Norwalk, Ohio

The Huron County Courthouse and Jail in downtown Norwalk

On July 11, 1779, Norwalk, Connecticut, was burned by British Loyalists under Lieutenant-general William Tryon. In 1800, the U.S. federal government gave an area in the Connecticut Western Reserve as compensation; and in 1806, 13 men arrived to make the first survey of what would be called the Firelands.[7]

Between 1806 and 1810, many families made the trip to look over land they had purchased in the Firelands. During the War of 1812, because of the fear of British and Indian raids, settlement of the Huron County area came almost to a standstill. However, in 1815, Platt Benedict of Danbury, Connecticut, visited and examined the present site of Norwalk. He returned to Danbury and purchased 1,300 acres (5.3 km²) of land with an eye toward establishing a town.

In July 1817, Benedict returned to Norwalk with his family and immediately built a house. This was the first permanent residence established within the limits of Norwalk. In May 1818, the county seat was successfully removed from Avery, Ohio, to Norwalk.

Benedict was the first white permanent settler in Norwalk,[8] when he came with his wife, Sarah DeForest, and their children. His descendants remained prominent in the area. On January 19, 1936, the Sandusky Daily Register published the obituary of John L. Severance, the multi-millionaire businessman and Standard Oil founding member.[9] In the obituary, he is listed as "a great grandson of Platt Benedict, one of the founders of [Norwalk, Ohio]".

Among the earliest settlers of Norwalk were other men of wealth and education. They brought with them not only the customs, but also the architecture of New England. Many of their homes are still standing today. In 1881, Norwalk's population reached the required minimum to incorporate as a city, and the City of Norwalk dates from April 12, 1881.[10]

The gastroenteritis-causing virus norovirus is named after the city. It was initially named the "Norwalk Agent". The virus was discovered via electron microscopy of a stool sample from the town in 1972.[11]

Norwalk is located at 41°14′35″N 82°36′41″W,[12] at the center of the Firelands, a subregion of the Connecticut Western Reserve. The subregion's name recalls the founding of the area as one for settlers from cities in Connecticut that were largely destroyed by fire during the Revolutionary War. Several locations in the Firelands were named in honor of those cities, including Danbury, Greenwich, Groton, New Haven, New London, Norwalk, Norwich, and Ridgefield. Other locations were named for the settlers, including Clarksfield, Perkins, and Sherman.[13]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.15 square miles (23.70 km²), of which 8.87 square miles (22.97 km²) is land and 0.28 square miles (0.73 km²) is water.[14] The city of Norwalk is bound by Norwalk Township in each direction and a small portion of the west side is bound by Ridgefield Township. The city is located approximately 12 miles (19 km) south of Lake Erie.

Norwalk Public Library

Due to city annexations and previously determined school district boundaries, Norwalk is served by four public school districts. The majority of the city is served by the Norwalk City School District. Outlying portions of the city are also served by the Edison Local, Monroeville Local and Western Reserve Local School Districts.

Norwalk is also home to multiple religious schools, including Norwalk Catholic Schools / Saint Paul High School (Roman Catholic), and Trinity Christian Academy.

Interstates 80 and 90, also known as the Ohio Turnpike, are approximately 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north of Norwalk's city limits with an interchange at U.S. Route 250. The U.S. highways that run through Norwalk include U.S. Route 20 and U.S. Route 250. State highways that run through Norwalk include Ohio State Route 13, State Route 18, and State Route 61. Furthermore, State Route 601 is an alternate two-lane highway that acts as a de facto eastern bypass of Norwalk and US 250, running from State Route 113 at Milan to State Route 18 southeast of Norwalk.

Norwalk's general aviation needs are met by Huron County Airport.

One active freight railroad line runs through Norwalk, the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railroad.

• Fred Baker, founder of Scripps Institution of Oceanography
• Alice Rufie Jordan Blake, first female law graduate at Yale
• Paul Brown, Hall of Fame American football coach
• Ray Gandolf, sportscaster
• Lefty Grove, Hall of Fame baseball pitcher
• Ron Hackenberger, car collector, with 700 vehicles in Norwalk
• Frank Avery Hutchins, librarian
• Ban Johnson, first president of baseball's American League
• Vahdah Olcott-Bickford, classical guitarist
• Dennis A. Reed, member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
• Stephen M. Young, Ohio U.S. Senator and House member

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Norwalk, Ohio.

Wikisource has the text of a 1905 New International Encyclopedia article about "Norwalk, Ohio".

• City website
• Norwalk travel guide from Wikivoyage
• Reynolds, Francis J., ed. (1921). "Norwalk, a town and county-seat of Huron co., O." . Collier's New Encyclopedia. New York: P. F. Collier & Son Company.
• Ripley, George; Dana, Charles A., eds. (1879). "Norwalk, a town and the capital of Huron co., Ohio" . The American Cyclopædia.