In the early 1800s, a wooded hilltop in southwestern Ohio became the site for Miami University and the town of Oxford. Miami was named for the area's Native American inhabitants and Oxford for the university town in England. By mid-century, Oxford was a well-established academic community featuring a university plus a men's theological seminary and three educational institutions for women. Oxford depicts the town's historic ties to higher education and its notable people, including U.S. President Benjamin Harrison and his wife Caroline Scott, author William Holmes McGuffey, and apiarist Lorenzo Langstroth. Today's Oxford continues to offer superior educational opportunities, athletic events, and cultural activities.
Valerie Edwards Elliott is the Head of the Smith Library of Regional History, author of numerous local history articles, and co-author of the award-winning Walking Tour of the Uptown Oxford Historic District.