Decorative drawing: a small American settlement seen from a low hill. Not a photograph of this place.

Lucas, Ohio

13 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1912 and the latest in 1994. It stands in Monroe Township. It lies in ZIP code area 44843. The Survey maps it on the Lucas quadrangle. 589 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 1,093 feet above sea level.

Lucas within Richland County

Population over time

2 figures

Lucas fell from 615 to 589 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

Year	People	Change
2010	615
2020	589	-26 (-4%)

Then and now

1912 to 1994

The same ground, surveyed 82 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Lucas, surveyed 1994

Topographic sheet of Lucas, surveyed 1912

Topographic sheets covering this place

13 sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

In the county-history sources

16,273 words on this township

History of Richland County, Ohio : (including the Original Boundaries) ; Its Past and Present, Containing a Condensed Comprehensive History of Ohio, Including an Outline History of the Northwest, a Complete History of Richland County ... Miscellaneous Matter, Map of the County, Biographies and Histories of ... the Most Prominent Families, &c., &c., published 1880 names this settlement in its chapter on Monroe Township. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.

The first settlers followed up the Black Fork in 1809. When they came to the junction of the Black Fork and Rocky Fork, some of them continued up the former and settled in Mifflin. Among the latter were the Copuses, the Zimmers, some of the Hills, Andrew Craig and others mentioned in the history of Mifflin. Others continued up the Rocky Fork, and settled first in the neighborhood of the present village of Lucas. Among these early settlers, David Hill has the honor of being the first, and of building the first cabin in Monroe Township. It was erected on the farm for many years occupied b}' John Swigart, adjoining the village of Lucas. The place is now

Passage source: History of Richland County, Ohio : (including the Original Boundaries) ; Its Past and Present, Containing a Condensed Comprehensive History of Ohio, Including an Outline History of the Northwest, a Complete History of Richland County ... Miscellaneous Matter, Map of the County, Biographies and Histories of ... the Most Prominent Families, &c., &c., published 1880.

The first schoolhouse was located on the farm afterward owned by R. Oldfield, near Lucas ; now owned by Josiah Rummel. One of the earliest schoolhouses was located on Section 26. It was of hewed logs, covered with a clapboard roof, etc., as was usual in that day. Some of the teachers in this house were John Clark, John Tucker, William Wigton and Joseph Wolfe. This district embraced a large part of the township, children coming several miles through the woods to school. The same house was frequentl}' used for religious meetings, singing schools, etc. One of the first schools was also opened in the northern part of the township, near the Mount Zion Church. The school was first kept in private houses, and afterward in the log church.

One of the earliest schools was located on Michael Shinnebarger's land, and one also near what is now called the Hastings Post OflSce. This post office was established in 1829, being the first one established in the township. John Tucker was one of the early school teachers. He was a New Hampshire Yankee, and was one of Johmi}' Appleseed's converts, and also a doctor.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Monroe Township - it names this place 17 more 17 times.

Fires near this place

5 since 2007

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 5 fires within 5 miles of Lucas between 2007 and 2018, burning about 3 acres in total. None started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause	Fires
Debris and open burning	4
Recreation and ceremony	1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

Date	Cause	Size	Reported by	Name on the report
16 June 2007	Recreation and ceremony	1.0 acres	Ohio Department of Natural Resources	not named
7 April 2013	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Ohio Department of Natural Resources	not named
21 April 2007	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Ohio Department of Natural Resources	not named
5 March 2018	Debris and open burning	1.0 acres	Ohio Department of Natural Resources	13546
19 January 2013	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Ohio Department of Natural Resources	not named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Richland County

Specimens collected near this place

12 of 744 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. Museums hold 744 specimens collected within 10 miles of Lucas between 1835 and 1975: 486 Plantae, 249 Animalia, 9 Fungi. 12 distinct Species records are shown. Collected by A.M.H., Aknown, Berra, T. (Tim) and others. Each is a physical object with a catalogue number, and each entry opens the museum's record. This is what was collected and kept, not a survey of what lives here - nothing can be concluded from a species being absent.

Species	Year	Collected by	Where, as recorded
Molothrus ater ater (Boddaert, 1783)	1892	not recorded	Mansfield
Spizella passerina passerina (Bechstein, 1798)	1892	not recorded	Mansfield
Athyrium angustum (Willd.) C.Presl	1895	Wilkinson, E.	Mansfield.
Alisma subcordatum Raf.	1835	Wilkinson, E.	Mansfield
Carex scoparia Schkuhr ex Willd.	1835	Wilkinson, E.	Mansfield
Carex stricta Lam.	1835	Herb. of E. Wilkinson	Mansfield
Erigeron bellidifolius Muhl. ex Willd.	1835	Wilkinson,E. 5229	[USA, Ohio] Mansfield, Ohio.
Penthorum sedoides L.	1835	E. Wilkinson	Mansfield
Verbascum thapsus L.	1835	Wilkinson, E.	Mansfield
Achillea millefolium L.	1836	Wilkinson, E.	Mansfield
Angelica atropurpurea L.	1836	Wilkinson, E.	Mansfield
Apocynum androsaemifolium L.	1836	Wilkinson, E.	Mansfield

All 744 specimens within 10 miles, at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Mines and quarries near this place

3 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 3 workings within 5 miles of Lucas: 1 plant, 1 past producer, 1 producer. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Site	Commodity	Status	Recorded
Lucas Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer	Sedimentary
Lucas Pit & Mill	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Plant
Weber Mine	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Producer

Every working recorded in Richland County

Storms near this place

19 since 1994

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Lucas in 19 storm reports between 1994 and 2026: 12 thunderstorm wind, 6 hail, 1 flash flood. The reports record 1 injury. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

When	Event	Place named	Harm	What the report says
June 2019	Flash Flood	Lucas	1 hurt, $2,000	Swift water lead to road closures in Lucas near Wallace Road and Mt. Zion Road due to flooding from the Black Fork. 2.19 inches of rain fell during the evening and overnight hours. Water rescue of a man in a wheelchair was washed off the street by rushing waters and into a residential backyard where he was trapped for several hours.
June 2017	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	$25,000	Thunderstorm winds toppled a large tree along State Route 39 near Lucas. The tree landed on an old barn causing extensive damage.
August 2017	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	$25,000	Thunderstorm winds downed some trees and power lines in the Lucas area.
June 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	$5,000	Thunderstorm wind gusts downed at least three trees in the Lucas area. At least one of them blocked a road.
May 2002	Hail	Lucas	$5,000	Dime size hail was observed.
June 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	$5,000	Trees and limbs down, some on power lines.
September 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	$4,000	A few trees were reported down.
June 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	$2,000	Several large limbs were reported down.
May 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	$2,000	Two trees were reported down near Lucas and just to the southeast near Pleasant Hill Lake.
June 2002	Hail	Lucas	$2,000	Dime size hail was observed.
July 2019	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	$1,000	At least one tree was blown down on a power line.
March 2026	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	-	Tree downed in Lucas.
July 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	-	Several trees downed about three-miles SSW of Lucas.
June 2017	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	-	Thunderstorm winds downed two trees in the Lucas area.
June 2007	Hail	Lucas	-	Penny size hail was observed.
April 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Lucas	-	Several large limbs were reported down in a roadway.
April 2006	Hail	Lucas	-	Penny size hail was observed.
July 2006	Hail	Lucas	-	Penny size hail was observed.
July 2006	Hail	Lucas	-	Penny size hail was observed.

Every storm recorded in Richland County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Place	Distance	Sheets
Culler Mill	1.6 miles	13
Pinhook	2.6 miles	13
Crimson	2.8 miles	13
Little Washington	3.0 miles	13
Melco	3.2 miles	13
Cesarea	3.4 miles	13
West Shore Cottage Area	3.6 miles	13
Hastings	3.7 miles	13

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on Lucas	An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q2551684	The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1048396. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

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.