Village of Arlington / The Arlington Heritage

Side A: First a farming community, later a railroad crossroads in southern Hancock County, Arlington was one of the county’s earliest settlements. Gen. William Hull opened a trail into the area during the War of 1812 as he crossed Buck Run at Eagle Creek. He led his army to the Blanchard River to establish Ft. Findlay. Robert Hurd owned extensive tracts of land in the area, and his sons were the first recorded settlers, building a log cabin near this site in 1834. The rich farmland and abundant water soon attracted other settlers to the vicinity of “Hurdtown.” The name was changed to “Arlington” when the village was formally surveyed in November, 1844. Side B: 1834: First log Cabin, 1844: Village platted with 16 lots, 1854: Asian cholera epidemic, 40 deaths, 1861: Civil War, town men leave, 1892: Village incorporated: Jim Huff, Mayor, 1897: First newspaper, “Arlington Gazette”, 1900: First telephone, 1905: First high school graduation class, 1984: Sesquicentennial celebration