Best Hometowns 2026: Tiffin

The aging sycamore looks as if it’s devouring the corners of the metal plaque that’s been hanging from its trunk since the Dolly Todd Madison Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution had it installed in 1906. Years of weathering have given it a greenish patina, but its lettering is still clear: “1813. This Tree Marks The Site of Old Fort Ball. Built in 1813 by Order of General Harrison.” 

The tree bearing the marker stands on Frost Parkway, a road that runs along the Sandusky River in Tiffin’s Frost Village neighborhood. It’s a modern name for a revitalized portion of the city’s much older Fort Ball neighborhood. 

In September 2022, local businessman Andrew Kalnow received Heritage Ohio’s Best Residential Rehabilitation award for work he did on the 1856 Italianate home at 24 Adams St., the 1895 King-Door House at 25 Adams St. and the Queen Anne-style two-family residential property at 149 Frost Pkwy. — a project that turned several restored buildings into lodging, apartments and commercial spaces. 

This neighborhood is where the city of Tiffin began. Many of the soldiers stationed at Fort Ball during the War of 1812 returned to the area after their service was complete. In 1822, the city of Tiffin was founded, named in honor of Ohio’s first governor, Edward Tiffin. 

Fort Ball marker in tree in Tiffin (photo by Doug Hinebaugh)

Today, the city has nearly 18,000 residents in its nearly 7 square miles, which is thanks in part to the fact the city is home to two private universities. Just beyond the Frost Village neighborhood sits Tiffin University, where a mix of historic structures and modern builds create an inviting campus atmosphere, but one that is also connected to Tiffin’s walkable downtown.

“The community is really an important part of this institution,” says Lillian Schumacher, president of Tiffin University since 2016. “We want to make sure entities within our community are coming to campus and we’re truly partners with them.”

Tiffin University was founded in 1888 and today has an enrollment of more than 3,700 students. Heidelberg University, which sits 1.5 miles away on the east side of the Sandusky River, is a little older. Founded in 1850, it has an enrollment of more than 1,000 students. When it comes to the local public school system, Tiffin City Schools serves around 2,500 students across a high school, middle school, three elementary schools and a pre-K. 

The presence of the two universities has long kept a steady flow of young people discovering Tiffin. In recent years, local leaders have worked on ways to keep not only those born and raised in Tiffin in the area but also give college students a reason to stay.

“You can find it all here,” says Bryce Riggs, president and CEO of Seneca County Collaborative. “You can get educated here. You can stay here.” 

Women posing on campus at Tiffin University (photo by Doug Hinebaugh)

Over roughly the last decade, residents, business owners and public officials alike made a concerted effort to revitalize a downtown once filled with vacancies. Downtown Tiffin had suffered for decades due to the decline of downtown retail in favor of large malls. 

A pivotal moment came in 2011 with the creation of Tiffin Tomorrow, a mix of city, county and economic development officials that led to the city joining the National Main Street program, a nonprofit organization that works with cities to create resilient economies through downtown preservation and revitalization.

Donna Gross, who grew up in Chagrin Falls, attended Heidelberg University and later moved to Michigan. When her sons started attending her alma mater in late 2017, she found herself spending a lot of time in Tiffin.   

“I would drive through town, like, what is going on with downtown Tiffin?” she recalls. “It’s coming alive, there’s stores, there’s restaurants, there’s people, it’s cleaned up, it’s beautiful ... I just wanted to stay here.”

Gross, who owned a fitness studio in Birmingham, Michigan, eventually decided to move her business to Tiffin. In 2019, she opened Relevé Barre Studio on Washington Street. Inspired by Tiffin Main Street’s support in the early days of her business, Gross joined the Downtown Tiffin Main Street marketing committee and eventually took over the manager position she still holds today. (She also received Heritage Ohio’s 2026 Main Street Director of the Year award.)

Gross is also part of the Seneca County Collaborative, an organization that is largely unique in how it combines its economic development, business services, tourism and downtown revitalization programs under the same umbrella, and same roof (literally, at their offices on Washington Street). 

Left: downtown Tiffin; right: 22mrkt Records (photos by Doug Hinebaugh)

“We have a 13-member board, and there’s equal representation from economic development, downtown development and tourism,” Riggs says. “For us, our organization does not prosper when one thing becomes more important than the other division.”

The city’s largest employers are the universities and Mercy Health Tiffin Hospital. Another one of the town’s biggest employers was Toledo Molding & Die which earlier this year announced a sudden closure of its Tiffin operation, which employed around 400 people. City and economic development officials scrambled to respond. 

Seneca County Collaborative worked with the company to come up with a plan to sell off not only the Tiffin facility, but also the company’s Bowling Green plant, to Michigan-based manufacturing company, JVIS, saving more than 350 jobs and holding an event for new hiring.

Mayor Lee Wilkinson was part of that effort. He has only lived in Tiffin for about 10 years and was formerly a schoolteacher in a suburb of Columbus. He and his wife moved to the city when she opened her shop downtown, while he made an 83-mile, one-way commute each school day. 

Eventually, after retiring from teaching and getting involved in the community, Wilkinson got to know former mayor Aaron Montz. He intended to run for city council when Montz stepped down in 2022. After Dawn Iannantuono served as interim mayor and announced she would not run again, Wilkinson decided he would.

Elected in 2023, Wilkinson says the focus of his administration has been tackling a long-term control plan for Tiffin’s sewer systems, rebuilding key roads, and continuing downtown and neighborhood revitalization and economic development efforts. 

Works at Tiffin Glass Museum and Shoppe (photos by Doug Hinebaugh)

“The biggest part of the job is gaining the knowledge,” he says, “reading everything, making sure that any decisions are made based on facts, not just on knee‑jerk reactions or emotions.”

Today, downtown Tiffin is a lively, walkable hub for community and commerce. Local shops and restaurants line Washington, Market and Perry Streets. The independent coffee shop Bailiwicks offers a gathering spot and central location for the two universities’ caffeine-fueled college students. Washington Street Outfitters teems with Tiffin-themed gear and perfectly curated trendy items, while Simply Susan’s, the quaint boutique owned by the mayor’s wife, Susan Wilkinson, serves as a one-stop gift shop that counts apparel, home decor and chocolates among its offerings. 

The region’s history gets its due along Washington Street in the form of two museums run by dedicated volunteers. The Tiffin Glass Museum and Shoppe recounts  the city’s glassmaking history with displays of more than 1,000 fragile works of art, while the American Civil War Museum of Ohio explores the state’s impact on the war through artifacts and multimedia displays. 

Across the river, on East Market Street sits 22mrkt Records, a store filled with a great selection of new and used vinyl finds. Owner Josh Randell has spent his whole life in Tiffin and says his family’s history here goes back to 1819, with his parents still living on their ancestors’ original homestead. 

Randell, whose day job is in insurance and financial services, is also deeply involved civically, having served on the city’s development board and downtown marketing committee. Locally owned businesses have played a key role in Tiffin’s revitalization, and the way Randell sees it, people in the modern age crave community. He adds that the business that makes up Tiffin’s landscape provide that connection and camaraderie. 

“I’ve said it to everybody: Tiffin’s just got a weird way of getting its hooks into people,” Randell says. “There’s always something that gets in their head and makes them say, ‘This is just really cool.’”

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