As 2008 has now officially arrived, birthday greetings are in order for Ohio locales celebrating their 200th birthday.

Portage County’s Bicenntennial Celebration starts out on January 19 with an Opening Gala, and a full slate of festivities for the remainder of the year are profiled on the special Bicennential website. These events include parades, vintage baseball games, tours, religious observances and more. For the curious, minutes are included for Bicentennial Committee meetings going back to 2005.

A few miles to the west, the City of Wooster in Wayne County is also celebrating its 200th birthday this year. Another full year of events is profiled on the celebration website, which includes historic tours, the opening of a historic house museum, a parade and historical movies from previous Wooster birthday celebrations.

Preble County’s 200th birthday takes place this year, and their Bicentennial website is a comprehensive look at the history of this Western Ohio county. Among other highlights covered is a discussion of the Bicentennial Tribute Project, which involves a makeover of the county’s fairgrounds facilities.

A year full of celebratory events is planned in the City of Delaware and in Delaware County, both of which were established in 1808, and the two have joined forces for the occasion. Links on the Bicentennial website include excepts from local history and a calendar of events – which include a beard-growing contest, concerts, reenactments and more.

Finally, the City of Mansfield becomes 200 years old this year. The primary focus of local celebrations will occur during June and July, with three celebration weekends – a heritage celebration, a downtown festival, and 4th of July events. The original Mansfield blockhouse, which still contains timbers from the city’s first public building, will be restored for the occasion.  Click here to visit the celebration online.

Pal-Item.com reports on the work of students to catalogue and preserve the history of Longtown, a community founded in the 1820s which included many freed slaves, Native Americans and other ethnic groups. Efforts are backed by the Union Literary Institute Preservation Society, which owns and maintains the James and Sofia Clemons House there.

In December, Preservation Online featured a story on the fate of the Big Dipper, a 1925 wooden roller coaster at the just-closed Geauga Lake Amusement Park. The park’s owner has announced that the coaster is available for sale; many, including US Senator Sherrod Brown, have advocated for the unique coaster remaining in Ohio.

The author of “Abundant Curiosities” recently wrote about a trip to Maumee, where she took pictures of an 1835 house that caught her eye. Click here to read about her observations.

The newest home for the Laborers Local 860 chapter in Cleveland is not in the suburbs – its in a restored, opulent 19th century mansion downtown. The 1880 house underwent an eighteen month restoration process that culminated in the chapter’s move in October. A spokesperson relayed that this is probably the only such local headquarters in the country. Click here for the story.

Queen City Survey relays that there is still time to visit two exhibits centering on Cincinnati’s built history. The first, “Cincinnati: A Glimpse from the Past” features vintage photographic scenes of the community and area, while the second, “Endangered Cincinnati: Can These Buildings be Saved?” is a photo and information display about local endangered historic sites.