Fulton County is greater Toledo, located in Northwest Ohio along the border with Michigan. The county seat is Wauseon. The Fulton County ghost towns I know anything about are listed below.
Ackley Corners
Gorham Twp.
This town was once a pretty important trading center, until nearby Fayette put it out of business. It was founded in 1840 and named after settler Calvin Ackley. It was home to at least one major industry: a cheese factory.
Advance
Pike Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1893 and 1901.
Ai
Fulton Twp.
What a name. This odd little ghost town was officially platted on June 9, 1857 by O. E. M. Howards, but people had lived in the area since 1835, when the federal government had begun handing out land grants there. Its first store opened in 1835, and the town quickly blossomed into a trading and manufacturing center. P. Berry's wagon shop was located there, surviving fires in 1862 and 1870. There was a cider mill, two blacksmith shops, a drug store, a cheese factory, the cobblershop, between four and eleven saloons, and the undertaker.
Ai did not get its unique name from the 2001 Steven Spielberg film; rather, it was named after the wicked city in the bible which was destroyed by Joshua. An early settler's name was Ami Richards, and it is sometimes asserted that it was named after him (yes, Ami was a guy) with the middle letter in his name taken out.
Today all that remains of the town, which finally died with the post office on August 31, 1903, is the cemetery, a small schoolhouse (now used as a residence), an old grocery store which closed in the early 80s, and a crumbling grain elevator. Might be worth visiting sometime.
Allston
Franklin Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1854 and 1859.
Ambrose
Franklin Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1890 and 1891.
Batdorf
York Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1888 and 1901.
Beta
Franklin Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1857 and 1901. The Post office was closed for a period during 1860 and 1861.
Blanc
Franklin Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1847 and 1865.
Cottrell's Corners
Gorham Twp.
The post office here opened in 1837, and operated until 1873, when its name was changed to Fayette and it was moved. Cottrell's Corners was also known at various times as Gorham PO and Handy.
Denson
Chesterfield Twp.
The Toledo and Western Electric Railroad had a station here. The town itself existed from 1897 through 1909.
Eckley Station
German Twp.
Ghost town located at the place where Eckley-Powers Road crossed the Norfolk and Western Railroad.
Edinburg
German Twp.
This town was platted in 1837 by George Eaton on the north bank of the Tiffin River, on the site of an old Indian village. At one time Edinburg had a tavern, carpenter shop, and harness shop, but by 1870 every resident was gone.
Emery
Dover Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1846 and 1901. It closed January-May 1861.
Essex
York Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1844 and 1855.
Groveland
??? Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1851 and 1877.
Inlet
Chesterfield Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1877 and 1903.
Lauber Hill
German Twp.
In 1834, German immigrants from the Alsace region settled this portion of northwestern Ohio. Christian Lauber and his family had first gone to France, then emigrated to the United States via New York City. When they arrived they and other Germans they met rode the waterways west, intending to settle with other Germans in Wayne County, but when they arrived they found that the area had been largely bought up, and land nearby was expensive. So they headed northwest, to the "bustling" town of Napoleon. (At this time Napoleon had one permanent building.) They bought land miles from Napoleon and proceeded to cut a footpath between their new homes and the city. The town was finally named after Lauber because he managed to build the first house. His home was later used for religious services until the town's two churches were constructed.
Lavona
York Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1850 and 1864.
Lena
Clinton Twp.
The town of Lena could never decide if it wanted a post office or not. The first one opened there in 1852, then closed in April of 1860. One month later it reopened, then closed again in 1866. It reopened again in 1875, only to close for good in 1876, when the mail service was transferred to Wauseon.
Leslie
Amboy Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1892 and 1898.
Lytton
Fulton Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1893 and 1895, then 1896 and 1903.
Mill Creek
Gorham Twp.
This post office town stood where US 127 intersects Hibbard-Belding Road, between 1849 and 1863.
Oak Shade
Chesterfield Twp.
Oak Shade was a cheese town. Established in 1874 at the place where SR 108 and US 20 cross, it was originally placed because of the Detroit, Toledo & Ironton Railroad, which passed through. Later on, though, it became known for P.S. Lee's cheese factory, which was built there sometime before the town was even officially founded. In 1909 Hervey Partridge bought it and changed the name to Partridge Bros. Dairy Products. The building survived until sometime before 1975, when it was demolished. Today the Oakshade Raceway stands where the town was prior to 1910.
Parchers Corners
Pike Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1844 and 1846, then 1847 and 1857.
Pelton
Swan Creek Twp.
In 1888 there was a store at Pelton; in 1889 there was a post office. In 1901 the post office closed down for good.
Philip's Corners
Royalton Twp.
This town was named for Eli Philips, the first settler in the county. It was founded in 1832 at the place where SR 109 and SR 120 intersect. The first business was a bark-covered shanty which served as a store.
Plattston
York Twp.
Post office town which operated between 1887 and 1901.
Power's Station
Gorham Twp.
Power's Station was a stop on the Toledo & Western Interurban Railroad. It stood where US 20 crosses Eckley-Powers Road.
Ritters
Gorham Twp.
Town founded in 1870 by J.P. Ritter. The Chicago & Canada South Railroad had a station here, and there was a post office between 1874 and 1912. The town died when the Toledo & Western took business away.
Siney
Pike Twp.
Town which stood where Delta-Santee and Inlet-Lyton Roads cross, from 1884 through 1901.
Thelma
Gorham Twp.
Town at the intersection of County Road MN and Pettisville-Morenci Roads from 1879 through 1901.
Waldeck
York Twp.
This town only existed two years, from 1897 through 1899. Its location can be described as being on alternate US 20/SR 2, between Biddle-Scott and Winameg-Lyons Roads. What's with all these hyphenated road names?
West Barre
York Twp.
This town stood at a three-way intersection, at the point where West Barre-Advance, Archibold-West, and Adams Ridge Road cross today. It was in existence between 1851 and 1872, and was named for Barre, Vermont. The reason for this name was that a company resided in the town which distributed tombstones built by a company in Barre, Vermont.
Whiteville
Amboy Twp.
This town existed between 1901 and 1910, at the intersection of Reighard-Whiteville Road and SR 120. The Toledo & Western Railroad passed through.
York Center
York Twp.
York Center has been gone for a long time. When it existed, it was at the point where Winameg-Lyons and Wauseon-Perkins Road cross today. It was also at the intersection of two railroads: the Conrail, and the Norfolk Southern. Its lifespan was 1842-1848, which means that it spent its entire life as part of Lucas County, in the years before Fulton County was partitioned off.
