Tallmadge, Ohio

In 1804, the Congregationalist Church authorized Reverend David Bacon to establish the town of Tallmadge, Ohio. Residents named the community after Benjamin Tallmadge, a hero of the American Revolution and the owner of much of the land that became the city of Tallmadge.

Tallmadge was to be the center of the Congregationalist Church and its missionary efforts in the Connecticut Western Reserve. The church building was to be located in the center of town with all roads radiating outward like the sun's rays. The church as the center of the community illustrates how important religion was to the earliest settlers. It is also a design common to the New England area, a region from which came most of the Connecticut Western Reserve's original residents. Bacon constructed one of the first cabins in Tallmadge for his family and moved there in July 1807. By February 1808, only two other families�one English and one German�had joined the Bacons.

Bacon spent 1808 recruiting more members for the community. He was away from home for extended periods of time. Fearing the Indians, Bacon's wife pulled in the latch-string on the door to make access into the cabin from the outside extremely difficult. She also blockaded the door of the cabin. Bacon had limited success in finding new residents for Tallmadge. By the end of 1808, only twelve families called the town home.

Bacon continued to struggle to establish the town. Unfortunately, he had purchased the land for the town on credit. He had hoped to pay off his debts by collecting a land tax. With so few families moving to the community, Bacon could not collect enough in taxes to pay his creditors. He was evicted from his land in 1812, but the town survived. The community eventually became the center of the Congregationalist faith in Ohio.

During the twentieth century, Tallmadge developed into a suburban community. Located near Akron, many residents moved to Tallmadge to escape the busyness of the larger city. Many Tallmadge residents still work in Akron. In 2000, almost 16,400 people resided in the community.