52 Interesting Facts About Ohio

Last updated on March 21st, 2022

42. Did you know that Asa A. Long born in Antwerp, Ohio, is a checkers player, who has the world records as both youngest and oldest national champion? He first won the US national championship at the age of 18 and then again in 1984 (becoming the oldest person to win).

43. Did you know that the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was designed by a 21-year-old Maya Lin from Ohio? An undergraduate at Yale University, she beat out over 1,400 competitors in a competition to design the memorial. Interestingly, her professor was also among her competition.^[39]

44. Columbus is the home of Wendy’s. The very first Wendy’s was located on the corner of 5^th and Broad in downtown Columbus in 1969. Dave Thomas named the restaurant after his daughter, Melinda “Wendy” Thomas. Wendy’s has grown into the third largest hamburger chain in the world with over 6700 locations.^[38]

45. In 1862, after graduating from the Oberlin College (Lorain County, Ohio), Mary Jane Patterson, became the first African-American woman to gain a bachelor’s degree.^[40]

46. Did you know that the Great Serpent Mound in rural, southwestern Ohio is the largest serpent effigy in the world? It measures approximately 1,300 feet in length and ranges from one to three feet in height.^[41]

47. On March 14th, 2015, Rick Smith Jr, broke the world record for making the highest throw of a playing card. He threw the card 21.41 metres (70 ft 3 in) into the air at Great Lakes Science Centre in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.

48. Curtis Buddie broke the world record on January 17^th, 2018 for having the longest milk tooth that was removed on that day in Columbus, Ohio. The boy was 10 years old when the 2.4 cm (0.94 in) tooth was removed.

49. Eric Walter broke the world record for the fastest joggle (Joggling = Jogging plus Juggling) with three objects by a male. He joggled for a distance of 400 m and in a time of 55.81 seconds. He broke this record at the Bowling Green State University track in Bowling Green, Ohio, USA.

50. The state is the birthplace of the cash register. It was invented by James Jacob Ritty. The design was patented on November 4^th, 1879. The cash register was named a “mechanical money drawer” by its inventor.^[18,27]

51. The world record for the fastest time a grave was dug is held by Jose Luis Rivera. Jose dug the grave in 2 hours on October 20th, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. According to Jose, he has been digging water mains and sewers for 29 years and when the challenge presented itself, he couldn’t resist it.

52. Oldest woman to give birth to her grandchildren: Jacklyn broke this record because she volunteered to be her daughter’s surrogate mother. She did this at the age of 56 years and carried, and delivered her grandchildren who were born as triplets on October 11, 2008 at Hillcrest Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio.

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