A historical overview of Ohio's county boards of education is provided in this document. State legislation passed in 1914 provided statewide school standards, established the county boards of education, and outlined the county superintendent's qualifications. The new boards' major responsibilities included teacher supervision and the reorganization of rural districts through centralization. Chapter 1 explains how counties in Ohio were established, and chapter 2 describes the early schools. The Ohio School Survey of 1913, which led to the passage of the "New School Code" in 1914, is described in the third chapter. Chapters 4 and 5 present information on the establishment of the county boards of education and the early years of the county school districts. Chapters 6 through 11 examine how the county boards and the dominant administrative issues changed during the Depression years through the present. Chapter 12 focuses on the boards' function as a vital learning link in providing a variety of cost-effective services. Chapters 13 and 14 describe past board accomplishments and offer recommendations for the future. Two tables, one figure, and two photographs are included. Appendices include sections of the 1914 "New School Code" and a list of county superintendents (1914-1989). (Contains 56 references.) (LMI)