170-545: Ashtabula County ( / ˌ æ ʃ t ə ˈ b j uː l ə / ASH -tə- BYU -lə ) is the northeasternmost county in the U.S. state of Ohio . As of the 2020 census , the population was 97,574. The county seat is Jefferson , while its largest city is Ashtabula . The county was created in 1808 and later organized in 1811. The name Ashtabula derives from the Lenape language phrase ashte-pihële , which translates to 'always enough (fish) to go around, to be given away' and
340-1054: A city , town , or village . A few counties directly provide public transportation themselves, usually in the form of a simple bus system. However, in most counties, public transportation is provided by one of the following: a special district that is coterminous with the county (but exists separately from the county government), a multi-county regional transit authority, or a state agency. In western and southern states, more populated counties provide many facilities, such as airports, convention centers , museums, recreation centers , beaches, harbors, zoos, clinics, law libraries , and public housing . They provide services such as child and family services, elder services, mental health services, welfare services, veterans assistance services, animal control , probation supervision, historic preservation, food safety regulation, and environmental health services. They have many additional officials like public defenders , arts commissioners, human rights commissioners, and planning commissioners. There may be
510-446: A consolidated city-county or independent city exists, a city council usually governs city/county or city affairs. In some counties, day-to-day operations are overseen by an elected county executive or by a chief administrative officer or county administrator who reports to the board, the mayor, or both. In many states, the board in charge of a county holds powers that transcend all three traditional branches of government. It has
680-563: A preliminary raid . Natives gathered nearly 2,000 warriors at Kekionga in anticipation of facing Scott's Kentuckians, but Scott instead turned northwest and targeted undefended Wea towns on the Wabash River, destroying Ouiatenon and Kethtippecanunk (Tippecanoe). St. Clair had hoped to start his campaign in July, but he was delayed by his illness as well as a shortage of recruits. In August, he sent Lieutenant Colonel James Wilkinson on
850-729: A boundary and that hostilities had been officially suspended. Brant returned to the Maumee and reported to the Confederacy, and although he had some supporters, he was denounced for not insisting on the Ohio River boundary. A new delegation (without Brant) was sent to meet the commissioners on the Detroit River. This second meeting, held at British Indian agent Matthew Elliot's estate near Amherstburg , began on July 30. The Wyandot chief Carry-One-About (So-Wagh-da-Wunk) spoke for
1020-424: A county fire department and a county police department – as distinguished from fire and police departments operated by individual cities, special districts, or the state government. For example, Gwinnett County, Georgia , and its county seat, the city of Lawrenceville , each have their own police departments. (A separate county sheriff's department is responsible for security of the county courts and administration of
1190-590: A defense, made difficult because the Natives fired from cover, targeting officers and artillerymen. Lieutenant Colonel William Darke led a bayonet charge, temporarily creating an opening for the Natives to enter the American encampment. After three hours of fighting, St. Clair ordered a retreat, abandoning many wounded and most of the army's equipment. Among the wounded left behind was Major General Richard Butler , St. Clair's second-in-command, who Natives killed after
1360-509: A detachment of about 300 men to the site of St. Clair's defeat. There, his troops built Fort Recovery , buried the American dead still on the battlefield, and recovered three of the cannons lost there in 1791. In January 1794, the Confederacy sent a delegation to Fort Greenville to arrange the release of two Lenape women held by the Americans. A Lenape chief asked if Wayne was willing to hold peace talks. Wayne said he would only negotiate if
1530-465: A dilemma. He had to keep peace with the United States to avoid opening another front in the war with France while at the same time maintaining British influence among the Natives in case they were needed to help defend Upper Canada against the Americans. At Niagara, the U.S. commissioners were visited by a Native delegation led by Brant. Although Brant had been one of the principal organizers of
1700-563: A family was $ 50,227. Males had a median income of $ 40,879 versus $ 30,156 for females. The per capita income for the county was $ 19,898. About 11.8% of families and 15.7% of the population were below the poverty line , including 21.7% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over. According to the accompanying table, Ashtabula County voted for the Democratic candidate for president in every election between 1988 and 2012. Prior to that, however, no fewer than 19 Republican candidates won
1870-465: A few counties bear names of Native American , French, or Spanish origin. Counties are most often named for people, often political figures or early settlers, with over 2,100 of the 3,144 total so named. The most common county name, with 31, is Washington County , for America's first president, George Washington . Up until 1871, there was a Washington County within the District of Columbia , but it
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#17327730565702040-583: A group of mostly minor chiefs signed the Treaty of Fort Harmar , which merely confirmed the terms of the previous disputed treaties. "I am persuaded their general confederacy is entirely broken," wrote St. Clair. Instead of breaking the Confederacy, St. Clair had discredited Natives willing to compromise and strengthened the influence of the militants. After the Fort Harmar treaty, violence between Natives and settlers escalated. Natives attacked flatboats on
2210-400: A land area of 20,057 square miles (51,947 km ). The least extensive county is Kalawao County, Hawaii , with a land area of 11.991 square miles (31.058 km ). The least extensive county equivalent in the 50 states is the independent city of Falls Church, Virginia , with a land area of 1.999 square miles (5.177 km ). If U.S. territories are included,
2380-453: A large number of counties, and many Western states were sparsely populated when counties were created by their respective state legislatures. The five counties of Rhode Island and eight of the 14 counties of Massachusetts no longer have functional county governments, but continue to exist as legal and census entities. Connecticut abolished county governments in 1960, leaving its eight counties as mere legal and census entities. In 2022,
2550-888: A matter of U.S. state law , so the specific governmental powers of counties may vary widely between the states, with many providing some level of services to civil townships , municipalities , and unincorporated areas . Certain municipalities are in multiple counties ; New York City is uniquely partitioned into five counties, referred to at the city government level as boroughs . Some municipalities have been consolidated with their county government to form consolidated city-counties , or have been legally separated from counties altogether to form independent cities . Conversely, counties in Connecticut and Rhode Island , eight of Massachusetts's 14 counties , and Alaska's Unorganized Borough have no government power, existing only as geographic distinctions. The United States Census Bureau uses
2720-543: A new boundary, preserving everything west of the Muskingum River as Native land. When St. Clair dismissed the idea, Brant boycotted the negotiations and suggested others do the same. The Northwestern Confederacy was deeply divided. Those living closest to the Americans supported compromising. Those further away – the Miamis, Lenapes, and Shawnees around Kekionga – insisted upon the Ohio River boundary. In January 1789,
2890-415: A population over 100,000; 137 counties have a population over 500,000; 45 counties have a population over 1,000,000; and 14 counties have a population over 2,000,000. At the other extreme, 35 counties have a population under 1,000; 307 counties have a population under 5,000; 709 counties have a population under 10,000; and 1,492 counties have a population between 10,000 and 50,000. At the 2000 U.S. Census ,
3060-614: A reference point, the Greenville Treaty Line forced the northwest Native American tribes to cede southern and eastern Ohio and various tracts of land around forts and settlements in Illinois Country ; to recognize the U.S. rather than Britain as the ruling power in the Old Northwest; and to surrender ten chiefs as hostages until all American prisoners were returned. The Miami also lost private control of
3230-457: A second raid, which had originally been intended as a diversion in support of the main expedition. Wilkinson, with 500 mounted Kentucky militiamen, destroyed a Miami town on the Eel River . Wilkinson killed 9 Wea and Miami and captured 34 Miami as prisoners, including a daughter of Miami war chief Little Turtle. Many of the confederation leaders were considering terms of peace to present to
3400-580: A series of significant defeats, including the Harmar campaign (1790) and St. Clair's defeat (1791), which is among the worst defeats ever suffered in the history of the U.S. Army . It was also later discovered that the British had a frequent tactic of dressing up as Native Americans to participate in their battles. St. Clair's devastating loss destroyed most of the United States Army and left
3570-498: A skirmish known as Hartshorne's Defeat , leaving five settlers dead and eight missing. That autumn, the United States launched a major offensive against the Natives along the Maumee River. This punitive expedition was led by General Harmar, whose orders were to destroy Kekionga and the surrounding towns, killing any Natives who opposed him. His army, consisting of 1,100 militiamen and 320 regulars, departed Fort Washington on
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#17327730565703740-524: A small detachment of Mohawks, and a British company of Canadian militiamen dressed as Native Americans under William Caldwell . Odawa and Potawatomi, under Little Otter and Egushawa, occupied the center and initiated the attack against the Legion's scouts. Front elements of the Legion's columns initially collapsed under pursuing Native Americans. Wayne immediately committed his reserves to the center to halt their advance and divided his infantry into two wings,
3910-576: A truce with the Northwestern Confederacy. Alarmed by the killing of the previous emissaries, he instead went to Vincennes and, in September 1792, negotiated a treaty with tribes of the lower Wabash River. Knox believed this treaty had weakened the Confederacy by 800 warriors, though the signers were not militant members of the Confederacy. In any event, the U.S. Senate ultimately rejected the treaty because it did not specify that only
4080-590: A year building, training, and acquiring supplies. After a methodical campaign up the Great Miami and Maumee river valleys in western Ohio Country, Wayne led his Legion to a decisive victory at the Battle of Fallen Timbers near the southwestern shore of Lake Erie (near modern Toledo, Ohio ) in 1794. Afterward, he went on to establish Fort Wayne at the Miami capital of Kekionga , the symbol of U.S. sovereignty in
4250-428: Is Lake . Words from Native American languages, as well as the names of Native American leaders and tribes, lend their names to many counties. Quite a few counties bear names of French or Spanish origin, such as Marquette County being named after French missionary Father Jacques Marquette . The county's equivalent in the state of Louisiana, the parish (Fr. paroisse civile and Sp. parroquia ) took its name during
4420-572: Is 343 sq mi (890 km ), whereas in Utah it is 2,427 sq mi (6,290 km ). The most extensive county or county equivalent is the Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska , with a land area of 145,505 square miles (376,856 km ). All nine of the most extensive county equivalents are in Alaska. The most extensive county is San Bernardino County, California , with
4590-467: Is a contraction of apchi ('always') + tepi ('enough') + hële (verb of motion). Ashtabula County is part of the Cleveland, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area . The county is best known for having nineteen covered bridges within the county limits, including both the longest and the shortest covered bridges in the United States. Grapes are a popular crop and there are several award-winning wineries in
4760-412: Is an unusual case because it encompasses multiple entire counties in one city. Each of those counties is coextensive with one of the five boroughs of the city: Manhattan (New York County), The Bronx (Bronx County), Queens (Queens County), Brooklyn (Kings County), and Staten Island (Richmond County). Northwest Indian War The Northwest Indian War (1785–1795), also known by other names,
4930-500: Is either done at the state level or at the municipal level. In Connecticut and parts of Massachusetts, regional councils have been established to partially fill the void left behind by the abolished county governments. The regional councils' authority is limited compared with a county government—they have authority only over infrastructure and land use planning, distribution of state and federal funds for infrastructure projects, emergency preparedness, and limited law enforcement duties. In
5100-399: Is greater than the populations of 41 U.S. states, and is only slightly smaller than the combined population of the 10 least populous states and Washington, D.C. It also makes the population of Los Angeles County 17.4 times greater than that of the least populous state, Wyoming. The second most populous county is Cook County, Illinois , with a population of 5,275,541. Cook County's population
5270-542: Is land and 666 square miles (1,720 km) (49%) is water. It is the largest county in Ohio by area. Across Lake Erie lie Elgin and Norfolk Counties, Ontario , Canada (north). As of the census of 2000, there were 102,728 people, 39,397 households, and 27,774 families residing in the county. The population density was 146 inhabitants per square mile (56/km). There were 43,792 housing units at an average density of 62 units per square mile (24/km). The racial makeup of
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5440-455: Is larger than that of 28 individual U.S. states and the combined populations of the six smallest states. The least populous county is Loving County, Texas , with 64 residents in 2020. Eight county equivalents in the U.S. territories have no human population: Rose Atoll , Northern Islands Municipality , Baker Island , Howland Island , Jarvis Island , Johnston Atoll , Kingman Reef , and Navassa Island . The remaining three islands in
5610-719: Is no formal level of government (municipality, public education, or otherwise) existing below that of the county in the state. In most Midwestern and Northeastern states, counties are further subdivided into townships or towns , which sometimes exercise local powers or administration. Throughout the United States, counties may contain other independent, self-governing municipalities . In New England, counties function at most as judicial court districts and sheriff's departments (presently, in Connecticut only as judicial court districts—and in Rhode Island , they have lost both those functions and most others but they are still used by
5780-410: Is rarely a county responsibility, execution of capital punishment is never a county responsibility, and the state's responses to prisoners' appeals are the responsibility of the state attorney general , who has to defend before the state appellate courts the prosecutions conducted by locally elected district attorneys in the name of the state. Furthermore, county-level trial court judges are officers of
5950-562: Is simultaneously a city, which is a municipality (municipal corporation), and a county, which is an administrative division of a state, having the powers and responsibilities of both types of entities. The city limit or jurisdiction is synonymous with the county line, as the two administrative entities become a non-dichotomous single entity. For this reason, a consolidated city-county is officially remarked as name of city – name of county (i.e., Augusta–Richmond County in Georgia). The same
6120-506: Is true of the boroughs of New York City , each of which is coextensive with a county of New York State. For those entities in which the city uses the same name as the county, city and county of name may be used (i.e., City and County of Denver in Colorado). Similarly, some of Alaska 's boroughs have merged with their principal cities, creating unified city-boroughs. Some such consolidations and mergers have created cities that rank among
6290-652: The Alaska Constitutional Convention wanted to avoid the traditional county system and adopted their own unique model with different types of boroughs varying in powers and duties. In some states, these powers are partly or mostly devolved to the counties' smaller divisions usually called townships , though in New York, New England and Wisconsin they are called "towns". The county may or may not be able to override its townships on certain matters, depending on state law. The newest county in
6460-458: The City and County of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania ; City and County of San Francisco, California ; and Lynchburg-Moore County, Tennessee A consolidated city-county may still contain independent municipalities maintaining some governmental powers that did not merge with the rest of the county. For example, the government of Jacksonville–Duval County, Florida , still provides county-level services to
6630-790: The Erie people in the east and the Whittlesey culture in the west. The Erie were an Iroquoian people, who were organized like the Iroquois, believed in a similar religion and lived in longhouses in palisaded villages and may have had a burial ground at what is now Erie, PA, whereas the uncontacted Whittlesey are mostly believed to have been Algonquians, who also lived in longhouses at the time of contact (after having gone through prior periods of living in wigwams and Fort Ancient style houses) in villages surrounded by earthen berm walls and had smaller, local burial grounds near each settlement. The French were
6800-728: The Kingdom of Great Britain in article 2 of the Treaty of Paris , which ended the American Revolutionary War . The treaty used the Great Lakes as a border between British territory and the United States. This granted significant territory to the United States, initially known as the Ohio Country and the Illinois Country , which had previously been prohibited to new settlements. However, numerous Native American peoples inhabited this region and were unaware of
6970-603: The Mid-Atlantic and Midwest , counties typically provide, at a minimum, courts, public utilities , libraries, hospitals, public health services, parks, roads, law enforcement, and jails. There is usually a county registrar, recorder, or clerk (the exact title varies) who collects vital statistics , holds elections (sometimes in coordination with a separate elections office or commission), and prepares or processes certificates of births, deaths, marriages, and dissolutions (divorce decrees). The county recorder normally maintains
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7140-566: The New York City Borough of Manhattan), with 72,033 persons per square mile (27,812 persons/km ) in 2015. The Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska , is both the most extensive and the least densely populated county or county equivalent with 0.0380 persons per square mile (0.0147 persons/km ) in 2015. In the 50 states (plus the District of Columbia), a total of 981 counties have a population over 50,000; 592 counties have
7310-601: The Northwest Territory , then was purchased by the Connecticut Land Company in 1795, culminating in the settlement of the first American residents in the region. It was created from Geauga County and a small portion of northern Trumbull County . During the pre- Civil War period, the entire Western Reserve area of Ohio was anti-slavery, but Ashtabula County was at the center of the resistance. John Brown 's eldest son, John Jr. , lived in
7480-576: The Province of Maine founded York County . Massachusetts followed in 1643. Pennsylvania and New York delegated significant power and responsibility from the colony government to county governments and thereby established a pattern for most of the United States, although counties remained relatively weak in New England . When independence came, the framers of the Constitution left
7650-437: The U.S. Minor Outlying Islands ( Midway Atoll , Palmyra Atoll and Wake Island ) have small non-permanent human populations. The county equivalent with the smallest non-zero population counted in the census is Swains Island, American Samoa (17 people), although since 2008 this population has not been permanent either. The most densely populated county or county equivalent is New York County, New York (coextensive with
7820-582: The USGS counts Guam's election districts (villages) as county equivalents. The U.S. Census Bureau counts the 3 main islands in the U.S. Virgin Islands as county equivalents, while the USGS counts the districts of the U.S. Virgin Islands (of which there are 2) as county equivalents. Common sources of county names are names of people, geographic features, places in other states or countries, and animals. Quite
7990-552: The United States , a county or county equivalent is an administrative or political subdivision of a U.S. state or other territories of the United States which consists of a geographic area with specific boundaries and usually some level of governmental authority. The term " county " is used in 48 states, while Louisiana and Alaska have functionally equivalent subdivisions called parishes and boroughs , respectively. Counties and other local governments exist as
8160-689: The United States Census Bureau and some other federal agencies for some federal functions), and most of the governmental authority below the state level is in the hands of towns and cities . In several of Maine's sparsely populated counties, small towns rely on the county for law enforcement, and in New Hampshire several social programs are administered at the state level. In Connecticut, Rhode Island, and parts of Massachusetts, counties are now only geographic designations, and they do not have any governmental powers. All government
8330-631: The Wabash River . Beset by logistical problems, mutiny, and desertion, Clark returned without accomplishing anything. In October, Logan led 790 Kentucky militiamen to the Shawnee towns along the Mad River . The towns were inhabited primarily by noncombatants because the warriors had scattered for the winter hunt. Logan's men burned the towns and food supplies, killing and capturing numerous Natives. Moluntha , an elderly Shawnee chief who had signed
8500-537: The War of 1812 . Fort Detroit was abandoned one year later as American forces advanced towards it, and Fort Miami was abandoned in 1814 and eventually demolished. Most of the western U.S. forts were also abandoned after 1796; Fort Washington, the last, was moved across the Ohio River to Kentucky in 1804 to make room for a growing settlement at Cincinnati ; it became the Newport Barracks . General Wayne supervised
8670-471: The county seat ("parish seat" in Louisiana, "borough seat" in Alaska, or " shire town " in several New England counties). The county seat usually resides in a municipality. However, some counties may have multiple seats or no seat. In some counties with no incorporated municipalities, a large settlement may serve as the county seat. The power of county governments varies widely from state to state, as does
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#17327730565708840-478: The median land area of U.S. counties was 622 sq mi (1,610 km ), which is two-thirds of the median land area of a ceremonial county of England , and a little more than a quarter of the median land area of a French département . Counties in the western United States typically have a much larger land area than those in the eastern United States. For example, the median land area of counties in Georgia
9010-593: The 1650s. The Jesuit Relations claim rumors of infighting between the Erie and an unknown nation to the west of them who were similar to other Algonquian peoples the French had already encountered in the years prior to both tribes' eradication. Three known village sites have been documented by archaeologists from this period in Windsor (located inside what is now a private children's Summer Camp) and two at Conneaut. Following
9180-451: The 50 states and District of Columbia. There are an additional 100 county equivalents in the territories of the United States . The average number of counties per state is 62, with a range from the three counties of Delaware to the 254 counties of Texas . Southern and Midwestern states generally tend to have more counties than Western or Northeastern states, as many Northeastern states are not large enough in area to warrant
9350-461: The 50 states and the District of Columbia. If the 100 county equivalents in the U.S. territories are counted, then the total is 3,244 counties and county-equivalents in the United States. The idea of counties originated with the counties of England . English (after 1707, British ) colonists brought to their colonies in North America a political subdivision that they already used in
9520-480: The American supply lines, cutting off Wayne's Legion. Recently arrived Three Fire leaders, whose warriors comprised most of the army, favored attacking a convoy near Fort Recovery. They prevailed in the council, and so on June 30 warriors ambushed the convoy then rushed the fort, but they were driven off by American musket fire and artillery. The attack's failure discouraged the Three Fires contingent, who accused
9690-734: The Beaver Wars, and the first conflict of the French-Indian Wars coming to an end in 1701, an official border between England and France was established at what is now the Ohio-PA border, leading to English forts being erected all along the Pennsylvania side that became crucial in the later conflicts of the French-Indian Wars over the next 50 years. After Europeans arrived in the Americas, the land that became Ashtabula County
9860-942: The British metropole : the counties. Counties were among the earliest units of local government established in the Thirteen Colonies that would become the United States. Virginia created the first counties in order to ease the administrative workload in Jamestown . The House of Burgesses divided the colony first into four "incorporations" in 1617 and finally into eight shires (or counties) in 1634: James City , Henrico , Charles City , Charles River , Warrosquyoake , Accomac , Elizabeth City , and Warwick River . America's oldest intact county court records can be found at Eastville, Virginia , in Northampton (originally Accomac) County , dating to 1632. Maryland established its first county, St. Mary's in 1637. In 1639,
10030-792: The British away. Seeking to avoid further hostilities, the British issued the Royal Proclamation of 1763 , creating a boundary line between colonists and Native lands. In 1768, British officials negotiated the Treaty of Fort Stanwix with the Iroquois , who claimed sovereignty over the Ohio Country. The treaty moved the boundary line further west and opened territory south of the Ohio River to colonial settlement. While colonial elites like George Washington organized land companies and secured grants, immigrants began pouring into
10200-492: The British ceding land or the results of the war with the newly formed United States. The British maintained a robust military presence and continued policies that supported their Native allies. With the encroachment of European-American settlers west of the Appalachian Mountains after the war, a Huron -led Confederacy formed in 1785 to resist the usurpation of Indian lands, declaring that lands north and west of
10370-560: The British in the western theater of the American Revolutionary War, seeking to drive out American settlers. In the 1783 Treaty of Paris that ended the war, Great Britain ceded the region to the United States, making no mention of Native land rights. The Native nations technically remained at war with the United States, and Richard Butler argued to them that the British had "cast you off, and given us your country." Mohawk leader Joseph Brant , who had fought in
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#173277305657010540-459: The Confederacy was prepared to accept U.S. terms. Knox agreed to send treaty commissioners to the 1793 council and suspend all offensive operations until that time, angering General Wayne, who had hoped to launch the next American invasion in 1793. Following the Glaize meeting, Red Pole began an extensive tour of the south, an unsuccessful attempt to enlist more Chickamauga Cherokees and Creeks in
10710-405: The Confederacy, with Buckongahelas (Lenape) and Kekewepelethy in attendance. The Confederacy presented its ultimatum: the Ohio River was the only acceptable boundary, and forts and settlers north of the river must be removed. The commissioners replied that since lands north of the Ohio had already been sold and settled by Americans, those lands could not be returned. The Native delegates returned to
10880-473: The Confederacy. Among the attendees at the conference were representatives from the Iroquois, Shawnees, Delawares (Lenapes) , Wyandots, Three Fires ( Ojibwe , Odawa , and Potawatomi ), as well as a few Cherokees and Creeks . In the following years, U.S. states relinquished their claims in the region to the federal government, which intended to pay debts from the Revolution by selling lands north of
11050-420: The Confederacy. Meanwhile, on November 6, Little Turtle and about 200 Miamis and Shawnees attacked a supply convoy near Fort St. Clair, killing six Americans and depriving them of the packhorses needed to supply the forts. "It is a most disagreeable and humiliating position to remain with our hands tied whilst the enemy is at liberty to act upon the offensive," wrote Wayne to Knox. While General Wayne awaited
11220-540: The Fort Finney treaty, was executed by one of Logan's men. After the destruction of their towns, Shawnee refugees were invited by the Miamis to settle along the Wabash. The towns around Kekionga , the Miami capital, were now inhabited by many of the most militant members of the Northwestern Confederacy. The next meeting of the Confederacy had been scheduled to be held in the Shawnee towns, but with their destruction,
11390-426: The Iroquois could no longer assist the Confederacy in the fighting that was sure to follow and the Iroquois must now "remove our people from among the Americans." Upon learning that negotiations had failed, Wayne advanced, reaching Fort Jefferson on October 13 with 2,600 men. On October 17, an Odawa war party under Little Otter attacked a supply convoy south of Fort Jefferson, killing fifteen and capturing ten. Wayne
11560-678: The Kekionga portage since the Northwest Ordinance passed by Congress guaranteed free use of necessary portages in the region. Fort Lernoult and Fort Miami were abandoned by the British in 1796 as a condition of the Jay Treaty. After two decades of efforts to take Detroit, U.S. forces under Colonel Hamtramck occupied Fort Lernoult the next day. The U.S. renamed Fort Lernoult to Fort Detroit and abandoned Fort Miami in 1799. The British re-captured Fort Detroit and Fort Miami during
11730-475: The Maumee and Auglaize Rivers , where the principal Shawnee chief Kekewepelethy had already settled. This move had been encouraged by British Indian agent Alexander McKee since the new towns would be closer to the trade and military support offered by the British at Detroit. This cluster of towns, known as "The Glaize," would become the headquarters of the Native Confederacy for the duration of
11900-463: The Maumee to confer with the council. Brant once again argued for compromise, but he lost out to the militants, who had the support of Alexander McKee. On August 13, the Confederacy sent a written declaration to the U.S. commissioners, signed by representatives of all the nations except the Iroquois. Sugden (2000) said this document was "the defiant and frank sentiments of proud, undefeated peoples, asserting their independence and sovereignty and rebutting
12070-462: The Native nations and between the Confederacy and the British; it was the last time the Northwestern Confederacy gathered a large military force to oppose the United States. Wayne's army encamped for three days in sight of Fort Miami, which was under the command of British Major William Campbell . When Campbell asked the meaning of the encampment, Wayne replied that the answer had already been given by
12240-472: The Natives recalled their war parties and released all American prisoners within the next thirty days. Back at the Glaize, militant leaders, surprised that talks had been initiated without authorization from the Confederacy, debated the proposal. The militants prevailed, and the matter was dropped. In February 1794, Lord Dorchester told an Iroquois delegation in Quebec that Great Britain could be at war with
12410-439: The Natives, including John Hardin and Major Alexander Truman, veterans of the earlier campaigns; they were both killed and scalped. In June, about 50 warriors attacked Fort Jefferson, killing and capturing fifteen soldiers. It was during this time that Kentucky was officially admitted to the uniUnion a state. Rufus Putnam , who had led the settlement of Marietta, was commissioned as a brigadier general and tasked with arranging
12580-462: The Northwestern Confederacy, he was now suspected by the more militant members because of his willingness to negotiate with the Americans and because the Iroquois had not participated in the war. Nevertheless, Brant spoke for the delegation, asking if the commissioners were authorized to create a new boundary line and inquiring why Wayne's army was preparing for war while peace negotiations were underway. The commissioners assured Brant they could negotiate
12750-473: The Ohio River and raided into Kentucky, killing, capturing, and torturing settlers in an attempt to stem the tide of immigrants. Americans responded with counter raids, such as one led by Major John Hardin , who in August 1789 led 220 Kentucky militiamen to the Wabash region, where they killed eight Shawnees, including women and children. In 1790, George Washington, recently inaugurated as the first President of
12920-428: The Ohio River on September 30. A diversionary force led by Major Jean François Hamtramck invaded from Vincennes , though it turned back before joining with Harmar. Native scouts monitored the slow progress of Harmar's northward march. The Natives had scattered for their annual winter hunt, but Blue Jacket , the principal Shawnee war chief, and Little Turtle , his Miami counterpart, dispatched messengers calling for
13090-541: The Ohio River to American settlers. American officials refused to recognize the Native Confederacy and instead pursued a policy of divide and rule . They informed the Natives their lands had been taken by right of conquest and sought to confirm this in a series of treaties in which the Americans dictated the terms. Some Native leaders buckled to the pressure and ceded land at Fort Stanwix (1784), Fort McIntosh (1785), and Fort Finney (1786). Hardline and militant Natives remained committed to defending their lands north of
13260-475: The Ohio River was the only acceptable boundary, and American forts north of the river must be destroyed. The council also agreed to meet with the Americans in 1793. When Red Jacket reported the council decision to an American official in November, he omitted the Confederacy's demands about the Ohio River boundary and the destruction of the forts. As a result, the Americans were given an erroneous impression that
13430-641: The Ohio River were Indian territory. Four years after the start of the British-supported Native American military campaign, the Constitution of the United States went into effect; George Washington was sworn in as president , which made him the commander-in-chief of U.S. military forces. Accordingly, Washington directed the United States Army to enforce U.S. sovereignty over the territory. The U.S. Army, mainly consisting of untrained recruits and volunteer militiamen, suffered
13600-586: The Ohio River. On January 2, 1791, Wyandots and Lenapes attacked Big Bottom on the Muskingum River, killing eleven settlers. Soon after, Shawnees and Wyandots led by Blue Jacket unsuccessfully laid siege to Dunlap's Station on the Great Miami River. At both locations, a war club was left behind, a Native means of announcing a declaration of war . Although these raids were limited in success, Sword (1985) argues they "significantly altered
13770-590: The Ohio River. Shawnees and Lenapes sent out messages calling for war. After many raids and counter-raids along the Ohio River boundary, in 1786, the Kentucky militia launched the first major frontier military action since the end of the Revolutionary War. Generals George Rogers Clark and Benjamin Logan headed a two-pronged invasion of Native land. In September, Clark led 1,200 militiamen north along
13940-592: The Revolution as a British ally, was stunned to learn that "England had sold the Indians to Congress." In 1783, he took the lead in forming the Northwestern Confederacy , the "most ambitious pan-tribal confederacy yet." At the Wyandot town of Junquindundeh (modern Fremont, Ohio ), Brant argued that Native lands were held in common by all tribes, and so no land could be ceded without the consent of
14110-600: The Seneca were under a man named Bigson, and later a relative of his named Nickashaw. The area was traversed several times during the period of the French-Indian Wars by the English, including the group led by Major Robert Rodgers , who ultimately convinced Chief Pontiac to switch sides from the French to the English. In the late 18th century, the land became part of the Connecticut Western Reserve in
14280-762: The Shawnees fought and lost Lord Dunmore's War in 1774 with only a few Mingo allies, and they were compelled to assent to the Ohio River boundary between the colonies and Native lands. To better control the frontier, in 1774, the British Parliament passed the Quebec Act , which placed the entire region under the jurisdiction of the Province of Quebec , nullifying colonial land claims. American colonists who hoped to own or settle these lands were outraged, contributing to their decision to declare independence from Britain in 1776. Many Natives allied with
14450-419: The Shawnees of insufficient support. They went home, depriving Blue Jacket of about half his army, which returned to the Glaize. After the battle, Little Turtle and Tarhe (Wyandot) made trips to Detroit to ask the British for support, as Blue Jacket had done on previous occasions, but the commander, Lieutenant Colonel Richard G. England , told the Natives he could not fight the Americans without orders. On
14620-655: The U.S. Census Bureau began to also count Connecticut's Councils of Governments , which took over some of the regional powers from the state's former county governments, as county equivalents. Territories of the United States do not have counties; instead, the United States Census Bureau also divides them into county equivalents. The U.S. Census Bureau counts American Samoa 's districts and atolls as county equivalents. American Samoa locally has places called "counties", but these entities are considered to be " minor civil divisions " (not true counties) by
14790-473: The U.S. Census Bureau recognized the state's nine Councils of Governments as replacement for the state's eight legacy counties for all statistical purposes; full implementation was completed in 2024. The average U.S. county population was 104,435 in 2019, while the median county, which is Nicholas County, West Virginia , had a population of 25,965 in 2019. The most populous county is Los Angeles County, California , with 10,014,009 residents in 2020. This number
14960-479: The U.S. Census Bureau treats American Samoa's three districts and two atolls as county equivalents). American Samoa's counties are treated as minor civil divisions. Most territories are directly divided into municipalities or similar units, which are treated as equivalent of counties for statistical purposes: The U.S. Census Bureau counts all of Guam as one county equivalent (with the FIPS code 66010), while
15130-690: The U.S. Census Bureau. The number of counties per state ranges from the three counties of Delaware to the 254 counties of Texas . County populations also vary widely: in 2017, according to the Census Bureau, more than half the U.S. population was concentrated in just 143 of the more than 3,000 counties, or just 4.6% of all counties; the five most populous counties, ordered from most to least, are Los Angeles County, California ; Cook County, Illinois ; Harris County, Texas ; Maricopa County, Arizona ; and San Diego County, California . As of 2022 , there are 3,144 counties and county-equivalents in
15300-485: The U.S. commissioners appointed to meet with the Native Confederacy – arrived at Fort Niagara at the western end of Lake Ontario, traveling by way of the Great Lakes to avoid the fates of John Hardin and Alexander Truman the previous year. Niagara was one of the forts still occupied by the British in defiance of the 1783 Paris treaty, but John Graves Simcoe , the British lieutenant governor of Upper Canada , housed
15470-660: The United States , and Secretary of War Henry Knox decided to attack the Native Confederacy to secure the Northwest Territory for American occupation. Because many Americans distrusted the idea of a professional " standing army ," Congress kept the United States Army small and relied upon state-run militias for defense. In 1790, Congress expanded the army's single regiment, the First American Regiment , from 700 to 1,216 men. For
15640-564: The United States and Great Britain negotiated the Jay Treaty, which required British withdrawal from the Great Lakes forts while opening up some British territory in the Caribbean for American trade. The treaty also encoded free trade and freedom of movement for Native Americans living in territories controlled by either the United States or Great Britain. The Jay Treaty was ratified by the United States Senate in 1795 and
15810-425: The United States and wish to remain so." By remaining neutral in the conflict, the British confirmed they no longer regarded the Natives in the Northwest Territory as allies to be supported in wartime. Harmar's expedition had ended in defeat, with a total of 183 killed and missing. The Miamis, on the other hand, had lost nearly a tenth of their military manpower. Harmar's military career was over, and his campaign
15980-400: The United States could purchase Native lands. Beginning in late September 1792, the Natives held a large council at the Glaize with representatives from numerous tribes, with a reported 3,600 warriors in attendance. Delegates from the Iroquois, including Red Jacket , came to present the peace offer from the United States. Red Jacket advised the Confederacy to accept the Muskingum River as
16150-489: The United States is the city and county of Broomfield, Colorado , established in 2001 as a consolidated city-county , previously part of four counties. The newest county equivalents are the Alaskan census areas of Chugach and Copper River , both established in 2019, and the Alaskan boroughs of Petersburg established in 2013, Wrangell established in 2008, and Skagway established in 2007. A consolidated city-county
16320-486: The United States vulnerable. The British refused to leave the ceded land and continued their influence in Native American politics. Washington was also under congressional investigation and compelled to raise a bigger army quickly. He chose Revolutionary War veteran General Anthony Wayne to organize and train a proper fighting force. Wayne took command of the new Legion of the United States late in 1792 and spent
16490-457: The United States within the year and that Native lands lost to the Americans would be restored. Dorchester ordered Simcoe to build a fort on the Maumee to defend Detroit from the advancing Americans. In April, Simcoe constructed Fort Miami and garrisoned it with 120 soldiers and an artillery detachment. Dorchester's words and actions caused an uproar in the United States; the construction of Fort Miami on what Americans regarded as their territory
16660-482: The United States, but when they received news of Wilkinson's raid, they readied for war. Wilkinson's raid thus had the opposite effect. In September, St. Clair's men erected a supply depot, Fort Hamilton , twenty-three miles north of Fort Washington on the Great Miami. The army finally left Fort Hamilton on October 4 with about 2,300 men. In mid-October, they stopped to build a second depot, Fort Jefferson . As
16830-406: The age of 18 living with them, 49.2% were married couples living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.7% were non-families, and 26.9% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.01. The median age was 41.0 years. The median income for a household in the county was $ 42,139 and the median income for
17000-429: The age of 18 living with them, 54.80% were married couples living together, 11.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.50% were non-families. 24.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.05. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.20% under
17170-467: The age of 18, 7.60% from 18 to 24, 28.00% from 25 to 44, 23.60% from 45 to 64, and 14.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males. The median income for a household in the county was $ 35,607, and the median income for a family was $ 42,449. Males had a median income of $ 33,105 versus $ 22,624 for females. The per capita income for
17340-669: The area in the 1690s. This group, known as the Wyandot , later ceded settlement of most of the territory roughly between what is now Cleveland, Akron, the Mahoning River and the Ohio-PA border to be a common hunting ground, shared by themselves, the Seneca, Shawnee, Lenape and even the Ottawa, or Mississauga, who lived at the western end of Lake Erie, at the time. The Ottawa were the only residents, who maintained two known hunting camps in Ashtabula County- one at Conneaut, and
17510-675: The area to the US via the Treaty of Greenville , and the remaining Ottawa residents were evicted. That being said, early settlers recalled that some of the Ottawa remained in the region for an additional thirty years, having been sighted all over Trumbull, Geauga and Portage Counties until sometime around the War of 1812, along with Senecas who lived around Streetsboro. Those in Trumbull County usually had three men who normally spoke interchangeably for them as chief- Kiogg, Paqua and Cadashaway, whereas
17680-407: The army to more than 5,000 men. Major General "Mad" Anthony Wayne was chosen as the new commander. Congress also passed two militia acts that authorized the president to call out the militia, which had previously been under the control of the states. Washington and Knox engaged in diplomacy while the American army was being readied, hoping to buy time to prepare and appease Americans opposed to
17850-440: The arrival of a reinforcement of Kentucky militiamen. In late June, Wayne was joined by about 100 Chickasaws and Choctaws , who had come from the south to fight against their traditional enemies in the Northwestern Confederacy. On June 27, forty-five Choctaws and ten scouts led by William Wells , Wayne's principal scout, skirmished with a large body of Natives advancing from the Glaize. Wells reported to Wayne that Fort Recovery
18020-505: The attack was called off. Disappointed with the lost opportunity, Blue Jacket headed for Detroit, seeking British help in opposing the next inevitable American invasion. "We now, Father, call for your assistance," he said. The British commander at Detroit was noncommittal. When Blue Jacket's request was relayed to Guy Carleton (Lord Dorchester) , the Governor General of British North America , he replied, "We are at peace with
18190-430: The banks of the Wabash, near modern-day Fort Recovery, Ohio . Just before dawn on November 4, a Native force of more than 1,000 warriors led by Little Turtle and Blue Jacket launched a surprise attack. Their first target was the militia, which had camped on the north side of the river. The militia retreated in panic across the river, confusing the American camp. The Americans, finding themselves surrounded, tried to organize
18360-481: The battle. Fort Jefferson was too small to shelter the retreating Americans, so most fled back to Fort Washington. The battle was a lopsided victory for the Natives. The Americans reported a loss of 630 soldiers killed and around 250 wounded; an additional 30 camp followers , mostly women, were also killed. Native losses were comparatively slight, with 21 killed and 40 wounded. Historian Colin Calloway states it
18530-608: The battlefield to regroup at nearby Fort Miami but found the fort doors locked by the British garrison. (Britain and the United States were by then reaching a close rapprochement to counter Jacobin France in the French Revolution .) The entire battle lasted little more than an hour. The Legion had significant casualties, with 33 men killed and 100 wounded. The Confederacy had between 19 and 40 warriors killed and an unknown number wounded. The battle fostered distrust between
18700-402: The board. These positions may include county clerk , county treasurer , county surrogate, sheriff , and others. District attorneys or state attorneys are usually state-level as opposed to county-level officials, but in many states, counties and state judicial districts have coterminous boundaries. The site of a county's administration, and often the county courthouse , is generally called
18870-399: The boundary between the United States and Native territory. The Shawnee orator Red Pole spoke on behalf of the Confederacy. Red Pole denounced the Iroquois for meeting privately with the Americans to discuss further land cessions. "We do not want compensation" from the Americans, said Red Pole. "We want restitution of our country." After much debate, the council endorsed Red Pole's position:
19040-410: The city and the county at least nominally exist, they are properly classified as counties in their own right. Likewise, the boroughs of New York City are coextensive with counties and are therefore by definition also not county equivalents. There are technically no counties in U.S. territories. American Samoa has its own counties , but the U.S. Census Bureau does not treat them as counties (instead,
19210-462: The commissioners at his residence. Despite his cordiality, Simcoe had been working to undermine U.S. influence among the Natives. After the recent Native victories, he had hoped Great Britain would support the creation of a Native buffer state between the United States and Canada, an idea the Americans opposed. With the outbreak of war in Europe between France and Great Britain in 1793, Simcoe faced
19380-421: The county (which merely implements state law). A typical criminal defendant will be arraigned and subsequently indicted or held over for trial before a trial court in and for a particular county where the crime occurred, kept in the county jail (if he is not granted bail or cannot make bail), prosecuted by the county's district attorney, and tried before a jury selected from that county. But long-term incarceration
19550-518: The county for years, and his brother Owen took refuge with him when Virginia was seeking to extradite him for his role in the raid on Harpers Ferry . An armed group of 200 made them safer than anywhere in the U.S., they said, or even Canada. Dangerfield Newby met John Brown in Ashtabula County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau , the county has a total area of 1,368 square miles (3,540 km), of which 702 square miles (1,820 km)
19720-463: The county jail.) In several southern states, public school systems are organized and administered at the county level. As of 2024 , there were 2,999 counties, 64 Louisiana parishes , 19 organized boroughs and 11 census areas in Alaska, 9 Councils of Government in Connecticut, 41 independent cities , and the District of Columbia for a total of 3,144 counties and county equivalents in
19890-526: The county was $ 16,814. About 9.20% of families and 12.10% of the population were below the poverty line , including 17.10% of those under age 18 and 8.60% of those age 65 or over. As of the 2010 United States Census , there were 101,497 people, 39,363 households, and 26,495 families residing in the county. The population density was 144.6 inhabitants per square mile (55.8/km). There were 46,099 housing units at an average density of 65.7 units per square mile (25.4 units/km). The racial makeup of
20060-418: The county was 92.7% white, 3.5% black or African American, 0.4% Asian, 0.2% American Indian, 1.1% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 3.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 24.9% were German, 15.8% were Irish, 12.6% were English, 11.1% were Italian, 10.0% were American , and 5.8% were Polish. Of the 39,363 households, 31.3% had children under
20230-542: The county was 94.07% White , 3.16% Black or African American , 0.19% Native American , 0.34% Asian , 0.02% Pacific Islander , 0.85% from other races , and 1.36% from two or more races. 2.23% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 19.3% were of German , 11.6% Italian , 10.6% English , 10.5% Irish , and 10.3% American ancestry according to Census 2000 . 95.2% spoke English , 2.4% Spanish , and 0.8% German as their first language. There were 39,397 households, out of which 32.40% had children under
20400-621: The county with greater than 61% of the vote. In 2020, incumbent President Donald Trump carried the county with 60.8%. Ashtabula County (along with neighboring Lake County ) fostered a very large Finnish American community around the turn of the twentieth century, and as a result, the area is home to many Finnish Americans . Ashtabula County has eighteen extant covered bridges . Of these, nine were constructed prior to 1900. See List of Ashtabula County covered bridges . 41°53′N 80°46′W / 41.89°N 80.76°W / 41.89; -80.76 County (United States) In
20570-480: The course of frontier history," demonstrating that American settlement north of the Ohio River could not proceed until the United States defeated the Natives. Other Native attacks followed in the coming months. In response to Harmar's defeat, Congress expanded the U.S. Army to two regiments in March 1791. Washington appointed Arthur St. Clair, governor of the Northwest Territory, as major general in command. St. Clair
20740-415: The crops. On October 19, Hardin led 180 men on a reconnaissance mission to discover a Native war party thought to be nearby. About 16 miles from Kekionga, Hardin's scattered men were ambushed and routed by about 150 Shawnee and Potawatomi warriors. Soon after, the Natives received additional reinforcements of Odawas, Sacs , and Foxes . On October 21, Harmar declared that his objective—the destruction of
20910-575: The duration of the war, the Americans would use combined operations of militiamen and regulars , with a U.S. Army officer in overall command. On April 20, 1790, the First American Regiment participated in its first offensive against Native Americans when General Josiah Harmar joined Kentucky General Charles Scott in an attack on the Shawnee village of Chalawgatha. The following month, Native Americans retaliated by attacking settlers near Limestone (modern-day Maysville, Kentucky ) in
21080-408: The first American settlement north of the river. He was instructed to negotiate new treaties without surrendering any lands ceded in previous treaties, acquire more land if possible, and work to undermine the Native Confederacy. In 1788, St. Clair invited Natives to Fort Harmar near Marietta, instead of a neutral site preferred by the Natives. Brant sent St. Clair a message asking if he would accept
21250-564: The first to explore the Great Lakes by ship and, having never met the inhabitants, saw the continuation of longhouses and mistakenly assumed the entire region had belonged to the Erie. Both tribes were likely eradicated by the Iroquois Confederacy during the Beaver Wars (approx. 1630–1701), which later bled into the first of the myriad conflicts collectively called the French-Indian Wars, probably specifically some time during
21420-399: The four independent municipalities within its borders: Atlantic Beach , Baldwin , Jacksonville Beach , and Neptune Beach . The term county equivalents is used by the United States Census Bureau to describe divisions that are comparable to counties but called by different names: Consolidated city-counties are not designated county equivalents for administrative purposes; since both
21590-461: The general law of the state or by a charter specific to that county. States may allow only general-law counties, only charter counties, or both. Generally, general-law local governments have less autonomy than chartered local governments. Counties are usually governed by an elected body, variously called the county commission , board of supervisors , commissioners' court , county council , county court , or county legislature . In cases in which
21760-626: The geographically largest cities in the world, though often with population densities far below those of most urban areas. There are 40 consolidated city-counties in the U.S., including Augusta–Richmond County; the City and County of Denver, Colorado; the City and County of Honolulu, Hawaii ; Indianapolis–Marion County, Indiana ; Jacksonville–Duval County, Florida ; Louisville–Jefferson County, Kentucky ; Lexington–Fayette County, Kentucky ; Kansas City–Wyandotte County, Kansas ; Nashville–Davidson County, Tennessee ; New Orleans–Orleans Parish, Louisiana ;
21930-582: The heart of Indian Country and within sight of the British. The defeated tribes were forced to cede extensive territory, including much of present-day Ohio , in the Treaty of Greenville in 1795. In the same year, the Jay Treaty arranged for cessions of British Great Lakes outposts on the U.S. territory. The British would briefly retake this land during the War of 1812 . In the French and Indian War (1754–1760), France and Great Britain fought for control of
22100-405: The judicial branch of the state government rather than county governments. In many states, the county controls all unincorporated lands within its boundaries. In states with a township tier, unincorporated land is controlled by the townships. Residents of unincorporated land who are dissatisfied with county-level or township-level resource allocation decisions can attempt to vote to incorporate as
22270-560: The least extensive county equivalent is Kingman Reef , with a land area of 0.01 square miles (0.03 km ). In some states, a municipality may be in only one county and may not annex territory in adjacent counties, but in the majority of states, the state constitution or state law allows municipalities to extend across county boundaries. At least 32 states include municipalities in multiple counties . Dallas , for example, contains portions of five counties, while numerous other cities comprise portions of four counties. New York City
22440-416: The legislative power to enact laws for the county; it has the executive power to oversee the executive operations of county government; and it has quasi-judicial power with regard to certain limited matters (such as hearing appeals from the planning commission if one exists). In many states, several important officials are elected separately from the board of commissioners or supervisors and cannot be fired by
22610-590: The location was moved to the Wyandot village of Brownstown on the Detroit River . Joseph Brant spoke to a gathering that included Miamis and other members of the Wabash Confederacy . On December 18, 1786, the Confederacy, calling themselves the "United Indian Nations," sent a letter to the U.S. Confederation Congress declaring the recent treaties invalid because they had not been conducted with
22780-686: The matter to the states. Subsequently, state constitutions conceptualized county governments as arms of the state. Louisiana instead adopted the local divisions called parishes that dated back to both the Spanish colonial and French colonial periods when the land was dominated by the Catholic Church . In the twentieth century, the role of local governments strengthened and counties began providing more services, acquiring home rule and county commissions to pass local ordinances pertaining to their unincorporated areas . In 1955, delegates to
22950-412: The militia. As they approached Kekionga, Wyllys divided his men, hoping to surround and trap the Natives. Instead, the Natives again ambushed the Americans and defeated them piecemeal, the survivors barely regrouping with Harmar's army. Blue Jacket and Little Turtle hoped to strike again at Harmar's retreating army, but a lunar eclipse the following night was regarded by many Natives as an ill omen, and
23120-593: The morning of August 20, the Legion broke camp and marched toward the Maumee River near modern Toledo, Ohio , where the Confederacy had set an ambush. The Legion had been reduced to about 3,000 soldiers and militia, with many soldiers defending the supply trains and forts. Blue Jacket had selected a battlefield where a tornado had felled hundreds of trees, creating a natural defensive barrier. Here he placed confederation forces of about 1,500 warriors: Blue Jacket's Shawnees, Delawares led by Buckongahelas, Miamis led by Little Turtle, Wyandots led by Tarhe and Roundhead , Mingos,
23290-521: The next most common source of county names are geographic features and locations, with some counties even being named after counties in other states, or for places in other countries, such as the United Kingdom (the latter is most common in the area of the original Thirteen Colonies in the case of the United Kingdom, or in places which had a large number of immigrants from a particular area for other countries). The most common geographic county name
23460-424: The official record of all real estate transactions. Other key county officials include the coroner / medical examiner , treasurer , assessor , auditor , comptroller , and district attorney . In most states, the county sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer in the county. However, except in major emergencies where clear chains of command are essential, the county sheriff normally does not directly control
23630-630: The other at Andover. The Lenape maintained a handful of villages in western Pennsylvania and one at Youngstown, in Mahoning County. After the end of the Northwest Indian War , (a conflict which erupted shortly after the American Revolution between the fledgling United States and all the remaining tribes of the Great Lakes region in territory the US claimed) in the 1790s, the Natives were made to turn over ownership of
23800-649: The outcome of the peace negotiations, he prepared his army known as the Legion of the United States at Legionville , a camp on the Ohio River near Pittsburgh . Wayne believed the previous expeditions had failed due to a lack of discipline, so he thoroughly trained his troops, flogging soldiers for infractions and hanging deserters. By May 5, 1793, the Legion had relocated to a camp near Fort Washington, where Wayne awaited word to begin his invasion. In mid-May, Benjamin Lincoln , Beverley Randolph , and Timothy Pickering –
23970-448: The police departments of city governments, but merely cooperates with them (e.g., under mutual aid pacts). Thus, the most common interaction between county and city law enforcement personnel is when city police officers deliver suspects to sheriff's deputies for detention or incarceration in the county jail. In most states, the state courts and local law enforcement are organized and implemented along county boundaries, but nearly all of
24140-416: The pretensions of those who would dispossess and humble them." The Confederacy offered a solution: the U.S. should use the money it would spend on buying land and fighting a war and instead pay the settlers to relocate south of the Ohio River. These terms were unacceptable to the Americans, and the commissioners replied that "the negotiation is therefore at an end." Back on the Maumee, Brant bitterly announced
24310-489: The region due to the favorable microclimate from the nearby lake. During the winter, Ashtabula County (along with neighboring Geauga and Lake counties, as well as Crawford and Erie counties in neighboring Pennsylvania ) receives frequent lake-effect snow and is part of the Southeastern Lake Erie Snowbelt . At the time of contact, Ashtabula County appears to have been divided between
24480-426: The region of Fort Deposit and burned Alexander McKee's trading post within sight of Fort Miami before withdrawing. Wayne's Legion finally arrived at Kekionga on September 17, 1794. Wayne personally selected the site for a new U.S. fort. Wayne wanted a strong fort built, capable of withstanding possible attacks by Indians and more specifically heavy British artillery, along with their forces from Fort Detroit. The fort
24650-469: The region south of the Great Lakes known as the Ohio and Illinois countries. Indigenous tribes of the region fought on both sides of the conflict, aligning themselves with the imperial power best suited to their economic and political needs. In the 1763 Treaty of Paris that ended the war, France ceded the region to the British. That year, a confederation of Natives launched Pontiac's War , an effort to drive
24820-406: The region. Natives (primarily Shawnees and Cherokees ) who used present-day Kentucky as their hunting grounds had not been consulted in the treaty and denied that the Iroquois had the right to sell the land. In the early 1770s, the Shawnees worked to create a new Native confederacy to resist colonial occupation, but British officials successfully used the Iroquois to isolate them. As a result,
24990-582: The relationship between counties and incorporated cities. The powers of counties arise from state law and vary widely. In Connecticut and Rhode Island , counties are geographic entities, but not governmental jurisdictions. At the other extreme, Maryland counties and the county equivalent City of Baltimore handle almost all services, including public education , although the state retains an active oversight authority with many of these services. Counties in Hawaii also handle almost all services since there
25160-493: The right commanded by Wilkinson and the other by Hamtramck. The Legion's cavalry secured the right along the Maumee River. General Scott provided a brigade of mounted militia to guard the open left flank while the rest of the Kentucky militia formed a reserve. Once contact had been established, U.S. scouts identified the location of Confederacy warriors, and Wayne ordered an immediate bayonet charge. Legion dragoons also charged and attacked with sabers. Blue Jacket's warriors fled from
25330-490: The slow march toward Kekionga continued, the expedition was plagued with food shortages, plummeting morale, and frequent desertions. On October 31, St. Clair sent the First Infantry Regiment southward to prevent deserters from plundering the supply convoy, depriving his army of 300 of its best troops and leaving him with about 1,400 people, including noncombatants. On November 3, St. Clair's army camped on
25500-399: The sound of their muskets and the retreat of the Indians. The next day, Wayne rode alone to Fort Miami and slowly inspected the fort's exterior walls. The British garrison debated whether to engage Wayne, but in the absence of orders and being already at war with France, Campbell declined to fire the first shot at the United States. The Legion, meanwhile, destroyed Indian villages and crops in
25670-556: The state's French and Spanish colonial periods. Before the Louisiana Purchase and granting of statehood, government was often administered in towns where major church parishes were located. Of the original 19 civil parishes of Louisiana that date from statehood in 1807, nine were named after the Roman Catholic parishes from which they were governed. The structure and powers of a county government may be defined by
25840-421: The substantive and procedural law adjudicated in state trial courts originates from the state legislature and state appellate courts. In other words, most criminal defendants are prosecuted for violations of state law, not local ordinances, and if they, the district attorney, or police seek reforms to the criminal justice system, they will usually have to direct their efforts towards the state legislature rather than
26010-529: The surrender of British posts in the Northwest Territory and personally selected the construction site of Fort Wayne in Kekionga to secure his Legion's victory. Wayne died during a return trip to Pennsylvania from a military post in Detroit on December 15, 1796, one year after the ratification of the Treaty of Greenville. Wayne's second in command, General Wilkinson, was named the new commander of U.S. forces. It
26180-399: The term "county equivalent" to describe places that are comparable to counties, but called by different names. Louisiana parishes, the organized boroughs of Alaska, independent cities, and the District of Columbia are equivalent to counties for administrative purposes. Alaska's Unorganized Borough is further divided into 11 census areas that are statistically equivalent to counties. In 2024,
26350-436: The towns—had been fulfilled, and so the army would return to Fort Washington. The expedition had destroyed five Miami towns and 20,000 bushels of their corn. They marched south, but the following day, Harmar agreed to allow a detachment of 400 men to return to Kekionga and attack any Natives who might reoccupy the town. This raid was led by Major John P. Wyllys, a regular army officer, with Hardin serving under him and commanding
26520-499: The war. After St. Clair's defeat, the U.S. Congress launched an investigation of the disaster. Although St. Clair remained territorial governor, he was forced to resign his military position. President Washington urged Congress to raise an army capable of defeating the British-backed Northwestern Confederacy and defending its borders. In March 1792, Congress passed a bill increasing the size of
26690-609: The war. In March 1792, fifty Iroquois leaders met with U.S. officials in Philadelphia, where they were asked to attend an upcoming council of the Northwestern Confederacy and present U.S. peace terms. The U.S. also tried approaching the Northwestern Confederacy directly, which proved to be difficult since the Americans continued to occupy forts north of the Ohio River. In March 1792, Wilkinson constructed Fort St. Clair to improve communications and logistics between Forts Hamilton and Jefferson. The next month, Knox sent emissaries to
26860-428: The warriors to regroup. They collected about 600 men to oppose Harmar's army. This was not enough men to face the largest army most of them had ever seen, so they evacuated the noncombatants from the towns on October 14 and watched for an opportunity to strike. Harmar's advance detachment under John Hardin reached Kekionga on October 15 and spent the next few days looting and burning Native towns, as well as destroying
27030-458: The whole Confederacy. They called for a new treaty conference in the spring of 1787. Until that time, the Natives suggested that each party should keep its people on their side of the Ohio River. In July 1787, the U.S. Confederation Congress created the Northwest Territory north of the Ohio River in preparation for widespread, organized American settlement of the region. Arthur St. Clair , appointed as territorial governor, moved to Marietta ,
27200-401: Was "the biggest victory Native Americans ever won and proportionately the biggest military disaster the United States ever suffered." The Natives, short on food after the destruction of their crops, scattered to hunt before winter set in. Little Turtle and Blue Jacket decided to abandon Kekionga, which had proven to be vulnerable to American raids, and relocate their towns at the confluence of
27370-489: Was an armed conflict for control of the Northwest Territory fought between the United States and a united group of Native American nations known today as the Northwestern Confederacy . The United States Army considers it the first of the American Indian Wars . Following centuries of conflict for control of this region, the land comprising the Northwest Territory was granted to the new United States by
27540-458: Was compelled to use more troops to guard his supply line. Given these problems, Wayne decided to halt major operations and build Fort Greenville north of Fort Jefferson. "I am at a loss to determine what the savages are about, and where they are," he wrote to Knox in November. The Natives were having their own logistical problems, with many warriors scattering for the winter hunt. The Legion wintered at Fort Greenville, but on December 23, Wayne led
27710-435: Was considered an act of aggression. In May, Chief Justice John Jay was dispatched to England to negotiate a resolution to the crisis. The Native Confederacy, encouraged by British actions, sent out messengers to recruit additional warriors. At Fort Greenville, Wayne was delayed by supply problems, but the construction of Fort Miami compelled him to accelerate his schedule. Eager to begin operations, he impatiently awaited
27880-440: Was dissolved by the District of Columbia Organic Act . Jefferson County , for Thomas Jefferson , is next with 26. The most recent president to have a county named for him was Warren G. Harding , reflecting the slowing rate of county creation since New Mexico and Arizona became states in 1912. The most common names for counties not named after a president are Franklin (25), Clay (18), and Montgomery (18). After people,
28050-572: Was finished by October 17 and could withstand a 24-pound cannon. It was named Fort Wayne and placed under the command of Hamtramck, who had been commandant of Fort Knox in Vincennes. The fort was officially dedicated October 22, the fourth anniversary of Harmar's defeat, and the day is considered the founding of the modern city of Fort Wayne, Indiana . That winter, Wayne also reinforced his line of defensive forts with Fort St. Marys , Fort Loramie , and Fort Piqua . Within months of Fallen Timbers,
28220-402: Was in danger of imminent attack. The Native army marching toward Fort Recovery numbered 1,200 warriors, the most significant force the Confederacy had yet fielded. Unlike the Americans, the Natives did not have an overall commander. Instead, military decisions were made by a council of leading chiefs and warriors. Blue Jacket urged the council to bypass Forts Recovery and Greenville and attack
28390-450: Was ordered to mount another punitive expedition to the Maumee River, where he was to build a fort as a means of "awing and curbing the Indians in that quarter." To augment the regular army, St. Clair was authorized to use mounted militia units to raid Native villages to deter attacks on American settlements. In May 1791, while St. Clair gathered his army, he dispatched Brigadier General Charles Scott with 750 mounted Kentucky militiamen on
28560-428: Was originally part of the French colony of Illinois Country , which was ceded in 1764 to Great Britain , along with the rest of Canada (New France) and incorporated into the Province of Quebec , though generally came to be referred to as Ohio Country. The Iroquois placed a vassal tribe of mostly captured Hurons in the region, who later broke free of their control when the French pushed Iroquois and English influence from
28730-644: Was regarded as a "national embarrassment" that needed to be avenged. "The general impression upon the result of the late expedition," Knox wrote to Harmar, "is that it has been unsuccessful; that it will not induce the Indians to peace, but on the contrary encourage them to a continuance of hostilities, and that, therefore, another and more efficient expedition must be undertaken." After Harmar's campaign, Natives rebuilt their villages around Kekionga, although some relocated to other locations. Natives did not typically go to war in winter, but they followed up their victory over Harmar with raids on American settlements north of
28900-410: Was used by Wayne as evidence that Great Britain would no longer support the Confederacy. The Jay Treaty and U.S. relations with Great Britain remained as political issues in the 1796 United States presidential election in which John Adams beat Jay Treaty opponent Thomas Jefferson . The United States also negotiated the Treaty of Greenville in 1795. Utilizing St. Clair's defeat and Fort Recovery as
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