Sandusky, Ohio

Sandusky is the largest city and county seat of Erie County, Ohio. The population was 27,844 at the 2000 census. It is situated on the shores of Lake Erie, half-way between Toledo to the west and Cleveland to the east.

Sandusky is one of Ohio's most popular tourist destinations. The city is home to amusement park management company Cedar Fair, L.P., as well as its flagship park, Cedar Point, which features the world's second tallest and second fastest roller coaster, the Top Thrill Dragster.

History

Downtown Sandusky was designed according a modified grid plan known as the Kilbourne Plat after its designer. The original street pattern featured a grid overlaid with streets resembling the symbols of Freemasonry. Hector Kilbourne was a surveyor who laid out this grid in downtown Sandusky. He was the first Worshipful Master of the Sandusky Masonic Lodge.

Sandusky was the site of groundbreaking for the Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad on September 17th, 1835. Currently, Battery Park Marina is located on original site of the MR&LE Railroad. The tracks that ran through downtown Sandusky have since been removed due to most of the downtown industrial area being re-used for other purposes including mainly marina dockage. The coal docks located west of downtown still use a portion of the original MR&LE lines.

Geography

Sandusky is located at (41.446741, -82.709092).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 57.0 km² (22.0 mi²). 26.0 km² (10.1 mi²) of it is land and 30.9 km² (11.9 mi²) of it (54.30%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 27,844 people, 11,851 households, and 7,039 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,069.7/km² (2,770.6/mi²). There were 13,323 housing units at an average density of 511.8/km² (1,325.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 74.50% White, 21.08% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.97% from other races, and 2.88% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.09% of the population.

There were 11,851 households out of which 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.7% were married couples living together, 16.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.6% were non-families. 34.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the city the population was spread out with 25.8% under the age of 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 15.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 89.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $31,133, and the median income for a family was $37,749. Males had a median income of $31,269 versus $21,926 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,111. About 12.2% of families and 15.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.7% of those under age 18 and 10.2% of those age 65 or over.

Perkins Township

Perkins is a township that lies south of Perkins Avenue, which bisects what is informally considered the Sandusky Metropolitan Area. Sandusky Mall and Sandusky Speedway are located south of Perkins Avenue, and therefore lie in Perkins Township. Perkins does not have its own main post office and the township uses Sandusky city's ZIP code of 44870.

Trivia

Sandusky was the setting for the film Tommy Boy, but was only seen in one brief scene in the beginning of the movie. The Sandusky Register, the city's newspaper, was also asked to provide newspaper boxes to be used as props for the movie.
Jackie Mayer, winner of Miss America 1963 and currently a motivational speaker, attended Sandusky High School. The section of Route 2 that runs through Erie County is named "Jackie Mayer Miss America Highway".
Orlando Pace, offensive lineman for the St. Louis Rams of the NFL and a seven-time Pro Bowler, was born in Sandusky and played for the Blue Streaks of Sandusky High School.
Jon Gruden, head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was born in Sandusky.
Scott May, NCAA national champion basketball player and 1976 Olympic gold medalist, was born in Sandusky and played for the Blue Streaks of Sandusky High School.
Thomas J. Moyer, chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court since 1987, was born in Sandusky and attended Sandusky High School.
The character of Sugar, played by Marilyn Monroe in the movie "Some Like It Hot" hailed from Sandusky.
At one time, Sandusky was known as Portland^*.

External links

Sandusky's official website