Mount Vernon, Ohio

Mount Vernon is the county seat of Knox County, Ohio. Established in 1805, residents named the town after George Washington's home, which was also known as Mount Vernon. During the town's early years, residents congregated in the town on Saturday afternoons and helped clear stumps of trees from the city streets. Following several hours of hard work, residents then concocted an alcoholic drink to applaud themselves.

Mount Vernon grew quickly, having a population of 2,363 people in 1840. By 1846, the town contained eight churches, thirty-three stores, three newspaper offices, one woolen mill, four gristmills, and five sawmills. In 1880, 5,249 people resided in Mount Vernon. Four newspaper offices provided news to locals, and the town also contained ten churches and three banks. Numerous manufacturing businesses existed in the town, with C&G Cooper, a sawmill company, being the largest, employing 190 residents. Most businesses provided services of manufactured goods for farmers in the surrounding countryside.

Mount Vernon continued to grow during the twentieth century. During the first several decades of the 1900s, glass production and natural gas extraction were two important industries. Today, Mount Vernon residents work in a wide variety of fields, including in retail positions, manufacturing jobs, and also in various service positions. With a population of 14,375 people, Mount Vernon was Knox County's largest community in 2000. Approximately twenty-five percent of the county's entire population resided in Mount Vernon that same year.