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Niles
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Niles

Ohio, United States
Also known as: Heaton’s Furnace, Nilestown
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History

Niles, city, Trumbull county, northeastern Ohio, U.S. It lies along the Mahoning River, about midway between Youngstown and Warren, and is a part of the Mahoning industrial complex. Ruben Harmon, the first white settler (1797), and others discovered deposits of coal, iron ore, and limestone there. James Heaton built a foundry and organized Heaton’s Furnace (1806), which was renamed Nilestown in 1834 (later shortened) to honour Hezekiah Niles, the influential Baltimore (Md.) editor of Niles’ Weekly Register (1811–36). Industrialization was fostered by the railroads, which first arrived in 1856. The city’s manufactures now include building materials, steel, titanium, lathes, and tools and dies. U.S. president William McKinley was born in Niles; the National McKinley Birthplace Memorial, which includes a library and a museum, stands in the city centre. The Niles Historical Society maintains a museum of area history in the Ward-Thomas Home (1862). Inc. village, 1865; city, 1895. Pop. (2000) 20,932; (2010) 19,266.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Lorraine Murray.
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