EXHIBIT 3(i)

                            ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION
                                       OF
                         HOME CITY FINANCIAL CORPORATION


     FIRST:   The  name  of  the  corporation   shall  be  Home  City  Financial
Corporation.

     SECOND:  The place in Ohio where the principal office of the corporation is
to be located is the City of Springfield, County of Clark.

     THIRD:  The purpose for which the corporation is formed is to engage in any
lawful  act or  activity  for which  corporations  may be formed  under  Section
1701.01 to 1701.98, inclusive, of the Ohio Revised Code.

     FOURTH:  The authorized  shares of the  corporation  shall be eight hundred
fifty  (850)  common  shares,  each  without  par value.  The  directors  of the
corporation  may adopt an  amendment  to the  Articles of  Incorporation  of the
corporation  in  respect of any  unissued  or  treasury  shares of any class and
thereby  fix or  change:  the  division  of  such  shares  into  series  and the
designation and authorized  number of each series;  the dividend rate; the dates
of payment of  dividends  and the dates  from  which  they are  cumulative;  the
liquidation   price;   the  redemption   rights  and  price;  the  sinking  fund
requirements;  the conversion  rights;  and the  restrictions on the issuance of
shares of any class or series.

     FIFTH:  (A) The board of directors of the corporation  shall have the power
to cause the  corporation  from time to time and at any time to purchase,  hold,
sell,  transfer or otherwise  deal with (i) shares of any class or series issued
by it, (ii) any security or other obligation of the corporation which may confer
upon the holder  thereof  the right to convert the same into shares of any class
or series authorized by the articles of the corporation,  and (iii) any security
or other  obligation  which may  confer  upon the  holder  thereof  the right to
purchase  shares  of  any  class  or  series   authorized  by  the  Articles  of
Incorporation of the corporation.

     (B) The  corporation  shall have the right to  repurchase,  if and when any
shareholder  desires to sell,  or on the  happening  of any event is required to
sell, shares of any class or series issued by the corporation.

     (C) The authority granted in this Article Fifth shall not limit the plenary
authority of the directors to purchase,  hold, sell,  transfer or otherwise deal
with shares of any class or series,  securities or other  obligations  issued by
the  corporation  or  authorized  by  the  Articles  of   Incorporation  of  the
corporation.

     SIXTH: Notwithstanding any provision of the Ohio Revised Code requiring for
any purpose the vote, consent, waiver or release of the holders of shares of the
corporation entitling them to exercise any proportion of the voting power of the
corporation or of any class or classes  thereof,  such action,  unless expressly

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otherwise  provided by  statute,  may be taken by the vote,  consent,  waiver or
release of the  holders of shares  entitling  them to  exercise  not less than a
majority  of the voting  power of the  corporation  or of such class or classes;
provided,  however,  that if the board of  directors  of the  corporation  shall
recommend against the approval of any of the following matters,  the affirmative
vote  of the  holders  of  shares  entitling  them to  exercise  not  less  than
seventy-five percent (75%) of the voting power of any class or classes of shares
of the  corporation  which entitle the holders thereof to vote in respect of any
such matter as a class shall be required to adopt:

     (A)  A  proposed   amendment  to  the  Articles  of  Incorporation  of  the
          corporation;

     (B)  A proposed amendment to the Code of Regulations of the corporation;

     (C)  A  proposal  to  change  the  number  of  directors  by  action of the
          shareholders;

     (D)  An agreement  of merger or  consolidation  providing  for the proposed
          merger or  consolidation  of the corporation  with or into one or more
          other corporations;

     (E)  A proposed  combination  or majority share  acquisition  involving the
          issuance  of  shares  of the  corporation  and  requiring  shareholder
          approval;

     (F)  A proposal to sell, exchange, transfer or otherwise dispose of all, or
          substantially all, of the assets, with or without the goodwill, of the
          corporation; or

     (G)  A proposed dissolution of the corporation.

     SEVENTH:  Until  the  expiration  of  five  years  from  the  date  of  the
acquisition by the corporation of the capital stock of Home City Federal Savings
Bank of Springfield  (the "Bank") to be issued in connection with the conversion
of the Bank from mutual to stock form,  no Person  (hereinafter  defined)  shall
directly or  indirectly  Offer  (hereinafter  defined)  to Acquire  (hereinafter
defined) or Acquire the Beneficial Ownership  (hereinafter defined) of more than
10% of any class of any equity security of the corporation;  provided,  however,
that such prohibition  shall not apply to the purchase of shares by underwriters
in connection  with a public offering or the power of trustees to vote shares of
the  corporation  held by an employee  stock  ownership  plan for the benefit of
employees  of the Bank or the  corporation.  In the event that any shares of the
corporation  are  Acquired in  violation  of this  Article  Seventh,  all shares
Beneficially  Owned by any  Person  in  excess  of 10% of any  class  of  equity
security  of the  corporation  shall not be counted as shares  entitled to vote,
shall not be voted by any Person  and shall not be  counted as voting  shares in
connection  with  any  matter  submitted  to the  shareholders  for a vote.  For
purposes of this Article  Seventh,  the following  terms shall have the meanings
set forth below:

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     (A)  "Person"  includes  an  individual,  a  group  acting  in  concert,  a
          corporation,  a partnership,  an association, a joint stock company, a
          trust, an unincorporated  organization or similar company, a syndicate
          or any other group formed for the purpose of acquiring or disposing of
          the equity  securities  of the  corporation,  but does not  include an
          employee stock ownership plan for the benefit of employees of the Bank
          or the corporation.

     (B)  "Offer"   includes   every   offer  to  buy  or   otherwise   acquire,
          solicitations  or an offer to sell,  tender  offer for,  or request or
          invitation  for tenders  of, a security or interest in a security  for
          value.

     (C)  "Acquire"  includes  every type of  acquisition,  whether  effected by
          purchase, exchange, operation of law or otherwise.

     (D)  "Acting in concert"  means (i)  participation  in a joint  activity or
          conscious  parallel  action  towards  a common  goal,  whether  or not
          pursuant to an express agreement,  or (ii) a combination or pooling of
          voting or other  interests in the securities of an issuer for a common
          purpose  pursuant  to  any  contracts,  understanding,   relationship,
          agreement or other arrangement, whether written or otherwise.

     (E)  "Beneficial  Ownership"  shall include,  without  limitation,  (i) all
          shares  directly  or  indirectly  owned by a Person,  by an  Affiliate
          (hereinafter  defined) of such Person or by an Associate  (hereinafter
          defined) of such Person or such Affiliate,  (ii) all shares which such
          Person,  Affiliate or Associate  has the right to acquire  through the
          exercise of any  option,  warrant or right  (whether or not  currently
          exercisable),  through the  conversion of a security,  pursuant to the
          power to revoke a trust, discretionary account or similar arrangement,
          or pursuant to the  automatic  termination  of a trust,  discretionary
          account or similar arrangement,  and (iii) all shares as to which such
          Person,  Affiliate or  Associate  directly or  indirectly  through any
          contract,  arrangement,   understanding,   relationship  or  otherwise
          (including,  without limitation, any written or unwritten agreement to
          act in concert) has or shares  voting power (which  includes the power
          to dispose or to direct the disposition of such shares) or both.


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     (F)  "Affiliate"  shall mean a Person that directly or indirectly,  through
          one or more intermediaries,  controls or is controlled by, or is under
          common control with, another Person.

     (G)  "Associate" of a Person shall mean (i) any corporation or organization
          (other than the  corporation  or a subsidiary of the  corporation)  of
          which  the  Person  is an  officer  or  partner  or  is,  directly  or
          indirectly,  the beneficial  owner of ten percent or more of any class
          of  equity  securities,  (ii) any  trust or other  estate in which the
          Person has a substantial beneficial interest or as to which the Person
          serves  as  trustee  or in a  similar  fiduciary  capacity,  except  a
          tax-qualified  employee  stock  benefit plan in which the Person has a
          substantial beneficial interest or serves as a trustee or in a similar
          fiduciary capacity or a tax-qualified employee stock benefit plan, and
          (iii) any  relative or spouse of the Person,  or any  relative of such
          spouse,  who has the  same  home as the  Person  or is a  director  or
          officer of the corporation or any of its parents or subsidiaries.

     EIGHTH: No shareholder of the corporation shall have, as a matter of right,
the pre-emptive  right to purchase or subscribe for shares of any class,  now or
hereafter  authorized,  or to  purchase or  subscribe  for  securities  or other
obligations  convertible  into or  exchangeable  for  such  shares  or  which by
warrants or otherwise  entitle the holders  thereof to subscribe for or purchase
any such shares.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto signed my name this 12th day of August,
1996.



                         Douglas L. Ulery, Incorporator


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                            CERTIFICATE OF AMENDMENT
               by Shareholders to the Articles of Incorporation of

                         HOME CITY FINANCIAL CORPORATION
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                              (Name Of Corporation)

   Douglas L. Ulery, who is:

_____Chairman of the Board    __X__President    _____Vice President  (Check one)

and

     Jo Ann Holdeman, who is:

__X__Secretary          _____Assistant Secretary  (Check one)

of the above named Ohio  corporation  for profit do hereby certify that:  (check
the appropriate box and complete the appropriate statements)

_____a meeting of the  shareholders  was duly called for the purpose of adopting
     this  amendment  and held on  __________________,  19___ at which meeting a
     quorum of the  shareholders  was present in person or by proxy,  and by the
     affirmative  vote of the  holders  of  shares  entitling  them to  exercise
     ___________% of the voting power of the corporation.

__X__in a writing  signed by all of the  shareholders  who would be  entitled to
     notice of a meeting held for that  purpose,  the  following  resolution  to
     amend the articles was adopted:

                                 See Exhibit A.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the above named officers,  acting for and on the behalf
of the  corporation,  have  hereto  subscribed  their  names  this  18th  day of
November, 1996.


                                        By Douglas L. Ulery
                                           _____________________________________
                                           President


                                        By Jo Ann Holdeman
                                           _____________________________________
                                           Secretary

NOTE:  Ohio law does not  permit  one  officer  to sign in two  capacities,  Two
separate  signatures are required,  even if this  necessitates the election of a
second officer before the filing can be made.


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                                                                       Exhibit A

      RESOLVED, that the Articles of Incorporation of the Corporation be amended
      by deleting Article FOURTH in its entirety and  substituting  therefor the
      following new Article FOURTH:

               FOURTH:  The authorized  shares of the  corporation  shall be six
               million  (6,000,000),  five million (5,000,000) of which shall be
               common   shares,   each  without  par  value,   and  one  million
               (1,000,000) of which shall be preferred shares,  each without par
               value. The directors of the corporation may adopt an amendment to
               the  Articles  of  Incorporation  in respect of any  unissued  or
               treasury  shares of any  class and  thereby  fix or  change:  the
               division  of such  shares  into  series and the  designation  and
               authorized number of each series; the dividend rate; the dates of
               payment  of   dividends   and  the  dates  from  which  they  are
               cumulative;  the  liquidation  price;  the redemption  rights and
               price; the sinking fund requirements;  the conversion rights; and
               the  restrictions  on the  issuance  of  shares  of any  class or
               series.

      FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Articles of Incorporation of the Corporation be
      amended by adding thereto the following Article NINTH:

               NINTH: No shareholder of the corporation  shall have the right to
               vote cumulatively in the election of directors.