Driving Around Downtown Columbus, Ohio in 4k Video

Filmed on Saturday, October 19 2024, I drive around Columbus, OH and The Ohio State University campus to see what's going on.

The city is named for Christopher Columbus, and it's the largest city in the world named for the explorer.

In 1797, a young surveyor from Virginia named Lucas Sullivant had founded a permanent settlement on the west bank of the forks of the Scioto and Olentangy rivers. An admirer of Benjamin Franklin, Sullivant chose to name his frontier village "Franklinton". In 1798, a large flood wiped out the settlement, but it was rebuilt somewhat more inland.

After Ohio achieved statehood in 1803, the state legislature created a plan to build a new state capital in the state's center, near major transportation routes, primarily rivers. Franklinton landowners had donated two 10-acre plots in an effort to convince the state to move its capital there.

Columbus was founded across the river from Franklinton on February 14, 1812. At the time, this area was a dense forestland, used only as a hunting ground. Columbus annexed the city of Franklinton in 1837.

On January 7, 1857, the Ohio Statehouse finally opened after 18 years of construction. Site construction continued until 1861.

During the Civil War, Columbus was a major base for the volunteer Union Army. It housed 26,000 troops and held up to 9,000 Confederate prisoners of war at Camp Chase, at what is now the Hilltop neighborhood of west Columbus.

By virtue of the Morrill Act of 1862, the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College – which eventually became the Ohio State University – was founded in 1870 on the former estate of William and Hannah Neil.

By the end of the 19th century, Columbus was home to several major manufacturing businesses. The city became known as the "Buggy Capital of the World," thanks to the two dozen buggy factories. One such factory, The Columbus Buggy Company, employed a salesman named Harvey S. Firestone who would go on to form the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company.

Columbus has a long history in motorsports, hosting the world's first 24-hour car race at the Columbus Driving Park in 1905.

In 1910, Phillip Parolee conducted the world's first commercial cargo flight, delivering. 88 kilograms of silk from Dayton to Columbus in a Wright Model B.

Today, Columbus has a strong and diverse economy based on education, insurance, banking, fashion, defense, aviation, food, logistics, steel, energy, medical research, health care, hospitality, retail and technology. The city has six corporations on the Fortune 500 list.

Ohio Stadium on the OSU campus in Columbus has 105,261 seats and is the 5th largest non-racing stadium in the world. Ohio State Football is valued at over $1 billion dollars.

The annual All American Quarter Horse Congress, the world's largest single-breed horse show, attracts approximately 500,000 visitors to the Ohio Expo Center each October.

Columbus is the largest US city with no passenger rail service. Amtrak serviced the city until 1977, but they plan to restore service to Columbus by 2035.

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