Philo, OH

Philo sits along the Muskingum River in Muskingum County, inside the Zanesville micropolitan area. The village began as Taylorsville, laid out by James Taylor in 1833, and its present name honors early settler Philo Buckingham. The post office has carried the Philo name since 1851, so the village's older names remain part of a working local map.

The river gives Philo a second identity. Philo Lock and Dam No. 9 lies near the village and Duncan Falls; the lock was first known as Taylorsville Dam and was built to harness water for a sawmill and flour mill. The lock is a named stop on the Muskingum, placing Philo on a long, managed river route that continues past Blue Rock's park and forest lands. Blue Rock State Park and Blue Rock State Forest sit along the same river corridor, with Philo at the park-and-forest edge. Philo is a small village with a river, a lock, and a name that has changed while the water route stayed in place.