History of Worthington

Worthington - A Proud Past and An Exciting Future

The first settlers to Worthington were attracted by the prospect of bountiful harvests from these fertile prairies and, of course, beautiful Lake Okabena. It was transportation, however, that was responsible for the founding of this city more than 120 years ago with the coming of the Sioux City and St. Paul railroads.

This spot on the prairie was given the name Okabena Station by railroad officials. The name, Worthington, was later selected to honor the family of the wife of Dr. A.P. Miller, one of the original members of the community. Like the city in Ohio, the name comes from a prominent family in that state. Among the first Worthington settlers were those brought here by the National Colony Company of Toledo, Ohio. The colony’s founders believed in abstinence from alcohol and wanted a settlement filled with other families who share strict moral standards, in short - other "drys."

Worthington has more than 20 parks, many of them located around 785-acre Lake Okabena. The lake’s name comes from the language of the Sioux and means "nesting place of herons." Chautauqua Park began as a gathering place for families interested in one-day events or a tent camping experience, and was the setting for the famous old-time evangelist Billy Sunday who began his revivals in 1906. A bandshell, built as a Works Progress Administration project during the Great Depression of the 1930s still stands today, lovingly maintained by city workers and is the site of summer band concerts.

Today, Worthington is rated by U.S. government demographers as a complete shopping center, defined as a population center which has within its corporate limits all of the basic lines of goods and services which are required by contemporary Americans for their day-to-day lives. Worthington has a wide variety of goods and services along with complete medical facilities, primary, secondary and post-secondary schools, news media and industry.