Summit County, Ohio

Summit County, Ohio
Seal
Location in the state of Ohio
Ohio's location in the U.S.
Founded	March 3, 1840
Named for	the highest elevation on the Ohio and Erie Canal
Seat	Akron
Largest city	Akron
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	420.06 sq mi (1,088 km²) 412.75 sq mi (1,069 km²) 7.31 sq mi (19 km²), 1.74%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	541,781 1,312.6/sq mi (507/km²)
Time zone	Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Website	www.co.summit.oh.us

Summit County Courthouse

Summit County is an urban county located in the state of Ohio, United States. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 541,781, which is a decrease of 0.2% from 542,899 in 2000. Its county seat is Akron. It was named "Summit County" because the highest elevation on the Ohio and Erie Canal is located in the county.

Summit County is part of the Akron Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Government

Main article: Ohio county government

Summit County is one of two of Ohio's 88 counties that has a charter government, as authorized by the Article X of the Ohio Constitution. Under its charter, rather than three elected commissioners, Summit County has an elected County Executive and an eleven member County Council. Eight members of the council are elected from individual districts the other three are elected at large. Summit County also has an appointed Medical Examiner rather than an elected Coroner, and an elected Fiscal Officer, who exercises the powers and performs the duties of a county auditor, treasurer and recorder. The remaining officials are similar to the officials in other counties. They include the following:

• Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas (elected)
• Prosecuting Attorney (elected)
• Engineer (elected)
• Sheriff (elected)

Summit County currently has 14 Common Pleas judges. They are:

• Lynne S. Callahan,
• Paul J. Gallagher,
• Judy Hunter,
• Amy Corrigall Jones,
• Alison McCarty,
• Tammy O'Brien,
• Tom Parker,
• Mary Margaret Rowlands,
• Elinore Marsh Stormer, and
• Thomas A. Teodosio

• Linda Tucci Teodosio (Juvenile Court Judge)
• Carol J. Dezso (Domestic Relations Judge)
• John P. Quinn (Domestic Relations Judge)
• Todd McKenney (Probate Judge)

County Executives

• John E. Morgan, 1981–1989
• Tim Davis, 1989–2001
• James B. McCarthy, 2001–2007
• Russell M. Pry, since 2007

Geography

According to the 2010 census, the county has a total area of 420.06 square miles (1,088.0 km²), of which 412.75 square miles (1,069.0 km²) (or 98.26%) is land and 7.31 square miles (18.9 km²) (or 1.74%) is water. The largest portion of Cuyahoga Valley National Park is located in the northern part of the county. The southern border of the former Connecticut Western Reserve passes through the southern part of the county, leading to jogs in the east and west borders of the county.

Major highways

• Interstate 76
• Interstate 77
• Interstate 80 (Ohio Turnpike)
• Interstate 271
• Interstate 277
• Interstate 480
• U.S. Route 224

Adjacent counties

• Cuyahoga County, Ohio - north
• Geauga County, Ohio - northeast corner
• Portage County, Ohio - east
• Stark County, Ohio - south
• Wayne County, Ohio - southwest
• Medina County, Ohio - west

History

Summit County was formed on March 3, 1840 from portions of Medina, Portage and Stark Counties. It was named after the highest point on the Ohio and Erie Canal.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1840	22,560		—
1850	27,485		21.8%
1860	27,344		−0.5%
1870	34,674		26.8%
1880	43,788		26.3%
1890	54,089		23.5%
1900	71,715		32.6%
1910	108,253		50.9%
1920	286,065		164.3%
1930	344,131		20.3%
1940	339,405		−1.4%
1950	410,032		20.8%
1960	513,569		25.3%
1970	553,371		7.8%
1980	524,472		−5.2%
1990	514,990		−1.8%
2000	542,899		5.4%
2010	541,781		−0.2%

As of the census of 2000, there were 542,899 people, 217,788 households, and 144,611 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,315 people per square mile (508/km²). There were 230,880 housing units at an average density of 559 per square mile (216/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 83.50% White, 13.19% Black or African American, 0.20% Native American, 1.41% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.29% from other races, and 1.39% from two or more races. 0.88% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 20.3% were of German, 10.1% Irish, 9.2% Italian, 8.2% English and 7.9% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 94.6% spoke English and 1.2% Spanish as their first language.

There were 217,788 households out of which 30.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.10% were married couples living together, 12.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.60% were non-families. 28.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the county, the population was spread out with 25.00% under the age of 18, 8.20% from 18 to 24, 29.60% from 25 to 44, 23.00% from 45 to 64, and 14.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 92.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $42,304, and the median income for a family was $52,200. Males had a median income of $40,117 versus $26,831 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,842. About 7.50% of families and 9.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.00% of those under age 18 and 6.80% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Map of Summit County, Ohio With Municipal and Township Labels. The map denotes New Franklin and Franklin Township as separate entities, predating their 2003 merger.

Cities

Akron Barberton Cuyahoga Falls Fairlawn Green

Hudson Macedonia Munroe Falls New Franklin

Norton Stow Tallmadge Twinsburg

Villages

Boston Heights Clinton Lakemore Mogadore Northfield

Peninsula Reminderville Richfield Silver Lake

Townships

Bath Boston Copley

Coventry Northfield Center Richfield

Sagamore Hills Springfield Twinsburg

Defunct townships

Franklin Green Hudson Norton

Northampton Portage Stow

Census-designated places

• Montrose-Ghent
• Pigeon Creek
• Portage Lakes

Other communities

• Ghent
• Hammond's Corners
• Montrose

Colleges and universities

• University of Akron

Parks

• Cuyahoga Valley National Park (also extends north into Cuyahoga County)
• Metro Parks, Serving Summit County

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Summit County, Ohio

External links

• Official Summit County page
• Akron-Summit Convention and Visitors Bureau