Carthagena, Ohio

St. Aloysius Church in Carthagena

Carthagena (/ˌkɑːrθəˈdʒiːnə/ KAR-thə-JEE-nə[1]) is an unincorporated community in Mercer County, Ohio, United States.[2] Established by African Americans, it was home to an agricultural and industrial boarding school for African American and Indian orphans. It is located at 40°26′12″N 84°33′36″W / 40.43667°N 84.56000°W / 40.43667; -84.56000 and has an elevation of 909 feet (277 m).[2]

History

Carthagena was laid out in 1840.[3] It is named after Cartagena, a city in the south-east of Spain. The village was started by Charles Moore from Harrison County, Kentucky around the same time Mercer County was established. Charles Moore was a black man and owned 160 acres of land in Carthagena.

Black people lived in Carthagena for over 100 years; the last known member of the black community in Carthagena was Albert Bowles, who died in 1957 and is buried in the black cemetery there. The land a black school stood on (Emlen Institution) was purchased by the Missionaries of the Precious Blood (C.P.P.S.) for $4,500 on March 14, 1861. A seminary was built and named St. Charles Seminary. The St. Charles Center has been operated by the Missionaries of the Precious Blood since then.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "E.W. Scripps School of Journalism Ohio Pronunciation Guide | Ohio University". www.ohio.edu. Ohio University. 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2023.
  2. 1 2 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Carthagena, Ohio
  3. ↑ Scranton, S. S. (1907). History of Mercer County, Ohio, and Representative Citizens. Biographical Publishing Company. p. 204.
  4. ↑ Alig, Joyce L. (February 1980), Mercer County, Ohio History 1978, Mercer County: Mercer County Historical Society, Inc., pp. 740–741
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