Stark County, Ohio

Stark County is a county in Ohio, United States, about 60 miles south of Cleveland and 20 miles
south of Akron. It had a population of 374,853 at the 2020 census, an estimated 373,771 by 2024,
and covers 581 square miles (1,504 km2) in total, centred near 40°49′N 81°22′W.

Canton is the county seat; its postal code is 44702. The county holds 6 cities, 12 incorporated
villages and a dozen unincorporated communities and census-designated places across 17 townships,
and it runs on Eastern Time. Its FIPS code is 39151.

Towns & Villages in Stark County

Stark County has 6 cities, 12 incorporated villages and a further set of unincorporated
communities and census-designated places (CDPs) with no municipal government of their own. The
table below lists every incorporated city and village, followed by the county’s dozen largest
CDPs and unincorporated communities — several smaller crossroads communities exist beyond
those listed, with no population count of their own.

Minerva sits mostly in Stark County but extends into Carroll County and a small district of
Columbiana County; the population figure above is the whole village. Magnolia straddles the
Stark–Carroll line the same way, occupying Sandy Township on the Stark side and Rose
Township in Carroll County. Beach City and Wilmot both sit near the Tuscarawas County line but
their incorporated limits stay inside Stark’s Sugar Creek Township. Bolton, Limaville,
Richville, Marlboro and Reedurban have no separate 2020 population count published for them as
standalone CDPs and are omitted above rather than estimated.

Townships

Stark County has 17 civil townships, sorted below by population. Township population figures
include residents of any CDP or unincorporated community inside the township, but exclude
incorporated cities and villages, which are counted separately.

ZIP Codes

• 44702–44714, 44718, 44720–44721, 44730, 44735, 44750, 44767, 44799 — Canton (a
  wide block covering downtown, PO boxes and Canton Township annexes)
• 44646–44648 — Massillon
• 44601 — Alliance
• 44709, 44720, 44799 — North Canton (shares 44720 and 44799 with Canton)
• 44641 — Louisville
• 44614 — Canal Fulton
• 44632 — Hartville
• 44657 — Minerva
• 44613 — Brewster
• 44662 — Navarre
• 44730 — East Canton (shares with Canton)
• 44643 — Magnolia
• 44608 — Beach City
• 44626 — East Sparta
• 44708 — Hills and Dales (shares with Canton)
• 44685 — Uniontown
• 44630 — Greentown
• 44652 — Middlebranch
• 44670 — Robertsville
• 44666 — North Lawrence

Waynesburg, Meyers Lake, Wilmot, North Industry, Bolton, Limaville, Richville, Marlboro and
Reedurban have no post office or ZIP of their own; mail there is delivered under a neighbouring
town’s code.

Geography

Stark County sits at the northern edge of Ohio’s Appalachian Plateau, where the glaciated
plain of the county’s north and west gives way to rolling, unglaciated hill country in its
south. Of the county’s 581 square miles, 575 are land and 5.3 are water, about 0.9 percent
— the county has no large natural lake, though Meyers Lake and Sippo Lake are notable small
bodies of water, and Nimishillen Creek and the Tuscarawas River are its principal streams. The
Tuscarawas River runs through the county’s southwest corner near Massillon and Navarre, once
carrying the Ohio & Erie Canal traffic that built Canal Fulton.

Summit County lies to the north, Portage and Mahoning counties to the northeast, Columbiana
County to the east, Carroll County to the southeast, Tuscarawas County to the south, Holmes County
to the southwest, and Wayne County to the west. Summit County, Mahoning County, Columbiana County, Carroll County, Tuscarawas County, Holmes County and Wayne County all border Stark directly.
Portage County has no live post on this site to link to.

Demographics

Stark County had a population of 374,853 at the 2020 census, and the latest county estimate
puts it near 373,771 residents. Canton and Massillon are by far the two largest communities,
together holding well over a quarter of the county’s population. Ohio’s statewide
median household income is $67,769 (2023 ACS). Population density works out to roughly 652
people per square mile of land, dense for
northeastern Ohio outside the Akron and Cleveland cores, reflecting the county’s place at the
southern edge of the Cleveland–Akron–Canton combined metro area.

Economy & Local Life

Health care is one of the county’s largest employment sectors, anchored by Aultman
Hospital in Canton (4,423 employees) and Cleveland Clinic Mercy Hospital (2,420 employees), the
two biggest private employers in the county. Stark County government (2,172) and Canton City
Schools (2,157) are the other major public-sector employers, alongside Walmart (1,736) and
TimkenSteel (1,613). North Canton is home to the Timken Company’s corporate operations,
Diebold Nixdorf and the Kenan Advantage Group, and Massillon carries Shearer’s Foods and
Brewster Dairy’s Swiss cheese plant just south in Brewster. Canton’s biggest annual
draw is the Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival each August, which brings crowds well
beyond the city’s own population downtown for a week of events tied to the Hall’s
induction weekend.

History

Ohio’s legislature authorised Stark County in 1808 and organised it the following year,
carving it from Columbiana County. It was named for John Stark, an American Revolutionary War
general known for his stand at the Battle of Bennington. Canton was platted as the county seat in
1805, before the county itself existed, and grew around the crossing of early trade routes.

Canton became the birthplace of professional football when the American Professional Football
Association, forerunner of the NFL, was founded there in 1920. The Pro Football Hall of Fame
opened in the city on September 7, 1963, and has drawn more than 10 million visitors since.
Massillon’s high school football program, the Tigers, is one of the winningest in American
high school history, trailing only Valdosta, Georgia’s program in career wins, and produced
NFL Hall of Fame coach Paul Brown, who attended Massillon Washington High School before his
coaching career.

Getting There

Interstate 77 crosses the county north–south through Canton and North Canton. US Routes
30, 62 and 250 also run through the county, along with numerous state routes connecting the
smaller villages.

• Akron — about 20 miles north
• Cleveland — about 60 miles north
• Youngstown — about 40 miles northeast
• New Philadelphia — about 25 miles south

Akron-Canton Airport, in neighboring Green just north of the county line, is the nearest
commercial airport. Amtrak’s Capitol Limited serves Alliance station, connecting Chicago and
Washington, D.C.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Stark County located?
It sits in northeastern Ohio, about 60 miles south of Cleveland and 20 miles south of Akron,
bordered by Summit, Portage, Mahoning, Columbiana, Carroll, Tuscarawas, Holmes and Wayne
counties.

What is the population of Stark County?
374,853 at the 2020 census, with a 2024 estimate near 373,771.

How big is Stark County?
581 square miles (1,504 km2) in total, of which 575 square miles are land.

What is the county seat of Stark County?
Canton, platted in 1805, is the county seat and largest city.

How many towns and cities are in Stark County?
Six cities — Canton, Massillon, Alliance, North Canton, Louisville and Canal Fulton —
plus 12 incorporated villages and a dozen census-designated places and unincorporated
communities.

What ZIP codes does Stark County use?
Canton’s block runs 44702–44799; Massillon uses 44646–44648; Alliance is 44601;
each smaller village carries its own code, from 44601 in the north to 44670 in the south.

What is Stark County known for?
The Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, birthplace of the American Professional Football
Association in 1920, and Massillon’s Tigers, one of the winningest high school football
programs in the country.

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