Coldwater, Ohio


Coldwater is a village in Mercer County, Ohio, United States. The population was 4,774 at the 2020 census.

History

Coldwater was founded in 1838 and was originally called Buzzard's Glory, named after David Buzzard who operated a general store. Coldwater was platted in 1859. The village takes its name from nearby Coldwater Creek. A post office has been in operation at Coldwater since 1847.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of, of which is land and is water.

Demographics

As of 2000 the median income for a household in the village was $63,382, and the median income for a family was $81,076. Males had a median income of $47,055 versus $42,401 for females. The per capita income for the village was $29,583. About 2.2% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.2% of those under age 18 and 4.2% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 4,427 people, 1,726 households, and 1,176 families residing in the village. The population density was. There were 1,817 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the village was 99.0% White, 0.1% African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 0.2% from other races, and 0.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.7% of the population.
There were 1,726 households, of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.1% were married couples living together, 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.5% had a male householder with no wife present, and 31.9% were non-families. 29.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.10.
The median age in the village was 39.2 years. 26.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.9% were from 25 to 44; 25.9% were from 45 to 64; and 17.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 47.9% male and 52.1% female.

Education

It is home to Coldwater High School, Coldwater Middle School, and Coldwater Elementary School, public schools that are part of the Coldwater Exempted Village School District.

Economy

Coldwater is home to, an online manufacturer and retailer of customized promotional products; as of February 2023, the firm employed about 230 people.
Major local employers include Mercer Health’s Mercer County Community Hospital, whose main campus is located in the village; the hospital completed a major west-wing expansion in 2018.
The village also hosts a Lincoln Electric Automation facility, part of Lincoln Electric’s automation division following its 2018 acquisition of Coldwater Machine. Industry sources also note quality-system certifications at the Coldwater operation.
Other manufacturers with facilities in Coldwater include Basic Grain Products, a snack-foods producer known for rice cakes, and Val-Co/Val-Co Pax, which manufactures poultry and swine production equipment at 210 E. Main Street.
Historically, Coldwater was home to New Idea farm equipment manufacturing; production at the Coldwater plant ceased in 1999 after ownership changes in the 1980s–1990s.
In recent years the village also hosted a flexible-packaging plant under the Shields/Accutech brand of Novolex; in October 2023 the company notified state officials it would close the Coldwater facility.

Library

It is home to the Coldwater Public Library, which is largely funded by the proceeds from the annual Coldwater Community Picnic.

Notable people