Celina, Ohio

Celina, Ohio
City
City Hall.
Location of Celina, Ohio
Country	United States
State	Ohio
County	Mercer
Government
• Mayor	Sharon LaRue
Area
• Total	4.4 sq mi (11.5 km2)
• Land	4.4 sq mi (11.4 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0.1 km2)
Elevation Template:GR	876 ft (267 m)
Population  (2000)
• Total	10,303
• Density	2,346.9/sq mi (906.1/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes	45822, 45826
Area code	419
FIPS code	39-12868Template:GR
GNIS feature ID	1048589Template:GR
Website	http://www.ci.celina.oh.us/

Mercer County courthouse.

Grand Lake.

Celina is a city in Mercer County, Ohio, United States. The population was 10,303 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Mercer CountyTemplate:GR. Celina is situated on the western shores of Grand Lake St. Marys.

History

Celina was founded in 1834 in a swampy, wooded area that had to be drained and cleared before it could be settled. What remained was a level town surrounded by rich farm fields. When one of the town's founding fathers was traveling through New York state to get the town plat lithographed, he came across the town of Salina situated on the edge of Onondaga Lake near Syracuse. Noting the similarity between Salina and the newly founded settlement in Ohio, he named the new town Celina. The spelling was changed to avoid confusion at the post office, or so the story is told from past legends. Another legend has it that the spelling was changed because in Salina, NY, Main Street is oriented east-west (also Market Street is oriented north-south), where in Celina, OH, Main Street is oriented north-south (and Market Steet is oriented east-west).

Celina grew slowly after its founding in 1834. In 1880, only 1,346 people resided in the community, but over the next decade, Celina’s population nearly doubled to 2,684 inhabitants. The primary reason for this population growth was the discovery of oil and natural gas deposits during the 1880s. In 1886, Celina contained three newspaper offices, five churches, and two banks. Numerous manufacturing establishments existed in the community, most of which provided services or products to farmers in the surrounding countryside. This has held true throughout the twentieth century. In 2000, Celina was the largest city in Mercer County, with a population of 10,303 people.

Geography

Celina is located at 40°33′5″N 84°34′12″W (40.551459, -84.570057)Template:GR.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.4 square miles (11.5 km²), of which, 4.4 square miles (11.4 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.90%) is water.

The city is at 900 feet above sea level.

Demographics

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 10,303 people, 4,191 households, and 2,745 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,346.9 people per square mile (906.2/km²). There were 4,466 housing units at an average density of 1,017.3/sq mi (392.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.04% White, 0.18% African American, 0.37% Native American, 0.67% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.62% from other races, and 1.10% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.14% of the population.

There were 4,191 households out of which 33.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.3% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.5% were non-families. 30.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.2% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 21.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 91.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $36,057, and the median income for a family was $44,901. Males had a median income of $35,467 versus $22,008 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,200. About 8.1% of families and 11.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.7% of those under age 18 and 10.5% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Huffy Bicycle and Mersman Furniture formerly had manufacturing plants in Celina, but have since closed. Companies such as Celina Aluminum Precision Technology—a Honda supplier—, Crown Equipment Corporation (located in Huffy's former location), and Reynolds and Reynolds are the largest manufacturing employers.Visions, Thieman Tailgates, McKirnan Brothers, Inc. and Celina Tent are also based out of Celina.

Education

Wright State University's two-year Lake Campus is located in on State Route 703 in Celina.

Immaculate Conception School, the only Catholic school in Mercer County, serves students in preschool through grade six, at the Catholic church.

Also in Celina are The East and West Elementary Schools (Kindergarten-4th grade), The Celina Intermediate School (5-6), The Celina Middle School (7-8), and The Celina Senior High School (9-12). The high school colors are Kelly green and white, and the mascot is the bulldog.

Events

Celina is also home to the largest gathering of Amphicars (amphibious cars) during their annual late July Lake Festival. An estimated 40 to 60 of these 1960's era boat cars are huge attraction for area residents and visitors.

Media

Celina is served by a daily newspaper, The Celina Daily Standard, first published in 1848.

Celina is also served by three local radio stations, WCSM AM and FM and WKKI FM. WCSM-FM broadcasts at 96.7 and plays adult contemporary music. WCSM-AM broadcasts at 1350 and features news, talk, and the Music of Your Life adult standards format. WKKI broadcasts at 94.3 and plays rock.

External links

• City of Celina, Ohio website