Welcome to The Lawrence Register

Ironton, Ohio
History Index

Ironton was founded March 23, 1849 and is now the county seat of Lawrence County, Ohio. The Ohio Iron and Coal Company established the town for its workers in 1848. An abundance of coal and iron ore exist in the region, with the first iron being smelted in 1815. Before Ironton became the county seat in 1852, Burlington served as Lawrence County’s seat of government.

Ironton grew quickly as coal and iron ore miners flocked to the region. Located along the Ohio River and two railroad lines, the town also became a trade center. In 1880, 8,857 resided in Ironton, and ten years later, 10,939 people inhabited the town. In 1886, Ironton contained four newspaper offices, sixteen churches, and at least three banks. Numerous businesses existed in the town, most of which were affiliated with the iron and coal industries. Ironton’s largest employer was the Kelly Nail and Iron Company with 375 employees in 1886. The Lawrence Iron and Steel Company was the town’s second largest firm, with three hundred employees.

During the twentieth century, the iron and coal industry in southern Ohio stagnated, as miners had excavated much of the area’s natural resources. In 2000, Ironton’s population was just 11,211 people, virtually the same as it was in 1890. Ironton was Lawrence County’s largest community in 2000. In recent years, Ironton leaders have actively sought new businesses to move to their community.

• 1966 Ironton Police Department

• Be sure and check out Sharon Kouns Website for more History!

• Autobiography of Ironton founder John Campbell

• Bridge Over Storms Creek (2nd Street), built 1854

• Circus in Ironton

• Henry Patrick Remembers – Farmlands of Ironton before 1848

• First 100 Years of Ironton 

• Firsts in Lawrence County, Ohio

• Floods in Ironton

• History of Ironton City Schools

• Historic Route 75 Tunnel 

• How Ironton Was Named

• Ironton Historic Landmark Site – {External link} – a collaborative project between OUSC and Chesapeake High School

• Ironton City Schools

• “Ironton” by Miss Fulwiler – Miss Fulwiler wrote the paper on Ironton several years ago and presented it before an organization of which she was a member.

• Ironton Churches 

• Ironton Grew Up in a Hurry

• Ironton High School Yearbook – 1945 – 1946 – 1947 –  1948 

• Ironton’s First Baseball Team Formed in 1867

• Ironton in a Nutshell

• Ironton is 5 Years Old

• Ironton Tanks Football Team

• Ironton Trivial Facts

• Julia Marlowe Grew up in Ironton

• John Campbell – founder of Ironton

• Let’s Get Acquainted – Series of Articles Concerning Interesting Business And Professional

• Memorial Hall 

• Miscellaneous Newspaper Clippings About Ironton

• Nellie Gillen – a clerk in a store at Ironton is a heroine in the eyes of the people of her city.

• The Good Old Days

• The Ohio Iron & Coal Company – the organization who founded Ironton under the leadership of John Campbell

• Old Ironton Businesses (includes surrounding area)

• Pre-historic Ironton (before the beginning)

• Street Railroad

• The Soliloquy Series

• Walking Tour of Downtown Ironton

• WD Kelly Cemetery 

• W.E.R. Kemp –  a carpenter and builder of some of the earlier homes and businesses in Ironton. These are some of the articles that we found relating to his work.

• Where Did They Go? – Following former Irontonians