Ashtabula

Formed June 7, 1808 (34^th county)

Ashtabula County (97,596), Jefferson (3,225), Ashtabula (17,972)

The 1970 tan brick Modern structure is the current courthouse.  It is located on Jefferson Street at Chestnut Street.  Chestnut Street is Ohio State Highway 46 in the town.  Kujala and Koski provided the current courthouses designs.  A classic 1850 facility was courthouse earlier in Jefferson, the only county seat.  The county was founded on June 7, 1808 from parts of Trumbull and Geauga counties as the 34^th county.  The county name is Native American for “river of many fish.”  Jefferson is named for United States President Thomas Jefferson.  He is also the namesake of Jefferson County. 

Ashtabula County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Commissioners.  Four Common Pleas Court Judges serve Ashtabula County.  The county is situated in the northeast corner of Ohio on the border with Pennsylvania.  Lake Erie forms its northern border.  Cleveland, Ohio is southwest and Youngstown, Ohio is south of the county.  The county center is 4.3 miles Northeast of Jefferson.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Canada and Pennsylvania and Trumbull, Geauga, and Lake counties. 

The area of the county is 702.4 square miles.  It is 1 out of 88 in the state.  It ranks 28 out of 88 in population in the state.  It has a density of 138.9 persons per square mile making it 37 out of 88 in the state.  Ashtabula County has 49.0% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 90 passes east to west in the county from Pennsylvania to Lake County.  United States Highway 6 comes in from Pennsylvania, east, and goes out to Geauga County, southwest.  United States Highway 20 parallels Interstate Highway 90 from Pennsylvania to Lake County.  United States Highway 322 enters from the east, Pennsylvania, and exits to the west, Geauga County.  The county is a rectangle with the top shaved diagonally from east to west.  Jefferson is located near the center of the county.  The largest city is on the northern border of the county.  Jefferson is the county seat and Ashtabula is the largest city.  Jefferson is 3.3% of the county population while Ashtabula is 18.4% of the county population.  The county and largest city are pronounced ASH-TA-BUE-LA.  This county is in the Ashtabula Micropolitan Statistical Area.

Rock Creek