Ohio State Day, Motto, and Nickname

STATE DAY March 1 (Admission Day) DATE OF ADMISSION TO UNITED STATES March 1, 1803 RANKING IN STATE ADMISSION 17th FORMER DESIGNATION Northwest Territory HISTORY While Ohio was recognized as a state in 1803, it wasn't formally admitted into the Union until 1953. When President Thomas Jefferson signed the enabling act clearing the way for the citizens of the territory to create a state constitution, there weren’t enough residents in the area according to the Northwest Ordinance requirement. The president and Congress both correctly assumed that the population would be at the required minimum before a census would be taken. A census wasn't organized until 1810 and by that time the population had tripled. In the meantime, Ohio created its required constitution, submitted it to Congress without voter approval, and on February 19, 1803, was recognized as a state. But a separate resolution declaring Ohio a state never occurred. In the ensuing rush to create other states out of the Northwest Territory, the resolution was overlooked. When the oversight was finally addressed there was some debate as to the actual date of statehood. Finally on August 7, 1953, the U.S. Congress rectified the situation, making Ohio’s admission as a state retroactive to 1803, officially becoming the 17th state to be admitted to the Union. After some heated debate, Congress and the Ohio Bicentennial Commission declared the date of admission as March 1, 1803, which is now celebrated as "Admission Day." MOTTO "With God, all things are possible." In 1959, the Ohio State Legislature sponsored a competition to find a state motto. Twelve-year-old James Mastronardo submitted this verse from the bible, derived from the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 19, Verse 26. The saying was adopted as Ohio’s official motto. In 1997, its constitutionality was challenged in federal court by the American Civil Liberties Union, but the challenge was defeated. NICKNAMES "The Buckeye State," "The Birthplace of Aviation," "Mother of Modern Presidents" Indigenous to the state, the Ohio buckeye tree (Aesculus glabra) was adopted by the legislature as the state tree. (It's called a buckeye because the markings on the nut are reminiscent of a deer’s eye.) Ohioans started using the nickname "The Buckeye State" during the presidential election of 1840, when William Henry Harrison used the wood of the buckeye to make campaign souvenirs. From Wilbur and Orville Wright to John Glenn and Neil Armstrong, Ohioans have been at the forefront of aviation development, according the state the nickname of "Birthplace of Aviation." The "Mother of Modern Presidents" refers to the fact that a high number of U.S. presidents are natives of the state: Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, and William McKinley. -World Trade Press