Vermilion in Erie County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Vermilion
⎯⎯⎯
Erie County
Vermillion.
Founded 1808, incorporated 1837.
Settled by Connecticut “Firelanders.”
Name derived from red banks along river.
Old Indian Fort, up river, famous for giving protection to Vermilion Tribe and roving bands.
Early charcoal iron industry operated.
Seat of shipbuilding in sailing days. First small craft built in 1813. Large vessel, the “South America” built in 1841 by Alva Bradley, Ahira Cobb and Rodney Andrews. Bradley, Phillip Minch, Isaac Nicholas, shipbuilding pioneers on lakes. Industry flourished until 1860.
Erie County.
As part of “The Firelands of Ohio” Erie County had its origin in the Revolutionary War. Connecticut towns were burned in the historic raids of Benedict Arnold and British General Tryon. 500,000 acres in the Western Reserve were awarded by the Connecticut Assembly in 1892 to indemnify the fire-sufferers, therefore known as “The Firelands;” consisting of what is now Huron and Erie Counties, plus Ruggles and Danbury Townships.
Originally part of Huron County, organized 1811, first courthouse at Ft. Avery; County of Erie formed in 1838.
Erected 1953 by the Ohio Sesquicentennial and the Sandusky Register-Star-News, founded in 1833.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1808.
Location. 41° 25.257′ N, 82° 21.868′ W. Marker is in Vermilion, Ohio, in Erie County. It is on Main Street (Ohio Route 60) north of Ohio Street, on the right when traveling north. Located in Victory Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 687 Main Street, Vermilion OH 44089, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is on Ohio’s Lake Erie Shore and in the Western Reserve. It is also in the American Midwest, on the Great Lakes, and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, and the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Vermilion's Founders Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Vermilion Community Veterans Memorial (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Firelands "Sufferers" (about 500 feet away); A Brief History... (about 600 feet away); The Kishman Fish Company (about 700 feet away); The Days of Steel Boats (about 700 feet away); Days of Wooden Ships (about 700 feet away); Simon Kenton (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Vermilion.
Also see . . . Historic Pictures of Vermilion. Photographs and copious notes by Rich Tarrant. Excerpt:
The United States Post office was responsible for knocking the (other) “el” out of Vermilion in 1898 when there was some confusion with Vermillion Township in Ashland County, Erie County, and the town itself.(Submitted on April 7, 2020.)

Photographed by J. J. Prats, February 14, 2020
5. Site of Vermilion Station
Now a train-watching pavilion (“at least 5 trains per hour”) at Victory Park. Tracks are the former New York Central Railroad main line between New York and Chicago, now CSX tracks. Amtrak passenger trains pass through but do not stop in Vermilion, nearest passenger station is west at Sandusky.
Credits. This page was last revised on April 10, 2020. It was originally submitted on April 7, 2020, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 585 times since then and 40 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on April 7, 2020, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.




