Dayton is a city in southwestern Ohio, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Montgomery County. As of the 2005 census estimate, the population of Dayton was 158,873. The Dayton metropolitan area, or Greater Dayton, which includes the communities of Vandalia, Trotwood, Kettering, Centerville, Beavercreek, West Carrollton, Huber Heights, Troy, and Miamisburg, had a population of 843,577 as of the 2005 estimate. Dayton is situated within the Miami Valley region of Ohio, just north of the Cincinnati metropolitan area.
Dayton plays host to significant industrial, aerospace, and technological/engineering research activity and is known for the many technical innovations and inventions developed there. The city was the home of the Wright brothers, poet Paul Laurence Dunbar, and entrepreneur John H. Patterson. The Dayton area is home to several major international, national, and regional corporations, including NCR, Reynolds & Reynolds, Liberty Bank, Standard Register, WorkflowOne (formally Relizon), Huffy Bicycles, LexisNexis, and Mead prior to becoming MeadWestvaco.
Dayton Peace AccordsThe Dayton Agreement, a peace accord between the parties to the hostilities of the conflict in Bosnia and the former Yugoslavia, was negotiated in the Dayton area. Negotiations took place from November 1, 1995 to November 21, 1995 at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton.
NicknamesDayton's primary nickname is the 'Gem City'. The origin of the name is no longer clear; it appears to stem either from a well-known racehorse named 'Gem' that hailed from Dayton, or from descriptions of the city likening it to a gem. The most likely origin appears to be an 1840s article in a Cincinnati newspaper which reads
Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872–1906) later acknowledged the nickname in his poem, 'Toast to Dayton', which contains this stanza:
The city was advertised as 'The Gem City, the Cleanest City in America' in the 1950s, 60s and into the 70s. The phrase was often seen on public trash cans, and other places throughout the city during this time period.
Due to the neglect of the city from the 1980s to present, the city had endured poverty, claiming the title of the 9th most impoverished city in the country. GM and its spinoff Delphi's factories, just to name a few, make up much of the cities' employment.
Dayton also had a the 3rd highest Crime rate per capita in the State, putting Cleveland 1st, Cincinnati in 2nd and Toledo in 4th.
The nickname 'Birthplace of Aviation' is also frequently seen due to Dayton being the hometown of the Wright Brothers. In their bicycle shop in Dayton, the Wrights developed the principles of aerodynamics, and designed and constructed a number of gliders and portions of their first airplane. After their first manned flights in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, the Wrights continued testing at nearby Huffman Prairie. [1]
GeographyDayton is located at (39.762708, -84.196665)GR1. The city sits in the Miami River Valley, north of Cincinnati, well south of Toledo, south-west of Columbus, and east of Richmond, Indiana, in the southwest quadrant of the state. Most official and government designations place it in west-central Ohio (a term which colloquially often refers to Lima, Ohio). It is at the confluence of the Great Miami River, the Stillwater and Mad rivers, and Wolf Creek. Greater Dayton is generally referred to by locals as the Miami Valley, which is understood to mean the area south of Sidney and north of Middletown, and west of Springfield to the Indiana border
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 146.7 km˛ (56.6 mi˛). 144.5 km˛ (55.8 mi˛) of it is land and 2.2 km˛ (0.9 mi˛) of it (1.55%) is water.
DemographicsAs of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 166,179 people, 67,409 households, and 37,614 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,150.3/km˛ (2,979.3/mi˛). There were 77,321 housing units at an average density of 535.2/km˛ (1,386.3/mi˛). The racial makeup of the city was 53.40% White, 43.10%% Black or African American, 0.30% Native American, 0.65% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.70% from other races, and 1.83% from two or more races. 1.58% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Dayton remains largely segregated, with African Americans residing on the West and Whites on the East in the City Proper.
HouseholdsThere were 67,409 households out of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 30.2% were married couples living together, 20.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.2% were non-families. 36.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 3.04.
Age structure and gender ratioThe age structure of Dayton's population is:
The median age is 32 years. For every 100 females there were 93.1 males, while For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.6 males.
IncomeThe median income for a household in the city was $27,523, and the median income for a family was $34,978. Males had a median income of $30,816 versus $24,937 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,547. About 18.2% of families and 23.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 32.0% of those under age 18 and 15.3% of those age 65 or over.
Metropolitan Statistical AreaThe former Dayton-Springfield Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) included Montgomery, Miami, Clark, and Greene counties and had a population of 950,558 in 2000. In 2003, the MSA was split into the Springfield MSA, which includes only Clark County, and the Dayton MSA, which includes Montgomery, Miami, Greene, and Preble counties.
Political structureIn 1913, Dayton became the first large city in the United States to adopt the council-manager system of city government. In this system, the mayor is merely the chairperson of the city commission and has one vote on the commission just like the other commissioners. The commission chooses a city manager, who holds administrative authority over the city government.
Unlike many midwestern cities of its age, Dayton has very broad and straight downtown streets (generally two full lanes in each direction), facilitating access to the downtown even after the automobile became popular. The main reason for the broad streets was that Dayton was a marketing and shipping center from its beginning: streets were broad to enable wagons drawn by teams of three to four pairs of oxen to turn around. In addition, some of today's streets were once barge canals flanked by draw-paths.
A courthouse building was constructed in downtown Dayton in 1888 to supplement Dayton's original Neoclassical courthouse, which still stands. This second, 'new' courthouse has since been replaced with new facilities as well as a park.
Dayton's nine historic neighborhoods — Oregon District, Wright Dunbar, Dayton View, Grafton Hill, McPherson Town, Webster Station, Huffman, St. Anne's Hill, and South Park — feature mostly single-family houses and mansions in the Neoclassical, Jacobethan, Tudor Revival, English Gothic, Chateauesque, Craftsman, Queen Anne, Georgian Revival, Colonial Revival, Renaissance Revival, Shingle, Prairie, Mission Revival, Eastlake/Italianate, American Foursquare, and Federal styles of architecture.[2]
The two tallest buildings of the Dayton skyline are the Kettering Tower and the MeadWestvaco Tower. Kettering Tower was originally Winters Tower, the headquarters of Winters Bank. The building was renamed after Virginia Kettering when Winters was merged into BankOne.
Culture and recreationDayton is home to the Dayton Art Institute, a museum of fine arts. The National Museum of the United States Air Force is at nearby Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.
The Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park commemorates the lives and achievements of Dayton natives Orville and Wilbur Wright and Paul Laurence Dunbar.
SunWatch Indian Village/Archaeological Park is located on the south end of Dayton. SunWatch is the location of a 12th century American Indian village that has been partially reconstructed and includes a museum where visitors can learn about the Indian history of the Miami Valley.
Dayton is also home to a variety of performing arts venues. The Benjamin and Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center at the corner of Second and Main, is the home performance venue of the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra and the Dayton Opera. In addition to Philharmonic and Opera performances, the Schuster Center hosts concerts, lectures, traveling Broadway shows, and is a popular spot for weddings and other events. The historic Victoria Theatre, located at the corner of First and Main, hosts concerts, traveling Broadway shows, ballet, a summertime classic film series, and much more. The Loft Theatre, also on Main Street, is the home of the Human Race Theatre Company.
South of Dayton in Kettering is the Fraze Pavilion which hosts many nationally and internationally known musicians for concerts. Also south of downtown, on the banks of the Great Miami River, is the University of Dayton Arena, home venue for the University of Dayton Flyers basketball teams and the location of various other events and concerts. North of Dayton is the Hara Arena and the Nutter Center, venues that frequently host sporting events and concerts. The Nutter Center is the home arena for athletics of Wright State University and the Dayton Bombers.
From 1996 to 1998, Dayton hosted the National Folk Festival.
The Dayton Amateur Radio Association annually hosts North America's largest hamfest at Hara Arena. Amateur radio operators are commonly referred to as 'hams' with as many as 25,000 traveling from around the world to attend this convention.
SportsDayton also has an amateur women's ice hockey team, the Dayton Fangs, established in August 2005. The Gem City Rollergirls, a women's roller derby league, began forming in early 2006, women's rugby, the Flying Pigs.
MediaThe principal general-circulation daily newspaper in the region is the Dayton Daily News, which is owned by Cox Communications. Christian Citizen USA (currently doing business as Citizen USA), which claims to uphold 'traditional values' and distances itself from secular media[3], is a newspaper with circulation in greater Dayton and its surrounding suburban communities. The Dayton City Paper is a free weekly circulation newspaper. The Kettering-Oakwood Times is a weekly with circulation primarily in the south suburban communities.
Nationally syndicated morning talk show The Daily Buzz originated from WBDT-TV, the Acme property in Miamisburg, Ohio before moving to its current home in Florida.
TelevisionThe Dayton metro area's broadcast television stations are as follows:
The Dayton television market is ranked the #59 Nielsen DMA in the United States.
RadioSome Cincinnati and other southwest Ohio radio and television stations can be received in parts of Dayton, as well.
TransportationThe Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority (RTA) operates public bus routes in the Dayton metro area. In addition to routes covered by traditional diesel-powered buses, RTA has a number of electric trolley bus routes. In continuous operation since 1888, Dayton's is the longest-running of the five remaining trolley bus systems in the U.S.
Air transportation is available via the James M. Cox Dayton International Airport, located in nearby Vandalia, just north of Dayton proper.
Dayton is located on Interstate 75, which intersects Interstate 70 just north of the city. This intersection is also known as 'Freedom Veterans Crossroads.'
Liberty Cab (in operation since 1929), Checker Cab and Airport Checker Cab all provide taxicab service throughout the Dayton metro area.
When traveling from Michigan on I-75 Heading to Southern States, there is almost no way around Downtown Dayton heading South.
Route 4 and Interstate 75 is also known to locals as Mal-Function Junction, because of the Sharp 90 degree turn in the Northbound lanes of I-75, that causes heavy traffic delays during Rush Hour. That land of interstate is also known for traffic accidents.
EducationDayton is home to two major universities: the University of Dayton, a private, Catholic institution founded in 1850 by the Marianist order, and the public Wright State University, which became a state university in 1967. Wright State University has the only medical school in the Dayton area. The University of Dayton has the only American Bar Association (ABA) approved law school in the Dayton area. UDSL
Dayton is also home to one of the country's leading community colleges, Sinclair Community College (founded as a YMCA college in 1887). Miami Jacobs College is another junior college in Dayton.
Dayton Public High Schools are: Paul Laurence Dunbar High, Colonel White High, Meadowdale High, Patterson Career Center,Belmont High, and Stivers School For the Arts. In 2006 Paul Laurence Dunbar High School won the State Championship in Basketball.
During the 1990s, The Dayton Public School System was the lowest performing school district in the state of Ohio. After a dramatic reconstructioning of the schools in the mid 2000s, the school system had a new superintendent The district moved up from 'academic emergency' to 'continuous improvement', building new schools and the 1st all girls school in the City.
The school districts motto states that 'A New Day is Dawning' for Dayton Public Schools.
Central State and Wilberforce Universities are the only 2 predominantly African-American colleges located directly across the street from one another in neighboring Greene County, Ohio Those schools are rivals for sport activities.
Bill Cosby attended Wilberforce University, and occasionally speaks to the beginning freshman class of Central State University during orientation.
Notable nativesDayton has five sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International, Inc. (SCI):
