County, Ohio County seat: Van Wert Cities Delphos‡ | Van Wert Villages Convoy | Elgin | Middle Point | Ohio City | Scott‡ | Venedocia | Willshire | Wren Townships Harrison | Hoaglin | Jackson | Jennings | Liberty | Pleasant | Ridge | Tully | Union | Washington | Willshire | York Unincorporated community Glenmore Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties