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Introduction

Downtown Columbus and the Scioto Mile

Columbus (/kəˈlʌmbəs/, kə-LUM-bəs) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest (after Chicago), and the third-most populous U.S. state capital (after Phoenix, Arizona and Austin, Texas). Columbus is the county seat of Franklin County; it also extends into Delaware and Fairfield counties. It is the core city of the Columbus metropolitan area, which encompasses ten counties in central Ohio. It had a population of 2.139 million in 2020, making it the largest metropolitan area entirely in Ohio and 32nd-largest metro area in the U.S.

Columbus originated as numerous Native American settlements on the banks of the Scioto River. Franklinton, now a city neighborhood, was the first European settlement, laid out in 1797. The city was founded in 1812 at the confluence of the Scioto and Olentangy rivers, and laid out to become the state capital. The city was named for Italian explorer Christopher Columbus. The city assumed the function of state capital in 1816 and county seat in 1824. Amid steady years of growth and industrialization, the city has experienced numerous floods and recessions. Beginning in the 1950s, Columbus began to experience significant growth; it became the largest city in Ohio in land and population by the early 1990s. Growth has continued in the 21st century, with redevelopment occurring in numerous city neighborhoods, including Downtown. (Full article...)

Selected general articles

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The Michael B. Coleman Government Center is a municipal office building of Columbus, Ohio, in the city's downtown Civic Center. The building, completed in 2018, is named for former mayor Michael Coleman. (Full article...)
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Cherry Creek is a neighborhood on the West Side of Columbus, Ohio. It is a part of Lincoln Village and the Greater Hilltop. It contains the Oakbrook Manor (formally Lincoln Park) apartments and the Westview apartments. It is bounded on the east by Interstate 270, on the north by Sullivant Avenue, on the west by Norton Road, and on the south by Hall Road. It is in the ZIP code 43228. Its official area is West Columbus. The neighborhood is known as being the birthplace of the Westside Foxes where legendary parties took place in the Harlor apartment from 1993-1997. Although they are technically two separate neighborhoods, Cherry Creek and Murray Hill are often considered the same neighborhood. They are only separated by Sullivant Avenue, and many people just consider the two together Cherry Creek. This is reflected by the Columbus Police Department grouping the two together as one neighborhood. (Full article...)
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The Gilbert H. Hamilton House

Glen Echo is a neighborhood located in the far northern part of the University District in Columbus, Ohio. The area was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997. The name Glen Echo refers to Glen Echo Ravine, which runs along the northern edge of the neighborhood. Principal streets in the area are Glen Echo Drive, Summit Street, Glenmawr Avenue, North Fourth Street, Arcadia, Cliffside Drive, and more. One street, Parkview Drive, was platted in the ravine basin, but was later abandoned.

The district originated in 1909 when the Columbus Real Estate and Improvement Company platted 47 acres (19 ha) as "Indianola Park View" for a planned residential subdivision and a part of the Glen Echo Ravine was delineated as a park, the first such donation to the city of Columbus by a real estate developer. The wooded Glen Echo Ravine significantly influenced the original layout, design, and overall character of the district. The neighborhood's developer was also involved with the development of Walhalla Ravine and Eastgate. Prior to its development, the area was considered for a major hospital; however, those plans were abandoned.

A 1909 Ohio State publication described the new north side park as a place of beauty where large oak and elm trees shaded a wading pond, five small lakes connected by a single stream, rustic benches, foot bridges and springs lined with cobblestones. Glen Echo's picturesque environs hosted picnic dinners, equestrians and motorists who enjoyed this oasis of greenery. In 1910 the development was annexed to the City of Columbus and in 1912 Glen Echo Park was dedicated to the city. (Full article...)
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Signage at Hubbard and Kerr on the corner of Italian Village Park

Italian Village is a neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio, that contains an array of residential, commercial, and industrial buildings. It is a designated historic district, known for its historical and cultural preservation. The building types and architecture reflect Italian influence. With its parks and preserved historic homes, Italian Village has the highest home value appreciation in Columbus.

Italian Village is part of the Short North area. The neighboring Downtown district provides access to major employers, cultural and learning institutions, and entertainment venues. (Full article...)
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The Near East Side is a neighborhood located near downtown Columbus, Ohio, made up of several neighborhoods: Mount Vernon, King-Lincoln Bronzeville, Eastgate, Franklin Park, Nelson Park, Olde Towne East, and Woodland Park. (Full article...)
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The Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA /ˈkoʊtə/) is a public transit agency serving the Columbus metropolitan area, headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. It operates fixed-route buses, bus rapid transit, microtransit, and paratransit services.

COTA's headquarters are located in the William J. Lhota Building in downtown Columbus. The agency is managed by President and CEO Monica Tellez-Fowler along with a 13-member board of trustees. COTA is funded by a permanent 0.25% sales tax as well as another 10-year 0.25% sales tax.

The agency was founded in 1971, replacing the private Columbus Transit Company. Mass transit service in the city dates to 1863, progressively with horsecars, streetcars, and buses. The Central Ohio Transit Authority began operating in 1974 and has made gradual improvements to its fleet and network. Its first bus network redesign took place in 2017. (Full article...)
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Ohio State University Airport (IATA: OSU, ICAO: KOSU, FAA LID: OSU) is a public airport six miles (10 km) northwest of downtown Columbus, in Franklin County, Ohio, United States. It is owned and operated by Ohio State University in Columbus. It is also known as the OSU Don Scott Airport, named after Donald E. Scott, an OSU alumnus who died during his training as a pilot in the United Kingdom during World War II. The airport's main entrance is located on Case Road, and is easily accessible from OH-315 and Interstate 270.

The Ohio State University Airport serves the university while offering general aviation services for the public. It is one of 30 airports owned by universities across the country, but it is one of only three owned by a Tier One research institution. The airport is largely exempt from paying property taxes. (Full article...)
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The Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) operates 41 fixed-route bus services throughout the Columbus metropolitan area in Central Ohio. The agency operates its standard and frequent bus services seven days per week, and rush hour service Monday to Friday. All buses and routes are wheelchair and mobility device-accessible, and include front-mounted bike racks.

The authority also operates multiple transit services, including the microtransit service COTA//PLUS and the on-demand COTA Mainstream service. (Full article...)
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Crowd during the strike

The 1910 streetcar strike was a union protest against labor practices by the Columbus Railway and Light Co. in Columbus, Ohio in 1910. The summertime strike began as peaceful protests, but led to thousands rioting throughout the city, injuring hundreds of people. (Full article...)
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A welcome sign to the Old Oaks Historic District

Old Oaks Historic District, or Old Oaks, is a neighborhood just south and east of downtown Columbus, Ohio and is an example of a streetcar suburb in the city. (Full article...)
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Westgate Neighborhood Entrance

Westgate is a community within the Hilltop area of Columbus, Ohio. It was partially constructed on land that formerly housed the American Civil War Camp Chase and a Confederate prison. After the Civil War, the land was purchased by Joseph Binns and his associates with the intent to start a Quaker community. These plans failed to materialize and the land was developed as a "streetcar suburb" in the 1920s. Located 4 miles (6.4 km) west of downtown, the neighborhood is home to Westgate Park and Recreation Center, Westgate Alternative Elementary School, St. Mary Magdalene Church and school, and Parkview United Methodist Church. 4,500 residents live within the Westgate boundaries, most in single family houses.

The Columbus Dispatch named Westgate one of the most affordable neighborhoods in the City of Columbus in October 2008.

Westgate is located 4 miles (6.4 km) west of Downtown Columbus and is bounded by W. Broad Street to the north, Wilson rd to the west, Sullivant Avenue to the south, and Hague to the east. (Full article...)
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Huntington Center in downtown Columbus

Columbus, Ohio has a generally strong and diverse economy based on education, insurance, banking, fashion, defense, aviation, food, logistics, steel, energy, medical research, health care, hospitality, retail, and technology.

Prominent employers in the Columbus area include numerous schools (e.g., The Ohio State University) and hospitals, hi-tech research and development and information/library companies such as Battelle Memorial Institute, OCLC, and Chemical Abstracts, and retail clothing and restaurant companies (such as Limited Brands and Wendy's). Other large employers include Alliance Data, Nationwide Insurance, JP Morgan Chase, American Electric Power, Huntington Bancshares, Worthington Industries and Cardinal Health, not to mention both state and local government. (Full article...)
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North High Street in Clintonville

Clintonville is a suburban neighborhood in north-central Columbus, Ohio, United States with around 30,000 residents. Its borders, associated with the Clintonville Area Commission, are the Olentangy River on the west, Glen Echo Creek to the south, a set of railroad tracks to the east, and on the north by the Worthington city limits.

As the cachet of the Clintonville neighborhood grew towards the turn of the 21st century, real estate agents began to label homes north of Cooke Road as Clintonville or Clintonville or Beechwold thus leading to the apparent absorption of Beechwold and nearby Columbus subdivisions south of Worthington. The area also contains the former unincorporated community of Evanston, a name that was used by the Big Four Railroad as a station along its line and U.S. Postal service until the 1920s. Clintonville includes parts of ZIP codes 43202 and 43214. The United States Post Offices at the center of each ZIP code are known as Clintonville Station and Beechwold Station, respectively. (Full article...)
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Historic Crew Stadium, previously known as Columbus Crew Stadium and Mapfre Stadium, is a soccer-specific stadium in Columbus, Ohio, United States. It primarily served as the home stadium of the Columbus Crew of Major League Soccer from 1999 until 2021, when the team moved to Lower.com Field. Historic Crew Stadium is the current home of the Crew's training facility, the OhioHealth Performance Center and MLS Next Pro team Columbus Crew 2. Historic Crew Stadium is also the site of a variety of additional events in amateur and professional soccer, American football, lacrosse, and rugby, and is a regular site for outdoor concerts due to the permanent stage in the north end zone.

Built in 1999, it was the first soccer-specific stadium built by a Major League Soccer team, starting an important trend in MLS stadium construction. The stadium was named for Madrid–based Mapfre Insurance after the company signed a 5-year sponsorship agreement announced on March 3, 2015. In December 2020, the deal expired and the Crew renamed the stadium. The listed seating capacity is 19,968. In 2015, Mapfre Stadium and Director of Grounds Weston Appelfeller were honored with the prestigious Field of the Year award by the Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA) for the professional soccer division. (Full article...)
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South Columbus also referred to as the "South Side" or the "South End", consists of numerous urban and suburban areas south of Downtown Columbus, Ohio, United States. It is part of the native Columbus geographical terminology of the large residential urban communities outside Downtown, including German Village, Schumacher Place, and the Brewery District. South Columbus is defined as the entire southeastern portion of Columbus, bordered by the Scioto River to the west, bounded by Interstate 70 to the north, and includes the southern city limit municipalities beyond the I-270 outerbelt, such as Groveport, Lockbourne, Obetz, and the Rickenbacker International Airport.

The City of Columbus has designated portions of the South Side as a Community Reinvestment Area that is "ready for revitalization", with available 15-year, 100 percent tax abatements for all projects that include 10 percent affordable housing, with options to buy out of the requirement. (Full article...)
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The Columbus Division of Police (CPD) is the primary law enforcement agency for the city of Columbus, Ohio, in the United States. It is the largest police department in Ohio, and among the twenty-five largest in the United States. It is composed of twenty precincts and numerous other investigative and support units. Chief Elaine Bryant assumed leadership of the Division in 2021. Special units of the Columbus Division of Police include a Helicopter Unit, Canine Unit, Mounted Unit, Community Response Teams, Marine Park Unit, and Special Weapons and Tactics Team (SWAT).

As of June 2020, the Division was staffed with roughly 1,885 sworn police officers and 325+ civilian staff. In comparison, in 2016, the staffing was reported as 1,848 sworn officers and 416 civilian staff. The estimated total budget in 2016 was $310,139,284. (Full article...)
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COSI (/ˈkoʊsaɪ/), officially the Center of Science and Industry, is a science museum and research center in Columbus, Ohio. COSI was opened to the public on 29 March 1964 and remained there for 35 years. In 1999, COSI was moved to a 30000 m² (320000 sq ft) facility, designed by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki along a bend in the Scioto River in the Franklinton neighborhood. COSI features more than 300 interactive exhibits throughout themed exhibition areas.

Until the COVID-19 pandemic, COSI operated the largest outreach education program of any science museum in the United States. Anchored by COSI on Wheels – a whole-school outreach program traveling throughout Ohio and the surrounding Midwest – as well as local COSI on Wheels Workshops, Camp COSI on Wheels, and Interactive Videoconference programs reaching 350000 learners each year outside of the museum at their peak.

As a non-profit organization, COSI is supported by ticket sales, a network of community and statewide partnerships (including relationships with a variety of donors and sponsors), a volunteer program supported by 10000 volunteers annually, and nearly 20000 member households. In 2008, COSI was named the #1 science center in the United States for families by Parent Magazine. In 2020, it was named the #1 Science Museum in the United States by USA Today. (Full article...)
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Outdoor amphitheater during a Goo Goo Dolls concert

KEMBA Live! (originally the PromoWest Pavilion) is a multi-purpose concert venue located in the Arena District of Columbus, Ohio. Opening in 2001, the venues operates year-round with indoor and outdoor facilities: the Indoor Music Hall and Outdoor Amphitheater. The venue was modeled after the House of Blues and described as the "Newport Music Hall on steroids". It features state-of-the-art lighting, acoustical systems and a reversible stage. In 2001, the venue was nominated for a Pollstar Awards for "Best New Major Concert Venue".

A sister venue, Stage AE is located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and opened in December 2010. In 2018, Promowest Productions and its venues were acquired by American entertainment presenter AEG. In August 2021, PromoWest Productions and AEG opened another sister venue, MegaCorp Pavilion, in Newport, Kentucky (near Cincinnati, Ohio). (Full article...)
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Foundation office

The Columbus Landmarks Foundation, known as Columbus Landmarks, is a nonprofit historic preservation organization in Columbus, Ohio. The foundation is best-known for its list of endangered sites in the city and its annual design award, given to buildings, landscapes, and other sites created or renovated in Columbus. It was established in 1977 as a project of the Junior League of Columbus, Ohio, following the demolition of the city's historic Union Station. It is headquartered at 57 Jefferson Avenue, a contributing structure in the Jefferson Avenue Historic District in Downtown Columbus. (Full article...)
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Welcome sign by S. James Rd and Scottwood Rd

Berwick is a residential neighborhood located on the east side of Columbus, Ohio. It is one of the most unique neighborhoods in Columbus with unique mid-century homes, wide winding streets, and a "suburban" feel. Berwick is characterized by its warm nature and welcoming community atmosphere, as well as its diverse population, including significant numbers of African American and Jewish citizens. The median household income is higher than the state average at $84,173, and the average household net worth is $509,793. The median age of residents is 46. Notable Columbus citizens, including Heisman Trophy Winner Archie Griffin and Columbus Mayor Michael B. Coleman, have resided in the area. (Full article...)
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The culture of Columbus, Ohio, is particularly known for museums, performing arts, sporting events, seasonal fairs and festivals, and architecture of various styles from Greek Revival to modern architecture. (Full article...)
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Nationwide Arena in 2021

Nationwide Arena is a multi-purpose arena in the Arena District of Columbus, Ohio, United States. Since completion in 2000, the arena has served as the home of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is one of two facilities in Columbus, along with Greater Columbus Convention Center, that hosts events during the annual Arnold Classic, a sports and fitness event hosted by actor, bodybuilder, and former governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger. (Full article...)
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City Hall from the southwest

Columbus City Hall is the city hall of Columbus, Ohio, in the city's downtown Civic Center. It contains the offices of the city's mayor, auditor, and treasurer, and the offices and chambers of Columbus City Council.

City Hall was designed in a Neoclassical style by the Allied Architects Association of Columbus. It replaced offices in the Central Market building as well as a former permanent city hall. The new city hall was built from 1926 to 1928, during a period of extensive construction building the city's riverfront civic center. An additional wing was added to City Hall in 1936. Renovations took place in 1949 and 1986, and the building was determined to be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places as part of a historic district in 1988. (Full article...)
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Interactive map highlighting the building's location

The Joseph P. Kinneary United States Courthouse is a federal courthouse in Columbus, Ohio, in the city's downtown Civic Center. It was formerly known as the U.S. Post Office and Court House. It was designed by Richards, McCarty & Bulford and was completed in 1934. The supervising architect was James A. Wetmore. It was renamed for Joseph P. Kinneary in 1998. It is still in use by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. (Full article...)
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The State Library of Ohio is a state agency that provides services to state government and all types of libraries to ensure that all Ohio residents, rich or poor, rural or urban, receive the best possible library service and are able to engage in lifelong learning which strengthens the economic health of Ohio.

The State Library is governed by a five-member board. The board members are appointed by the State Board of Education and each member serves a five-year term of office. Under the Ohio Revised Code, section 3375.01, the State Library Board is responsible for the State Library of Ohio and a statewide program of development and coordination of library services. (Full article...)