Vandalia, Ohio, United States

🇺🇸 Vandalia is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and a suburb of Dayton. In addition to being the city closest to Dayton International Airport, Vandalia lies at the crossroads of I-75 and I-70, making it a major hub for business.

History On August 17, 1838, Benjamin Wilhelm, a settler from Pennsylvania, settled near what is now the intersection of U.S. Route 40 and US Route 25-A. He built his home and a small general store as a stop and resting place for travelers heading west. The small town began to attract travelers and entrepreneurs, and on February 7, 1848, the town was incorporated as "The Village of Vandalia" with Benjamin Wilhelm as its first mayor. The village was laid out in 38 lots including a church, hotels, blacksmiths shops, a steam sawmill, meat markets, and a carriage shop. It was named after Vandalia, Illinois.

By 1959, Vandalia was outgrowing its "village" status, and its citizens voted to make it a council-manager form of government, effectively making the village into a municipal corporation. On January 2, 1960, Vandalia became a Charter City of the State of Ohio.

The Delphi Automotive manufacturing plant in Vandalia, which opened in the 1930s, cut back operations in 2003. It continued to operate "through Delphi’s time in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, from October 2005 to October 2009", and was purchased by Mahle Behr in 2015.

Until 2005, Vandalia was home to the Amateur Trapshooting Association (ATA), which moved to Sparta, Illinois after an expansion of the Dayton International Airport.

Revitalization The city of Vandalia passed plans to reinvent the city's urban core around National Road and Dixie Drive. The plan is to bring many of the old shopping centres to the street front while placing parking spaces in the back. The first business to take part in this plan was My Favorite Pet on National in which a new building was built next to Wendy's in 2008.

Geography Vandalia is about 10 miles (16 km) north of Dayton on Dixie Drive (former U.S. Highway 25). It is between the Great Miami River and the Stillwater River. The city has been called the "Crossroads of America" due to its location on the National Road and the Dixie Highway. These correspond to U.S. Route 40 and former U.S. Route 25, which in turn, have been supplanted by two major expressways: east-west Interstate 70 and north–south Interstate 75.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.41 square miles (32.14 km²), of which, 12.34 square miles (31.96 km²) is land and 0.07 square miles (0.18 km²) is water.

Events The City of Vandalia boasts several seasonal festivals and events, such as the annual Oktoberfest in the autumn, the Homecoming parade in the fall, and the Air Show & Parade in the summer. They also host a firework show, The Star-Spangled Celebration. Other events include "Taste of Vandalia", a culinary event, and the Vandalia Corporate Challenge. St. Christopher Catholic Church also hosts the Vandalia Fair every summer, one of the largest in the Miami Valley.

Parks and Recreation Vandalia is a top-rated parks and recreation community. Vandalia has over thirty parks in the area. Some of the larger ones include Helke Park and the Vandalia Sports Complex. It is also home to the Taylorsville Metropark, home to the historic village of Tadmor. Vandalia also is home to the Bruce Sucher Recreation Center, a highly popular recreational facility.

Media Vandalia has its weekly community paper, the Vandalia Drummer. Many in the community also receive city-published tabloids like Business at the Crossroads. Many residents throughout this area also regularly read the Dayton Daily News, the metropolitan area's main daily newspaper.