The state of Ohio is turning 209 years old, and is celebrating with a Statehouse exhibit that examines the debate over statehood between two founding fathers.
Ohio's birthday today marks the day when it became the country's 17th state on March 1, 1803.
Statehood came a year after President Thomas Jefferson approved a law allowing residents to form a constitutional convention and start the process toward becoming a state.
An Ohio Statehouse exhibit running through tomorrow depicts the debate between Thomas Worthington, a political leader in the Northwest Territory, and the territory's governor Arthur St. Clair.
Worthington strongly backed statehood for Ohio, while St. Clair opposed it, preferring the creation of two states.