The Cincinnati Metropolitan Area is the largest metropolitan area associated with the State of Ohio, though not necessarily the largest within Ohio itself (that title is likely more accurate to the Cleveland-Akron-Canton Combined Statistical Area per the 2020 United States Census). Apart from Ohio, the inner urban area also extends over the Ohio River into the Commonwealth of Kentucky to the south. The outer fringes of the area also extend into the State of Indiana, thus creating a tri-state region centered at Cincinnati, formerly known as Losantiville.
Historically, the City of Cincinnati was located within the Northwest Territory, originally as part of an unorganized portion of the Territory. As of 1788, Cincinnati would not have been considered part of any county territory at all, as Washington County had not extended west of the Scioto River, nearer Chillicothe, which would later become the original state capital of the State of Ohio. As of 1790, when Hamilton County was first formed, much of the Cincinnati area and even the Dayton area would eventually become part of the County, though the northwestern portion of the area, including the Indiana section as well as the Oxford area in Ohio, would become associated with Knox County, which would evolve separately into the county home to Vincennes, the oldest European settlement in the modern State of Indiana. In 1800, when Clermont County was formed out of the southeastern portion of Hamilton County, the outer east side of Cincinnati had been split off of the inner city area as a result. The next significant split to define the Cincinnati area would occur in 1803, when the counties with Hamilton and Lebanon had split off of Hamilton County to form Butler and Warren Counties, respectively. At the time, much of the extreme eastern side of the Cincinnati area toward Chillicothe and to the south of Columbus had been associated with the Counties of Adams, Ross, and Scioto. Of the counties in question, Adams County is along the Ohio River to this day, with Scioto River further upstream and Ross County somewhat further to the north.
Even though the modern State of Ohio was first settled nearer Marietta, the county formation had actually been more developed nearer Cincinnati even in 1803. For instance, Athens County, a modern county adjacent to Washington County, had not yet been formed, though Clermont, Butler, and Warren Counties had already been formed and in full force. Even Franklin County had been formed in 1803, somewhat prior to the formation of Athens County. Although Ohio University (OU) in Athens was the first university to be established in the State of Ohio, Miami University in Oxford was the second and remains located in Butler County to this day. More recent university formations within the Ohio portion of the Greater Cincinnati area include the following, with years of establishment, control, and status for each higher educational institution:
- University of Cincinnati (UC) (1809, public)
- Cincinnati State Technical and Community College (1969, public community college)
- Athenaeum of Ohio (1829, private Catholic) ← Cincinnati
- Xavier University (1831, private Catholic) ← Cincinnati
- Art Academy of Cincinnati (1869, private special focus)
- Wilmington College (1870, private)
Within the Commonwealth of Kentucky, the general south side of Cincinnati, including the mouth of the Licking River that Losantiville was partially named for, was entirely located within Kentucky (also spelled “Kentucke” at the time) County under the Commonwealth of Virginia as of 1776, with the county becoming effective in 1777. When the three original Kentuckian counties of Jefferson, Fayette, and Lincoln were formed in 1780, the Northern Kentucky area was entirely associated with Fayette County. In 1785 (effective 1786), the eastern third of the Northern Kentucky area would become part of the then-newly-formed Bourbon County, which today uses Paris as the county seat and is associated with the Bluegrass region. The western two-thirds of the Northern Kentucky area remained under Fayette County, which today uses the significantly larger City of Lexington as the county seat. In 1788 (established 1789), county governance in the Northern Kentucky region would be transferred from Fayette County to Woodford County in the west and from Bourbon County to Mason County in the east. Woodford County today uses Versailles, approximately midway between Franklin and Lexington, as the county seat, while Mason County uses Maysville as the county seat and is directly along the Ohio River further upstream. Once Kentucky had separated off from Virginia in 1792, much of the Woodford County portion of the area, including the Northern Kentucky section, has become the northern end of Scott County, which uses Georgetown as the modern county seat and is in the direct path between Lexington and Cincinnati, approximately midway. In 1794 (effective 1795), following the formation of Harrison County using Cynthiana as the county seat, was the formation of Campbell County, which would cover the entirety of the Northern Kentucky area as well as much of the area directly to the north of Georgetown, including modern-day Pendleton and Grant Counties. At the southeastern end of the county would become Bracken County as of 1796 (effective 1797); following the split of Bracken County between Campbell and Mason Counties, the Northern Kentucky region proper would become split again with the formation of Boone County, established 1798 and effective 1799, named for Daniel Boone. Also around the time of the Boone County formation was the formation of Pendleton County further south, splitting the aforementioned area to the north of Georgetown from Northern Kentucky.
Deeper down into Kentucky, yet still occasionally in the broader definition of Northern Kentucky, was the formation of Owen County from Scott, Franklin, Gallatin, and Pendleton Counties in 1819 followed by the formation of Grant County from western Pendleton County in 1820. While numerous minor exchanges in county boundaries were established throughout the next several years, the most significant of the changes was the addition of the Glencoe area and further east to Gallatin County from Boone County in 1837. While Gallatin County would later split in 1838 with Carroll County formed to the west, including from Henry and Trimble Counties, the final addition to the county map that would define Northern Kentucky was the incorporation of Kenton County as an independent county from the western part of Campbell County. With just a few minor tweaks, the approximate county boundaries have remained very similar to the original boundaries following the Kenton County formation of 1840.
Though the Commonwealth of Kentucky lacks the university-friendly traditions that had defined the Northwest Territory through the Northwest Ordinance and especially within the State of Ohio, the Northern Kentucky region actually has Northern Kentucky University (NKU), located in Highland Heights, Kentucky. Though NKU is the only public Kentucky university to be associated with the Greater Cincinnati area, numerous private institutions may be associated with the indirect Cincinnati area within the Commonwealth. The private liberal arts college of Georgetown College is located in Georgetown, which is in Scott County, though the area is more appropriately identified as the north side of Lexington. Thomas More University is located in Crestview Hills, which is definitely identified with Northern Kentucky as the university is firmly located within the orbit of Cincinnati, significantly detached from the Lexington and Bluegrass regions. For health education, Beckfield College is a private for-profit college located in Florence within the region. The community college serving the Northern Kentucky region is the Gateway Community and Technical College, serving classes in Covington, Edgewood, and Boone County.
Though the Ohio and Kentucky portions of the area already cover the vast majority of the tri-state area, the smaller portion of Indiana does not contain a significant influence on the culture of the Cincinnati region, with many residents identifying more rurally or with the smaller communities of the region. For instance, residents of Liberty, Indiana, could identify either with proximity to Richmond or to Oxford, Ohio, or the residents of the surrounding area in Union County (typically more associated with Dayton) may identify with the rural traditions locally. The only colleges or universities that could reasonably identify with the Cincinnati area within the State of Indiana are private: Hanover College in Hanover (typically more associated with Louisville) and Veritas Baptist College in Greendale.
Attractions
The Northern Kentucky and Eastern Cincinnati regions are generally regarded as more historically significant, with both located approaching the Appalachian Mountains further to the south and east. Clermont County, Ohio, is often regarded as Appalachian by culture as well as by nature, though the extent of the cultural influence may not nearly be as significant as in the backcountry regions of Virginia or North Carolina.
novaTopFlex 