The Village of Roscoe is not the only Roscoe village

We all know Roscoe, settled in 1835 and incorporated in 1965, but we may not know other communities which share the same name.

Roscoe Village in Ohio dates back to 1816. James Calder founded  a community across  the Muskingum River from Coshocton, Ohio, hoping that farmers would rather shop with him than pay 25 cents to cross the river to Coshocton. He named it Caldersburgh because he thought the name sounded nice, but in 1830, residents renamed the community to Roscoe because they thought it sounded nicer to honor William Roscoe, a famous English abolitionist and historian, who was the namesake of several other places at the time, possibly including us. TripAdvisor invites visitors to "experience life during the 1830s in this beautifully restored canal era town called Historic Roscoe Village. 'Step back in time' with a living history experience complete with costumed interpreters, hands-on activities, shopping, dining, lodging and a horse-drawn canal boat ride."

Roscoe Village (not "Village of Roscoe") in Chicago was a German community, mostly greenhouses, in the late 1800s. Then after 1906, with the opening of Riverview Park and many roller coasters, people began to call it the Coney Island of Chicago. During the Great Depression, it was dominated by political boss Charlie "the Burgomeister" Weber until his death in 1959, when probate discovered that he hadn't kept much of the millions of dollars that had flowed through his hands during his reign. Factories were built, factories were closed, but by the late 1970s, it became known for quaint, upscale, trendy shops and restaurants - "a village within a city." Well, they may be upscale and trendy, but they don't have what real villages have, such as taxes.

Then there's Roscoe, New York, in the Catskills, which says, "Roscoe has been known internationally for decades as Trout Town, USA. Conveniently located about two hours from New York City, Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Roscoe is home to five of America’s top trout streams as well as numerous pristine lakes and plentiful reservoirs, making this an angler’s paradise." But they also make Roscoe Beer and attract tourists.

But we can get smaller and more obscure. Roscoe, Pennsylvania, founded in 1869, has about 800 residents but was apparently the namesake of Roscoe Street in Chicago, which became the namesake of Roscoe Village, Chicago.  Roscoe, Nebraska is an unincorporated community with a 2010 population of 63, in Keith County  in the valley of the South Platte River. In the 1870s, it was on the train route, but no longer, and is said to feature several interesting abandoned buildings.

And there's also Roscoe, Georgia (named for New York Congressman Roscoe Conkling who was in turn named for William Roscoe); Roscoe, Minnesota (two of them); Roscoe, Missouri (population 89); Roscoe, Montana (home of the Grizzly Bar & Grill);  Roscoe, South Dakota (also named for Roscoe Conkling); and Roscoe, Texas (home of the  Roscoe Wind Farm, the Plowboy Mudbog, and Congressman Jake Pickle).

More News from Roscoe

• Roscoe Fall Festival: fun times for everyone This year marked the 114th anniversary of the festival, with Roscoe Lions taking the reins for 54 of those years.
• Death notices for the Stateline: Sept. 16, 2024 We remember those who are no longer with us in Roscoe, Rockton, and South Beloit.