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Steffen west of McIntyre, Lincoln HeightsPhoto: Nyttend · Public domain
DHistory
History · Lincoln Heights

Lincoln Heights was first counted by the census in 1950

More historic than 12% of U.S. towns · #954 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it

Most of Lincoln Heights was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1973. Below: maps from 1898 on and the census since 1950.

1950first census
0on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Nyttend · Public domain
Quick answers

How Lincoln Heights began

When was Lincoln Heights founded?

1950

Lincoln Heights first appears in the census in 1950.

First census: 5,531 in 19502020 census: 3,14476 years

How historic is Lincoln Heights?

D

More historic than 12% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first census.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Lincoln Heights’ History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lincoln Heights is more historic than 12% of U.S. towns, #954 of 993 in Ohio. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Lincoln Heights’ overall grade.
Founding era1950, from the first census: founded 1945 or later, an older era than 2% of U.S. townsD−Homes built before 19408.5% of homes (±5.8) · typical OH town 14.5% · U.S. 8.4%C+National 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 12%
NewerOlder
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 4%

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 Lincoln Heights’ 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 D− to C−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.8 points).

Founding year: the first census (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 Lincoln Heights’ 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 Lincoln Heights are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18986 editions of the USGS map, 1898 to 1981. Watch Lincoln Heights change.Boom and bustPeaked at 7,798 in 1960; 3,144 people lived here in 2020.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Lincoln Heights’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Lincoln Heights’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
On the map

Lincoln Heights on the map, 1898 to 1981

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

Lincoln Heights on the 1898 USGS mapLincoln Heights on the 1914 USGS mapLincoln Heights on the 1953 USGS mapLincoln Heights on the 1961 USGS mapLincoln Heights on the 1970 USGS mapLincoln Heights on the 1981 USGS map1898East 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 Lincoln Heights.

People over time

Lincoln Heights, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,0001960198020002020Peak: 7,798

Peaked at 7,798 in 1960; 3,144 people lived here in 2020.

8 censuses, 1950–2020.

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

The story

How Lincoln Heights came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Lincoln Heights.

Read it all →

Lincoln Heights was founded in the 1920s by property developers as a suburban enclave for black homeowners working in nearby industries. It was originally an unincorporated area which had no fire, police, streetlights, or paved roads. At the time, only some houses had electricity. Many black families bought houses in the community because zoning laws and redlining prevented them from purchasing property in other communities. It incorporated in 1946 and elected Reverend Michael J. Mangham as mayor, one of the earliest African mayors in the North.

ChaptersIncorporation attemptsSubsequent history2025 neo-Nazi demonstrations

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Lincoln Heights, 1898 to 1968

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1898On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 20th century
  4. 1960CensusPopulation peaks at 7,798
  5. 1968Born hereDarryl Hardy is born here
By decade

Lincoln Heights, decade by decade

Today4 recent
Steffen west of McIntyre2015Steffen west of McIntyreMount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church2015Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist ChurchMap of Hamilton County Ohio Highlighting Lincoln Heights Village2015Map of Hamilton County Ohio Highlighting Lincoln Heig…MapOHMap-doton-Lincoln Heights2004OHMap-doton-Lincoln Heights
Famous people

2 famous people were born in Lincoln Heights

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

See all →
D
Darryl HardyAmerican football player · b. 1968
C
Carl WestmorelandAmerican community organizer, preservationist, …
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Lockland1 historic placeAWoodlawn1 historic placeC+EvendaleIts storyC−Wyoming20 historic placesA−

Questions about Lincoln Heights’ history

What year was Lincoln Heights founded?

The Lincoln Heights post office opened in 1950, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Lincoln Heights rank for history?

Lincoln Heights is more historic than 12% of U.S. towns, #954 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.

How old are the homes in Lincoln Heights?

9% of Lincoln Heights’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.8 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1973.

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 (4), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.