Xenia

History

Xenia was founded in 1803, the same year Ohio was admitted to the Union. In that year, Hollander-American pioneer John Paul bought of land from Thomas and Elizabeth Richardson of Hanover County, Virginia, for "1050 pounds current moneys of Virginia." Paul influenced county commissioners to locate the county seat on this land at the forks of the Shawnee creeks, stimulating development of the settlement here. Joseph C. Vance was named to survey the site and lay out the town. The following year, he bought the town site of from John Paul for $250. The name of the new village was chosen in typically democratic fashion. Vance called a town meeting to discuss possible names. The committee had considered several suggestions without reaching any decision. Then the Rev. Robert Armstrong proposed the name "Xenia," meaning "hospitality" in Greek, because of the fine hospitality extended to him in this friendly community. When a tie vote occurred, Laticia Davis, wife of Owen Davis, was invited to cast the deciding ballot. She voted for "Xenia." The first session of the Ohio General Assembly created Greene County from the Northwest Territory. It took in the homeland of the Shawnee Indians. Their chief tribal village was north of Xenia at Old Chillicothe, now called Old Town. The Shawnee war chief Tecumseh was born there in 1768. William Beattie was Xenia's first businessman. In 1804, he opened a tavern which became a center of community affairs. In 1804, John Marshall built Xenia's first house. The first log school house was constructed in 1805, and, that same year, the Rev. James Towler became the town's first postmaster. The growing community soon attracted many pioneer industries - flour mills, sawmills, woolen mills, pork packing plants, oil mills, and tow mills. A…

Geography

Today Xenia is centrally located in the "transportation triangle" formed by three major interstate highways: I-70, I-71, and I-75. These north-south, east–west arteries are within minutes of Xenia via U.S. Routes 35, 42, and 68, tying the community to one of the nation's largest 90-minute highway markets. Before the creation of the U.S. Interstate Highway system, U.S. 68 was one of the main southward routes from the major city of Detroit, Michigan. Within Xenia, U.S. 68 is named "Detroit Street". Xenia's Main Street runs concurrently with Business Route U.S. 35. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which, is land and is water.

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  18,938
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  17,401
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  13,613
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  12,680
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  12,573
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  12,251
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  11,931
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  11,131

Most recent

• M 2.5 — 2026-02-22
  2 km NE of Hillsboro, Ohio
• M 2.9 — 2023-12-09
  5 km W of Jackson Center, Ohio
• M 2.8 — 2008-09-30
  5 km SW of Kettlersville, Ohio