Harveysburg, Ohio
Encyclopedia
Harveysburg is a village in Massie Township
, Warren County, Ohio
, United States
. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 563, up from 437 in 1990. It is best known as the home of the Ohio Renaissance Festival
.
Quakers Jesse and Elizabeth Harvey founded the school. Like most Quakers, the Harveys believed strongly in education. They also believed in equal opportunity for African Americans with whites. Elizabeth Harvey was especially concerned about the lack of free education for Ohio's African-American children and convinced her husband to construct a one-room schoolhouse to assist black children in attaining an education. While the institution is now known as the Harveysburg Free Black School, the school permitted any children of color to attend. Constructed of brick, the Harveysburg Free Black School remained in operation as a school until the early 1900s, when African-Americans were finally permitted to attend historically white schools in the community. The school relied on donations, principally from the Grove Monthly Meeting of Friends in Harveysburg, to remain open. In addition to opening the Harveysburg Free Black School, the couple also established a seminary for white children in the community
Upon the school's closing, the building became a private home. In 1976, the Harveysburg Bicentennial Committee acquired the building and restored it to its original appearance. The Harveysburg Free Black School now serves as the Harveysburg Community Historical Society's headquarters
Information from Ohio historical marker at building site:
Side A of Historical Marker: "Harveysburg"
The Quaker village of Harveysburg was founded in 1829 on land originally a part of Colonel Abraham Buford's Revolutionary War Land Grant. Levi Lukens, a Virginia Quaker, purchased the 1000 - acre survey in 1812 and sold a portion to Rhoden Ham in 1815. Ham then sold a portion of his holdings to William Harvey, a Quaker originally from North Carolina, who developed 47 lots for a village which thrived from its beginnings. Early businesses included grist mills, a tin shop, hardware store, blacksmith shop, a large pork packing plant, a bank, and a dry goods store owned by William Harvey. Its first post office opened in 1839. Harveysburg was incorporated in 1844. The village received its name from a merchant in Cincinnati who told William Harvey that he should add burg to his name and call the place Harveysburg.
Side B of historical marker: "The Harveysburg School"
In Harveysburg's early years Elizabeth Harvey, wife of Dr. Jesse Harvey, recognized the need to educate African American and Native American children in the area. The Harveys built the Harverysburg School in 1831, which was one of the first schools for such minority children in Ohio and the Northwest Territory. It was supported by the Harveys and members of the Grove Monthly Meeting of Friends. Stephen Wall, a wealthy North Carolina plantation owner, provided funding to relocate eight slave children and their families to Harveysburg for their education at this school. Orindatus S.B. Wall, oldest son of Steven became the first regular commissioned African American captain in the U.S. Army during the Civil War. This school closed in 1909 when classes became too small to continue. In 1976 the Harveysburg Bicentennial Committee purchased the building, restored it, and opened it to the public as a symbol of freedom through education.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the village has a total area of 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²), all of it land.
of 2000, there were 563 people, 191 households, and 152 families residing in the village. The population density
was 857.1 people per square mile (329.4/km²). There were 208 housing units at an average density of 316.7 per square mile (121.7/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 96.45% White, 2.13% African American, 0.18% Asian, 0.18% from other races
, and 1.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.95% of the population.
There were 191 households out of which 45.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.8% were married couples
living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.9% were non-families. 14.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.95 and the average family size was 3.29.
In the village the population was spread out with 32.3% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 32.7% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 7.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.4 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $44,750, and the median income for a family was $49,063. Males had a median income of $31,923 versus $23,333 for females. The per capita income
for the village was $16,918. About 7.7% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.4% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.
exchanges.
Massie Township, Warren County, Ohio
Massie Township, one of the eleven townships of Warren County, Ohio, Ohio, United States, is located in the northeast part of the county and the least populous of Warren County's townships. In 2000, the population was 1,061 up from 885 in 1990; of this total, 498 lived in the unincorporated...
, Warren County, Ohio
Warren County, Ohio
Warren County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States. The population was 212,693 at the 2010 census. Its county seat is Lebanon. Warren County was erected May 1, 1803, from Hamilton County, and named for Dr...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 563, up from 437 in 1990. It is best known as the home of the Ohio Renaissance Festival
Ohio Renaissance Festival
The Ohio Renaissance Festival is an annual event that takes place on weekends from early September through the middle of October and is open on Labor Day. This Renaissance festival is held in Harveysburg, Ohio. It is set in a 16th century English village called Willy-Nilly-On-The-Wash, during the...
.
History
Established in 1831 in Harveysburg, the Harveysburg Free Black School was the first free school for African-American children in Ohio.Quakers Jesse and Elizabeth Harvey founded the school. Like most Quakers, the Harveys believed strongly in education. They also believed in equal opportunity for African Americans with whites. Elizabeth Harvey was especially concerned about the lack of free education for Ohio's African-American children and convinced her husband to construct a one-room schoolhouse to assist black children in attaining an education. While the institution is now known as the Harveysburg Free Black School, the school permitted any children of color to attend. Constructed of brick, the Harveysburg Free Black School remained in operation as a school until the early 1900s, when African-Americans were finally permitted to attend historically white schools in the community. The school relied on donations, principally from the Grove Monthly Meeting of Friends in Harveysburg, to remain open. In addition to opening the Harveysburg Free Black School, the couple also established a seminary for white children in the community
Upon the school's closing, the building became a private home. In 1976, the Harveysburg Bicentennial Committee acquired the building and restored it to its original appearance. The Harveysburg Free Black School now serves as the Harveysburg Community Historical Society's headquarters
Information from Ohio historical marker at building site:
Side A of Historical Marker: "Harveysburg"
The Quaker village of Harveysburg was founded in 1829 on land originally a part of Colonel Abraham Buford's Revolutionary War Land Grant. Levi Lukens, a Virginia Quaker, purchased the 1000 - acre survey in 1812 and sold a portion to Rhoden Ham in 1815. Ham then sold a portion of his holdings to William Harvey, a Quaker originally from North Carolina, who developed 47 lots for a village which thrived from its beginnings. Early businesses included grist mills, a tin shop, hardware store, blacksmith shop, a large pork packing plant, a bank, and a dry goods store owned by William Harvey. Its first post office opened in 1839. Harveysburg was incorporated in 1844. The village received its name from a merchant in Cincinnati who told William Harvey that he should add burg to his name and call the place Harveysburg.
Side B of historical marker: "The Harveysburg School"
In Harveysburg's early years Elizabeth Harvey, wife of Dr. Jesse Harvey, recognized the need to educate African American and Native American children in the area. The Harveys built the Harverysburg School in 1831, which was one of the first schools for such minority children in Ohio and the Northwest Territory. It was supported by the Harveys and members of the Grove Monthly Meeting of Friends. Stephen Wall, a wealthy North Carolina plantation owner, provided funding to relocate eight slave children and their families to Harveysburg for their education at this school. Orindatus S.B. Wall, oldest son of Steven became the first regular commissioned African American captain in the U.S. Army during the Civil War. This school closed in 1909 when classes became too small to continue. In 1976 the Harveysburg Bicentennial Committee purchased the building, restored it, and opened it to the public as a symbol of freedom through education.
Geography
Harveysburg is located at 39°30′0"N 84°0′14"W (39.500100, -84.003915).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the village has a total area of 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²), all of it land.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 563 people, 191 households, and 152 families residing in the village. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 857.1 people per square mile (329.4/km²). There were 208 housing units at an average density of 316.7 per square mile (121.7/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 96.45% White, 2.13% African American, 0.18% Asian, 0.18% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.95% of the population.
There were 191 households out of which 45.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.8% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.9% were non-families. 14.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.95 and the average family size was 3.29.
In the village the population was spread out with 32.3% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 32.7% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 7.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.4 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $44,750, and the median income for a family was $49,063. Males had a median income of $31,923 versus $23,333 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the village was $16,918. About 7.7% of families and 8.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.4% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.
Notable natives and residents
- Rev. Larry Davis, a BaptistBaptistBaptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
minister who pled guilty to charges stemming from misappropriationMisappropriationIn law, misappropriation is the intentional, illegal use of the property or funds of another person for one's own use or other unauthorized purpose, particularly by a public official, a trustee of a trust, an executor or administrator of a dead person's estate or by any person with a responsibility...
of church funds - Kersey GravesKersey GravesKersey Graves was a skeptic, atheist, spiritualist, Nontheist Friend, reformist and writer.-Life:Kersey Graves was born in Brownsville, Pennsylvania on 21 November 1813.. His parents were Quakers, and as a young man he followed them in their observance, and then later moved to the Hicksite wing...
, a skepticSkepticismSkepticism has many definitions, but generally refers to any questioning attitude towards knowledge, facts, or opinions/beliefs stated as facts, or doubt regarding claims that are taken for granted elsewhere...
, atheistAtheismAtheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
, spiritualist, theological reformist, and writerWriterA writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images.... - Donald Edgar "Buz" LukensBuz LukensDonald Edgar "Buz" Lukens was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio. His political career ended in scandal.-Early years:...
, a Republican member of the U.S. House of RepresentativesUnited States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from OhioOhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus... - Charles W. SandersCharles W. SandersCharles W. Sanders is an insurance agent, tour bus driver, and retired Ohio auto worker who has run as a Democrat for the U.S. House of Representatives four times in Ohio's heavily Republican Second Congressional District from 1998 to 2004, losing four times to incumbent Congressman Robert J....
, Democratic political candidate for the U.S. House of RepresentativesUnited States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
in Ohio's Second Congressional DistrictCongressional districtA congressional district is “a geographical division of a state from which one member of the House of Representatives is elected.”Congressional Districts are made up of three main components, a representative, constituents, and the specific land area that both the representative and the...
Other
The entire village is in the Clinton Massie Local School District. Mail is delivered through the Harveysburg post office while telephone service is supplied through the WaynesvilleWaynesville, Ohio
Waynesville is a village in Wayne Township, Warren County, Ohio, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 2,558, up from 1,949 in 1990. It is named for General "Mad" Anthony Wayne. The village, located at the crossroads of U.S. Route 42 and State Route 73, is known for its...
exchanges.