Dayton

Dayton's history has been shaped and reshaped by its location on the banks of the Ohio River. First settled in 1848, the city grew and prospered, providing raw materials and labor for the boatbuilders across the river in Cincinnati. The fine white-sand beaches became a tourist mecca, drawing the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) reunion in 1898. Floods, pollution, and a series of locks for river navigation destroyed the beaches, but Dayton continued to thrive. The Great Flood of 1937 devasta...