Founding The Town

Cridersville was founded by Ephraim and Polly Crider and their family in 1856. They platted their town along the proposed route of the new Dayton & Michigan Railroad. When the railroad was completed in 1858, the village began to grow. A railroad station in the village allowed area farmers access to larger city markets for their excess crops and livestock. It also provided for goods to be shipped into the village. New stores began to open on Main Street. By 1866 there was need for a local school. The first one-room schoolhouse was built on East Main Street, a half block west of Legacy Park. Ephraim Crider and N.A. Murdock donated land for construction of the school. It would serve the children of Cridersville until a new, two-story, four-room brick school was built on S. Waverly Street in 1875.

Cridersville, Ohio · United States