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Defiance County, Ohio

46 topographic sheets and 20 fire insurance atlases across 3 places.

Research this county

This curated hub for Defiance County, Ohio brings together the page's documented record links, visible map or image evidence where published, and routes to related local records.

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From the record

“PORK PACKING AND PROVISIONS The Cincinnati Price Current of May 91 K-ports 580.000 hogs killed in the West last week, compared with 575.000 week he fore, 465.000 two weeks ago and 735 000 a year ago. The total from March 1 is lD proximately 5.560.000. against 5 735 0(mj» year ago - a decrease of 175.000.”

Pork Packing And Provisions - History of Defiance County, Ohio. Containing a History of the County; Its Townships, Towns, Etc.; Military Record; Portraits of Early Settlers and Prominent Men; Farm Views, Personal Reminiscences, Etc (1883). Machine-read text.

8 National Register listings · 39 businesses named in the fire insurance atlases from 1884 to 1913 · the 1883 county history tells 7 stories and names 198 people · people the book names include John H. Aietz (Defiance Township, 1899) · Ex-Governor Charles Foster (Delaware Township, 1895) (machine-read).

Sources: the county history on the Internet Archive · the National Register database, National Park Service

Ohio within the United States
Defiance County within Ohio
Explore by year 1800 1955

What the record shows

  • 3 places in this county were surveyed for fire insurance: Defiance, Hicksville, Sherwood, between 1884 and 1946.
  • 20 fire insurance atlas(es) survive for the county. Topographic coverage is national; fire insurance survey reached only incorporated places with something worth insuring.
  • 390 topographic sheet readings cover the county's settlements.
  • 8 properties here are on the National Register of Historic Places, including 2 houses and farms.
  • 3 of the 8 listings were added during the 1970s.
  • The Geographic Names Information System records 33 populated places in this county; 0 are covered by at least one topographic sheet.
  • 4 public-domain county histories, 1883 to 1899, supply 647,072 words of narrative reproduced here in full.

What happened here

7 accounts

A captivity, a drowning, a famine, a man scalped clearing his lot in 1789. These are passages from History of Defiance County, Ohio. Containing a History of the County; Its Townships, Towns, Etc.; Military Record; Portraits of Early Settlers and Prominent Men; Farm Views, Personal Reminiscences, Etc, written while people who remembered the events were still alive, and each one opens the section it comes from.

1883, Delaware Township

Memorial Amd Biographical Record Oe

Tennessee; Sand Mountain, Alabama; Black Warrior Creek, Alabama; Blount's Farm, Alabama; and many skirmishes with bushwhackers. May 3, 1863, he was captured and was sent to Atlanta, where | he was held for a few days and then transferred, to Knoxville, and finally to Richmond, where he was held in captivity at Belle Isle prison for a fortnight.

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1883, Farmer Township

Probably Tuberculosis

G. C. M. of Leipsic, O., is having a pretty serious time with his chickens, and he asks for advice in the case. The chickens are having what seems to be an epidemic, and are dying pretty fast, I judge. Many of them get lame. Some are not thus affected and die within a few days, while those that are lame linger from ten days to two weeks.

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1883, Farmer Township

Is Sprouted Clover Seed Ever

I am always interested in the articles written for the Ohio Farmer by Prof. W. F. Massey. In the issue of Dec. 28 there appears this statement in an article headed, "Farming for Clover:" "In all my farming experience I never failed with a crop of clover but once, and that was killed by frost as it germinated." I want to ask Prof.

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1883, Farmer Township

Cincinnati Live Stock

PORK PACKING AND PROVISIONS The Cincinnati Price Current of April 30 reports 3S0.000 hogs killed in the West 1 1 <= t week, compared with 370.000 week before. 405.000 two weeks ngo and 620.000 a vear ago. The total from March 1 Is approximately 3.940.000. against 4.075.000 a year ago - n decrease of 135.000.

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1883, Farmer Township

Pork Packing And Provisions

PORK PACKING AND PROVISIONS The Cincinnati Price Current of May 14 reports 575.000 hogs killed in the W< -1 last week. compared with 465.000 week b fore, S80.000 two weeks ago and 535.000 a year ago. The total from March 1 is approximately 4.980,000, against 5.130.000 a year ago - a decrease of 150.000.

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1883, Farmer Township

Pork Packing And Provisions

PORK PACKING AND PROVISIONS The Cincinnati Price Current of May 91 K-ports 580.000 hogs killed in the West last week, compared with 575.000 week he fore, 465.000 two weeks ago and 735 000 a year ago. The total from March 1 is lD proximately 5.560.000. against 5 735 0(mj» year ago - a decrease of 175.000.

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1883, Farmer Township

Pork Packing And Provision'S

The Cincinnati Price Current of June 4 reports 545.000 hogs killed in the West last week, compared with 595.000 week 1 before, 580.000 two weeks ago and 545.000 I a year ago. The total from March 1 is approximately 6.700.000, against 6,975,000 | a year ago - a decrease of 275.000. Prices ' were steady during the week, the general closing price at prominent markets being $5.30 per cwt, as compared with $5.30 last week, $5.45 two weeks ago.

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Places on the National Register

8

Every property in this county listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with the year it was listed and the federal nomination document.

Photograph PropertyType ListedReference
Defiance Public Librarybuilding198585003446
Dey Road Bridgestructure199999000095
East Side Fire Stationbuilding197676001413
Fort Defiance Parksite198080002989
Latty, Judge Alexander, Housebuilding199190002214
Riverside Chapelbuilding197777001058
Speaker, Charles, Housebuilding199797000374
St. Paul's Episcopal Churchbuilding197676001414

Covered bridges

0

Defiance County holds 0 covered bridges on the National Register, more than any other property type here. Each is a listed structure with a federal nomination on file.

Digitised newspapers

6 issues

Sampled issues, machine-read from the Library of Congress scan and published page by page, so every headline and column is searchable text.

The News-Tribune

Hicksville, Ohio, 1923 to Current. Machine-read from the Library of Congress scan.

Bird's-eye views and land ownership maps

2

Drawn when these were printed as single large sheets: the town seen from the air, and the county divided into its farms with every owner named. Each opens the original at the Library of Congress.

Bird's-eye view, 1875 - Combination atlas map of Logan county, Ohio,
Bird's-eye view (1875) - Combination atlas map of Logan county, Ohio,. Library of Congress.
Land ownership map, 1890 - Atlas of Logan County, Ohio
Land ownership map (1890) - Atlas of Logan County, Ohio. Library of Congress.

Photographs from libraries nationwide

3 of 23 shown

Selected from the Digital Public Library of America's 23 image records catalogued for this county. Every one shown here carries a public-domain status or a licence that permits reuse on a site that carries advertising; non-commercial, share-alike and restricted images are excluded. The selection is spread across the county's towns (at most eight per town), so no single institution's bulk upload crowds out the rest. Each opens the holding library's record, and the complete set at the Digital Public Library of America is one click away.

Defiance, O. B and O. crossing, Boston Public Library - undated
Defiance, O. B and O. crossing. Boston Public Library, via the Digital Public Library of America.
Motel westwood, on U.S. 24 west city limits, Defiance, Ohio, Boston Public Library - undated
Motel westwood, on U.S. 24 west city limits, Defiance, Ohio. Boston Public Library, via the Digital Public Library of America.
The National Memorial Stone Co., Boston Public Library - undated
The National Memorial Stone Co.. Boston Public Library, via the Digital Public Library of America.

The county from the air

38 of 826 shown

Flown by the U.S. Geological Survey between 1937 and 1989, the Aerial Photo Single Frames collection is the definitive mid-century view of the land: fields, roads and rivers as the camera saw them. 826 frames touch this county; the selection below spreads across the decades of flights (at most four per year), so one flight cannot crowd out the rest. The full set is free to browse and download at EarthExplorer under the dataset Aerial Photo Single Frames.

U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1951-11-28, scale 1:28400
1951-11-28, scale 1:28400. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1951-11-28, scale 1:28400
1951-11-28, scale 1:28400. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1951-11-28, scale 1:28400
1951-11-28, scale 1:28400. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1951-11-28, scale 1:28400
1951-11-28, scale 1:28400. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1952-08-01, scale 1:69000
1952-08-01, scale 1:69000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1952-08-01, scale 1:69000
1952-08-01, scale 1:69000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1952-08-01, scale 1:69000
1952-08-01, scale 1:69000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1952-08-01, scale 1:69000
1952-08-01, scale 1:69000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1959-04-23, scale 1:24000
1959-04-23, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1959-04-23, scale 1:24000
1959-04-23, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1959-04-23, scale 1:24000
1959-04-23, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1959-04-23, scale 1:24000
1959-04-23, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1960-04-28, scale 1:19000
1960-04-28, scale 1:19000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1960-04-28, scale 1:19000
1960-04-28, scale 1:19000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1960-04-28, scale 1:19000
1960-04-28, scale 1:19000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1960-04-28, scale 1:19000
1960-04-28, scale 1:19000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1969-09-12, scale 1:119378
1969-09-12, scale 1:119378. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1969-09-12, scale 1:121846
1969-09-12, scale 1:121846. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1971-04-01, scale 1:24000
1971-04-01, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1971-04-01, scale 1:24000
1971-04-01, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1971-04-01, scale 1:24000
1971-04-01, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1971-04-01, scale 1:24000
1971-04-01, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1972-06-10, scale 1:120253
1972-06-10, scale 1:120253. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1972-06-10, scale 1:119821
1972-06-10, scale 1:119821. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1972-06-10, scale 1:120599
1972-06-10, scale 1:120599. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1972-06-10, scale 1:119678
1972-06-10, scale 1:119678. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1973-01-02, scale 1:24000
1973-01-02, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1973-01-02, scale 1:24000
1973-01-02, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1973-01-02, scale 1:24000
1973-01-02, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1973-01-02, scale 1:24000
1973-01-02, scale 1:24000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1977-04-01, scale 1:80000
1977-04-01, scale 1:80000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1977-04-01, scale 1:80000
1977-04-01, scale 1:80000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1977-04-01, scale 1:80000
1977-04-01, scale 1:80000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1977-04-01, scale 1:80000
1977-04-01, scale 1:80000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1979-11-01, scale 1:80000
1979-11-01, scale 1:80000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1979-11-01, scale 1:80000
1979-11-01, scale 1:80000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1979-11-01, scale 1:80000
1979-11-01, scale 1:80000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.
U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph, 1979-11-01, scale 1:80000
1979-11-01, scale 1:80000. U.S. Geological Survey aerial photograph.

City directories

1 volume

The "who lived here, by year" answer: pre-1929 public-domain directory volumes naming the county's people, machine-read and searchable as text.

Weather records

8 stations, 91 gages

The thermometers that kept this county's weather, and the gages that watched its rivers, as the federal records hold them. The extremes below are measured values from those records, not estimates.

The 1950 census, district by district

32 districts

Who lived here in 1950, one enumeration district at a time, as the Census Bureau described each district. Each row opens its official National Archives result, with Population Schedules and ED Maps available there.

  • 20-1Adams township
  • 20-2Defiance city, comprising parts of Defiance and Noble townships: Defiance city - That part of Ward 1 in Defiance township Bounded by Maumee River; Auglaize River; 4th extended, 4th; Ward line
  • 20-3Defiance city - That part of Ward 1 in Defiance township Bounded by 4th, 4th extended; Auglaize River; Baltimore and Ohio Railroad; Ward line
  • 20-4Defiance city - That part of Ward 1 in Defiance township Bounded by Baltimore and Ohio Railroad; Wayne Ave., Wayne Ave. extended; Auglaize River, City limits; Ward line
  • 20-5Defiance city - That part of Ward 1 in Defiance township Bounded by Baltimore and Ohio Railroad; Auglaize River; Auglaize River; Wayne Ave. extended, Wayne Ave.
  • 20-6Defiance city - That part of Ward 2 in Defiance township Bounded by Maumee River; Ward line; 5th, Division, Wells, Wells extended; Maumee River
  • 20-7Defiance city - That part of Ward 2 in Defiance township Bounded by Division, 5th; Ward line; Davidson; Holgate Ave.
  • 20-8Defiance city - That part of Ward 2 in Defiance township Bounded by Maumee River, Wells extended, Wells; Holgate Ave., Davison, Ward line; City limits; City limits, including that small area not in any ward, southeast of the city limits between Colwell Ditch and S. Jackson St.
  • 20-9Defiance city - That part of Ward 3 in Defiance township Bounded by City limits; City limits, Township line, City limits; Maumee River; N. Clinton, City limits
  • 20-10Defiance city - That part of Ward 3 in Defiance township Bounded by City limits; N. Clinton; Maumee River; City limits
  • 20-11Defiance city - That part of Ward 4 in Defiance township Bounded by Maumee River, City limits; City limits; E. 2nd; Summit, Summit extended
  • 20-12Defiance city - That part of Ward 4 in Defiance township Bounded by Maumee River; Summit extended, Summit, E. 2nd, Douglas; Baltimore and Ohio Railroad; Auglaize River
  • 20-13Defiance city - That part of Ward 4 in Defiance township Bounded by E. 2nd; City limits; Baltimore and Ohio Railroad; Douglas
  • 20-14Defiance city - That part of Ward 4 in Defiance township Bounded by Baltimore and Ohio Railroad; City limits; City limits; Auglaize River
  • 20-15Defiance city - That part of Ward 3 in Noble township Bounded by City limits; City limits; City limits; City limits, Township line
  • 20-16Defiance township - That part outside Defiance city, including that small detached area outside the northeastern part of Defiance city, between the city limits and the township line (Remainder of Defiance township is in Defiance city)
  • 20-17Delaware township: Sherwood village
  • 20-18Delaware township - That part outside Sherwood village
  • 20-19Farmer township
  • 20-20Hicksville township: Hicksville village: Hicksville village - That part Bounded by Village limits; Bryan Rd., High; Main; Edgerton Rd.
  • 20-21Hicksville village - That part Bounded by Village limits; Edgerton Rd., Main; High, Ft. Wayne Rd.; Village limits
  • 20-22Hicksville village - That part Bounded by High, Bryan Rd.; Village limits; Village limits; Clemmer Rd., Main
  • 20-23Hicksville village - That part Bounded by Ft. Wayne Rd., High; Main, Clemmer Rd., Village limits; Village limits; Village limits
  • 20-24Hicksville township - That part outside Hicksville village
  • 20-25Highland township
  • 20-26Mark township
  • 20-27Milford township
  • 20-28Noble township - That part outside Defiance city, including that small detached area outside the northeastern part of Defiance city, between the city limits and the township line (Remainder of Noble township is in Defiance city)
  • 20-29Richland township
  • 20-30Tiffin township
  • 20-31Washington township: Ney village
  • 20-32Washington township - That part outside Ney village

Businesses named in the atlases

39 businesses

Every Sanborn volume opens with a printed index naming the town's mills, tanneries, hotels and works by proprietor. Those indexes were read off the scanned sheets by machine and then matched to each other, so a business surveyed four times appears here once, with the years it survived. 4 of these 39 were named in more than one atlas. Each carries a crop of the line it was read from: the spelling is the recogniser's and the 1880s lithographer's, and the scan behind it is the proof.

Storms, 1957 to 2026

60 of 231 shown

The NOAA Storm Events Database holds 231 reports for this county, causing 0 deaths, 0 injuries and about $4,025,250 in recorded property damage. Each settlement page carries the reports that name it.

Kind of event Reports
Thunderstorm Wind141
Hail63
Tornado13
Flash Flood10
Flood3
Funnel Cloud1

The most serious of them, by death, then injury, then recorded damage. The accounts are quoted exactly as the forecast office filed them.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
July 1986Tornado (F2)not stated$2,500,000no account filed
May 2011Flash FloodHicksville$250,000Emergency management officials reported flooding and flash flooding across much of the western half of the county. The Hicksville Community Hospital had water flowing into lower portions of the structure, requiring sandbagging. Laboratory areas were flooded, but the sandbagging efforts kept any water out of patient areas. Several roads were closed through the county, including U.S. 127 near Mud Creek, which quickly went over its banks. Video footage from a newspaper reported showed three to six inches of water flowing from a golf course pond into the intersection of Carpenter and River Roads. Exact damage figures were not available, but flooding damage across the county is estimated around $250,000.
May 2010Flash FloodHicksville$250,000Local media reported flash flooding across portions of far western Defiance County, mainly from Hicksville to Ney. Water entered the first floor of the Hicksville Community Memorial Hospital, forcing the evacuation of a few patients, as well as power being shut off to the laboratory and radiology departments. County officials reported State Roads 49, 37 and 2 were closed near the Indiana and Ohio state line. The village of Ney sustained heavy flooding as well as Lick Creek flowed over its banks flooding the Ney Community Park, parts of the Jewell Grain facility. Seeds and chemicals had to be moved from the grain facility, with sandbagging being done to stop the flooding. A parked car was submerged under flood waters behind the Ney Oil Company. Standing water persisted into much of the next day. However, evacuations ended within a few hours of the event ending.
August 2008Thunderstorm WindDefiance$125,000Emergency management officials reported several large trees were either uprooted or snapped in the city of Defiance. One of these trees fell onto a house on Washington Street, reportedly destroying the house. Another tree fell onto at least two parked car on Jefferson Avenue. No injuries were reported. Damage is estimated at $125,000.
March 2009Tornado (EF0)Mark Center$100,000A National Weather Service (NWS) storm survey determined that a tornado initially touched down just east of Mark Center on Williams Center-Cecil Road, where eight utility poles were blown down towards the east with one pole being snapped. Immediately to the northeast of these poles on the south side of Highway 18, a small barn was blown off its foundation, but was left intact with a farm house across the road suffering some minor roof damage. The tornado briefly lifted, but touched down once again on Openlander Road between Lockwood and State Route 18. The front porch on a home was ripped off as well as a television antenna and large tree damaged. A large barn suffered some minor roof damage. As the tornado skipped a few more times, additional trees suffered varying damage, with a few homes suffering shingle or siding damage. The total length along the broken path was roughly 5 miles with a maximum width of only around 50 yards.
June 2008Thunderstorm WindHicksville$100,000A trained spotter reported a swath of damage extending from near the Ohio/Indiana state line northeast for about 4 miles to near the intersection of Buckskin and Gingrich roads. Several areas of tree damage were observed. Structure damage consisted of one barn destroyed, another losing its roof, roof damage to two houses, an aluminum flagpole was snapped off and some windows broken out of a few residences. A wheat field also was flattened in one area. Damage estimates of around $100,000 in property and $10,000 in crop.
June 2003Flash FloodDefiance$100,000A narrow band of thunderstorms continuously regenerated over parts of Defiance county during the morning. Estimates of 8 to 10 inches of rain fell in a 3 hour period. Emergency management reported flash flooding was most serious around Sherwood where roads were closed with 3 to 4 feet of water along Ohio Route 18 in and around Sherwood. Nearly 30 businesses and homes had some water into the first floor.
July 2023Tornado (EF1)Hicksville$55,000A ground and drone servey revelaed a tornado touched down at a property west of Casebeer Miller Road and north of Buckskin Raod, and tracked quickly to the northeast, crossing about a third of a mile north of Buckskin Road before dissipating in an area of trees. Several trees were snapped or uprooted, with three barns suffering minor to major damage as well as one home suffering damage to a roof and pool deck. Maximum wind speeds are estimated up to 90 mph.
August 2000Thunderstorm WindDefiance$50,000Several barns destroyed.
June 1994Thunderstorm WindKey$50,000Barn destroyed and mobile home blown from foundation.
May 2006Thunderstorm WindDefiance$30,000A barn in the Defiance area suffered roof damage, with another barn southeast of Defiance being destroyed. Damage values estimated.
December 1998Thunderstorm WindDefiance$30,000BARN ROOF BLOWN OFF AND BOAT WAS KNOCKED OVER BY THE STRONG WINDS.
May 2007Thunderstorm WindHicksville$25,000A three foot diameter tree fell onto a house in Defiance.
November 1998Thunderstorm WindDefiance$25,000SEVERAL TREES AND POWER LINES WERE BLOWN DOWN. ONE CAR WAS HEAVILY DAMAGED BY A LARGE TREE LIMB.
July 1987Tornado (F0)not stated$25,000no account filed
August 1971Tornado (F2)not stated$25,000no account filed
July 1971Tornado (F0)not stated$25,000no account filed
August 2022Thunderstorm WindDefiance$20,000The emergency manager reported that multiple trees and power poles were down in the city.
August 2022Thunderstorm WindDefiance$20,000Several trees and tree limbs were down in and around Defiance.
April 2010Thunderstorm WindAshwood$20,000Law enforcement officials reported trees and power lines down across mainly the southern parts of the county. Damage is estimated at $20,000.
February 2008FloodSherwood$20,000Local media reported that portions of State Route 424 in Defiance county had water on it.
July 1995Thunderstorm Windnot stated$20,000A 235 foot wall was blown down at a construction site just north of Defiance. Oklahoma (TUL) July 1995
June 2008Thunderstorm WindDefiance$10,000Law enforcement officials reported a few trees were down onto power lines.
July 2005Thunderstorm WindCountywide$10,000Trees and power lines reported blown down across the county. One tree was blown down onto a vehicle.
November 2005Thunderstorm WindJewell$10,000Large trees and power lines were blown down in the town.
June 2004Flash FloodNey$10,000Emergency management reported flash flooding between Sherwood and Ney with numerous roads closed and high water nearing homes and in basements. Almost a foot of water flowing over some roads with Gipe Rd in Ney Washington township washed out near a culvert.
July 2002Thunderstorm WindDefiance$10,000Emergency management reported minor roof damage to 7 homes in Defiance.
May 1999Thunderstorm WindDefiance$10,000Power lines blown down.
May 1999Thunderstorm WindAyersville$10,000Utility poles and power lines blown down.
May 1997Thunderstorm WindNear Defiance$10,000no account filed
August 2024Thunderstorm WindAyersville$5,000Power lines down.
April 2023Thunderstorm WindNey$5,000Tree on house at 164 North Water Street in Ney, Ohio. Time estimated from radar.
June 2005Thunderstorm WindDefiance$5,000Trees and power lines were reported down.
July 2005Thunderstorm WindHicksville$5,000Numerous power lines were blown down.
June 1999Thunderstorm WindDefiance$5,000Defiance County sheriff reported a few downed trees and power lines.
July 1994HailHicksville$5,000Trees were downed in Defaince. Large hail was reported in Hicksville.
July 1994Thunderstorm WindDefiance$5,000Trees were downed in Defaince. Large hail was reported in Hicksville.
June 1994Thunderstorm WindDefiance$5,000Minor structural damage occurred to a home.
June 1994Thunderstorm WindNey and Delaware$5,000Trees were downed.
July 1997Flash FloodAcross County$5,000no account filed
August 1997Flash FloodHicksville$5,000no account filed
July 2023Thunderstorm WindFarmer$3,000Trees down onto power lines on Cicero Road. Road was closed for three hours per County Sheriff. Time estimated by radar.
March 1998Thunderstorm WindHicksville$3,000trees blown down and shed destroyed in Hicksville.
June 1995Thunderstorm WindDefiance$3,000Trees and limbs were downed, some on power lines.
April 1960Tornado (F0)not stated$2,500no account filed
June 2013Thunderstorm WindNey$2,000A small garage was destroyed, likely from a combination of the strong winds and debris from damage to the northeast. A residence at this location suffered some roof damage as did a barn. A window was also broken in the barn.
May 2004Thunderstorm WindCountywide$2,000Emergency management reported trees and power lines down across the county with damage to a car from a fallen tree and roof damage to 2 businesses.
July 2002Thunderstorm WindDefiance$2,000Emergency management reported 2 barns with roofs partially taken off as well as trees down west of Defiance.
June 1995Thunderstorm Windnot stated$2,000Trees and power lines were blown down in Defiance.
August 2024Thunderstorm WindJewell$1,000A 20-foot tree was down in Okolona.
June 2001Thunderstorm WindIndependence$1,000Telephone pole snapped
April 2026HailHicksville$1,000no account filed
April 2026HailDefiance$1,000no account filed
April 2025HailDefiance Meml Arpt$1,000no account filed
March 2025HailFarmer$500Report on mPing of 0.75 inch hail.
June 1973Tornado (F0)not stated$250no account filed
April 2026Tornado (EF1)Sherwood-A NWS damage assessment determined that an EF-1 rain-wrapped|tornado was embedded in a line of severe thunderstorms that went|through Defiance during the afternoon of April 4th. Beginning on|the southwest side of town, the tornado produced some minor|shingle/tree damage. At least one home was likely destroyed due|to a fallen tree. Sporadic, significant tree damage was observed|through Riverside Cemetery. The tornado then nearly paralleled S|Clinton St as it moved from southwest to northeast. The most|impressive damage was done near Davidson and S. Clinton St where|several trunks were snapped, a branch lodged into a roof, and|several wooden transmission lines were snapped. The circulation|continued into downtown Defiance, uprooting/snapping trees, and|producing minor to moderate roof damage to numerous businesses|including a large church, bank, and USPS building, among others.|Notable tree damage was done at the Old Fort before the tornado|crossed the river confluence. Video footage from residence|confirms a circulation made it across the river. Widespread|additional tree and roof damage was then noted in the|neighborhoods just north of the Maumee River and west of|Carpenter Rd. Finally, several trunks were snapped or uprooted in|the Eagle Rock Golf Course before the circulation appears to have|dissipated.
April 2026FloodHicksville-A trained spotter reported roads and yards flooded in Hicksville.
August 2024Thunderstorm WindDefiance Meml Arpt-The ASOS at the Defiance County Airport recorded a 58 mph wind gust.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindHicksville-Large tree limb down north of Buckskin Road in the 7000 black of SR 49. Time estimated by radar.

Mines and quarries

4 recorded

The Survey's mineral resources record lists 4 workings inside this county. 1 still produces and 3 are closed or unrecorded. Each settlement page carries the workings within five miles of it.

Commodity Workings
Sand and Gravel, Construction3
Iron1

The least common of them first, because a county's hundredth gravel pit says nothing its first ten did not.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Indiana Briquetting/ Defiance, OhioIronUnknown
Ohio Materials Sand and Grave PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast ProducerSedimentary
Ohio Materials Sand and Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Weber PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Collected here, 1858 to 1974

8 of 988 shown

Museum specimens collected inside this county and catalogued with a date and a place: 988 of them, by kingdom 975 animalia, 9 plantae, 4 fungi. Each is a physical object in a named collection, not a sighting. Held by Ohio State University - Fish Division, Columbus, OH (OSUM), USNM, UMMZ, Ohio State University - Bird Division, Columbus, OH (OSUM), CM, FMNH among others, and each settlement page carries the specimens collected near it.

The oldest of them. A specimen proves something was collected on that day; its absence proves nothing.

Photograph YearSpecies KingdomWhere CollectorCatalogue
A photograph of the species Trifolium subcaulescens, not of this specimen1858Trifolium subcaulescens A.GrayPlantaeFort DefianceJ. S. NewberryNY 547964
A photograph of the species Moxostoma anisurum, not of this specimen1860Moxostoma anisurum (Rafinesque, 1820)AnimaliaBrunersburgunknownCUMV 55243
A photograph of the species Moxostoma erythrurum, not of this specimen1860Moxostoma erythrurum (Rafinesque, 1818)AnimaliaBrunersburgunknownCUMV 82729
A photograph of the species Pomoxis annularis, not of this specimen1860Pomoxis annularis Rafinesque, 1818AnimaliaHicksvilleunknownCUMV 56365
A photograph of the species Semotilus atromaculatus, not of this specimen1860Semotilus atromaculatus (Mitchill, 1818)AnimaliaHicksvilleunknownCUMV 64786
A photograph of the species Ericymba buccata, not of this specimen1884Ericymba buccata Cope, 1865AnimaliaHicksville, OhioS. MeekUSNM USNM 36803
A photograph of the species Etheostoma nigrum, not of this specimen1884Etheostoma nigrum Rafinesque, 1820AnimaliaHicksville, OhioS. MeekUSNM USNM 36804
A photograph of the species Notropis cornutus, not of this specimen1884Notropis cornutus (Mitchill, 1817)AnimaliaHicksville, OhioS. MeekUSNM USNM 36801

The townships, in 1883

647,072 words

History of Defiance County, Ohio. Containing a History of the County; Its Townships, Towns, Etc.; Military Record; Portraits of Early Settlers and Prominent Men; Farm Views, Personal Reminiscences, Etc devotes a chapter to each township: its boundaries and streams, who settled it and when, the mills, the schools and the churches. All 3 are reproduced here in full. Each row shows the township's own shape and where it lies in the county, drawn from the Census Bureau's boundary. Which settlements belong to which township is computed from that same boundary, not taken from the book.

Shape and position in the county TownshipSettlements in it LengthSections
Defiance TownshipAshwood, Defiance, Spring Meadows172,428 words72
Delaware TownshipMoats, Sherwood, The Bend86,466 words49
Farmer TownshipFarmer, Wilseyville388,178 words880

The people it describes

198 named

Everyone History of Defiance County, Ohio. Containing a History of the County; Its Townships, Towns, Etc.; Military Record; Portraits of Early Settlers and Prominent Men; Farm Views, Personal Reminiscences, Etc stops to write about, with the section that describes them. Among them are the men who founded the place and governed the Territory. Each name opens the passage itself, in the words of 1883.

Every populated place in the county

33

Named settlements recorded in the Geographic Names Information System, each with the topographic sheets covering it. Villages, hamlets and abandoned places alike. Each is shown with the watercourse or landform it stands on and the survey quadrangle it falls on. The 3 places that were also surveyed for fire insurance come first, with the number of atlases and photographs held for them.

Recorded here

Defiance, Ohio

12 topographic sheets and 8 fire insurance atlases, 1884 to 1946

Hicksville, Ohio

13 topographic sheets and 7 fire insurance atlases, 1887 to 1944

Sherwood, Ohio

11 topographic sheets and 5 fire insurance atlases, 1901 to 1930

Everything this county holds

The complete index, with nothing left out. Each of these is a separate record with its own page: a federal survey report, or the case file that argued a property on to the National Register. Both are public domain and reproduced word for word.

Nomination case files

8 case files

The vanished settlements of Defiance County, the places these records name that are no longer on the map.

Provenance

  • Topographic sheets. USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection, county index, measured from the bulk metadata.
  • Fire insurance maps. Library of Congress Sanborn collection, faceted to this county.
  • Photographs. Each place queried individually against the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs search.
  • Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
  • Specimens. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), https://www.gbif.org/. Only records licensed CC0 or CC BY are used. Records licensed CC BY-NC are excluded because this site carries advertising. Images are checked individually and any whose licence is non-commercial, no-derivatives or unreadable is refused.
  • Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
  • Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.