Best Hometowns 2024: Hilliard

The scent of sawdust seems to hang in the air within the train depot, as though the lumber company that once operated across the street from it was still going strong. Although it moved from its original location in town, the depot dates to  Hilliard’s 1853 beginnings as a stop along the Columbus, Piqua & Indiana Railroad. Next to it sits a bright red caboose that served as sleeping quarters for  a conductor, a brakeman and a flagman. The interior still has bunk beds and an ice box once used to store food during travel. 

The depot is just one of the 11 different elements in the re-created “town” preserved by the Hilliard Ohio Historical Society’s Village & Museum. There is also a 1/6-scale replica of a lattice truss covered bridge from the 1800s, a historically accurate re-creation of an 1850s family log cabin and the Colwell Chapel, which originally stood in the Ohio countryside about 3 miles from where it does today.

“[The chapel] was catty-corner from my farm, and my grandfather was the superintendent to close the church back in 1964 on the last service,” says Tim Woodruff, a volunteer docent and president emeritus at the historical society. “It sat empty for about 19 years.” He notes that a local farmer bought the chapel and donated it to the organization.  

Inside the historical society’s museum, vignettes of a general store, barbershop and other businesses allow visitors a look at everyday life in the 1800s. Display cases are filled with uniforms, weaponry and artifacts donated by the families of local veterans. 

This Chesapeake & Ohio Caboose is displayed at the Hilliard Ohio Historical Society’s Village & Museum. (photo by Rachael Jirousek)

The community of Hilliard was originally known as Hilliard’s Station, named for John Reed Hilliard, who worked for the Columbus, Piqua & Indiana Railroad — the tracks for which cut across 10 acres of land he purchased here in 1852. The town’s name was simplified to Hilliard in 1854, and the village became a city in 1960 thanks to steady population growth. 

Although Hilliard remains tied to its agricultural roots (the Franklin County Fair has been hosted at the fairgrounds in town for more than a century) reminders that the 14.27-square-mile city of 38,000 residents along Interstate 270 is a thriving Columbus suburb are plentiful. For one, the Hilliard City School District employs 1,921 people at 24 schools, including three high schools and three middle schools, 16 elementary schools and one online academy, all serving more than 16,000 students over 60 square miles across Hilliard, Columbus and Dublin. The school district partners with local businesses (such as Amazon Web Services, which has three data center campuses in Hilliard that employ more than 200 people) to teach middle school and high school students STEM concepts from a real company right in their hometown. 

Advance Drainage Systems, which makes plastic piping, is Hilliard’s largest corporate employer with 465 workers, followed by the family-owned Rich Products Corp., which produces consumer food products for brands such as Farm Rich and F’real and has 341 employees. 

Innovation also has a home here thanks to Hilliard City Lab, a partnership between the city and 40 high-tech area private businesses to develop new technologies, and Forsee Power, which creates batteries for electric vehicles and is currently establishing a U.S. headquarters and production facility in Hilliard that will employ 152 people when completed.  

Children play in the splash pad at Hilliard’s Station Park in the center of Old Hilliard (left). First Responders Park is located just across the street (right) and pays tribute to the memory of those who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001. (photos by Rachael Jirousek) 

Development in the city continues with new housing and recreational opportunities such as TruePointe’s headquarters, a large, mixed-use project being built near Interstate 270. The project from real estate developer Equity, which has an office in Hilliard, will include 250,000 square feet of office space, more than 350 apartments, restaurants, retail, walking trails and green space. The first phase is scheduled to be completed by mid 2025, with a hotel coming in 2026. 

Over the course of her term, which began in 2020, Hilliard’s first city manager Michelle Crandall and the city council have also made creating places for recreation in Hilliard a priority, including construction of a $110-million recreation and wellness center set to open in 2025.

“We went to our residents and asked for an additional half-percent income tax to be dedicated solely to recreation and parks, and part of that promise was that we would build a new recreation and wellness campus and new community center,” Crandall says of the vote that took place in November 2021. “That passed overwhelmingly with great support and trust of our community.” 

For those who haven’t been to the city, Old Hilliard is a good place to start. The district, which serves as the city’s downtown and main hub, stretches about six blocks along Main Street, with the historic village located along its northeast edge. From there, Main Street passes through neighborhoods and then commercial shopping areas as it nears I-270. 

Hilliard’s Center Street Market houses a variety of food-and-drink options to choose from. (photo by Rachael Jirousek)

Hilliard’s Station Park sits in the center of Old Hilliard. Built on the site where the train depot once stood, the splash pad there is a draw for kids and families each summer. Directly across Main Street, First Responders Park memorializes the nearly 2,800 individuals who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001. Their names are inscribed on shiny slabs of black marble displayed among two fountains and displayed pieces of steel retrieved from Ground Zero. 

Located behind Hilliard’s Station Park, Firefly Winery (owned by Jenny and Joe Hollabaugh) is one of the city’s newest hangouts from the Westwood Collective, a local real estate development group.

Opened in October 2024, the winery offers a full kitchen as well as charcuterie plates to accompany wine pairings. The modern interior boasts an industrial yet comfortable feel with exposed beams, brown leather bar stools and glowing Edison bulb lighting.

The portion of Main Street that runs through Old Hilliard is home to Coffee Connections and Hilliard Station Baking Co., which makes a rotating lineup of gourmet cupcakes. On the corner of Center and Wayne streets, the Center Street Market offers a food hall with 10 vendors serving fare ranging from Asian dumplings to Greek cuisine. On Thursday evenings in the summer, the Celebration at the Station event is held at Station Park. It features live music and beer from Hilliard’s Crooked Can Brewing Co., a cornerstone of Center Street Market.

Packrat Comics in Hilliard is a must-visit stop for fans of comic books (left). Hilliard Station Baking Co. can be found along Main Street in Hilliard (right). (photos by Rachael Jirousek)

Local retail also has a home in Old Hilliard at Main Street spots like Urban Market, where Lauren McKinnis sells clothes for men and women, as well as jewelry (by appointment only) and fragrances; and MAK Home Furnishings, where Ohio-made artisan goods like candles and custom furniture fill the space. Around the corner on Old Hilliard’s historic Norwich Street, Gretchen Miceli is behind the counter at Birch Tree Home, making her dream of small-business ownership a reality. 

Open since September 2022, Miceli’s shop sells home decor items that rotate seasonally, including wall art, kitchen items, artificial florals, small gifts and more. Old Hilliard’s walkability makes local businesses accessible, and Hilliard’s flourishing population and economy bring small-business owners to town looking for opportunity, much like those who arrived by train to a town known as Hilliard’s Station all those years ago.  

“I can’t say [it’s] a small town, it’s really not that small, but it has that feel,” Miceli says. “… It’s collaborating with other businesses, it’s the friendliness of everyone, I think, that makes us so comfortable.”

More Best Hometowns 2024-25: Bryan | Hilliard | McConnelsville | Millersburg | Urbana

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