Ironton is a city in and the county seat of Lawrence County, Ohio, United States. Located in southernmost Ohio along the Ohio River, the city includes the Downtown Ironton Historic District.The population was 11,129 at the 2010 census. Ironton is part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). As of the 2010 census, the MSA had a population of 287,702. New definitions from February 28, 2013 placed the population at 363,000.Ironton is a contraction of "iron town". The city has a long history with the iron industry. It also had one of the first professional football teams.HistoryIronton was founded in 1849 by John Campbell, a prominent pig iron manufacturer in the area. Interested in expanding his foundry business, and due to the area's rich iron-ore content (particularly in the hills to the north), he became interested in the lands surrounding what would later become the city of Ironton. He chose the location of Ironton because of its site along the Ohio River, which would allow for water transport of iron ore to markets downriver. He knew that the slope of the land would aid in transport of the raw material to the local blast furnaces.
