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B+History
History · Batavia

Batavia dates to 1797, and 34% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 72% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Below: maps from 1885 on and the census since 1820.

1797founded
0on the National Register
34%homes built before 1940
7famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Aesopposea · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Batavia began

When was Batavia founded?

1797

Batavia dates its founding to 1797 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1820.

First census: 208 in 18202020 census: 1,972229 years

How historic is Batavia?

B+

More historic than 72% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1818.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Batavia’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Batavia is more historic than 72% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Batavia’s overall grade.
Founding era1797, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194033.7% of homes (±8.7) · typical OH town 14.5% · U.S. 8.4%ANational RegisterNo listings counted · typical OH town 2.9 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 72%
NewerOlder

Ohio towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Ohio town has 2.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Batavia’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (23% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.7 points). Two sources give 1797.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Batavia’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Batavia are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1885 to 1911, drew every building in Batavia.On the map since 19166 editions of the USGS map, 1916 to 1996. Watch Batavia change.Deep rootsEstablished in 1797: 229 years of Batavia.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Batavia’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Batavia’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Every building

Batavia, building by building, 1885–1911

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Batavia fire insurance map, 1885, sheet 11885Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

On the map

Batavia on the map, 1916 to 1996

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Batavia. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Batavia on the 1916 USGS mapBatavia on the 1953 USGS mapBatavia on the 1965 USGS mapBatavia on the 1974 USGS mapBatavia on the 1982 USGS mapBatavia on the 1996 USGS map1916Batavia sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Batavia.

The story

How Batavia came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Batavia.

Read it all →

Batavia was surveyed on May 28, 1788, by Captain Francis Minnis, John O'Bannon, Nicholas Keller, Archelus Price, and John Ormsley. Virginian Ezekiel Dimmitt became the area's first settler in the fall of 1797. George Ely purchased the Minnis survey in 1807 and platted the town on October 24, 1814, possibly naming it after Batavia, New York. The Clermont County seat moved from New Richmond to Batavia on February 24, 1824. Batavia finally incorporated as a village on February 10, 1842.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Batavia, 1797 to 1922

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 18th century
  2. 1797
    FoundingBatavia is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1818Post officeThe Batavia post office opens
  5. 1833Born hereGeorge W. Hulick is born here
  6. 1872Born hereP. M. Ashburn is born here
  7. 20th century
  8. 1913Born hereGene Schott is born here
  9. 1916On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1922Born hereBill Smyth is born here
By decade

Batavia, decade by decade

Today7 recent
Crinipellis zonata (Peck) Sacc 7895472017Crinipellis zonata (Peck) Sacc 789547Batavia Campus and the New High School2016Batavia Campus and the New High SchoolBatavia Bulldog Mascot outside of Holman Stadium2016Batavia Bulldog Mascot outside of Holman StadiumConstruction on Riverside in downtown2013Construction on Riverside in downtownBataviaOH22013BataviaOH2BataviaOH12013BataviaOH1Batavia, Ohio2012Batavia, Ohio
People over time

Batavia, census by census

05001,0001,5002,00018501900195020001,972

Grew from 208 people in 1820 to 1,972 in 2020, 9 times over.

21 censuses, 1820–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Batavia’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

7 famous people were born in Batavia

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
George W. HulickUnion Army officer, lawyer, politician · b. 1833
G
Gene SchottAmerican baseball player · b. 1913
P. M. AshburnAmerican physician · b. 1872
B
Bill SmythAmerican football player · b. 1922
Thomas Q. AshburnUnited States Army general · b. 1874
A
Alva Lease DuckwallUS businessman and retail entrepreneur · b. 1877

Questions about Batavia’s history

What year was Batavia founded?

In 1797, according to Wikidata. Batavia’s post office opened in 1818, and the census of 1820 counted 208 people here.

How does Batavia rank for history?

Batavia is more historic than 72% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

How old are the homes in Batavia?

34% of Batavia’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.7 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1955.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (7), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.