About Portage County
Portage County derived its name from the Native Americans who lived, hunted, and fished there – they had to portage, or carry their canoes between the rivers. Now a mixture of urban, suburban, and rural townships, Portage County once was supported primarily by agricultural commodities.
In 1912, Dan Hanna called the first meeting of the Portage County Improvement Association, a group of local farmers and businessmen, and the association launched its membership with over two thousand members. The first action was to secure the services of a county Agricultural Agent. In 1913, H.P. Miller, a staff member of the Ohio Experiment Station, assumed his duties in Portage County as the first County Agent in Ohio and the twenty-third Extension Agent in the United States.
The Portage County Improvement Association’s goals were to improved the roads, livestock services, and cooperative farming services and to establish a county cooperative store. The association also made provisions to sponsor the Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs, which would later evolve into 4-H Clubs.
Through many years of dedication and help from our county Commissioners, we have grown to an office of seven extension professionals. We have extension professionals in 4-H, Horticulture, and the Family Nutrition Program.
Click here to view our 2009 County Highlights!
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