Circleville Gun Shows. Pickaway County Ohio is one stop on our Ohio Gun Shows Schedule, managed by Buckeye Gun Shows

Facts about Circleville

Year Founded: 1810
Population: 13,485
Type of Government: Mayor/Council

Annual Festival

The annual Circleville Pumpkin Show is held the third Wednesday - Saturday of October every year. It is one the major festivals of the United States. It attracts over 400,000 visitors each year.

Interesting History Facts

Ted Lewis, a vaudeville performer, who was well known for his top hat, cane and clarinet and who sang, “Me and My Shadow” was born and raised in Circleville. There is a Ted Lewis Museum which exhibits his memorabilia.

Caleb Atwater, the “Father of Ohio’s Public School System” lived in Circleville for many years.

History of CirclevilleEstablished as the County seat of Pickaway County in 1810, Circleville derives its name from the circular portion of a large Hopewell era earthwork upon which it was built. The Circleville earthworks described in 1772 comprised of an 1,100 foot diameter circle connected to a 900 foot square. Town Director, Daniel Dresbach, platted the town directly atop the earthworks, integrating the town plan into the prehistoric landscape. An octagonal courthouse stood directly in the center.

By the mid 1830’s, dissatisfaction arose with Circleville’s unique radial concentric street layout. The Circleville Squaring Company authorized by the State Assembly in 1837, undertook to convert the “peculiar” town plan into a conventional grid, and by 1856 had completed this work in several phases. Circleville occupies a unique place in the history of American town planning, not only as a subsequent development of Native American engineering, but also as the earliest example of urban redevelopment in the United States.