Electricity in Niles, OH

History of Niles

Niles was founded in 1806 by James Heaton, who owned one of the first iron-ore processing plants in Ohio. The town originally went by the name of Heaton's Furnace but was later renamed Nilestown after Hezekiah Niles, editor of the influential Weekly Register news magazine. The name was shortened to Niles in 1843. In the early 19th century, Heaton built a forge and, later, a charcoal blast furnace in the area just east of what is now the city's central park, on the west side of Mosquito Creek. Heaton is credited with producing the first bar iron in Ohio.Niles' iron industry thrived until the late 19th century, when the economic depression of 1873 brought about the closure of the community's largest industrial firm, James Ward and Company. Plans to restore the local iron industry floundered because of the exorbitant cost of modernizing outdated mills. By the early 1900s, however, Niles was the site of companies including Ohio Galvanizing, Sykes Metal, the Niles Glass Works of the General Electric Company, and the Niles Iron and Steel Roofing Company. Between 1900 and 1920, the city's population swelled from 7,500 to over 13,000. The Great Flood of 1913 precipitated massive flooding of the Mahoning River, leaving extensive damage exceeding $3 million and 428 casualties in Niles.Throughout much of the late 19th and 20th centuries, Niles was known to most Ohioans as the birthplace of William McKinley, the 25th president of the United States.

Niles by the Numbers

Population

20,014

Median Age

43.3 yrs

Median Household Income

$49,779/yr

Median Home Value

$108,800

Homeownership Rate

58%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates (2023)