Like many towns, Columbus Grove has a history with the Native 
American Indians. This area was the site of a large grove of sugar 
maple trees. In nearby Ottawa, Indians had a village called Tuawa. 
They made an annual trip to the sugar maple grove, and harvested 
the sap for the production of sugar. 
   The Treaty of the Rapids of the Maumee River (1817) resulted in 
the removal of the Ottawa Indians from Tauwa in the early 1830's 
and the beginning of Columbus Grove. In 1832 William Turner and 
Elias Fetheringill came from Grove Port, near Columbus and settled 
in what is now Pleasant Township.
   In 1833 the land owned by the Ottawa Indians was sold by the 
United States Land Office in Wapakoneta and signaled the exit of 
the Native American Indians from Putnam County. 
   In 1834, Pleasant Township was organized with J. B. Bogart, 
William Turner and John Featheringill as the first trustees. 
   The first church in the area was Truo Church, (First Presbyterian) 
established in 1836, near what is now the Truo Cemetery. Soon we 
had the Methodist Church, Pleasant Grove Christian Church, 
(later known as United Church of Christ), St. John's Evangelical 
United Brethren, and St. Anthony's Catholic Church.
   In 1842 the village of Columbus Grove was laid out by Captain 
Fredrick Fruchey. In 1864 the village was incorporated by John J. 
Baker and others. Since Captain Fruchey and most of the early 
settlers came from near Columbus, Ohio, and because the village 
was located on ground that had once been a sugar maple grove, it 
was only natural that Columbus Grove was the name chosen for the 
new village.
   The first Mayor of Columbus Grove was David Jones, elected in 
1863. He was the owner of a saddle and harness business. For 25 
years he was either the Mayor or the Justice of the Peace. In 
1874 David Jones built a house on West Sycamore St. which later 
became the home of the sisters of St. Anthony's Church. In 1870, 
Theodore Kunneke constructed the first brick residence on the 
northeast corner of East Sycamore and North Broadway. In 1873 
he constructed the first brick business block on the northeast 
corner of High and Sycamore.
   J. F. Jones came to Columbus Grove in 1875 and quickly became 
associated with the educational interest of the area. He became 
the first superintendent and in 1878 the first class graduated. 
These were, C. H. Jones, Reno Sprague, and Mrs. John Kunneke.
With the abundant supply of hickory, J. F. Jones, his sons and 
25-30 employees manufactured 10,000 dozen axe handles a year. 
They also shipped hickory to other manufacturers. Several other 
axe handle manufacturers were also located in Columbus Grove. 
Thus Columbus Grove earned the nickname of Axe Handle Junction.
   In 1883, A. H. Day, who came to Columbus Grove in 1861, and 
opened a mercantile business on the nothwest corner of High and 
Sycamore, began building the Day Block. It was noted for the Day 
Opera House. He also built the Grove House, a fashionable hotel, 
on the northeast corner of Sycamore and Plum. 
   In the 1920's and 30's the Parker Sanatarium was an attraction 
for people who came to Columbus Grove to take mineral baths and 
have Isaac Fullerton diagnose their ills. It is said that Isaac was 
the seventh son of a seventh son and could diagnose any illnesses 
by looking at your hands or feet.
   In the 1930's a group of residents went about collecting money 
to buy a troubled quarry. Once done, they traveled to Columbus. 
Where they obtained the funding for a pool under a WPA project. 
Local residents donated money for the material and on July 1, 
1937, The Columbus Grove Pool opened. Constructed of flagstone, 
the pool resembled a castle. It was later placed on the Ohio 
Magazine's List of Ohio's 10 most Beautiful Pools, placed on the 
Ohio Historical Society's list of Historical Places and recently 
placed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 2004, the 
pool reopened after a major reconstruction project, financed by 
a levy passed by the local residents. The general appearance 
of the buildings was retained, with the construction emphasis on 
the pool itself. 
   In 1859 the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad became the first 
railroad to run through Columbus Grove. In 1902 the addition of a 
streetcar service that ran into Lima was established. Besides the 
B&O Railroad future years saw names such as the Detriot, Toledo and
Ironton, and the Akron, Canton and Youngstown, formerly known as 
the Pittsburg, Akron and Western Railroad pass through town.