Martins Ferry
| Martins Ferry | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Location in Ohio
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| Basic data | |||
| Foundation : | 1779 | ||
| State : | United States | ||
| State : | Ohio | ||
| County : | Belmont County | ||
| Coordinates : | 40 ° 6 ′ N , 80 ° 44 ′ W | ||
| Time zone : | Eastern ( UTC − 5 / −4 ) | ||
| Residents : | 7,226 (as of: 2000) | ||
| Population density : | 1,290.4 inhabitants per km 2 | ||
| Area : | 5.6 km 2 (approx. 2 mi 2 ) of which 5.6 km 2 (approx. 2 mi 2 ) is land |
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| Height : | 216 m | ||
| Postal code : | 43935 | ||
| Area code : | +1 740 | ||
| FIPS : | 39-48104 | ||
| GNIS ID : | 1061478 | ||
Martins Ferry is a city on the Ohio River in County Belmont in the state of Ohio . Martins Ferry has a population of 7,200 (as of the 2000 census ), making it the largest town in Belmont County.
The poet James Wright , who was born in Martins Ferry to a working class family and grew up there during the Depression , wrote one of his most famous poems, "Autumn Begins in Martins Ferry, Ohio". In his honor, the James Wright Poetry Festival was held annually in Martins Ferry from 1980 to 2007.
history
The place was first settled by whites in the 1780s at the latest; the settlement was named Norristown . Wild settlements ( squatters ) on the western bank of the Ohio River have been cleared several times. In 1787 the place fell into the area of the newly founded north-west territory and could now be officially settled. That year, Absalom Martin received the land that is now Martin's Ferry as payment for his surveyor services. In 1795 - seven years later - Martin founded a place called Jefferson on his land and began selling individual lots. However, after the administrative headquarters of Belmont County was established instead of in its locality in St. Clairsville , Martin bought the land back and made the parceling undone. The ferry operated by Martin (English Ferry ) over the Ohio River to Wheeling in West Virginia remained in operation.
Personalities
- William Dean Howells (1837–1920), writer, literary critic and magazine editor
- Lou Groza (1924-2000), football player of the Cleveland Browns , who in the Pro Football Hall of Fame was taken
- Alex Groza (1926–1995), basketball player and Olympic champion
- Theodore Barber (1927–2005), psychologist and hypnosis researcher
- James Wright (1927–1980), poet and Pulitzer Prize winner
- John Havlicek (1940-2019), basketball player
Individual evidence
- ↑ Poetry Landmark: James Wright's hometown of Martins Ferry, OH ( Memento of the original from April 27, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at the Academy of American Poets
- ↑ James Wright Poetry Festival ( Memento of the original from October 14, 2002 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Federal Writers' Project (Editor): The Ohio Guide . Oxford University Press, 1940, pp. 438-439.
