From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article does not cite any references or sources. (June 2007) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed.

Washington, Ohio redirects here. For the other municipality in Ohio once known as Washington, see Old Washington, Ohio.

Washington Court House, Ohio
Location of Washington Court House, Ohio
Coordinates: 39°32′11″N 83°26′8″W / 39.53639, -83.43556
Country	United States
State	Ohio
County	Fayette
Area
- Total	6.5 sq mi (16.8 km²)
- Land	6.4 sq mi (16.7 km²)
- Water	0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
Population (2000)
- Total	13,524
- Density	2,100.8/sq mi (811.1/km²)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
FIPS code	39-81214GR2

Washington Court House is a city in Fayette County, Ohio, United States. It is the county seat of Fayette County and is located approximately halfway between Cincinnati, Ohio, and Columbus, Ohio. The population was 13,524 at the 2000 census. Until 2002, the official name of the city was the "City of Washington," but there already existed a municipality in Guernsey County, Ohio with the name "Washington" (now known as Old Washington). The area was originally settled by Virginia war veterans who received the land from the government for their duty in the American Revolution as payment. In 2002, a new charter was adopted, officially changing the name to the "City of Washington Court House."^{[citation needed]} The name is often abbreviated as "Washington C.H."

Washington C.H. has an unusual street grid layout. Typically, street grids are arranged east-west and north-south, especially in the midwest. In this case, the streets in the downtown area, centering on the courthouse building, are arranged northeast-southwest and northwest-southeast. This was done so that all four sides of the courthouse building would receive some sunlight every day of the year. In the traditional grid system, the north side of a building never receives direct sunlight during the fall and winter months.

Washington Court House is located at 39°32′11″N, 83°26′8″W¹, along Paint Creek.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 16.8 km² (6.5 mi²). 16.7 km² (6.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (1.08%) is water.

As of the census of 2000, there were 13,524 people, 5,483 households, and 3,536 families residing in the city. The population density was 810.8/km² (2,100.8/mi²). There were 5,961 housing units at an average density of 357.4/km² (926.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.52% White, 2.71% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.82% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.66% from other races, and 1.12% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.38% of the population.

There were 5,483 households out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.5% were married couples living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.5% were non-families. 30.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.0% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 37 years. For every 100 females there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $33,003, and the median income for a family was $40,721. Males had a median income of $31,708 versus $22,382 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,618. 12.5% of the population and 9.0% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 16.3% are under the age of 18 and 13.2% are 65 or older.