Past & Present

Past & Present The city of Defiance was named for Fort Defiance, which once stood in the confines of the city. In August 1794, General Anthony Wayne ordered the construction of Fort Defiance at the confluence of the Auglaize and Maumee Rivers. Wayne built the fort during his campaign against the Indians of Ohio to provide his men with protection and a staging ground for their operations.

Defiance grew slowly, having approximately seven hundred residents in 1846. Over the next thirty-four years, Defiance's population increased dramatically to 5,907 residents in 1880. This growth resulted from two railroads passing through the town, as well as the need for businesses to meet the needs of farmers living in the surrounding countryside.

Ohio residents advocated the building of railroads to speed travel time and to make it easier to ship products. Those in favor of railroads lived in communities without access to canals. Most Ohio canals connected Lake Erie with the Ohio River, providing Ohioans with a relatively cheap means of transporting people and products from the northern part to the southern part of the state and vice versa.

Railroads dominated Ohio's transportation infrastructure until after World War II, when the trucking industry experienced tremendous growth and took away much of the railroads' business. Automobiles also became more accessible for the American people, taking large numbers of railroad passengers off of the trains. Passenger airplanes also removed people from the trains. Since World War II, many railroad companies have cut back service in Ohio and major highways are being built to accompany the increasing traffic.

The construction of the U.S. Route 24 that connects Defiance with Toledo, Ohio, and Fort Wayne, Indiana has now been underway since the end of 2006. The highway is in the process of being expanded to a four-lane, 65 mph expressway from Toledo to Fort Wayne. This creates the opportunity to attract distribution centers, manufacturers that need interstate access, and individuals who work in large cities but seek small town living. The infrastructure project is expected to create $430 million of investment in Northwest Ohio. The project completion date for the Defiance County area is by 2009. The total project should be completed by 2010.

Earlier this year, the City of Defiance was ranked among Site Selection Magazine’s “Top 100 U.S. Small Towns for Corporate Facilities.” This is the eighth consecutive year that Defiance County has been ranked on the list. Defiance County is gaining a national reputation due to the amount of economic activity throughout the region. There are numerous projects that have been or are being completed in Defiance County.

Defiance is currently planning to widen North Clinton St. /Route 66. The Route 66 bridge over U.S. 24 will be widened from a 2-lane to a 5-lane bridge. The project is set to begin in 2009 and the state portion of the project will begin in 2010.

In 2007, the Defiance County Economic Development office experienced four new projects. Advantage Powder Coating made a 48,700 sq. ft. expansion with an investment of $1,850,000. GM Powertrain Corporation purchased $61,000,000 worth of machinery and equipment to add a new line of production. Diehl Food Ingredients, Inc. also purchased machinery and equipment for a new line of production which created 10 new jobs with an investment of $1,200,000. Quality Machining was a new business in the area which brought an investment of $700,000 and created 30 new jobs.

In 2006, Keller Logistics constructed a 130,000 sq. ft. Warehouse expansion which further enhances the logistics services Defiance County has to offer. First Federal bank also started construction on a 58,000 sq. ft. corporate operations center building on Elliot Road adjacent to U.S. Route 24.

American Ag Fuels, located in the City of Defiance, opened their doors in July of 2005. In 2007 and 2008, the company expanded from a one million gallon per year capacity to a five million gallon per year capacity.