Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1818.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Cheviot’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cheviot is more historic than 89% of U.S. towns, #170 of 993 in Ohio. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Cheviot’s overall grade.
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 Cheviot’s 2.3 sits near the middle of its state (53% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 2 historic buildings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.4 points). Two sources give 1818.
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 Cheviot’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In 1818, a Scottish immigrant named John Craig purchased a half section of 320 acres (1.3 km2) of Green Township from Elias Boudinot. He built an inn and tavern on the Harrison Pike. On March 21, 1818, Craig laid out a town which he named after the Cheviot Hills in southern Scotland. He sold lots and growth began.
The town was incorporated as a village in 1901, and a city in 1931. Originally a farming community, today Cheviot is a residential suburb of Cincinnati.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Cheviot. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1914West Cincinnati 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 Cheviot.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Cheviot in 1894
Passages that mention Cheviot, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, Ohio1894 · page 407Read the page →
Read the text
For many years Cheviot remained practically stationary. As a country village, situated in the midst of a fertile farming region, it enjoyed a fair degree of prosperity, but with the improvement of roads leading to the city, its business importance declined. Since the opening of the Westwood railroad it has received a large increase in population, much of which, however, is to be accredited to the village of Westwood, which corporation will doubtless absorb eventually that part of Cheviot still beyond its limits. Disregarding geographical boundary lines for the present, it may be said that what is popularly known as Cheviot comprises a population of
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, Ohio1894 · page 411Read the page →
Read the text
In this connection it is proper to revert to the Presbyterian church that existed at Cheviot some years ago. It was a brick building, with tower and bell, and stood at the northwest corner of Cheviot avenue and South street. John Craig gave the ground, and the church was built in 1840. Among the members were Robert Orr, Mrs. Doty, Thomas Kendall, Eli Fish, Mrs. Susan Hoffman, Mrs. Robert Hope, Peter Craig and^Mrs. Moore. The organization became defunct about the begfaning of the Civil war.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Cheviot, 1818 to 1925
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
In 1818, according to Wikidata. Cheviot’s post office opened in 1818, and the census of 1880 counted 325 people here.
How does Cheviot rank for history?
Cheviot is more historic than 89% of U.S. towns, #170 of 993 in Ohio. 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.
What is on the National Register in Cheviot?
One place: the Cheviot Fieldhouse (listed 2009).
How old are the homes in Cheviot?
45% of Cheviot’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.4 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1946.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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 old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
