Exploring Van Wert, Ohio

Seeing Our Home Town From a Tourist’s Point of View

Van Wert County

Rich was born and raised in Van Wert, Ohio. I was born and raised in a small town twenty miles north of Van Wert called Payne, Ohio. We came home to Ohio for the month of April.

Van Wert and Payne are in the Northwest corner of Ohio. Ohio is split into four sections — northwest, northeast, southwest, and southeast, and we were both born and raised in northwest Ohio. The city of Van Wert is in Van Wert County. My hometown of Payne is in Paulding County.

I always write about the places we visit and the sights we see as we travel, so I want to see our home area from a tourist’s point of view and show it to you, my readers.

I am sitting in our daughter's yard looking out the window and I see trees full of spring buds, green grass, and daffodils blooming around their house.

This is home. We haven’t gone anywhere since we arrived a week ago. We have been relaxing from all the traveling and driving we have done since being away for the last six months. I told Rich we need to go sightseeing and pretend like we are new to the area so I can find places to write about.

Today we went sightseeing.

The Brumback Library

The number one tourist attraction in the city of Van Wert is the Brumback Library. Established in 1901, this is the first tax-supported county library ever established in the United States. The castle building is magnificent. The cornerstone was laid in 1899 and the building was dedicated on January 1, 1901.

You can read the following article for a complete history of the Brumback Library in Van Wert, Ohio.

In 2015, we had family photos taken at the library. I love books and it was the perfect background.

Van Wert County Historical Museum

The second most visited place in Van Wert is the Historical Museum. Neither Rich nor I have ever been inside the museum or any of the buildings, but the restored three-story stone mansion is beautiful with a railroad caboose, historical gazebo, one-room schoolhouse, and log cabin in the yard. This place is used regularly as backdrops for family photos and senior pictures. It was closed today and is only open on Sundays.

Central Mutual Insurance Company Headquarters

The third most viewed building in Van Wert is the headquarters building of the Central Mutual Insurance Company. The home office, which is headquartered in Van Wert, was built in 1931 and has tremendous character and historic image.

For a beautiful slide show of photos showing the exterior and interior of the building, visit the Weigand Construction webpage below.

Paulding County Wind Farms

As a tourist, one of the main distinguishing features of my hometown of Payne in Paulding County is the huge windmill farms. The windmills dot the entire countryside as soon as the road enters the state of Ohio in Paulding County. My father died in 1992. He would not recognize his own home county if he returned today.

The flat land of Paulding and Van Wert counties is home to the bulk of the state’s windmills. Paulding County is home to three wind farms and approximately 220 wind turbines.

Stay tuned for more interesting information as I find it here in our hometowns. Thanks for reading. Please clap and comment to let me know you were here.