# Highland County, Ohio

Highland County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 43,317. Its county seat is Hillsboro. The county is named for the topography which is hilly and divides the watersheds of the Little Miami and Scioto Rivers. Highland County was created on May 1, 1805, from land taken from Ross, Adams, and Clermont counties.

## Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 558 square miles (1,450 km$^2$), of which 553 square miles (1,430 km$^2$) is land and 4.7 square miles (12 km$^2$) (0.8%) is water.

### Adjacent counties

* Fayette County (north)
* Ross County (northeast)
* Pike County (east)
* Adams County (southeast)
* Brown County (southwest)
* Clinton County (northwest)

### Major highways

* US 50
* US 62
* SR 28
* SR 32
* SR 41
* SR 72
* SR 73
* SR 124
* SR 131
* SR 134
* SR 135
* SR 136
* SR 138
* SR 247
* SR 286
* SR 321
* SR 506
* SR 753
* SR 771
* SR 785

## Demographics
### 2000 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 43,589 people living in Highland County. The population density is 78.8 people per square mile. The county is made up of 96.4% White, 1.5% Black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 1.5% from two or more races, and 0.8% Hispanic or Latino.
This county is also made up of 6.2% of people under the age of 5, 24.7% of people under the age of 18, and 16.5% of people over the age of 65. The median age is 39.2. The county is also 51% female.
There are 16,963 households in Highland County as of the 2010 census. The average household size is 2.58 persons, while the average family size is 3.04 persons. According to the 2010 census, 41.9% of the houses in Highland County had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.07% of the houses were married couples living together, 11.09% of the houses had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.91% of the houses were non-families. Individuals made up 24.33% of all households, and 11.02% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
According to the census, 81.5% of people over the age of 25 is at least a high school graduate and 11.1% of people over the age of 25 have earned at least a bachelor's degree. The median household income is $39,641 and 17.6% of people live below the poverty line. The per capita income of Highland County is $19,557.

### 2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 43,589 people, 16,693 households, and 11,819 families residing in the county. The population density was 78.8 inhabitants per square mile (30.4/km$^2$). There were 19,380 housing units at an average density of 35.0 per square mile (13.5/km$^2$). The racial makeup of the county was 96.5% white, 1.4% black or African American, 0.3% American Indian, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.7% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 23.8% were German, 14.9% were Irish, 14.3% were American, and 10.7% were English.
Of the 16,693 households, 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.1% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.2% were non-families, and 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.04. The median age was 39.2 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $39,844 and the median income for a family was $48,604. Males had a median income of $38,892 versus $29,167 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,966. About 12.4% of families and 16.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.2% of those under age 18 and 12.7% of those age 65 or over.

## Politics

Highland County is a Republican stronghold county in presidential elections. The last time it voted for the Democratic presidential candidate was for Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964.
United States presidential election results for Highland County, Ohio :
| Year | Republican | Republican | Democratic | Democratic | Third party(ies) | Third party(ies) |
| Year | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| 2024 | 16,269 | 81.32% | 3,609 | 18.04% | 127 | 0.63% |
| 2020 | 15,678 | 79.68% | 3,799 | 19.31% | 199 | 1.01% |
| 2016 | 14,020 | 75.43% | 3,773 | 20.30% | 795 | 4.28% |
| 2012 | 11,413 | 63.83% | 6,054 | 33.86% | 412 | 2.30% |
| 2008 | 11,907 | 61.92% | 6,856 | 35.65% | 468 | 2.43% |
| 2004 | 12,211 | 66.07% | 6,194 | 33.52% | 76 | 0.41% |
| 2000 | 9,728 | 62.98% | 5,328 | 34.49% | 391 | 2.53% |
| 1996 | 7,102 | 48.40% | 5,837 | 39.78% | 1,735 | 11.82% |
| 1992 | 7,020 | 46.06% | 4,866 | 31.92% | 3,356 | 22.02% |
| 1988 | 8,776 | 66.60% | 4,278 | 32.46% | 124 | 0.94% |
| 1984 | 9,000 | 69.90% | 3,784 | 29.39% | 91 | 0.71% |
| 1980 | 7,359 | 59.35% | 4,363 | 35.19% | 678 | 5.47% |
| 1976 | 6,853 | 51.41% | 6,327 | 47.46% | 151 | 1.13% |
| 1972 | 8,524 | 69.72% | 3,464 | 28.33% | 238 | 1.95% |
| 1968 | 6,489 | 51.81% | 3,828 | 30.56% | 2,208 | 17.63% |
| 1964 | 5,985 | 45.12% | 7,281 | 54.88% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1960 | 8,948 | 62.26% | 5,423 | 37.74% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1956 | 8,397 | 63.50% | 4,826 | 36.50% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1952 | 8,568 | 62.15% | 5,219 | 37.85% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1948 | 6,849 | 54.62% | 5,675 | 45.26% | 16 | 0.13% |
| 1944 | 7,963 | 59.88% | 5,336 | 40.12% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1940 | 8,530 | 55.21% | 6,921 | 44.79% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1936 | 7,392 | 47.84% | 8,011 | 51.85% | 48 | 0.31% |
| 1932 | 6,924 | 48.98% | 7,079 | 50.07% | 134 | 0.95% |
| 1928 | 8,325 | 68.12% | 3,836 | 31.39% | 60 | 0.49% |
| 1924 | 6,845 | 57.16% | 4,583 | 38.27% | 548 | 4.58% |
| 1920 | 7,570 | 57.06% | 5,654 | 42.62% | 43 | 0.32% |
| 1916 | 3,727 | 47.81% | 3,964 | 50.85% | 105 | 1.35% |
| 1912 | 2,757 | 36.96% | 3,314 | 44.43% | 1,388 | 18.61% |
| 1908 | 4,149 | 51.23% | 3,823 | 47.21% | 126 | 1.56% |
| 1904 | 4,205 | 54.00% | 3,321 | 42.65% | 261 | 3.35% |
| 1900 | 4,078 | 49.53% | 3,938 | 47.83% | 218 | 2.65% |
| 1896 | 4,106 | 50.32% | 3,909 | 47.91% | 144 | 1.76% |
| 1892 | 3,496 | 49.14% | 3,153 | 44.32% | 465 | 6.54% |
| 1888 | 3,576 | 48.61% | 3,489 | 47.42% | 292 | 3.97% |
| 1884 | 3,683 | 50.84% | 3,438 | 47.45% | 124 | 1.71% |
| 1880 | 3,648 | 50.91% | 3,490 | 48.71% | 27 | 0.38% |
| 1876 | 3,341 | 50.06% | 3,323 | 49.79% | 10 | 0.15% |
| 1872 | 3,171 | 51.91% | 2,933 | 48.01% | 5 | 0.08% |
| 1868 | 3,038 | 51.60% | 2,850 | 48.40% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1864 | 3,120 | 54.61% | 2,593 | 45.39% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1860 | 2,409 | 45.34% | 2,272 | 42.76% | 632 | 11.90% |
| 1856 | 1,810 | 37.37% | 2,140 | 44.18% | 894 | 18.46% |

## Education
### School districts

Highland County is home to five school districts: Greenfield Exempted Village Schools in Greenfield, Hillsboro City Schools in Hillsboro, Fairfield Local School District in Leesburg, Bright Local School District in Mowrystown, and Lynchburg-Clay Local School District in Lynchburg.
Additionally, these districts have territory in the county: Eastern Local School District, East Clinton Local School District, and Adams County/Ohio Valley Local School District.

## Libraries

The Highland County District Library is the public library system serving Highland County, Ohio. The main library is in Hillsboro, with four branches located in Greenfield, Leesburg, Lynchburg, and Rocky Fork. The library is a member of the SEO Consortium which allows patrons access to over 6.9 million items owned by member libraries.
* Hillsboro Library
* Greenfield Library
* Leesburg Library
* Lynchburg Library

## Recreation

There are currently several recreational areas in Highland County. There is Rocky Fork State Park which is located 5 miles east of Hillsboro. It provides opportunities to go camping, fishing, boating, swimming, hunting, putt-putt, and disc golf amongst other activities.
There is also Paint Creek State Park located 13 miles east of Hillsboro. Paint Creek offers many of the same activities as Rocky Fork but also offers horse riding, mountain biking, and winter recreational activities.
Fort Hill State Memorial is a memorial built by the Hopewell people that is located 10 miles southeast of Hillsboro and is believed to be around 2000 years old.
Fallsville Wildlife Area is located 4 miles north of Hillsboro. It offers fishing, hunting, hiking, and wildlife watching.

## Non-profits

Habitat for Humanity of Highland County was established in 2000, and has since built three homes: one on Johnson St. in Hillsboro and two on 2nd St. in Greenfield. Highland County Habitat is a locally run affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International, a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian housing organization. Habitat for Humanity works in partnership with people in need to build and renovate decent, affordable housing. The houses then are sold to those in need at no profit and with no interest charged.
Highlands Sanctuary is a chain of nature preserves centered in Highland County and owned by an organization of the same name.

## Communities
### City

* Hillsboro (county seat)

### Villages

* Greenfield
* Highland
* Leesburg
* Lynchburg
* Mowrystown
* Sardinia
* Sinking Spring

### Townships

* Brushcreek
* Clay
* Concord
* Dodson
* Fairfield
* Hamer
* Jackson
* Liberty
* Madison
* Marshall
* New Market
* Paint
* Penn
* Salem
* Union
* Washington
* Whiteoak

### Census-designated places

* Buford
* Highland Holiday
* Rocky Fork Point

### Unincorporated communities

* Allensburg
* Belfast
* Berrysville
* Boston
* Bridges
* Carmel
* Dodsonville
* East Danville
* Elmville
* Fairfax
* Folsom
* Hoagland
* Hollowtown
* Marshall
* New Market
* New Petersburg
* Pricetown
* Rainsboro
* Samantha
* Sugar Tree Ridge
* Taylorsville