Portage County, Ohio
History and Genealogy



Welcome


Hi, my name is Grace and I would like to welcome you to the Portage County OHGenWeb Project. I'm very glad that you stopped by and hope that you find this website useful for your genealogical research.

I'll be adding to and updating this website frequently, so please be sure to stop by often. I'm always in the need of help in getting data on-line. If you'd be interested in submitting something, please let me know. 

I may not be able to help with specific research questions, but should you have any questions or comments regarding the Portage County OHGenWeb Project, please e-mail me.

Have fun!


Portage County History

The name "Portage" comes from an old Native American path called "Portage Path", which ran between the Cuyahoga and Tuscarawas rivers, where travelers portaged their canoes. The location of the trail today is within the boundaries of neighboring Summit County.

The first European settler in what is now Portage County was Abraham Honey in 1798 in the area now known as Mantua Township, followed by Asa Hall in what is now Atwater Township in April 1799. In June 1799, Benjamin Tappan, Jr. arrived and founded Ravenna, David Daniels came to what is now Palmyra Township, and Ebenezer Sheldon settled in what is now Aurora.

When first settled, the area that presently constitutes Portage County was part of the original Jefferson County, which had been organized in 1797. In 1800, the area was made part of Trumbull County, which followed the boundaries of the Connecticut Western Reserve. In 1802, all of what is now Portage County was organized under the name of Franklin Township with other townships being formed later. On February 10, 1807 the Ohio state legislature passed the act to create Portage County from Trumbull County and it took effect June 7, 1807. Portage County remained attached to Trumbull County until June 8, 1808, when the first elections were held. Initially, the county included a large area of the Western Reserve that encompassed most of present-day Summit County, all of Medina and Huron counties, and parts of Lorain and Ashland counties. There were six organized townships in 1808: Franklin, Deerfield, Aurora, Hiram, Springfield, and Hudson with new townships organized later, reaching a maximum of 30. The present-day boundaries of Portage County were established in 1840 following the 1812 creation of Medina County, a slight boundary adjustment in 1827 with Cuyahoga County, and finally the creation of Summit County in 1840, which took 10 townships from Portage County along with 3 townships from Medina County and two from Stark County.
Used from Wikipedia Site


About the OHGenWeb

In March and April 1996, a group of genealogists organized the Kentucky Comprehensive Genealogy Database Project. The idea was to provide a single entry point for all counties in Kentucky where collected databases would be stored. In additon, these databases would be indexed and cross-linked, so that even if an individual were found in more than one county, they could be located in the index.

OHGenWeb is an extension of that premise.

The Portage County, OHGenWeb Site is a part of The OHGenWeb and The USGenWeb Projects.


Portage County Mailing Lists


Mailing lists for anyone with a genealogical interest in Portage County, Ohio.

For questions about this list, contact the list administrator at OHPORTAG-admin@rootsweb.com.

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  © 2014-2015 Portage County Coodinator - Grace O. Kirby
© 1996-2015 The OHGenWeb Project
All Rights Reserved
Many thanks to the previous county coordinator: Peggy!
Many thanks to the previous county coordinator: Chris Lindegarde!