Earliest Settlers and the Carpenter's Run Baptist Church
Information and pictures gathered from descendants of five Blue Ash pioneer families, along with minutes of the historic Carpenter's Run Baptist Church dating back to 1791, provide a view of what life was like in the early settlement. Accounts in family histories tell the stories of bravery and courage exhibited by the pioneer families of John and Elizabeth Ferris, James and Mary Craig Carpenter, Price and Molly Denman Thompson, Abner and Hannah Ayres Denman, and Richard Ayres, many of whom have descendants still living in the Blue Ash area today.
The Carpenter's Run Baptist Church (1797-1828) served the earliest settlers of Blue Ash. Built of logs from the blue ash tree, the church gave the community its name. When the church disbanded around 1828, the building was used as Plainfield School.
Three grade schools, Plainfield (1814), Blue Ash (1892) and White Oak (mid-1800s), served the community. Sycamore High School (now the Junior High) was built in 1925. In 1949, the three elementary schools along with three others and the high school combined into the Sycamore School District, with Edwin H. Greene named the first superintendent.
An Emerging Community
Blue Ash was a rural community of farms throughout the 1800s and did not incorporate until 1954. The railroad (CL&N) was built through the community in the 1880s, and it brought a post office to Blue Ash. Commercial activity at this time consisted of a blacksmith shop and a grocery store until 1908 when the Blue Ash Building & Loan was established, the longest continuous business in operation in Blue Ash today. The 16 Mile Stand Rangers provided some measure of police protection.
There were attempts to incorporate Blue Ash during the early 1900s, but none was successful until 1954. The Blue Ash Civic League served as the voice in the community prior to that time (established around 1908 as the Blue Ash Improvement Association).
Blue Ash Incorporates
For several years after incorporation, there were heated political battles, but by the early 1970s, the politics stabilized. The city that hired nine city managers in nine years found one in 1972, Victor Suhm, who spent nine years with the City. Current City Manager Marvin Thompson was hired in 1973 as an administrative intern and was named city manager in 1981.
During the late 1960s and early 1970s Blue Ash became the home of Raymond Walters College, the Sycamore Branch Library, the Sycamore Senior Center and the Blue Ash YMCA. During the 1970s and 1980s the City attracted a variety of commercial and industrial development that includes many national names as well as recognized local companies. Today Blue Ash is home to approximately 2,000 businesses, including several Procter & Gamble facilities, Johnson & Johnson's Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Lighting Systems, Inc., Fidelity Investments, among many others.
Blue Ash is an enviable community whose success has been due to good planning and effective city management. With a daytime population of approximately 70,000, top notch recreational facilities and programs and public safety services, Blue Ash provides a quality place to live, work, and enjoy leisure-time activities.
Blue Ash Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 12,513 people, 4,990 households, and 3,468 families residing in the city. The population density was 630.7/km² (1,634.6/mi²). There were 5,251 housing units at an average density of 264.7/km² (686.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 87.09% White, 5.01% African American, 0.25% Native American, 6.39% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.29% from other races, and 0.96% from two or more races. 0.97% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 4,990 households out of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.2% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.5% were non-families. 25.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.01.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.4% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 26.1% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $61,591, and the median income for a family was $69,494. Males had a median income of $52,743 versus $35,060 for females. The per capita income for the city was $33,801. 4.7% of the population and 3.8% of families were below the poverty line. 6.8% of those under the age of 18 and 2.9% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
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