History

Ottoville is a small town, but for those approaching from any direction, it announces itself by the twin Gothic steeples of the church looming over the horizon.

Sign In 1845, the Miami and Erie Canal opened through this area of heavily forested swamp. Only then did immigrants begin to settle in the area. A year earlier, a Roman Catholic priest, Father John Otto Bredeick, had brought a group of German people to Section 10 on the canal and established Delphos.

When he found six Catholic families on Section Sixteen of the canal, he bought and platted ground, and secured rights to water power of the canal to establish a sawmill adjacent to Lock 27. This initiated a settlement between Locks 27 and 28 north of the Loramie Summit.

In 1848, he established a parish with the Catholic families and in 1850, through his generosity, they built a two-story frame building 36 feet by 20 feet. This was near canal Lock 28, and the building's upstairs served as a church, while the lower floor was used as a shelter for the new arrivals until they could build their own cabins on land they purchased.

In 1848 the Ohio Legislature created Auglaize County, causing surrounding counties to be cut in area. Neighboring counties were also reduced in size in a sort of domino effect. Putnam County lost a lot of sections on the south, and as compensation was given eighteen sections on the west side from territory once belonging to Van Wert County. One tier of sections was added on the east side of the canal from Jackson Township to these, and the result became Monterey Township. It was organized in 1850, and at the first election of officials only eleven votes were cast (remember, women couldn't vote yet!)

In 1852 the state established a post office for this area on the bank of the Miami and Erie Canal. Today, this spot is 14774 Road 25M, about three miles north of town. This was the Dog Creek Post Office, and one who wished their mail went to the post office and asked for it. In 1858, this post office was moved into the settlement which was known as "Section 16", or in the jargon of the day, simply "Sixteen." In 1880, the settlement and the post office chose the name Ottoville in honor of the founder, John Otto Bredeick.

A grist mill was established next to Lock 28 making it easier for farmers to sell their produce and get their own wheat ground into flour for home use. Outside of the few businesses in town during the early years, the area was primarily an agricultural community. Most of the soil is Hoytville clay, and when drained makes very productive soil.

In time, the canal closed for through traffic. It was 1913 before it closed to local travel. At this time there was a railroad that connected Ottoville's citizens to the world. By 1917 the railroad had closed, too, but the automobile was becoming a good mode of travel and roads improved. Today, there are three marked highways meeting in Ottoville: US 224, SR 189 and SR 66.

In the early 1920s, the one room schoolhouses in the area consolidated into the Ottoville Local School District.

Ottoville today is a warm, friendly community where family values are still cherished.