What is Ironton, Ohio?

Ironton, Ohio
Ironton, as seen across the Ohio River in Russell, Kentucky Ironton, as seen across the Ohio River in Russell, Kentucky
Location in the State of Ohio Location in the State of Ohio
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	Ohio
County	Lawrence
Founded	1849
Incorporated
Government
- Mayor	John Elam
Area
- City	4.4 sq mi (11.4 km)
- Land	4.1 sq mi (10.7 km)
- Water	0.3 sq mi (0.7 km)
Elevation	551 ft (168 m)
Population (2005)
- City	11,417
- Density	2,711.3/sq mi (1046.8/km)
- Metro	288,649
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	45638
Area code(s)	740
FIPS code	39-37464GR2
GNIS feature ID	1076122GR3

Ironton is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Lawrence County. The municipality is located in southern Ohio along the Ohio River. The population was 11,211 at the 2000 census. Ironton is a part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). As of the 2000 census, the MSA had a population of 288,649. Ironton is one of the few cities in the MSA with an increase in population. As of 2005, the Census Bureau estimated that Ironton had a population of 11,417.

History

Ironton was founded in 1849 by John Campbell,^[1] who grew up on a farm in the southern Ohio town of Georgetown. Campbell was interested in the lands surrounding what would later become the city of Ironton due to his foundary business and the fact that the hills to the north encompassed very rich iron-ore. The location of Ironton was chosen for its position along the Ohio River, which would allow for transport of the much-needed commodity, iron-ore, and the slope of the land itself, which facilitated movement of the raw material to the local blast furnaces.

Between 1850 and 1890, Ironton was one of the foremost producers of iron in the world. England, France, and Russia all purchased iron for warships from here due to the quality; iron produced in Ironton was used for the USS Monitor, the United States' first ironclad ship.^[1] There were more than ninety furnaces in operation at the peak of production in the late 1800s.^[1] The immense wealth that was created from the bustling pig-iron industry led to the construction of many opulent residences.

With much wealth pouring into the city from the iron industry, new industries opened that included soap and nail production. The Detroit, Toledo and Ironton Railroad, which stretched through two states, helped fuel Henry Ford's plants in Michigan. The city had a street railway, the Ironton Petersburg Street Railway, and four daily newspapers and a few foreign-language publications. Ironton was also known for its lax attitude towards sin and vice. It was home to a racetrack, numerous saloons, and brothels. Numerous chapels offered "quick and quiet" marriages.

The downfall of Ironton came as the market for iron changed. The quality of the iron that had once made Ironton one of the leading producers of pig iron was no longer considered as desirable. All of the easily accessible iron (close to the surface) had been mined by 1899, and the continued production costs began to outweigh the benefit. Also, the nation was making the transition from a demand for iron to steel. After a nationwide economic recession\depression in the late 19th century, Ironton was no longer growing. The great depression of the late 1920s and two major floods (1917, 1937) devastated the city to the point that most if not all the city's industries had closed down for good.

As the iron industries closed, Ironton had little with which to replace them. A labor-oriented town, Ironton managed to keep alive by trying to attract heavy industry to the region. Companies like Allied Signal and Alpha Portland Cement did build in town, but even so the boom days were now over. The continued dependency on labor industries has severely hurt the region as a whole, and Ironton even more so. By 2004, both Alpha Portland Cement and Allied Signal were gone, and Ironton had shrunk to the point where there were fewer people living in the whole county than had lived in the city of Ironton 110 years before.

Ironton has been credited as being part of the Underground railroad that helped runaway slaves flee the South. Both the founder of the city and other city notables helped hide slaves in their homes.

Ironton's military heritage

Civil war Medal of Honor Recipents

• James W Parks Date of Issue 2/24/1865 (captured battle flag at Nashville TN 12/16/1864)
• William Powell Date of Issue 7/22/1890 (led 20 men and captured enemy encampement of 500 without loss of life on 11/26/1862)

World War I

• William C. Lambert achieved the second highest air victory totals for an American ace in the war with 21.

Geography and climate

Ironton is located at (38.530720, -82.678309)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.4 km² (4.4 mi²). 10.7 km² (4.1 mi²) of it is land and 0.7 km² (0.3 mi²) of it (5.91%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 11,211 people, 4,906 households, and 3,022 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,048.1/km² (2,711.3/mi²). There were 5,507 housing units at an average density of 514.8/km² (1,331.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 93.33% White, 5.24% African American, 0.09% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.09% from other races, and 0.99% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.51% of the population.

There were 4,906 households out of which 25.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.6% were married couples living together, 14.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.4% were non-families. 35.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the city the population was spread out with 21.8% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 21.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 82.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 77.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $23,585, and the median income for a family was $35,014. Males had a median income of $31,702 versus $24,190 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,391. About 17.2% of families and 23.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.4% of those under age 18 and 17.0% of those age 65 or over.

Government and politics

The city is managed by an eight-member city council, the current members of which include Chuck O'Leary (Chair), Rick Blankenship, Bob Cleary, Ralph "Butch" Huff, Leo Johnson, Rick Meeks, and Richard Price. The elected mayor is John Elam.^[2]

Economy

Education

There are three public and one private elementary schools, one public and one private high schools, and a community college in Ironton. One non-traditional school also serves the city.

School	Grade	Description
Kingsbury Elementary [1]	1-3
Parochial Elementary Saint Lawrence		A private school
Ironton Middle School [2]	4-6
Ironton Junior High School [3]	7-8	It is housed in the same building as Ironton High, but has a separate principal, staff, and schedule.
Ironton High School [4]	9-12
Lawrence County Board of MR/DD Open Door School		Serves the educational needs all of Lawrence County's MR/DD citizens.
Ohio University Southern Campus		The largest branch of Ohio University [1]
Saint Joseph Central High School	7-12	A private school
West Ironton Elementary School [5]	Kindergarten
Whitwell Elementary School [6]	1-3

Portions outside of the Ironton city limits are served by the Dawson-Bryant Local School District and the Rock Hill Local School District. Both districts have Ironton mailing addresses.

Culture

Annual cultural events and fairs

Ironton is home to the United States' oldest Memorial Day parade, a tradition since 1869, and other notable festivals.

Name	Location	Date	Comments
Charity Fair	St. Joseph Central Catholic High School	Memorial Day	This involves carnival games, crafts, inflatable rides, food, and musical acts.
Festival of the Hills	Ohio University Southern Campus	September
Gus Macker Tournament
Ironmaster Days	Downtown
Ironton-Lawrence County Memorial Day Parade	Downtown	Memorial Day	The nation's oldest continuously running Memorial Day parade, it has been a tradition since 1869. The first was held several years after the Civil War ended. The parade has 12 separate divisions and draws tens of thousands per year [1].
Rally on the River			A yearly motorcycle event. -	Oktoberfest

Notable places

• Briggs Library
• Lawrence County Museum
• Tanks Memorial Stadium

Notable people

Name	Description
"Coy" Lander McCoy Bacon	(born August 30, 1942) is a former professional American football defensive lineman in the NFL. He was selected to 3 Pro Bowls during his 14-year career. Coy played his high school football at Ironton.
Bobby Bare	A former resident who is now a Country and western musician.
William W. Davis	Arranger for Cab Calloway.
Ezra Dean	A U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1841 to 1845.
William Henry Enochs	He was elected to Congress in 1891 and was a Brigadier General in the Union Army.
Emily Folger	Wife of Henry Clay Folger, president of Standard Oil of New York. She directed the building of Folger Museum in the District of Columbia, and was a Shakespeare scholar and collector.
Dana Hartwig	A famous stunt show driver, part of the Stoney Roberts Auto and Motorcycle Daredevils.
Elza Jeffords	Born in Ironton, she was elected as a U.S. Representative from Mississippi in 1868.
Thomas A. Jenkins	A U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1925 to 1959.
William C. Lambert	A World War I flying ace.
George McAfee	Member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Thomas Emerson Miller	Born in Ironton in 1880, he was elected a member of the West Virginia House of Delegates in 1953.
Henry Safford Neal	A U.S. Representative from Ohio from 1877 to 1883, and Chargé d’Affaires for the United States in Portugal in December 1869.
John Rankin	A famous abolitionist and founder of the Free Presbyterian Church of America. He also helped over 2,000 runaway slaves flee the South.
John K. Richards	A United States Solicitor General in 1903 and a judge in the U.S. 6th Circuit Court.
Robert Runyon	A famous photographer during the Mexican Revolution and botanist.
James Alfred Taylor	Born near Ironton, he was speaker of the West Virginia House of Delegates from 1931 to 1932, and elected as a U.S. Senator from West Virginia in 1934.
Marti Dodson	born in Ironton, lead singer of Saving Jane.
William Wartenbee Johnson	Ohio Supreme Court Justice from 1879-1886.
J Stoker	Jami Sherman-Triplett, pseudonym "J Stoker", internationally and nationally published and award winning artist/ also known as a singer/songwriter, born in Ironton 1977.

See also

• List of cities and towns along the Ohio River

References

External links

• Official City Website
• The Ironton Tribune
• Ironton, OH on MySpace
• Rally on the River
• * Maps and aerial photos for Coordinates:
• Maps from , Google Maps, Live Search Maps, Yahoo! Maps, or MapQuest
• Topographic maps from TopoZone or TerraServer-USA

	•  • [ e] Municipalities and communities of Lawrence County, Ohio County seat: Ironton
City	Ironton
Villages	Athalia
Townships	Aid
Census-designated place	Burlington
Other localities	Kitts Hill