It’s hard to know what Waynesville is better known as, the Antiques Capital of the Midwest, or the Home of the famous Sauerkraut festival. This village of 2,800 residents was named for General “Mad” Anthony Wayne.
Samuel Heighway founded Waynesville in 1797 and based his design for the town on an English village with formal parks and squares arranged around a central public square. Its leading industry today is tourism, as Waynesville is best known for its 85 antique shops. It’s a constant hustle and bustle downtown on Old Main Street with tourists and town residents coming and going. Housing reflects that old time character and charm, and there are some lovely renovated farmhouses and estates both in and out of town. If you prefer newer homes, you will have quite a selection of homes to select from.
Transportation
Waynesville is located at the intersection St. Rt. 42 and St Rt. 73, a few minutes off I-71 in northeastern Warren County, 30 minutes southeast of Dayton. Red Stewart Airfield is located on Route 42 and is a grass airfield.
Hospitals
It is 30 minutes south to northern Cincinnati’s Bethesda North TriHealth Hospital. If you head north, it’s 35 minutes to downtown Dayton offering Grandview Medical Center, Southview Medical Center, Dayton Children’s Hospital, and Miami Valley Regional Hospital.
Shopping
Old Main Street is the starting point for your antique adventure. With more than 85 antique shops, 17 restaurants and other attractions, you'll need more than a day to explore all that this charming town has to offer. Local merchants also supply the needs of this growing community with hardware, grocery and other services nearby.
Recreation
Caesar Creek State Park and the Pioneer Village are popular regional destinations for camping, boating and swimming trips.
The town offers an entertaining summer concert series at Bicentennial Park. For the more adventurous who want to explore, Waynesville has been called the most haunted town in Ohio complete with ghost sightings and ghost stories.
In 1999 Waynesville was named one of the most walkable cities by Walking Magazine with lovely trails through town and the nearby state park. But, it’s perhaps best known as host to the annual Sauerkraut Festival, held the second weekend in October. Christmas in the Village is an annual event when you can step back into time with luminaries, carriage rides, costumed characters and more. The annual fall Ohio Renaissance Festival is held in nearby Harveysburg.
Lifestyle
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