DELAWARE 43015

  • Founded in 1808, the City of Delaware is the county seat of Delaware County.
  • Despite being named after the Delaware tribe of Native Americans, the city was actually founded on a Mingo (a branch of the Iroquois) village.
  • The original Native American settlement was a base of operations for an 18th century chieftain named Pluggy and therefore named “Pluggy’s Town”. He was famous for being allied with the Shawnee and leading numerous raids against settlements all throughout the region.
  • The first settler on record is a man named Joseph Barber in 1807; followed by William Little, Moses Byxbe, Ira Carpenter (No relation to the AIS family!), Thomas Butler, Elder Jacob Drake and Solomon Smith. This led to a plan of the city being filed on March 11, 1808 and the town being officially founded.
  • In 1812 the capital of Ohio was moved from Chillicothe and Delaware lost to Columbus by only one vote.
  • The parents of our 19th President, Rutherford B. Hayes, were among the early settlers.
  • Two Union training camps were in Delaware during the Civil War.
  • The area is also rich in culture, being the home to Ohio Wesleyan University, Perkins Observatory, Olentangy Indian Caverns, The Methodist Theological School in Ohio and even has numerous locales that are reportedly haunted.
  • Delaware has a sister city in Germany named Baumholder.
  • In addition to being the hometown of a U.S. President, Delaware has also produced a First Lady, Vice President, professional athletes, actors, novelists, movie directors and even a Nobel Prize winner!