History of the Highland County Health Department

In 1919, Ohio passed the Hughes-Griswold Act, establishing the modern public health system that health departments operate under today. This legislation was part of the state’s response to the Spanish Influenza pandemic, highlighting the need for designated agencies to manage public health and disease control.

Highland County’s local health district was founded in February 1920. Early health department efforts focused on dairy safety, nuisance complaints, antitoxin treatments, and vaccinations. The department’s staff included a part-time doctor, a nurse, and several part-time food inspectors. Due to travel limitations, early inspectors were responsible for only a few townships, based on how far they could travel by horse each day. Some of the first department budgets even included expenses for horse and carriage travel to Columbus for statewide meetings.

Today, the health department continues to work in many of the same areas, including environmental health, food safety, public health nursing, emergency preparedness, and health education. With a staff of 14, we now manage over 60 public health programs, all designed to improve the health and safety of Highland County residents.