[Photo:  Melrose (Ohio). 1890 circa. Center for Archival Collections, Bowling Green State University (OH). Ohio Memory Project.]

Statistics (from 1882)
The population of the county in 1830 was 161; in 1840, 1,034; in 1850, 1,766; in 1860, 4,945; in 1870, 8,544; in 1880, 13,489.  Number of acres of arable or plow land as returned in 1880, 47,199. Number of acres meadow or pasture land, 7,230. Number of acres timber land, 205,970. Total number of acres in county, 260,399.

Click on the following links to read more history:

Geographic Position

Introductory History

Early Settlers

Formation

Soil and Timber

Canals and Railroads

Manufacturing

Offices

County Officers

War Record

Press

Source:  History of Paulding County by Prof. Everett A. Budd as printed in the Historical Hand-Atlas:  History of Northwestern Ohio and History of Paulding County, Ohio. H. H. Hardesty & Co., Publishers:  Chicago and Toledo. 1882.

Other Helpful Links

Ohio Historical Society

Paulding County 
Genealogy Society

Ohio Memory Scrapbook

Paulding County 
Carnegie Library

County Officers
It will, no doubt, be very interesting to the readers of this work to know the names of those who have held official honors in the county.  Believing such, the writer has with some difficulty obtained them.

The first Auditor of the county was Andrew Clemmer; then, in the following order came ------- Palmer, A. S. Latty, B. L. Wentworth, Richard S. Banks, Isaiah Richards, V. V. Pursell, William C. Means, Charles Hakes and Robert S. Murphy.

The first Probate Judge was Ezra J. Smith, followed by Fielding S. Cable, who held the office for ten consecutive years; Lewis S. Gordon, by appointment; David C. Carey, Calvin L. Noble and Benjamin L. Wentworth.

The first Sheriff was Andrew J. Smith, followed by Ephraim Burwell, which two obtained the office by appointment.

Matthew Fleming was the first elected Sheriff of the county, and was succeeded by William K. Daggett, Thomas C. Banks, John Crosson, I. Richards, Freeborn, T. Mellinger; (John Brakefield, Coroner, served four months as Sheriff); Andrew P. Meng, Jesper A. Fergerson, Hiram M. Ayres and Samuel J. Tate.

The first Clerk was Horatio N. Curtis, and his successors have been Andrew J. Taylor, John Lincoln, James M. Russell, Robert Russell, Samuel Means, Orlando Russell, Orsin D. Fuller, and Joseph B. Cromley.

the Treasurers of the county have been William Gordon, Richard S. Banks, James M. Russell, Ezra J. Smith, Isaiah Richards, Lewis Gordon, Peter Hilty, Frederick Young and Samuel G. Robertson.

The first Recorder of the county was General Horatio N. Curtis, and after him came Andrew J. Taylor, H. A. Shaffer, A. P. Seely, William T. French, Lewis S. Gordon, Charles Hakes and Isaiah Richards.

The Prosecuting Attorneys of the county have been John W. Ayres, John S. Snook, D. N. Osborn (by appointment); A. H. Selden, Thomas B. Holland and Medary D. Mann.

The first Board of Commissioners was ------ Shoufe, John Kingery and Thomas Banks, and the following are names of men who have since held the office:  Thomas Wentworth, John Manson, sen., John Musselman, John Stair, Samuel Forder, Hubert Naveau, Henry Oswalt, John Hardesty, G. W. Morris (by appointment); L. M. Barnes, Alonzo H. Seldon, Theodore G. Merchant, Co Gordon, John D. Carlton, Alexander Brown, Wilson N. Snook, Joseph Bowyer (died in office); Thomas Chester, Francis M. Wade, George W. Sowers and George Gusler.

The above may be said to have been the representative men of the county.  Many of them are yet its most honored citizens.  Some  have died, and their moldering bones are resting beneath its soil; while a few, swept by the tide of emigration, have found homes in the "Far West."

National Drainage -- Names of Streams
The principal stream of the county is the Maumee.  It is formed by the uniting of the St. Marys and St. Joseph at the city of Ft. Wayne; and after bursting through Lake Erie's first beach, takes a northeasterly course and cuts off the northwest corner of the county.

The next stream in size is the Big Auglaize.  It enters the county on the east side and takes first a northwesterly and then a northeasterly course, forming a curve which cuts off the northeast corner of the county.  The bed of this stream lies a few miles west of Lake Erie's second beach, and to which the course of the river is attributable.

Crooked Creek finds an entrance into the county near its southwest corner, flows a northeasterly course  through the central part, and unites with the Auglaize about one mile south of the village of Junction.  A few miles south of Crooked Creek is Blue Creek, also flowing northeasterly and uniting with the Auglaize.  The Little Auglaize enters the county near the southeast corner, flows a southerly course and discharges its waters into the Big Auglaize, at Old Fort Brown.  Dog Creek and Prairie Creek are small western tributaries of the Little Auglaize, and flow but a short distance in the county.

The streams are all of a sluggish nature, and have a winding course through wooded land, much of which, in the Spring, is covered with surface water and is slowly drained.