Interesting Facts About Ohio

Also known as “The Buckeye State,” Ohio is the 17th state of the United States. Its capital and largest city is Columbus. Its largest metropolitan areas are located in Cleveland and Cincinnati.

Ohio has also played a large part in the US politics as it is the home of eight US Presidents. Since the 1960s onwards Ohio has also been one of the most important swing states in a presidential election (“swing state” means a state wherein two major presidential contenders have equal level of support among voters, seen as an important determining factor in the overall result of the election). Ohio also boasts many “firsts” in the country! Know all about them and more in this gallery.

The first man to walk on the moon was a true Ohioan. Armstrong was born in the city Wapakoneta, Auglaize County in Ohio on August 5, 1930. He died in 2012 also in Ohio, but in another city of Cincinnati.

From the mid-19th century to the late 20th century, the city of Akron, Ohio was once dubbed the rubber capital of the world. Four rubber companies were founded in Akron, namely: Firestone, General Tire, Goodyear, and Goodrich. The rubber industry experienced a boom throughout much in the 1920s to 1960s as the surge of automobiles rose. But Akron’s it was beset by worker strikes and unions. Towards the 1990s both tire and rubber industries began to decline. Goodyear is the only rubber and tire company that is still based in Akron.

The Drew Carey Show was a popular ABC sitcom from 1995-2004 that featured actor Drew Carey in a fictionalized version of himself. The first seven seasons of the show were set at the fictional department store in Cleveland called Winfried-Lauder, where Carey (on the sitcom that is) worked. One of the song’s opening themes, in fact, is titled “Cleveland Rocks.”

The first traffic light was installed on the corner of East 105th Street and Euclid Street in Cleveland, Ohio on August 5, 1914. Not only it was America’s first electric traffic light, but also the world’s first.

On Akron, Ohio once more: the first police car was first seen on the streets of this city in 1899. It didn’t look like the police car that we’ve used to see nowadays, but the “car” during those days was actually a wagon, powered by electricity.

Before, ambulances had been used only for wounded or killed soldiers during a war. However, the Commercial Hospital (now the Cincinnati General) changed that as it was the first known hospital to utilize ambulances for civilians, in 1865.

Businessman James J. Ritty (1836-1918) opened his saloon in Dayton, Ohio that sold alcoholic drinks and cigars. However, some of his employees would filch the customers’ money rather than keep these earnings in the store. To stop this from happening again, James and his mechanic brother John eventually came up with a device which they called the “Ritty’s Incorruptiable Cashier.” They patented the design in 1879.

The Cincinnati Red Stockings aka the Cincinnati Reds, was founded in 1869. They became the world’s first openly all-professional team, with all players meant to receive salaries. They also started the trend of wearing team uniforms and playing under team nicknames. After you enjoy a game at the stadium, you can dine at the best restaurant in downtown Cincinnati Ohio.

Columbus (population, 2010: 787,033) is Ohio’s state capital and largest city. Named for the explorer Christopher Columbus, the city was established in 1812 and became Ohio’s state capital four years later.

Columbus is home to the world’s largest private research and development foundation, the Battelle Memorial Institute (est. 1929), as well as the headquarters of several Fortune 500 companies. The Ohio State University (est. 1870) in Columbus is one of the biggest universities in the country.

The pop-top or the pull tab can seems to be the ordinary thing these days, but we’ve got to thank Ermal Fraze (1913-1989) for his invention. An Indiana native, Fraze moved to Ohio to work as a machine tool operator.

In 1959, while on a family picnic in Kettering, Ohio, Fraze forgot to bring his can opener and had to use a car bumper as a way to open a can of beer. Then something flashed in his mind that there must be an easier way to open the can, so he eventually came up with the pop-top, the pull top or the pull tab can.

Another first or Cincinnati! On April 1, 1853 the Cincinnati Fire Department established the first professional city fire department, with its staff fully paid. It remains one of the oldest operating fire departments in the United States, servicing for over 160 years. Check out their page: http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/fire/

Ohio has a diverse industry, from rubber to plants.. we mean true plants with leaves. Ohio leads the horticulture industry, growing commercial and nursery plants and bulbs. The state produces 25,000 white ash yearly, for gardening and landscaping purposes. It is also home to the headquarters of Oberer’s Flowers and Aris Horticulture.

Like many states, Ohio also has an official rock song, titled “Hang On Sloopy.” It was written by Wes Farrell and Bert Russell in 1964. The original version (released in the same year) by the R&B/soul group The Vibrations became a Top 40 pop hit. But the pop group The McCoys turned it into a #1 pop smash in 1965. Ohio declared “Hang On Sloopy” as the official state rock song, twenty years later.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a museum dedicated to the important figures who have helped shape and influence the rock and pop music industry. Although it was established in 1983 (by the late Atlantic Records honcho Ahmet Ertegun), it was only in 1995 that The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame finally found a home in Cleveland, Ohio. The museum is located by the Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland and has been visited by over eight million visitors.

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