Summit County, Ohio

County in Ohio, United States

County in Ohio

Summit County

County

Summit County Courthouse

Flag

Seal

Location within the U.S. state of Ohio

Ohio's location within the U.S.

Coordinates: 41°08′N 81°32′W﻿ / ﻿41.13°N 81.53°W﻿ / 41.13; -81.53
Country|  United States
State|  Ohio
Founded| March 3[1][2], 1840
Named after| the highest elevation on the Ohio and Erie Canal
Seat| Akron
Largest city| Akron
Government

• County Executive| Ilene Shapiro (D)
Area

• Total

| 419.38 sq mi (1,086.2 km2)
• Land| 412.08 sq mi (1,067.3 km2)
• Water| 7.3 sq mi (19 km2)  1.7%
Population

(2020)

• Total

| 540,428

• Estimate

(2022)

| 535,882
• Density| 1,300/sq mi (500/km2)
Time zone| UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)| UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district| 13th
Website| co.summitoh.net

Summit County is an urban county located in the northeast region of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 540,428,[3] making it the fourth-most populous county in Ohio. Its county seat and largest city is Akron.[4] The county was formed on March 3, 1840, from portions of Medina, Portage and Stark counties. It was named Summit County because the highest elevation on the Ohio and Erie Canal is in the county.[5] Summit County is part of the Akron, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Cleveland-Akron-Canton, OH Combined Statistical Area.

## Geography

[edit]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 419.38 square miles (1,086 km2), of which 412.08 square miles (1,067 km2) is land and 7.3 square miles (19 km2) (1.7%) is water.[6] The largest portion of Cuyahoga Valley National Park is in the northern part of the county. The southern border of the former Connecticut Western Reserve passes through the southern part of the county, leading to jogs in the east and west borders of the county.

### Major highways

[edit]

* I-76
* I-77
* I-80 / Ohio Turnpike
* I-271
* I-277
* I-480
* US 224
* SR 8
* SR 18
* SR 21
* SR 59
* SR 82
* SR 91
* SR 93
* SR 162
* SR 176
* SR 236
* SR 241
* SR 261
* SR 303
* SR 585
* SR 619
* SR 764

### Adjacent counties

[edit]

* Cuyahoga County - northwest
* Geauga County - northeast
* Portage County - east
* Stark County - south
* Wayne County - southwest
* Medina County - west

### National protected area

[edit]

* Cuyahoga Valley National Park (also extends north into Cuyahoga County)

## Government

[edit]

See also: Ohio county government

Summit County, along with Cuyahoga County, is one of two of Ohio's 88 counties that have a charter government, as authorized by Article X of the Ohio Constitution. Under its charter, rather than three elected commissioners, Summit County has an elected county executive and an eleven-member county council. Eight members of the council are elected from individual districts; the other three are elected at large. Summit County also has an appointed medical examiner rather than an elected coroner, and an elected fiscal officer, who exercises the powers and performs the duties of a county auditor, treasurer and recorder. The remaining officials are similar to the officials in other counties. They include the following:

SWAT vehicle of the Summit County Sheriff's Office

* Clerk of courts - Tavia Galonski (D) (elected)[7]
* Prosecuting attorney - Elliot Kolkovich (D) (elected) [8]
* Engineer - Alan Brubaker (D) (elected)
* Sheriff - Kandy Fatheree (D) (elected)
* Fiscal officer - Kristen Scalise (D) (elected)

Summit County currently has 14 Common Pleas judges. They are:

* Kelly McLaughlin (D),
* Kathryn Michael (D),
* Christine Croce (R),
* Jennifer Towell (D),[9]
* Alison McCarty (R),
* Tammy O'Brien (R),
* Joy Oldfield (D),[10]
* Mary Margaret Rowlands (D),
* Alison Breaux (D)
* Susan Baker Ross (D)
* Linda Tucci Teodosio (D) (Juvenile Court Judge)
* Katarina Cook (R) (Domestic Relations Judge)
* Kani Hightower (D) (Domestic Relations Judge) [11]
* Elinore Marsh Stormer (D) (Probate Judge)

### Summit County Council

[edit]

Summit County has an 11-member council. Three members are elected at-large in midterm cycles, while eight members are elected from districts coinciding with the presidential election. The current members of Summit County Council are:

* Erin Dickinson (D) (at-large)
* Elizabeth Walters* (D) (at-large) [12]
* John Donofrio (D) (at-large)
* Rita Darrow (D) (District 1)
* John Schmidt (D) (District 2)
* David Licate (D) (District 3) [13]
* Jeff Wilhite (D) (District 4) [14][15]
* Brandon Ford (D) (District 5) [16]
* Christine Higham (D) (District 6) [17]
* Beth McKenney (R) (District 7)
* Joseph Kacyon (R) (District 8)

* Indicates Council President [15]

### County Executives

[edit]

* John R. Morgan, 1981–1989
* Tim Davis, 1989–2001
* James B. McCarthy (D), 2001–2007[18]
* Russell M. Pry (D), 2007-2016[19][20][21][22][23]
* Ilene Shapiro (D), 2016–present

### Politics

[edit]

Like much of Northeast Ohio, Summit is heavily Democratic. It has voted Republican only three times since 1932, all in national Republican landslides– Dwight D. Eisenhower's 1956 victory, and the 49-state sweeps by Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan in 1972 and 1984, respectively.

Overall, the county long-term has trended red since 1988, due to both Ohio's increasingly Republican political environment and a pronounced trend occurring across Donald Trump's three Republican candidacies starting with a sudden 7.13% swing to the right in 2016. In contrast, the leftward swing and John Kerry's substantial margin in the Democratic stronghold even amidst a national loss contributed to Ohio being the tipping-point state in 2004. Even in losing years, Democrats could count on Summit's reliably large margins contributing to closer overall statewide results and Ohio's swing state status. From 1992 to 2012, Democratic strength was such that only twice did Summit County swing to the right, with Barack Obama's margins of victory in the county even averaging 1.14% greater than Bill Clinton's, showing an overall Democratic trend over the years initially. Trump's campaigns dramatically reduced the average Democratic margin to 8.43%, only briefly interrupted by a 1% swing to the left amid Joe Biden's 2020 victory sandwiched in the rightward trend.

United States presidential election results for Summit County, Ohio[24] Year  | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies)

|
|
|

No. | % | No. | % | No. | %
2024 | 125,910  | 45.88%  | 145,005  | 52.83% | 3,539  | 1.29%
2020 | 124,833  | 44.38%  | 151,668  | 53.92% | 4,779  | 1.70%
2016 | 112,026  | 43.03%  | 134,256  | 51.57% | 14,064  | 5.40%
2012 | 111,001  | 41.36%  | 153,041  | 57.03% | 4,316  | 1.61%
2008 | 113,284  | 40.66%  | 160,858  | 57.73% | 4,487  | 1.61%
2004 | 118,558  | 42.91%  | 156,587  | 56.67% | 1,175  | 0.43%
2000 | 96,721  | 43.02%  | 119,759  | 53.26% | 8,359  | 3.72%
1996 | 73,555  | 34.18%  | 112,050  | 52.07% | 29,590  | 13.75%
1992 | 77,530  | 32.10%  | 107,881  | 44.67% | 56,081  | 23.22%
1988 | 101,155  | 46.92%  | 112,612  | 52.23% | 1,822  | 0.85%
1984 | 115,637  | 50.99% | 109,569  | 48.32%  | 1,574  | 0.69%
1980 | 92,299  | 43.35%  | 102,459  | 48.12% | 18,161  | 8.53%
1976 | 80,415  | 38.41%  | 123,711  | 59.09% | 5,224  | 2.50%
1972 | 112,419  | 49.92% | 108,534  | 48.19%  | 4,263  | 1.89%
1968 | 82,649  | 39.56%  | 100,068  | 47.89% | 26,224  | 12.55%
1964 | 68,000  | 32.33%  | 142,319  | 67.67% | 0  | 0.00%
1960 | 109,066  | 49.59%  | 110,852  | 50.41% | 0  | 0.00%
1956 | 102,872  | 52.42% | 93,378  | 47.58%  | 0  | 0.00%
1952 | 91,168  | 48.34%  | 97,443  | 51.66% | 0  | 0.00%
1948 | 60,174  | 42.69%  | 78,096  | 55.41% | 2,680  | 1.90%
1944 | 64,696  | 41.61%  | 90,783  | 58.39% | 0  | 0.00%
1940 | 63,405  | 41.45%  | 89,555  | 58.55% | 0  | 0.00%
1936 | 38,991  | 29.16%  | 91,836  | 68.69% | 2,869  | 2.15%
1932 | 47,691  | 45.03%  | 53,965  | 50.95% | 4,255  | 4.02%
1928 | 78,504  | 70.86% | 31,506  | 28.44%  | 775  | 0.70%
1924 | 53,774  | 65.28% | 17,533  | 21.29%  | 11,064  | 13.43%
1920 | 43,721  | 59.60% | 27,857  | 37.97%  | 1,785  | 2.43%
1916 | 11,593  | 35.63%  | 19,343  | 59.45% | 1,603  | 4.93%
1912 | 3,502  | 15.10%  | 7,786  | 33.57% | 11,904  | 51.33%
1908 | 10,365  | 47.31% | 9,930  | 45.32%  | 1,614  | 7.37%
1904 | 12,451  | 66.04% | 4,618  | 24.49%  | 1,786  | 9.47%
1900 | 10,072  | 53.08% | 8,413  | 44.33%  | 491  | 2.59%
1896 | 8,584  | 51.25% | 8,020  | 47.88%  | 146  | 0.87%
1892 | 6,322  | 46.45%  | 6,499  | 47.75% | 790  | 5.80%
1888 | 6,455  | 51.43% | 5,495  | 43.78%  | 602  | 4.80%
1884 | 6,588  | 55.97% | 4,586  | 38.96%  | 597  | 5.07%
1880 | 5,890  | 57.73% | 4,071  | 39.90%  | 241  | 2.36%
1876 | 5,055  | 56.59% | 3,804  | 42.59%  | 73  | 0.82%
1872 | 4,534  | 62.01% | 2,738  | 37.45%  | 40  | 0.55%
1868 | 4,634  | 65.47% | 2,444  | 34.53%  | 0  | 0.00%
1864 | 4,204  | 69.88% | 1,812  | 30.12%  | 0  | 0.00%
1860 | 3,607  | 65.52% | 1,785  | 32.43%  | 113  | 2.05%
1856 | 3,185  | 63.64% | 1,746  | 34.89%  | 74  | 1.48%
United States Senate election results for Summit County, Ohio1[25] Year  | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies)

|
|
|

No. | % | No. | % | No. | %
2024 | 111,573  | 41.13%  | 150,517  | 55.49% | 9,174  | 3.38%

## Demographics

[edit]

Historical population Census| Pop.| Note| %±

|
|
|

1840| 22,560| | —
1850| 27,485| | 21.8%
1860| 27,344| | −0.5%
1870| 34,674| | 26.8%
1880| 43,788| | 26.3%
1890| 54,089| | 23.5%
1900| 71,715| | 32.6%
1910| 108,253| | 50.9%
1920| 286,065| | 164.3%
1930| 344,131| | 20.3%
1940| 339,405| | −1.4%
1950| 410,032| | 20.8%
1960| 513,569| | 25.3%
1970| 553,371| | 7.8%
1980| 524,472| | −5.2%
1990| 514,990| | −1.8%
2000| 542,899| | 5.4%
2010| 541,781| | −0.2%
2020| 540,428| | −0.2%
2022 (est.)| 535,882| [26]| −0.8%
U.S. Decennial Census[27]
1790-1960[28] 1900-1990[29]
1990-2000[30] 2010-2020[3]

### 2010 census

[edit]

As of the census of 2010, there were 541,781 people, 222,781 households, and 141,110 families residing in the county.[31] The population density was 1,312.6 inhabitants per square mile (506.8/km2). There were 245,109 housing units at an average density of 593.8 per square mile (229.3/km2).[32] The racial makeup of the county was 80.6% white, 14.4% black or African American, 2.2% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 0.5% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.6% of the population.[31] In terms of ancestry, 24.9% were German, 15.3% were Irish, 10.6% were English, 10.1% were Italian, 5.1% were Polish, and 4.5% were American.[33]

Of the 222,781 households, 29.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.3% were married couples living together, 13.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 36.7% were non-families, and 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.98. The median age was 40.0 years.[31]

The median income for a household in the county was $47,926 and the median income for a family was $62,271. Males had a median income of $47,892 versus $35,140 for females. The per capita income for the county was $26,676. About 10.0% of families and 13.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.8% of those under age 18 and 8.0% of those age 65 or over.[34]

## Education

[edit]

Public School Districts in Summit County and Surrounding Areas

### Colleges and universities

[edit]

* University of Akron, Akron
* Kent State University Twinsburg Academic Center, Twinsburg
* Stark State College Akron

## Recreation

[edit]

* Summit Metro Parks

## Communities

[edit]

Map of Summit County, Ohio With Municipal and Township Labels. The map denotes New Franklin and Franklin Township as separate entities, predating their 2003 merger.

### Cities

[edit]

* Akron (county seat)
* Barberton
* Cuyahoga Falls
* Fairlawn
* Green
* Hudson
* Macedonia
* Munroe Falls
* New Franklin
* Norton (partly in Wayne County)
* Stow
* Tallmadge
* Twinsburg

### Villages

[edit]

* Boston Heights
* Clinton
* Lakemore
* Mogadore
* Northfield
* Peninsula
* Reminderville
* Richfield
* Silver Lake

### Townships

[edit]

* Bath
* Boston
* Copley
* Coventry
* Northfield Center
* Richfield
* Sagamore Hills
* Springfield
* Twinsburg

### Defunct townships

[edit]

* Franklin
* Green
* Hudson
* Norton
* Northampton
* Portage
* Stow

### Census-designated places

[edit]

* Montrose-Ghent
* Pigeon Creek
* Portage Lakes
* Sawyerwood
* Twinsburg Heights

### Unincorporated communities

[edit]

* Bath
* Boston
* Botzum
* Brandywine
* Comet
* Copley
* Everett
* Ghent
* Greensburg
* Montrose
* Myersville
* Western Star

## See also

[edit]

* National Register of Historic Places listings in Summit County, Ohio

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Ohio County Profiles: Summit County" (PDF). Ohio Department of Development. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 8, 2007. Retrieved April 28, 2007.
2. ^ "Summit County data". Ohio State University Extension Data Center. Archived from the original on April 24, 2006. Retrieved April 28, 2007.
3. ^ a b "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
4. ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Archived from the original on May 31, 2011. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
5. ^ "Communities in Summit County". County of Summit, Ohio. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 8, 2017.
6. ^ "2010 Census Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on May 4, 2014. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
7. ^ rarmon. "Summit County Democrats appoint Tavia Galonski as clerk of courts". ohio.com. Retrieved January 11, 2024.
8. ^ warsmith. "Summit-County-Democrats-appoint-Elliot-Kolkovich-to-fill-county-prosecutor-vacancy". ohio.com. Retrieved February 22, 2024.
9. ^ "Incumbent judges Susan Steinhauer, Thomas Teodosio defeated". Akron Beacon Journal. November 9, 2022. Retrieved April 27, 2024.
10. ^ swarsmith. "Four Summit County judges elected to other courts must be replaced". ohio.com. Archived from the original on March 1, 2017. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
11. ^ "2022 election results".
12. ^ "Local". ohio.com. Archived from the original on March 1, 2017. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
13. ^ "2024 Summit County Elections: Live Results". November 6, 2024.
14. ^ rarmon. "Democrats appoint Jeff Wilhite to Summit County Council". ohio.com. Archived from the original on March 1, 2017. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
15. ^ a b Mackinnon, Jim. "Wilhite named Summit County Council president, but not without a fight". Akron Beacon Journal. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
16. ^ "Summit County Democrats appoint Elliot Kolkovich to fill county prosecutor vacancy". February 12, 2024.
17. ^ "Summit County Council at-large, District 6 races go to Democrats".
18. ^ McCarthy retired on June 30, 2007. "McCarthy, 67, Turns New Corner,". Akron Beacon Journal, June 30, 2007.
19. ^ "Pry Biography". summit.oh.us. Archived from the original on November 11, 2012. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
20. ^ On July 12, 2007, Pry was appointed by a majority vote of the Summit County Democratic Party's Central Committee to finish the remainder of McCarthy's second term. "Pry Named County Executive." Akron Beacon Journal, July 13, 2007
21. ^ On November 4, 2008, Pry was elected to a four-year term as County Executive with over 60% of the vote. "Republicans Lose More Ground in Summit Races, Democrats Gain Spot with Brubaker Beating Incumbent Engineer." Akron Beacon Journal, November 6, 2008
22. ^ On November 6, 2012, Pry was elected to a second four-year term as County Executive with over 62% of the vote. "Democrats Maintain Summit County Seats." Akron Beacon Journal, November 7, 2012
23. ^ Pry died in office on July 31, 2016, at age 58. "Summit County Executive Russ Pry dies at 58". August 2016. Archived from the original on August 4, 2016. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
24. ^ Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Archived from the original on March 23, 2018. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
25. ^ "2024 Senate Election (Official Returns)". Commonwealth of Texas by county. November 5, 2024. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
26. ^ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Counties: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022". Census.gov. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
27. ^ "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
28. ^ "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Archived from the original on August 11, 2012. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
29. ^ Forstall, Richard L., ed. (March 27, 1995). "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 14, 2015. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
30. ^ "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. April 2, 2001. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 18, 2014. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
31. ^ a b c "DP-1 Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2015.
32. ^ "Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 – County". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2015.
33. ^ "DP02 SELECTED SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS IN THE UNITED STATES – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2015.
34. ^ "DP03 SELECTED ECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS – 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2015.

## External links

[edit]

* Official Summit County page
* Akron-Summit Convention and Visitors Bureau
* Summit Memory, an online scrapbook capturing the history of Summit County, Ohio by the Akron-Summit County Public Library

Places adjacent to Summit County, Ohio

| Cuyahoga County | Cuyahoga County | Geauga County

|
|

|  |
Medina County |

Summit County, Ohio

| Portage County
|  |
Wayne County | Stark County | Stark County

* v
* t
* e

Municipalities and communities of Summit County, Ohio, United States

County seat: Akron

Cities|

* Akron
* Barberton
* Cuyahoga Falls
* Fairlawn
* Green
* Hudson
* Macedonia
* Munroe Falls
* New Franklin
* Norton‡
* Reminderville
* Stow
* Tallmadge‡
* Twinsburg

Map of Ohio highlighting Summit County

Villages|

* Boston Heights
* Clinton
* Lakemore
* Mogadore‡
* Northfield
* Peninsula
* Richfield
* Silver Lake

Townships|

* Bath
* Boston
* Copley
* Coventry
* Northfield Center
* Richfield
* Sagamore Hills
* Springfield
* Twinsburg

CDPs|

* Montrose-Ghent
* Pigeon Creek
* Portage Lakes
* Sawyerwood
* Twinsburg Heights

Unincorporated
communities|

* Bath
* Boston
* Botzum
* Brandywine
* Comet
* Copley
* Everett
* Ghent
* Greensburg
* Montrose
* Myersville
* Western Star‡

Footnotes|

‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties

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41°08′N 81°32′W﻿ / ﻿41.13°N 81.53°W﻿ / 41.13; -81.53
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