West Lafayette Map
West Lafayette is a village in Coshocton County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,313 at the 2000 census.
West Lafayette was laid out in 1850 by Robert Shaw and William Wheeler. In 1855, the Steubenville and Indiana Railroad was built through the new town. The line became known as the Panhandle Route and was operated in the Pennsylvania Railroad system and currently by the Columbus and Ohio River Railroad (Ohio Central Railroad System). Tragedy struck this track on September 11, 1950 when the crack passenger train "Spirit of Saint Louis" hit another train carrying 600 men of the 109th Field Artillery Battalion of the Pennsylvania National Guard. 33 men were killed. A memorial was placed near the site of the accident in 1990. A 105mm howitzer is at the memorial also, commemorating the manufacture of 105mm shells at Moore Enamelling across the tracks during WWII.
The village was once known as the "Enamel Center of the World". Before plastics were invented, steel vessels covered with a ceramic called enamelware were the norm in American homes. In 1903 the Lafayette Stamping and Enameling Co. was founded. Moore Enameling and Jones Metal also manufactured enamelware. Jones Metal remains. Another industry is Yankee Wire, manufacturer of wire screens.
Nearby cities include Baltic, Kimbolton, Port Washington, Stone Creek, Warsaw.