Each month, we feature a different Ohio city as part of our #GOPCThread Series, Ohio Community Spotlight. This month, we highlight the city of Newark!

Hello friends, and welcome to another edition of the Ohio Community Spotlight. This month, we conclude 2024 with a visit to Newark, county seat of Licking County just east of Columbus at the junction of the forks of the Licking River.

More than 2000 years before European settlers reached what today is Central Ohio, the people of the Hopewell Culture lived in the area that today is Newark. They transformed the area through the construction of many earthen mounds and enclosures, creating the largest earthworks complex in the Ohio valley.

The Observatory Mound, Observatory Circle, and Octagon Earthworks span nearly 3,000 feet in length. These sites were designated as UNESCO World Heritage site in 2023, part of the only designation in Ohio.

The area that became Newark was first explored by European traders and trappers in the 18th century. The first settlers arrived in 1802, led by General William C. Schenck, a pioneer surveyor, militia general, and legislator from New Jersey. Schenck laid out the town and named it for hometown of Newark, New Jersey.

Newark quickly boomed as an important hub or 19th-century infrastructure, first as a stop along the Ohio and Erie Canal, then as a stop on the Pennsylvania Railroad, connecting Pittsburgh to Chicago and St. Louis. In 1857, the Central Ohio Railroad connected Newark to Columbus, and would eventually maintain a station on the B&O Railroad

Like many cities throughout the adjoining Appalachian Ohio region, glassware was a major industry in Newark. The A.H. Heisey Company, founded in 1895, manufactured fine quality glass tableware and decorative glass figurines of both pressed and blown glassware, as well as automobile headlights. 

A.H. Heisey would go out of business in 1957. At its peak, it employed 700 people. Since 1974, the company has been remembered at the National Heisey Glass Museum located in Veterans Park in downtown Newark.

The Newark Arcade opened on June 7, 1909, becoming one of Ohio's eight glassed-in shopping centers built to resemble European retail buildings. Throughout its history, the Arcade has hosted a wide variety of businesses, a theater, and perhaps even a prohibition-era speakeasy.

Today, the Arcade is being revitalized to bring new life to downtown Newark. Plans include a possible permanent home for the winter farmers’ market, 19 market-rate apartments, commercial spaces, and common areas for entertainment. The work is being completed through various tax credits and a state capital improvement grant.

The Arcade is just one piece of a larger revitalization effort that is underway in downtown Newark. Since 2014, the Downtown Newark Revitalization Project has brought together multi-disciplined experts to collaborate with the public to create a broadly supported and impactful plan for improving downtown.

Newark is a community that has grown continuously throughout its existence. Within less than a decade of its founding, the village had a population of 232. By 1900, the city had grown to 18,157. 100 years later, the city welcomed the 21st century with 46,279 residents. Today, nearly 50,000 people call Newark home.

Over the years, Newark has been to the home of many residents who have gone on to accomplish themselves in a number of fields. The most notable being Jerrie Mock, who in 1964 became the first woman to fly solo around the world in the flight that began and ended in Columbus

Though the glass industry may have declined in Newark, today a number of important industries can be found in and around the Newark area. Owens Corning Fiberglas’s main factory is located in Newark, the Park National Bank is headquartered in downtown Newark.

Other major employers include Kaiser Aluminum, Dow Chemical, GE, Boeing, Harry & David, Diebold, International Paper, and Tamarack Farms Dairy, a major supplier of dairy products for Cincinnati-based Kroger.

Perhaps Newark’s most famous landmark is the former corporate headquarters of the Longaberger Company, the gigantic basked-shaped building. Though no longer operating out of the building, the Basket is a popular stop for visitors to the area

Newark is also preparing for significant growth in the region with the development of Intel’s new manufacturing facility in northwest Licking County. The $28 billion construction project will see the development of two new computer chip factories in Ohio to boost domestic production.

And because it is the holiday season, we would be remiss if we did not highlight the annual Christmas Display at the Licking County Courthouse in Downtown Newark. Each year, Newark celebrates the season with an elaborate light display, along with a Christmas Market

That wraps-up another Community Spotlight, and closes the books on our series for 2024. In case you want to check out all the communities we have highlighted this year and ever year since 2020, be sure to check out our archieve on our website

Cover Photo: Downtown Newark (Photo Source)