Nelsonville is a city in northwestern Athens County, Ohio, United States, located about 60 miles (97 km) southeast of Columbus. The population was 5,373 at the 2020 census. It is home to Hocking College as well as Rocky Brands. Nelsonville is surrounded by Ohio’s only national forest, the Wayne National Forest.
At a Glance
- County: Athens County
- State: Ohio
History of Nelsonville
First settled in 1814 by Daniel Nelson, Nelsonville was incorporated in 1838 with Charles Cable as its first mayor. Nelsonville blossomed into a classic Appalachian town by the mid 19th century, relying on the extractive industries of coal, clay and salt. Like many large mining towns, Nelsonville was home to a large hotel, The Dew House, and a thriving theater, Stuart’s Opera House, both located on the Public Square.
During the American Civil War’s famed Morgan’s Raid, Confederate cavalry under Brig. Gen. John Hunt Morgan paused in Nelsonville in July 1863 and burned ten wooden canal boats. However, the 400 confederates failed to destroy a covered bridge over the Hocking Canal when citizens rushed to extinguish the blaze after the raiders rode off. This allowed Union cavalry to continue their pursuit of the fleeing Confederates when they arrived in Nelsonville two hours later. Upon arriving in town, the Union cavalry was delighted that the townspeople had prepared a feast for them.
In 1888, Nelsonville became the first city in the United States west of the Allegheny Mountains to have citywide electric street lights.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Nelsonville, Ohio, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license.