Lorain County, Ohio

Lorain County, Ohio
Lorain County is a county in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 312,964. Its county seat is Elyria, and its largest city is Lorain.
The county was physically established in 1822, becoming judicially independent in 1824. Lorain County is part of the Cleveland, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county is home to Oberlin College.
History
Lorain County was established in 1822 from portions of several of its adjacent counties. This county became judicially-independent in 1824. The original proposed name for the county was "Colerain". The final name "Lorain" was chosen by Heman Ely, who had previously founded and named the city of Elyria. The county's name was based on the French province of Lorraine.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has an area of , of which is land and (47%) is water. It is Ohio's fourth-largest county by area.
Adjacent counties
Cuyahoga County (east)
Medina County (southeast)
Ashland County (south)
Huron County (southwest)
Erie County (northwest)
Major highways
Interstate 80 (Ohio Turnpike)
Interstate 90 (Ohio Turnpike)
Interstate 480
U.S. Route 6
U.S. Route 20
State Route 2
State Route 10
State Route 18
State Route 57
State Route 58
Ohio Route 82
Ohio Route 83
State Route 113
Ohio Route 162
Ohio Route 254
Ohio Route 301
Ohio Route 303
Ohio Route 511
Ohio Route 611
Demographics
As of the 2010 census, there were 301,356 people, 116,274 households, and 80,077 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 127,036 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 84.8% white, 8.6% black or African American, 0.9% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 2.5% from other races, and 3.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 8.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 26.5% were German, 16.7% were Irish, 10.9% were English, 8.4% were Polish, 8.2% were Italian, 6.2% were American, and 5.2% were Hungarian.
Of the 116,274 households, 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.5% were married couples living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 31.1% were non-families, and 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.02. The median age was 40.0 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $52,066 and the median income for a family was $62,082. Males had a median income of $49,146 versus $35,334 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,002. About 10.3% of families and 13.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.5% of those under age 18 and 8.0% of those age 65 or over.
Education
Higher education
Lorain County Community College, Elyria
Oberlin College, Oberlin
Public school districts
There are 20 public school districts in Lorain County. Those primarily in Lorain County are listed in bold. Each district's high school(s) and location is also listed.
Amherst Exempted Village School District
Amherst Marion L. Steele High School, Amherst
Avon Local School District
Avon High School, Avon
Avon Lake City School District
Avon Lake High School, Avon Lake
Black River Local School District (also in Medina Co and Ashland Co.)
Black River High School, Sullivan
Clearview Local School District
Clearview High School, Lorain
Columbia Local School District
Columbia High School, Columbia Station
Elyria City School District
Elyria High School, Elyria
Firelands Local School District (also in Erie Co.)
Firelands High School, Henrietta Twp (Oberlin)
Keystone Local School District
Keystone High School, LaGrange
Lorain City School District
Lorain High School, Lorain
Mapleton Local School District (Primarily in Ashland Co.)
Mapleton High School, Ashland
Midview Local School District
Midview High School, Eaton Twp (Grafton)
New London Local School District (primarily in Huron Co.)
New London High School, New London
North Ridgeville City School District
North Ridgeville High School, North Ridgeville
Oberlin City School District
Oberlin High School, Oberlin
Olmsted Falls City Schools (primarily in Cuyahoga Co.)
Olmsted Falls High School, Olmsted Falls
Sheffield-Sheffield Lake City School District
Brookside High School, Sheffield
Strongsville City School District (primarily in Cuyahoga Co.)
Strongsville High School, Strongsville
Vermilion Local Schools (primarily in Erie Co.)
Vermilion High School, Vermilion
Wellington Exempted Village School District (also in Huron Co.)
Wellington High School, Wellington
The county also includes the Lorain County Joint Vocational School District, which encompasses the entire county and serves students from the Amherst, Avon, Avon Lake, Clearview, Columbia, Elyria, Firelands, Keystone, Midview, North Ridgeville, Oberlin, Sheffield-Sheffield Lake and Wellington school districts from a 10-acre campus on a 100-acre site near the intersection of State Route 58 and U.S. Route 20 in Oberlin.
Private high schools
Elyria Catholic High School, Elyria
Lake Ridge Academy, North Ridgeville
Open Door Christian School, Elyria
Christian Community School, North Eaton
First Baptist Christian School, Elyria
Politics
Lorain County used to lean Democratic in recent presidential elections, voting for the Democratic candidate for president in 12 of the last 16 elections, including a winning streak that lasted from 1988 to 2016. In 2016, however, the county was almost swept up as part of the unexpected Republican surge in the Rust Belt; Donald Trump came within 131 votes of being the first Republican to capture the county since Ronald Reagan in 1984. Four years later, he flipped the county Republican by a narrow majority.
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Communities
Cities
Amherst
Avon
Avon Lake
Elyria (county seat)
Lorain
North Ridgeville
Oberlin
Sheffield Lake
Vermilion
Villages
Grafton
Kipton
LaGrange
Rochester
Sheffield
South Amherst
Wellington
Townships
Amherst
Brighton
Brownhelm
Camden
Carlisle
Columbia
Eaton
Elyria
Grafton
Henrietta
Huntington
LaGrange
New Russia
Penfield
Pittsfield
Rochester
Sheffield
Wellington
Census-designated places
Eaton Estates
Pheasant Run
Unincorporated communities
Belden
Brentwood Lake
Brighton
Columbia Hills Corners
Columbia Station
Henrietta
North Eaton
Pittsfield
Whiskyville
See also
National Register of Historic Places listings in Lorain County, Ohio
USS Lorain County (LST-1177)
References
External links
Lorain County Government's website
Lorain County Sheriff's Office
Lorain County Historical Society's website
Lorain County History Project
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1824 establishments in Ohio
Populated places established in 1824