Paulding County is a county in Ohio, United States, in the state’s northwest corner along the Indiana border. It had a population of 18,806 at the 2020 census and covers 419 square miles (1,090 km2), centred near 41°07′N 84°35′W.
Paulding is the county seat, and its postal code is 45879. The county contains 11 incorporated villages, more than two dozen unincorporated communities and platted sites, and 12 civil townships. Paulding County lies in the Eastern time zone.
Towns & Villages in Paulding County
Paulding County has 11 incorporated villages and a long list of unincorporated communities and small platted sites — several of them former rail sidings or mobile-home parks — scattered across the flat farmland of the old Great Black Swamp. Verified 2020 census population figures below are marked — where no reliable per-place count exists; every name is carried over from the county’s own settlement record.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antwerp | Village | — | 45813 |
| Broughton | Village | — | — |
| Cecil | Village | — | 45821 |
| Grover Hill | Village | — | 45849 |
| Haviland | Village | — | 45851 |
| Latty | Village | — | 45855 |
| Melrose | Village | — | 45861 |
| Oakwood | Village | — | 45873 |
| Paulding | Village · seat | — | 45879 |
| Payne | Village | — | 45880 |
| Scott | Village | — | — |
| Arthur | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Baldwin | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Batson | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Briceton | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Canalport | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Charloe | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Colters MH Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Dague | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Emmett | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Fort Brown | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Hedges | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Horneys MH Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Junction | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Knoxdale | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Lichtys Parcels | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Logtown | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Mandale | Unincorp. | — | — |
| McGill | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Molasses Gap | Unincorp. | — | — |
| New Rochester | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Riverbend MH Park | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Roselms | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Tipton | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Worstville | Unincorp. | — | — |
Broughton and Scott are the county’s two villages without a dedicated ZIP code; both use the delivery area of the nearest post office town instead.
Townships
| Township | Pop. (2020) | Main settlements |
|---|---|---|
| Auglaize | — | — |
| Benton | — | — |
| Blue Creek | — | — |
| Brown | — | — |
| Carryall | — | — |
| Crane | — | — |
| Emerald | — | — |
| Harrison | — | — |
| Jackson | — | — |
| Latty | — | Latty (village) |
| Paulding | — | Paulding (village, seat) |
| Washington | — | — |
Per-township 2020 census population figures were not available for this profile and are omitted rather than estimated. Paulding County has used the standard Ohio civil-township system since its 1839 organization; township boundaries have shifted little since.
ZIP Codes
- 45813 — Antwerp
- 45821 — Cecil
- 45849 — Grover Hill
- 45851 — Haviland
- 45855 — Latty (PO Box delivery)
- 45861 — Melrose (PO Box delivery)
- 45873 — Oakwood
- 45879 — Paulding (also serves the surrounding county-seat area)
- 45880 — Payne
Broughton, Scott, and the county’s unincorporated communities have no ZIP code of their own; mail there is addressed to the nearest post office town above.
Geography
Paulding County sits entirely within the former bed of the Great Black Swamp, a heavily forested glacial lake plain that once covered northwest Ohio and was drained for farmland through the 19th and early 20th centuries. The result is some of the flattest ground in the state — local histories describe it as the most level county in Ohio — with soils suited to corn and soybeans. The Auglaize River crosses the county, and Flatrock Creek and the Little Auglaize River are among its other watercourses; the county has almost no natural lakes.
Paulding County borders Defiance County to the north, Putnam County to the east, Van Wert County to the south, and Allen County, Indiana, to the west — the county’s western edge is Ohio’s state line.
Demographics
Paulding County had 18,806 residents at the 2020 census, a density of about 45 people per square mile of land area. Paulding, the county seat, and Antwerp are the county’s two largest incorporated places. Individual 2020 median household income figures for Paulding County were not verified for this profile; Ohio’s statewide 2023 median household income was $67,769, and rural northwest Ohio counties like Paulding typically run below the state figure.
Economy & Local Life
Agriculture drives the county’s economy — corn, soybeans, and livestock on the flat, well-drained former swampland — alongside manufacturing and food-processing jobs based in and around Paulding and Antwerp. Paulding County Hospital and the Paulding Exempted Village School District are among the county’s largest local employers. The county fairgrounds in Paulding host the Paulding County Fair each summer, the area’s biggest annual community event.
History
Paulding County was organized in 1820 and formally set off for county government in 1839, one of several northwest Ohio counties carved from the Great Black Swamp frontier as it was surveyed. It is named for John Paulding, one of three New York militiamen who captured British Major John André in 1780 during the American Revolutionary War, uncovering Benedict Arnold’s plot to surrender West Point. Draining the swamp in the late 1800s, aided by extensive ditch and tile systems, was the county’s defining early transformation, turning dense forest and wetland into farmland over a few decades.
Getting There
U.S. Route 24 and State Route 111 are the county’s main highways, with State Route 66 and State Route 500 also crossing it.
- Defiance, Ohio — 20 miles north
- Van Wert, Ohio — 20 miles south
- Fort Wayne, Indiana — 30 miles west
- Lima, Ohio — 40 miles southeast
Fort Wayne International Airport, in neighboring Allen County, Indiana, is the nearest commercial airport.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Paulding County, Ohio?
It is in the far northwest corner of Ohio, bordering Indiana, between Defiance and Van Wert counties.
What is the population of Paulding County?
Paulding County had a population of 18,806 at the 2020 census.
How big is Paulding County?
It covers 419 square miles (1,090 km2), of which 416 square miles (1,080 km2) is land.
What is the county seat of Paulding County?
Paulding is the county seat.
How many towns and villages are in Paulding County?
The county has 11 incorporated villages and roughly two dozen additional unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes are in Paulding County?
Nine ZIP codes serve the county, from 45813 (Antwerp) to 45880 (Payne); see the ZIP Codes section above.
Why is Paulding County so flat?
The county lies entirely within the former Great Black Swamp, a drained glacial lake plain that makes it among the most level ground in Ohio.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Ohio.