Urbancrest, OH

Urbancrest is a Franklin County village bordering Columbus and Grove City, just south of I-270. The 2020 census counted 1,031 residents. South-Western City Schools serve the village, while village hall, local streets, and the short drive to Columbus shape daily connections. Urbancrest covers about six-tenths of a square mile, so city and village boundaries sit close together in this southwest Franklin County pocket. That compact boundary holds a civic history tied to water service, local churches, and national political history.

A settlement for Black residents appeared here around 1890, and the Quinichett family held worship services in their home before Union Baptist Church formed in 1892. Urbancrest incorporated in 1948. Ellen Walker Craig-Jones, who had worked for water and sewer service, won the 1971 mayoral election and became the first Black woman elected mayor by popular vote of a U.S. municipality. Urbancrest’s civic story runs through church, infrastructure, village government, and residents who kept pressing for services as the Columbus area grew around them.