Columbiana County, Ohio

Columbiana County is a county in Ohio, United States, on the Pennsylvania and West Virginia state lines along the upper Ohio River. It had a population of 101,877 at the 2020 census and covers 535 square miles (1,390 km2) centred near 40°46′N 80°47′W.

Lisbon is the county seat, and its postal code is 44432. Salem is the county’s largest city. The county has 3 cities, 11 villages and dozens of unincorporated communities spread across 19 civil townships, and it sits in the Eastern time zone (FIPS code 39029).

Towns & Villages in Columbiana County

The table below lists Columbiana County’s incorporated cities and villages, plus the larger unincorporated communities carried over from the county’s historical place-name record. “CDP” marks a Census-Designated Place with its own 2020 count; “Unincorp.” marks a crossroads or hamlet with no separate municipal government or standalone census figure.

Minerva sits mostly in neighboring Stark and Carroll counties, with only a small district reaching into Columbiana — it is listed above for completeness, marked with an asterisk on its population figure, which covers the whole village across all three counties.

Townships

Butler and Salem townships partly overlap the city of Salem, which is not counted in any single township’s population under the Census Bureau’s incorporated-place accounting; per-township 2020 population breakdowns are not confirmed here and are shown as —.

ZIP Codes

• 44432 — Lisbon
• 44460 — Salem
• 43920 — East Liverpool (also serves Calcutta)
• 44408 — Columbiana
• 44413 — East Palestine
• 43968 — Wellsville
• 44431 — Leetonia
• 43945 — Salineville
• 44423 — Hanoverton
• 44445 — New Waterford
• 44490 — Washingtonville
• 44455 — Rogers
• 43962 — Summitville
• 43991 — Negley
• 44435 — Elkton

Smaller unincorporated hamlets share a ZIP with their nearest post-office town rather than having their own code.

Geography

Columbiana County lies in the unglaciated Allegheny Plateau, on Ohio’s eastern edge, a hilly, wooded landscape cut by the Ohio River and its tributaries. The Ohio River forms the county’s eastern and southeastern border with Pennsylvania and West Virginia; the Little Beaver Creek, much of it a state and national scenic river, drains the county’s east-central townships, and Middle Fork and North Fork Little Beaver Creek feed it. Guilford Lake, a state park reservoir in Unity Township, is the largest inland body of water.

The county borders Mahoning County to the north, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania to the northeast, Beaver County, Pennsylvania to the east, Hancock County, West Virginia to the southeast across the Ohio River, Jefferson County to the south, Carroll County to the southwest, and Stark County to the west.

Demographics

Columbiana County had 101,877 residents at the 2020 census, spread across a mostly rural county with a density of about 191 people per square mile. Salem, at 11,393, and East Liverpool, at 9,935, are the two largest communities; Columbiana, at 6,271, is the third-largest and the only other city. Median household income in the county runs below the Ohio median of $67,769, consistent with a county still working through the decline of its pottery and steel manufacturing base.

Economy & Local Life

Columbiana County’s economy grew up on clay: East Liverpool was once known as the “Pottery Capital of the World,” and firms tied to that trade, along with steel, brick and tile manufacturing, shaped the Ohio River towns for a century. Manufacturing, healthcare and logistics along the US 30 and State Route 11 corridors are the largest employers today; Salem Community Hospital and Kent State University’s Salem and East Liverpool regional campuses are among the county’s institutional anchors. The Columbiana County Fair, held each summer in Lisbon, is the county’s signature annual event.

History

Columbiana County was organized on May 1, 1803, one of Ohio’s original counties formed the same year Ohio joined the Union. It takes its name from Christopher Columbus, with the Latinate suffix “-iana” added to form the county name — one of relatively few U.S. counties named this way rather than for a person’s surname directly. The county was the site of the Battle of Salineville on July 26, 1863, among the northernmost engagements of the Civil War, fought during the pursuit of Confederate raider John Hunt Morgan. In February 2023, a freight train derailment and controlled burn of hazardous chemicals near East Palestine brought national attention to the county’s eastern edge.

Getting There

US Route 30 crosses the county east–west and US Route 62 runs north–south, linking Lisbon to the wider Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia highway network; State Routes 7, 11 and 45 serve the Ohio River towns and the county’s interior.

• Youngstown, Ohio — 25 miles north
• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania — 45 miles east
• Steubenville, Ohio — 25 miles south
• Canton, Ohio — 30 miles west

Columbiana County Airport, a general-aviation field near East Liverpool, serves the county; the nearest commercial service is Pittsburgh International Airport.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Columbiana County?
It is on Ohio’s eastern edge, on the Pennsylvania and West Virginia state lines along the upper Ohio River.

What is the population of Columbiana County?
101,877 people at the 2020 census.

How big is Columbiana County?
535 square miles (1,390 km2), of which 532 square miles is land.

What is the county seat of Columbiana County?
Lisbon is the county seat.

How many towns are in Columbiana County?
Three cities (Salem, East Liverpool and Columbiana), eleven villages, and dozens of smaller unincorporated communities across 19 townships.

What ZIP codes are in Columbiana County?
Codes include 44432 (Lisbon), 44460 (Salem), 43920 (East Liverpool) and 44408 (Columbiana), among others listed above.

What is Columbiana County known for?
Its 19th- and 20th-century pottery industry centered on East Liverpool, and more recently the February 2023 East Palestine train derailment.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Ohio.