Tornadoes in the state of Ohio are relatively uncommon, with roughly 16 tornadoes touching down every year since 1804, the year with the first recorded event in the state. Many of Ohio's tornadoes are violent, and there have been four recorded F5 or EF5 Tornadoes in Ohio's history.
Climatology Ohio's climate is relatively mild, and is only ideal for the formation of tornadoes during certain times of the year, especially February and March. Warm air from the Southern United States can reach up into the Ohio Valley, resulting in tornadic storms. Ohio's proximity to Lake Erie also results in cold air moving toward the Ohio Valley, creating the "hot-cold" effect seen in the traditional Tornado Alley. Ohio has been a part of multiple large tornado outbreaks, the most notable being the 1974 Super Outbreak.
Events
Pre-1950
August 1804 – The first-ever confirmed tornado touched down in Geauga County at an unknown intensity. February 4, 1842 – A violent tornado impacted the communities of Mayfield and Kirtland in northeastern Ohio, destroying dozens of houses and killing at least 2. March 28, 1920 – An F4 tornado touched down in Wells County in Indiana, before crossing the Indiana-Ohio state line into Paulding County. Several homes were destroyed, and a small store was hit, killing 6. It also moved through Fulton County, hitting Swanton, completely destroying multiple small businesses and homes. In total, 23 were killed, 54 were injured, and the tornado caused an estimated $1,000,000 (1920 USD) in damages. Another F4 tornado touched down in Jay County in Indiana, before tracking into Mercer and Van Wert counties. The tornado killed 17 and injured 70, and multiple houses were completely destroyed. An FU tornado touched down in Grand Lake St. Marys, causing only minor damage and injuring several hikers. A tornado touched down near Bowling Green, inflicting F2 damage to an estimated 36 homes and killing 2 people. An F3 tornado that initially formed and touched down in Wayne County in Indiana crossed the state line into Darke County, killing 5 and destroying 6 barns. A large and extremely violent F4 tornado caused extensive damage to Randolph County in Indiana before crossing into Darke County, killing 8 people who were sheltering in homes and causing an estimated $1,000,000 (1920 USD) in damages. June 28, 1924 – Multiple tornadoes touched down across northern Ohio, including two unrated tornadoes in Erie County and one in Portage County.1924: Lorain Tornado An extremely powerful and violent F4 tornado hit Sandusky and Lorain, killing 85 and injuring over 300. The tornado destroyed bridges and homes in its path, and caused an estimated $12 million (1920 USD) in damages to roads and other structures.1924: Lorain Tornado June 23, 1944 – A relatively brief and weak F2 tornado tracked through Portage County, inflicting damage to crops and houses. Several livestock were killed, but no injuries were reported.Grazulis, Significant Tornadoes, 915. June 7, 1947 – A long tracked F4 affected areas from near Silver Lake in Summit County, through Vienna in Trumbull County before affecting Sharon across the state line in Pennsylvania. Six lives were lost and 340 were injured.
1950–1959
June 27, 1951 – A strong F2 tornado tracked through Butler County, hitting Jacksonburg and causing an estimated $2.5 million (1951 USD) in damages. May 24, 1952 – A brief F1 tornado was observed by multiple people as it tracked into Bedford, destroying road signs and heavily damaging houses. June 8, 1953 – An extremely powerful and long-tracked F4 tornado tracked through Henry, Wood, Sandusky, Erie, Lorain and Cuyahoga counties, destroying an estimated 110 homes and killing 17 people. November 15, 1955 – A long-tracked F3 tornado moved through Randolph County in Indiana before crossing into Darke County, damaging houses and injuring 8. The tornado caused $2.52 million (1955 USD) in damages. February 10, 1959 – An intense F3 tornado hit Sugar Tree Ridge, destroying 12 farms. A vehicle that took a direct hit from the tornado was thrown over 75 yards away, and a house caught fire as the tornado downed power lines. 6 people were injured, and the tornado caused $250,000 (1959 USD) in damages.
1960–1969
April 25, 1961 – A violent and long-tracked F4 tornado caused extensive damage in Western Indiana before crossing the state line into Preble County, destroying homes and other structures. 7 were injured and the tornado caused $12.5 million (1961 USD) in damages. A strong F2 tornado touched down in Blanchester, tracking through Clinton County. Two people were killed in separate barns near Martinsville, and 4 others were injured. May 6, 1961 – A long-tracked and violent F3 tornado tore through Steuben County in Indiana before crossing into Williams County. Homes and crops were destroyed, and five people were injured. May 8, 1961 – An F1 tornado touched down in Bethel, before damaging roofs and trees near White Oak. The tornado caused $2,500 (1961 USD) in damages, but caused no injuries. A multi-vortex tornado inflicted F1 damage to Tuscarawas, downing power lines and heavily damaging outbuildings and causing $25,000 (1961 USD) in damages. May 9, 1961 – A brief F1 tornado caused damage to a movie theater in Warsaw, and multiple barns were destroyed in rural Coshocton County. May 23, 1962 – A small but strong F1 tornado hit Aurora, destroying various buildings and causing a large power outage. The tornado caused an estimated $250,000 (1962 USD) in damages, but nobody was injured. May 26, 1962 – A brief F2 tornado tracked through Ross County, damaging a Y Drive Inn, two restaurants, and a service station. The tornado caused $25,000 (1962 USD) in damages, and no injuries were reported. April 11, 1965 – A violent F4 tornado initially touched down in Blackford and Adams counties in Indiana before crossing the state line into Mercer County, destroying an estimated 15 homes while killing 4 people. 125 people were injured and the tornado caused $52.750 million (1965 USD) in damages. Another F4 tornado tracked through Allen and Hancock counties, destroying farms and outbuildings. 13 people were killed, 104 were injured and the tornado inflicted $2.7 million (1965 USD) in damages. Shortly after the Allen-Hancock tornado had lifted, another F4 tornado touched down in Lucas County, flipping over a bus in Toledo and killing 5 people. 50 homes were destroyed and vehicles were tossed hundreds of yards as the tornado crossed into Monroe County in Michigan. In total, 18 people were killed and 237 were injured. An F4 tornado tracked through Shelby County, impacting farms in mainly rural areas but killing 3 people. 2 were injured when the tornado flipped over a trailer. An F3 tornado moved through Seneca County, destroying four homes and killing 4 people. A violent F4 tornado hit near Pittsfield, destroying multiple homes and other structures while killing 18 people. The tornado was estimated to have caused $50,000 (1965 USD) in damages. A brief F1 tornado touched down in Eaton, damaging a building. Another brief F1 tornado tracked through Medina County, heavily damaging multiple homes and injuring 6 people. A long-tracked F2 tornado moved through Union, Delaware and Morrow counties, destroying an estimated 25 homes and killing 4 farmers. A brief F1 tornado caused minor damage in areas near Cedarville, and no injuries were reported. April 12, 1965 – A long-tracked F1 tornado moved through Pickaway, Fairfield and Perry counties, destroying 12 mobile homes and injuring 13 people. The tornado caused an estimated $750,000 (1965 USD) in damages. A brief F1 tornado also touched down in Cadiz, causing minor damage to various buildings. April 23, 1968 – A long-tracked and intense F4 tornado tracked through Pendleton and Bracken counties in Kentucky, before crossing the state line into Brown County. Many homes were destroyed, and a farm was obliterated in Adams County. 6 people were killed and 364 were injured, and the tornado had F5 windspeeds at various points during its lifetime. Another large F4 tornado touched down near Glen Este, destroying 35 homes, 50 barns, and killing one person. The tornado caused a total of $7.5 million (1968 USD) in damages. A brief F1 tornado also touched down near Fayette, downing power lines and damaging trees. Another F1 tornado caused extensive damage in Licking County, causing $250,000 (1968 USD) in damages but injuring nobody. An F2 tornado tracked through Scioto County, directly impacting the Greater Portsmouth Regional Airport and damaging 12 aircraft. One person was injured and the tornado caused an estimated $250,000 (1968 USD) in damages. A long-tracked F5 tornado touched down in Greenup County in Kentucky before crossing state lines into Scioto and Lawrence counties. The tornado killed 7 people, and injured a further 93. May 15, 1968 – A brief F1 tornado touched down near Wooster, damaging farms and crops. Another F2 tornado touched down nearby, damaging various barns and outbuildings.
1970–1979
June 12, 1970 – A brief F0 tornado touched down in Ashland County, causing little damage. June 14, 1970 – A small F1 tornado destroyed a barn and a tool shed in Ross County, but no injuries were reported. February 22, 1971 – A relatively short-tracked F2 tornado moved through Fayette and Pickaway counties, destroying barns and heavily damaging crop fields. An intense F3 tornado touched down in Franklin County, moving through eastern Columbus and causing $2.8 million (1971 USD) in damages. April 3, 1974 – A violent F5 tornado hit Xenia, killing 34 people and injuring an estimated 1,150 people. Much of Xenia was completely destroyed, and the tornado was estimated to have caused $250 million (1974 USD) in damages. An F2 tornado hit London, destroying a grain silo before lifting. Another F5 tornado initially touched down in Ohio County in Indiana, before tracking into Kentucky and then crossing state lines into Hamilton County. Three people were killed, and multiple homes were destroyed. An F4 tornado moved through Cincinnati, destroying various structures in the northern portion of the city and killing 2 people. An F2 tornado hit Lebanon, destroying multiple mobile homes but causing no injuries. Another F2 tornado hit New Albany, damaging 20 homes and destroying 3 barns. An F1 tornado moved through Circleville, causing little damage. An F2 tornado in Continental damaged multiple mobile homes, and 2 barns were destroyed. An F3 tornado killed one person near West Union and injured four others. An F1 tornado tracked through Brown and Adams counties, causing minor damage to rural outbuildings and crops. An F3 tornado hit Paulding, destroying 5 mobile homes but injuring nobody. An F1 tornado that briefly impacted Melrose destroyed a mobile home, and another F1 tornado directly south of Paulding caused minor damage. An F1 tornado in Aberdeen caused minor damage to crops but was unconfirmed and may have been a brief downburst. April 1, 1974 – A brief F0 tornado touched down in Greenville, causing minor damage to a television antenna.
1980–1989
June 2, 1980 – An F1 tornado in Hamilton County damaged houses, and injured 15 people. Another F2 tornado impacted areas near Oak Hill and Patriot, damaging 2 homes and destroying 7 barns.