WVXU: Why is part of Green Township called Dent?
UC geologist explains origins of Ohio village
WVXU turned to a University of Cincinnati geologist to explain how an Ohio village on Cincinnati's West Side got its unusual name.
WVXU tried to answer listener Mike Wuerth's question about how the section of Green Township known as Dent got its colorful name as part of the station's OKI Wanna Know series.
The Green Township Historical Association said the village once was called Challensville after a local property owner, the Rev. James Challens. But state politician Charles Reemelin suggested the village be called Dent after its valley topography.
UC Associate Professor of Geosciences Dylan Ward said Dent got its "dent" from Ohio's glacial past.
The area drained into what we called today Taylor Creek, he said.
"The reason this catchment is deeper and a little bit bigger than its neighbors is because of where that creek joins the Great Miami (River), right around Miamitown," Ward says. "That part of the Great Miami was relocated by the last ice sheet."
Ward said Dent is one example of how glaciers and rivers shaped Ohio's landscapes today.
"This area of Dent is just one little microcosm of the kinds of interactions between glaciers, rivers and the terrain around them," he told WVXU.
Featured image at top: UC Associate Professor Dylan Ward, left, talks to geosciences students on a rocky beach during a field trip in California. Also pictured is UC Associate Professor Daniel Sturmer. Photo/Michael Miller
Related Stories
Sugar overload killing hearts
November 10, 2025
Two in five people will be told they have diabetes during their lifetime. And people who have diabetes are twice as likely to develop heart disease. One of the deadliest dangers? Diabetic cardiomyopathy. But groundbreaking University of Cincinnati research hopes to stop and even reverse the damage before it’s too late.
Is going nuclear the solution to Ohio’s energy costs?
November 10, 2025
The Ohio Capital Journal recently reported that as energy prices continue to climb, economists are weighing the benefits of going nuclear to curb costs. The publication dove into a Scioto Analysis survey of 18 economists to weigh the pros and cons of nuclear energy. One economist featured was Iryna Topolyan, PhD, professor of economics at the Carl H. Lindner College of Business.
App turns smartwatch into detector of structural heart disease
November 10, 2025
An app that uses an AI model to read a single-lead ECG from a smartwatch can detect structural heart disease, researchers reported at the 2025 Scientific Sessions of the American Heart Association. Although the technology requires further validation, researchers said it could help improve the identification of patients with heart failure, valvular conditions and left ventricular hypertrophy before they become symptomatic, which could improve the prognosis for people with these conditions.