# Lake County, Ohio

Lake County is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 232,603. Its county seat is Painesville, and its largest city is Mentor.
The county was established on March 6, 1840, from land given by Cuyahoga and Geauga counties. Its name is derived from its location on the southern shore of Lake Erie and the fact that the majority of the county’s land lies beneath Lake Erie. Lake County is part of the Cleveland, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area.

## History

The land that became Lake County was home to the indigenous Erie people prior to the arrival of the French in the region during the early 1600s and was considered by the French to be part of their Colony of New France. After France's defeat in the Seven Years' War in 1763, France ceded the area to Great Britain, and the area became part of the Province of Quebec through the Quebec Act of 1774. Following the American Revolutionary War, it became part of the Connecticut Western Reserve in the Northwest Territory, then was purchased by the Connecticut Land Company in 1795. It was separated out of Geauga County in March 1840.
Although today the county is mostly suburban, Lake County was once known as a rural country retreat for wealthy Cleveland residents. During the early 1900s, many wealthy families in Cleveland maintained large estates in the county for use as their summer homes.

## Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has an area of 979 square miles (2,540 km$^2$), of which 227 square miles (590 km$^2$) is land and 752 square miles (1,950 km$^2$) (77%) is water. It is Ohio's smallest county by land area but the third-largest by total area, with said area owing to land beneath the lake (which is owned by the county).
The county’s coast line along Lake Erie spans 31 miles. Additionally, Lake County has an international border with Ontario (across Lake Erie).

### Adjacent counties

* Ashtabula County (east)
* Geauga County (south)
* Cuyahoga County (southwest)

### Physical geography

Ridges on the Lake Plain physiographic region, and on which some roads are laid, are beaches formed by the various glacial lakes which occurred as the glaciers receded. Lake Maumee was the highest glacial lake at about 760 feet, and left Maumee II beach. Whittlesey beach, formed by Lake Whittlesey at 740 feet, is known as South Ridge. Arkona beach (Lake Arkona) is Middle Ridge, and occurs at about 690 feet. North Ridge is the remnant of Warren beach (Lake Warren), at an elevation of 685 feet. Elkton beach is the northernmost ridge, at 625 feet, an occurred at the time of Lake Elkton. Lake Shore Boulevard follows Elkton beach in Mentor Township.
Mentor Marsh, an abandoned channel of the Grand River, is an Ohio State Nature Preserve.

## Demographics
### 2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Lake County had 232,603 people living in 105,315 households. The racial makeup of the county was 84.7% white (not Hispanic or Latino), 4.7% black or African American, 1.4% Asian, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.4% from other races, and 5.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 5.0% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 23.0% were German, 18.0% were Irish, 15.3% were Italian, 9.8% were English, and 6.8% were Polish.
33.0% of the adult population has a Bachelor's Degree or higher, slightly above the 32.0% rate for Ohio as a whole.

### 2010 census

As of the 2010 census, there were 230,041 people, 94,156 households, and 62,384 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,011.2 inhabitants per square mile (390.4/km$^2$). There were 101,202 housing units at an average density of 444.9 units per square mile (171.8 units/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the county was 92.5% white, 3.2% black or African American, 1.1% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 1.6% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 26.4% were German, 18.9% were Irish, 16.4% were Italian, 11.5% were English, 7.6% were Polish, 5.4% were Hungarian, and 3.9% were American.
Of the 94,156 households, 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.5% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.7% were non-families, and 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.41 and the average family size was 2.97. The median age was 42.3 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $54,896 and the median income for a family was $67,206. Males had a median income of $49,240 versus $36,906 for females. The per capita income for the county was $28,221. About 6.0% of families and 8.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.0% of those under age 18 and 4.4% of those age 65 or over.
In 2010, 92.4% spoke English, 2.7% Spanish, and 1.4% Croatian.

## Environment

Scorecard’s 2002 report ranks Lake County among the worst 10% of counties in the U.S. in terms of cancer risk, developmental and reproductive toxicants, and other categories as well. This rating is comparable with most major cities and densely populated areas. In 2004, Scorecard ranked the county among the cleanest or best 10% of all counties in the U.S. in terms of the number of designated Superfund sites.
Lake County has a large public park system, including Lake Metroparks Farmpark. Kirtland is home to the Holden Arboretum and Gildersleeve Mountain. Headlands Beach State Park is in Mentor. The Grand River is a state wild and scenic river, and the Chagrin River is a state scenic river.

## Transportation

Laketran is the transit agency that serves Lake County, providing bus service throughout the county and to downtown Cleveland. It is the third-largest transit system in Northeast Ohio. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 629,500, or about 2,600 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2024.
Lake County Executive Airport, formerly known as Lost Nation Airport, is a public use airport located in Willoughby.
Interstate 90 runs northeast–southwest through Lake County, roughly parallel to State Route 2; along with the north–south State Route 44 connects the two together. These freeways make up the major traffic arteries in the county.
Lake County does not have passenger rail service, though Amtrak's New York City-Chicago Lake Shore Limited service schedules an eastbound and westbound train through Lake County nightly with stops at Cleveland and Erie. CSX and Norfolk Southern provide railroad main line through-freight service. The recently formed Grand River Railroad, operating on former Baltimore & Ohio track, serves the Fairport Harbor area linking the Morton Salt plant with CSX at Painesville.

### Major highways

* I-90
* I-271
* US 6
* US 20
* SR 2
* SR 44
* SR 84
* SR 86
* SR 91
* SR 174
* SR 283
* SR 306
* SR 307
* SR 528
* SR 535
* SR 608
* SR 615
* SR 633
* SR 640

## Education
### Post-secondary institutions

* Lake Erie College in Painesville
* Lakeland Community College in Kirtland
* Saint Mary Seminary and Graduate School of Theology in Wickliffe

### Public schools

The following public school districts are located in Lake County:
* Fairport Harbor Exempted Village School District (serving Fairport Harbor and Painesville Township (portion))
** Fairport Harding High School
* Kirtland Local School District (serving Kirtland, Kirtland Hills (portion), and Waite Hill (portion))
** Kirtland High School
* Madison Local School District (serving Madison and Madison Township)
** Madison High School
* Mentor Public Schools (serving Concord Township (portion), Kirtland Hills (portion), Mentor, and Mentor-on-the-Lake)
** Mentor High School
* Painesville City Local School District (serving Painesville)
** Thomas W. Harvey High School
* Perry Local School District (serving North Perry, Perry, and Perry Township)
** Perry High School
* Riverside Local School District (serving Concord Township (portion), Grand River, Leroy Township, and Painesville Township)
** Riverside High School
* Wickliffe City School District (serving Wickliffe)
** Wickliffe High School
* Willoughby-Eastlake City School District (serving Eastlake, Lakeline, Timberlake, Waite Hill (portion), Willoughby, Willoughby Hills, and Willowick)
** North High School in Eastlake
** South High School in Willoughby

### Private schools

* Andrews Osborne Academy, a private, coeducational boarding and day school for Grades Pre-K through 12 in Willoughby
* Cornerstone Christian Academy in Willoughby Hills
* Lake Catholic High School in Mentor
* Telshe Yeshiva in Wickliffe

## Libraries

The following libraries serve Lake County:
* Fairport Harbor Public Library in Fairport Harbor
* Kirtland Public Library in Kirtland
* Madison Public Library in Madison
* Mentor Public Library in Mentor
* Morley Library in Painesville
* Perry Public Library in Perry
* Wickliffe Public Library in Wickliffe
* Willoughby-Eastlake Public Library, headquartered in Eastlake and with branches in Willoughby, Willoughby Hills, and Willowick.
Additionally, as of 2019, all Lake County libraries are all CLEVNET members.

## Media

Lake County is part of the Cleveland-area media and television market.
The News-Herald, a Lake County newspaper, has been headquartered in Willoughby since its inception.

## Government

Lake County leans strongly Republican in local elections. As of 2024, all but one county-wide elected officials are Republicans.
Lake County Elected Officials :
| Position | Name | Party |
| Commissioner | John Plecnik | Republican |
| Commissioner | Richard Regovich | Republican |
| Commissioner | John Hamercheck | Republican |
| Auditor | Christopher Galloway | Republican |
| Prosecuting Attorney | Charles Coulson | Republican |
| Clerk of Courts | Faith Andrews | Republican |
| Sheriff | Frank Leonbruno | Republican |
| Recorder | Becky Lynch | Republican |
| Treasurer | Michael Zuren | Republican |
| Engineer | James Gills | Republican |
| Coroner | David Keep | Republican |
Lake County Judges :
| Position | Name | Party |
| Common Pleas - General | Patrick Condon | Republican |
| Common Pleas - General | Vincent Culotta | Republican |
| Common Pleas - General | Jeffrey Ruple | Republican |
| Common Pleas - General | John O'Donnell | Republican |
| Domestic Relations Division | Colleen Falkowski | Democrat |
| Juvenile Division | Michael DeLeone | Republican |
| Probate Division | Mark Bartolotta | Republican |

## Politics

Lake County has traditionally been known as a "purple" or "swing" county within the state. A 2008 analysis of Ohio presidential election results from 1960 to 2004 found no other county more closely followed Ohio's statewide voting pattern. Although it did not always vote with the winner, it had consistently been closer to the winner's Ohio vote percentage than any other Ohio county. More recently, however, the county has trended more strongly Republican than the state as a whole. For example, in 2020 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump won the county by nearly a fourteen point margin while winning the state as a whole by only eight points.
United States presidential election results for Lake County, Ohio :
| Year | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Third party(ies) | Third party(ies) |
| Year | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| 2024 | 72,924 | 56.46% | 54,484 | 42.18% | 1,751 | 1.36% |
| 2020 | 73,278 | 56.03% | 55,514 | 42.45% | 1,990 | 1.52% |
| 2016 | 64,255 | 54.83% | 46,397 | 39.59% | 6,538 | 5.58% |
| 2012 | 58,744 | 49.50% | 57,680 | 48.61% | 2,241 | 1.89% |
| 2008 | 59,142 | 48.62% | 60,155 | 49.45% | 2,345 | 1.93% |
| 2004 | 62,193 | 51.05% | 59,049 | 48.47% | 581 | 0.48% |
| 2000 | 51,747 | 50.45% | 46,497 | 45.33% | 4,320 | 4.21% |
| 1996 | 40,974 | 41.92% | 43,186 | 44.19% | 13,576 | 13.89% |
| 1992 | 40,766 | 38.46% | 37,682 | 35.55% | 27,542 | 25.99% |
| 1988 | 52,963 | 56.63% | 39,667 | 42.41% | 894 | 0.96% |
| 1984 | 54,587 | 59.12% | 36,711 | 39.76% | 1,027 | 1.11% |
| 1980 | 43,485 | 50.31% | 35,246 | 40.78% | 7,697 | 8.91% |
| 1976 | 36,390 | 45.83% | 40,734 | 51.30% | 2,284 | 2.88% |
| 1972 | 42,488 | 58.90% | 27,523 | 38.15% | 2,130 | 2.95% |
| 1968 | 28,450 | 43.40% | 27,932 | 42.61% | 9,177 | 14.00% |
| 1964 | 23,282 | 37.65% | 38,552 | 62.35% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 32,038 | 48.94% | 33,425 | 51.06% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 31,017 | 61.14% | 19,718 | 38.86% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1952 | 23,483 | 60.48% | 15,346 | 39.52% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 12,973 | 53.81% | 10,844 | 44.98% | 291 | 1.21% |
| 1944 | 13,697 | 51.86% | 12,713 | 48.14% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 13,464 | 52.04% | 12,408 | 47.96% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 9,386 | 43.24% | 11,213 | 51.66% | 1,108 | 5.10% |
| 1932 | 11,792 | 61.43% | 6,801 | 35.43% | 603 | 3.14% |
| 1928 | 11,823 | 74.24% | 4,024 | 25.27% | 79 | 0.50% |
| 1924 | 7,727 | 70.71% | 974 | 8.91% | 2,226 | 20.37% |
| 1920 | 7,465 | 72.31% | 2,711 | 26.26% | 147 | 1.42% |
| 1916 | 2,887 | 51.39% | 2,596 | 46.21% | 135 | 2.40% |
| 1912 | 1,155 | 22.91% | 1,429 | 28.34% | 2,458 | 48.75% |
| 1908 | 3,635 | 66.97% | 1,605 | 29.57% | 188 | 3.46% |
| 1904 | 3,824 | 76.42% | 871 | 17.41% | 309 | 6.18% |
| 1900 | 3,929 | 68.41% | 1,733 | 30.18% | 81 | 1.41% |
| 1896 | 3,745 | 68.40% | 1,682 | 30.72% | 48 | 0.88% |
| 1892 | 2,846 | 67.46% | 1,158 | 27.45% | 215 | 5.10% |
| 1888 | 2,987 | 68.37% | 1,157 | 26.48% | 225 | 5.15% |
| 1884 | 2,925 | 69.64% | 1,120 | 26.67% | 155 | 3.69% |
| 1880 | 2,978 | 71.06% | 1,104 | 26.34% | 109 | 2.60% |
| 1876 | 2,941 | 71.28% | 1,141 | 27.65% | 44 | 1.07% |
| 1872 | 2,751 | 73.56% | 979 | 26.18% | 10 | 0.27% |
| 1868 | 2,909 | 76.59% | 889 | 23.41% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1864 | 2,787 | 82.63% | 586 | 17.37% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1860 | 2,521 | 77.74% | 622 | 19.18% | 100 | 3.08% |
| 1856 | 2,371 | 78.04% | 628 | 20.67% | 39 | 1.28% |

## Communities
### Cities

* Eastlake
* Kirtland
* Mentor
* Mentor-on-the-Lake
* Painesville (county seat)
* Wickliffe
* Willoughby
* Willoughby Hills
* Willowick

### Villages

* Fairport Harbor
* Grand River
* Kirtland Hills
* Lakeline
* Madison
* North Perry
* Perry
* Timberlake
* Waite Hill

### Townships

* Concord
* Leroy
* Madison
* Painesville
* Perry

### Census-designated place

* North Madison

### Unincorporated communities

* Painesville-on-the-Lake
* Unionville

## Points of Interest

Holden Arboretum, one of the largest arboreta and botanical gardens in the United States, is located in Kirtland.
The James A. Garfield National Historic Site is located in Mentor. The site preserves the Lawnfield estate and surrounding property of James A. Garfield, the 20th president of the United States, and includes the first presidential library established in the United States.
Kirtland Temple, the first temple built by adherents of the Latter Day Saint movement, is located in Kirtland. Kirtland, which served as the headquarters for the Latter Day Saint movement during most of the 1830s, also hosts the nearby Historic Kirtland Village, which is owned and operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and is made up of historic buildings and sites important to the early Latter Day Saint movement.
Several other historic churches are located in the county, including the Methodist Episcopal Church of Painesville, Old South Church in Kirtland, St. James Episcopal Church in Painesville, and the South LeRoy Meetinghouse in Leroy Township.
A portion of the Grand River Valley American Viticultural Area is located in the eastern half of the county.
Squire's Castle is located within the North Chagrin Reservation of the Cleveland Metroparks in Willoughby Hills.
Classic Park, the home field of the Lake County Captains, a Class A minor league baseball team affiliated with the Cleveland Guardians, is located in Eastlake.