Ohio

Wars History in Ohio

Native American Wars — Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing (1774–1842)

The Ohio region was the site of one of the bloodiest periods of Indigenous genocide in American history. The lands of the Shawnee, Wyandot, Miami, Delaware (Lenape), and Ottawa tribes were forcibly seized by European settlers and the United States Army. In 1794, the Battle of Fallen Timbers, led by General Anthony Wayne, resulted in the massacre of approximately 200 Indigenous people. The Treaty of Greeneville in 1795 ceded about 25,000 square miles of Indigenous territory to the United States. In 1830, the Indian Removal Act, championed by President Andrew Jackson, accelerated the process of forced expulsion and genocide. By 1832, the last groups of Wyandot and Shawnee were expelled from Ohio to the unknown western territory (now Kansas and Oklahoma). Thousands died on this deadly journey. This expulsion was part of the Trail of Tears.

War of 1812 — Ohio as a Battlefield

Ohio played a critical role in the War of 1812. Fort Meigs in northwestern Ohio was besieged twice by British forces and their Indigenous allies. In May 1813, General William Henry Harrison, who later became president, broke the siege of Fort Meigs. The Battle of Lake Erie in September 1813, commanded by Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, gave America control of the lake and ended major battles in Ohio. However, the price of these victories was the displacement and slaughter of thousands of Indigenous people.

American Civil War — Ohio on Multiple Fronts

Ohio was the third-largest state in terms of Union Army contribution — 345,000 Ohio soldiers served in the Union Army. Prominent military commanders like Ulysses S. Grant, William Tecumseh Sherman, Philip Sheridan, and George Armstrong Custer were from Ohio. Confederate forces under General John Hunt Morgan invaded Ohio in July 1863 — known as "Morgan's Raid." Thousands of Ohio soldiers died in battles like Shiloh, Gettysburg, Vicksburg, and Atlanta. Approximately 35,000 Ohio soldiers were killed. Ohio was also the center of Copperhead opposition to the war, led by Clement Vallandigham.

Class Wars — Suppression of Labor (1877–1937)

Ohio was a center of violence against labor movements for decades. In 1877, the Great Railroad Strike, which began in Baltimore, reached Ohio and was violently suppressed by the National Guard and private police. In 1894, the Pullman Strike led to clashes between workers and the US Army in several Ohio cities. In 1913, the Great Ohio River Flood — which disproportionately affected immigrant workers — was the result of government neglect of workers' living conditions. In 1919, the Great Steel Strike in Youngstown, Canton, and Cleveland was crushed by police and the National Guard. The deadliest incident occurred in 1937 during the Little Steel Strike: on May 30, 1937, Chicago police and the Ohio National Guard fired on striking workers in Cleveland and Youngstown, killing 18 workers.

Kent State Massacre (1970)

On May 4, 1970, the Ohio National Guard opened fire on student protesters at Kent State University. The protests were against the Vietnam War and the US invasion of Cambodia. In 13 seconds, 67 shots were fired. Four students were killed: Jeffrey Miller (20), Allison Krause (19), William Schroeder (19), and Sandra Scheuer (20). Nine were wounded. Ohio Governor James Rhodes ordered the crackdown. None of the National Guardsmen were convicted. This event is a symbol of state violence against war dissenters.