Lorain County () is a county in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio As of the 2020 census, the population was 312,964. Its county seat is Elyria, and its largest city is Lorain. The county was physically established in 1822, becoming judicially independent in 1824. Lorain County is part of the Cleveland, OH Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county is home to Oberlin College.

History Lorain County was established in 1822 from portions of several of its adjacent counties. This county became judicially-independent in 1824. The original proposed name for the county was "Colerain," after Coleraine, Northern Ireland.Sandusky Register (newspaper); Sandusky, Ohio, 1822 The final name "Lorain" was chosen by Heman Ely, who had founded and named the city of Elyria. The county's name is based on the former German and now French province of Lorraine.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has an area of , of which is land and (47%) is water. It is Ohio's fourth-largest county by area.

Adjacent counties Cuyahoga County (east) Medina County (southeast) Ashland County (south) Huron County (southwest) Erie County (west)

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition +Lorain County, Ohio – racial and ethnic compositionRace / ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)240,221232,874234,597241,543237,52087.38%85.89%82.41%80.15%75.89%Black or African American alone (NH)19,54920,69623,36524,28922,9807.11%7.63%8.21%8.06%7.34%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)4516806996355020.16%0.25%0.25%0.21%0.16%Asian alone (NH)9721,4351,6652,7583,5690.35%0.53%0.58%0.92%1.14%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census473550xx0.02%0.01%0.02%Other race alone (NH)5921802673021,0200.22%0.07%0.09%0.10%0.33%Mixed-race or multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census4,3486,50414,406xx1.53%2.16%4.60%Hispanic or Latino (any race)13,12415,26119,67625,29032,9174.77%5.63%6.91%8.39%10.52%Total274,909271,126284,664301,356312,964 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 312,964. The median age was 42.6 years, with 21.6% of residents under the age of 18 and 19.5% aged 65 or older. For every 100 females there were 96.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.8 males age 18 and over.

The racial makeup of the county was 79.0% White, 7.9% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 3.3% from some other race, and 8.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 10.5% of the population.

85.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 14.3% lived in rural areas.

There were 125,239 households in the county, of which 28.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 47.1% were married-couple households, 17.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 28.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 28.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 134,341 housing units, of which 6.8% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 71.4% were owner-occupied and 28.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 8.7%.

2010 census As of the 2010 census, there were 301,356 people, 116,274 households, and 80,077 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 127,036 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 84.8% white, 8.6% black or African American, 0.9% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 2.5% from other races, and 3.0% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 8.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 26.5% were German, 16.7% were Irish, 10.9% were English, 8.4% were Polish, 8.2% were Italian, 6.2% were American, and 5.2% were Hungarian.

Of the 116,274 households, 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.5% were married couples living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 31.1% were non-families, and 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.02. The median age was 40.0 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $52,066 and the median income for a family was $62,082. Males had a median income of $49,146 versus $35,334 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,002. About 10.3% of families and 13.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.5% of those under age 18 and 8.0% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Higher education Lorain County Community College, Elyria Oberlin College, Oberlin

Public school districts There are 20 public school districts in Lorain County. Those primarily in Lorain County are listed in bold. Each district's high school(s) and location is also listed. Amherst Exempted Village School District Amherst Marion L. Steele High School, Amherst Avon Local School District Avon High School, Avon Avon Lake City School District Avon Lake High School, Avon Lake Black River Local School District (also in Medina Co and Ashland Co.) Black River High School, Sullivan Clearview Local School District Clearview High School, Lorain Columbia Local School District Columbia High School, Columbia Station Elyria City School District Elyria High School, Elyria Firelands Local School District (also in Erie Co.) Firelands High School, Henrietta Twp (Oberlin) Keystone Local School District Keystone High School, LaGrange Lorain City School District Lorain High School, Lorain Mapleton Local School District (primarily in Ashland Co.) Mapleton High School, Ashland Midview Local School District Midview High School, Eaton Twp (Grafton) New London Local School District (primarily in Huron Co.) New London High School, New London North Ridgeville City School District North Ridgeville High School, North Ridgeville Oberlin City School District Oberlin High School, Oberlin Olmsted Falls City School District (primarily in Cuyahoga Co.) Olmsted Falls High School, Olmsted Falls Sheffield-Sheffield Lake City Schools Brookside High School, Sheffield Strongsville City School District (primarily in Cuyahoga Co.) Strongsville High School, Strongsville Vermilion Local Schools (primarily in Erie Co.) Vermilion High School, Vermilion Wellington Exempted Village School District (also in Huron Co.) Wellington High School, Wellington

The county also includes the Lorain County Joint Vocational School District, which encompasses the entire county and serves students from the Amherst, Avon, Avon Lake, Clearview, Columbia, Elyria, Firelands, Keystone, Midview, North Ridgeville, Oberlin, Sheffield-Sheffield Lake and Wellington school districts from a 10-acre campus on a 100-acre site near the intersection of State Route 58 and U.S. Route 20 in Oberlin.

Private high schools Elyria Catholic High School, Elyria Lake Ridge Academy, North Ridgeville Open Door Christian School, Elyria Christian Community School, North Eaton First Baptist Christian School, Elyria

Government

As of 2025, the following county-wide elected officials are in office:

+ Lorain County elected officials Position Name Party Commissioner David J. Moore Republican Commissioner Marty Gallagher Republican Commissioner Jeff Riddell Republican Prosecuting attorney Anthony Cillo Republican Sheriff Jack M. Hall Republican Clerk of courts Tom Orlando Democrat Coroner Dr. Frank P. Miller III Republican Auditor J. Craig Snodgrass Democrat Recorder Mike Doran Republican Treasurer Daniel J. Talarek Democrat Engineer Kenneth Carney Democrat

+ Lorain County judges Position Name Party Common Pleas - General Giovanna V. Bremke Republican Common Pleas - General Christopher R. Rothgery Democrat Common Pleas - General D. Christopher Cook Democrat Common Pleas - General Raymond J. Ewers Democrat Common Pleas - General Melissa C. Kobasher Democrat Common Pleas - General Donna C. Freeman Democrat Domestic Relations Division Frank J. Janik Democrat Domestic Relations Division Sherry Glass Strohsack Democrat Domestic Relations Division Lisa I. Swenski Democrat Probate Division James T. Walther Democrat

Politics Lorain County used to lean Democratic in more recent presidential elections, voting for the Democratic candidate for president from 1988 to 2012. In 2016, however, the county was almost swept up as part of the unexpected Republican surge in the Rust Belt; Donald Trump came within 131 votes of winning the county. In 2020, Trump flipped the county Republican by a narrow majority, becoming the first Republican to capture the county since Ronald Reagan in 1984. In 2024, Trump won the county with 52.12% of the vote, the highest percentage for a Republican since 1972. Despite this, the county also voted for Democrat Sherrod Brown in the 2024 Senate election, making it the only county in the state to vote for both Trump and Brown in 2024.

Infrastructure Airports The Lorain County Regional Airport is located south of Lorain's central business district.

Major highways

Interstate 80 (Ohio Turnpike) Interstate 90 (Ohio Turnpike) Interstate 480 U.S. Route 6 U.S. Route 20 State Route 2 State Route 10 State Route 18 State Route 57 State Route 58 Ohio Route 82 Ohio Route 83 State Route 113 Ohio Route 162 Ohio Route 252 Ohio Route 254 Ohio Route 301 Ohio Route 303 Ohio Route 511 Ohio Route 611

Communities

Cities

Amherst Avon Avon Lake Elyria (county seat) Lorain North Ridgeville Oberlin Sheffield Lake Vermilion

Villages

Grafton Kipton LaGrange Rochester Sheffield South Amherst Wellington

Townships

Amherst Brighton Brownhelm Camden Carlisle Columbia Eaton Elyria Grafton Henrietta Huntington LaGrange New Russia Penfield Pittsfield Rochester Sheffield Wellington

Census-designated places Eaton Estates Pheasant Run

Unincorporated communities Belden Brentwood Lake Brighton Columbia Hills Corners Columbia Station Henrietta North Eaton Pittsfield Whiskyville

See also National Register of Historic Places listings in Lorain County, Ohio USS Lorain County (LST-1177)

References

External links

Lorain County Government's website