Willard

Willard, Ohio
—  City  —
Location of Willard, Ohio
Coordinates: 41°3′17″N 82°43′41″W / 41.05472°N 82.72806°W / 41.05472; -82.72806Coordinates: 41°3′17″N 82°43′41″W / 41.05472°N 82.72806°W / 41.05472; -82.72806
Country	United States
State	Ohio
County	Huron
Government
• Type	Council/Manager
• Council President
• City Manager
Area
• Total	3.5 sq mi (9.0 km2)
• Land	3.5 sq mi (9.0 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.1 km2)
Elevation[1]	928 ft (283 m)
Population (2000)
• Total	6,806
• Density	1,963.0/sq mi (757.9/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes	44888, 44890
Area code(s)	419
FIPS code	39-85232[2]
GNIS feature ID	1058142[1]
Website	http://www.willardohio.com/

Willard is a city in Huron County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 6,806. Willard is served by the Willard Memorial Library.

Geography

Willard is located at 41°3′17″N 82°43′41″W / 41.05472°N 82.72806°W / 41.05472; -82.72806 (41.054649, -82.727982).^[3]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.5 square miles (9.1 km²), of which, 3.5 square miles (9.1 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.10 km²) of it (0.86%) is water.

To the south of Willard are located the unincorporated communities of Celeryville and New Haven, plus the planned development of Holiday Lakes to the north.

Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 6,806 people, 2,545 households, and 1,738 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,963.0 people per square mile (757.3/km²). There were 2,715 housing units at an average density of 783.1 per square mile (302.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 90.32% White, 1.54% African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.31% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 6.11% from other races, and 1.51% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.47% of the population.

There were 2,545 households out of which 38.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.1% were married couples living together, 14.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.7% were non-families. 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.22.

In the city the population was spread out with 30.8% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 90.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $28,911, and the median income for a family was $35,271. Males had a median income of $30,377 versus $22,702 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,942. About 12.7% of families and 16.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.9% of those under age 18 and 9.5% of those age 65 or over.

History

The original name of Willard was Chicago, named for the junction of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad's line to Sandusky (the Sandusky, Mansfield and Newark Railroad) and the branch west to Chicago (the Baltimore and Ohio and Chicago Railroad). Later the Akron and Chicago Junction Railroad was built east from the junction, providing a more direct route between the Northeast and Chicago. With the name of Chicago passengers would mistake it for Chicago, Ill, so they changed the name to Chicago Junction, but the word Junction did not fit on boards at the time so it did not fix the problem. In 1917, to finally rectify the confusion, the town changed its name to Willard, after the then president of the B&O, Daniel Willard.

Economy

Several key businesses have a presence in Willard, they include: the Willard rail yard of CSX Transportation, Midwest Industries, RR Donnelley, Pepperidge Farm, and Mercy Willard Hospital. Farmland surrounds the community, with the primary crops being corn, soybeans, wheat, onions, and radishes.

Notable natives

• Charlie Frye, American football quarterback of the NFL
• Sean Swarner, first cancer survivor to complete the Seven Summits. Author of Keep Climbing.

References

External links

• City of Willard website
• Willard Memorial Library

v t e Municipalities and communities of Huron County, Ohio, United States 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 Fitchville Hunts Corners New Haven Steuben Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties