Blanchester's Online History Begins Here
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The village of Blanchester is located in Marion Township. The name of the town is derived from the founders Joseph and John Blancett, who laid out Blanchester on March 6, 1832. Isaac Frazier and William H. Baldwin followed the Blancetts.
Many of the original buildings in Blanchester were log buildings. Among the first businesses in Blanchester were those of William Bundy and Joseph Blancett. William Bundy was Blanchester’s first blacksmith and Joseph Blancett owned the first general store. S.R. Nickerson started the Blanchester Herald newspaper on March 24, 1870, and operated it for a year and a half before selling it to James S.Turk.
Turk changed the name to The Marion Independent and printed it until Oct. 1, 1872. In 1890 the Merchants and Farmers Bank of Blanchester was established and then operated until the early 1900s. The First National Bank was established in Blanchester on Feb. 19, 1907.
Throughout the years, Blanchester has seen its economy boosted by local industry. One of the most influencing economic factors was the railroad industry. With several lines running through Blanchester the economic future of the small town looked bright. In 1849, construction started on the Hillsborough and Cincinnati Railroad which would run through Clinton County and Blanchester to Warren County. Construction was completed three years later on January 21, 1852.
One of the most famous incidents in Blanchester’s history was the devastating fire on Oct. 18, 1895. The fire started at 1:30 p.m. in a stable in W.W. Burke’s livery barn and quickly spread through the business portion of the town.
At the time, Blanchester’s only fire department consisted of volunteers and a hand engine, so fire departments in Loveland and Lynchburg were deployed to help extinguish it. The fire lasted for six hours and when it had finally ended, 72 buildings including the majority of the business district, a few homes, and barns were destroyed.
Fortunately, no one was killed or seriously injured in the fire. Afterwards, the destroyed buildings were replaced with new brick buildings.
| Blanchester History Resource
Compiled by the Blanchester Area Historical Society, this book, published in 1994 is a great source of history and photos.
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